Academician Vasily Osipovich Klyuchevsky, recognized as one of the leading historians of the Russian Empire, was known not only as an outstanding teacher and scholar. He was distinguished by his brilliant sense of humor, phenomenal memory, and deep knowledge of history. For example, when Fyodor Shalyapin was preparing for the role of the tsar in the production of "Boris Godunov," he turned to Klyuchevsky for consultation to better understand the era and its characters. According to Shalyapin's recollections, the academic not only reproduced dialogues between Shuisky and Godunov but also conveyed the characteristic dialect of that time. "He spoke so vividly that I seemed to see those he portrayed. Listening to him, I thought: 'What a pity that Vasily Osipovich does not sing and cannot play Prince Vasily with me,'" recalled Shalyapin.

Klyuchevsky believed that complex topics should be explained simply and accessibly. Perhaps that is why he was witty. For example, despite his wealth, he continued to wear an old, worn-out fur coat, which led his friends to often tease him: "Why don't you buy a new fur coat, Vasily Osipovich? Look, it's all worn out." To which Klyuchevsky replied: "By the face, the fur coat too." On another occasion, he was reproached for a stained uniform that he did not like to wear. "Even the sun is not without spots," he retorted.

Students adored him for his wonderful lectures. If a lecture was canceled, it became a real disaster for them. Once, while climbing to the second floor of Moscow University, Klyuchevsky slipped, and his sheets of text flew everywhere. The students tried to gather them, but mixed up the order. Klyuchevsky calmed them down: "It's okay, I will tell it from memory." And indeed, he delivered the lecture interestingly and without a hitch. It is no surprise that after his death, students carried his coffin to the Don Cemetery on their hands.