The article includes results of social philosophical research of the phenomenon of the historical memory, peculiarities of its formation, functioning and keeping at the present stage of development of the Russian society. The topic of the article is very relevant today, especially in terms of formation of a new configuration of geopolitical relations between the subjects of global policy. The aim of this research is to analyze the historical memory as a factor of formation of a national identity of Russians. The authors of the article come to a conclusion about impossibility to equate concepts of memory and history. History is essentially considered as a representation of the past. Memory is an always actual but a selective phenomenon, an experienced link between the past and the present. The modern world undergoes not only economic and political crisis. The most existential anxiety is caused by the crisis of a personal and national identity. Maintenance of the historical memory of the Russian nation is a high-priority task of the government in providing national security.