Prince Ivan Petrovich Shuisky entered the annals of Russian history with one single great victory. He defended Pskov, besieged by the army of the Polish king Stefan Batory. Russia really needed this victory: in difficult times, it encouraged the Russian army, which had lost heart after several years of heavy defeats. But with all this, we must not forget that before the Pskov victory and after it, Ivan Petrovich devoted a lot of energy to the service of the Moscow sovereigns. The many campaigns and battles in which he took part made him one of the most experienced military leaders of his time. Shuisky's biography is filled to capacity with the clanking of swords, military cries and cannon thunder. His life, the life of an aristocrat, nobleman, governor, allows us to understand how the biographies of other outstanding courtiers and pillars of the Russian state were built.