In the center of the plot is the Vatican list of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the main Orthodox shrine of Kazan. The film describes four layers of Russian history: the liberation of Moscow by the militia of Minin and Pozharsky, the battle of Poltava, the Patriotic War of 1812 and the Great Patriotic War. During all these events, the Orthodox inhabitants of Tatarstan turned to their protector, the icon of the Kazan Mother of God, for help. It is believed that the icon was carried away in 1611 by the Kazan militia and later helped Minin and Pozharsky liberate Moscow from the Poles.
Nikolay Burlyaev is a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor, best known for his title role in Andrei Tarkovsky's Ivan's Childhood.