Before the campaign, Ivan decided to hold a solemn entry into the city, but on December 17 the army marched to meet Polotsk.

[8] A collection of documents on the campaign, "Polotsk book" (Russian: Полоцкая книга), reports that there were 31,206 people in the entire army.

[9] Modern authors assume that more reinforcements from the Tatars arrived immediately at the time of the siege; according to this, the total number was 45,000.

The stretched army was forced to march quickly and at the same time provide protection for the baggage train.

Due to the difficulties at this moment, there were cases of defection to the enemy, which allowed the Lithuanians to prepare a siege.

Initially the assault should begin on the ice of a frozen lake, but such actions were too dangerous and the plan had to be reworked.

[16] On the evening of February 5, the garrison requested negotiations, Tsar Ivan agreed and a delegation of the Orthodox nobility of the city arrived to him.

In one day, up to 3,000 yards were destroyed and the second assault began, following which Dmitry Hvorostin's detachment occupied the main part of the city, Veliky Posad, which was engulfed in fire.

[20] The siege is noted as one of the most striking Russian victories in the Livonian War,[21] which also made a huge impression on contemporaries.

German leaflets of that time constantly flashed information that the Muscovites had killed more than 80,000 inhabitants, despite the fact that the city itself could not fit more than 20,000.

[15] Subsequently, Mikołaj Radziwiłł the Black organized a propaganda campaign against the Russians and released a popular leaflet, "the terrible invasion of Polotsk" [ru].