Prince Vasily Vasilyevich Golitsyn, born in 1643 in Moscow, was an outstanding Russian boyar, diplomat, and statesman, as well as a favorite of Tsarevna Sofia Alexeyevna. He came from the ancient Golitsyn family, tracing its roots back to the Lithuanian prince Gediminas. His father, Prince Vasily Andreyevich Golitsyn, and mother, Princess Tatyana Ivanovna Romodanovskaya, provided him with a good education. After his father's death, when Vasily was only 9 years old, his mother took on the responsibility for the children, ensuring they received a proper education. Vasily Vasilyevich was fluent in several languages, including Latin and German, and was knowledgeable in mathematics and other sciences.

At the age of 15, he began service at the court of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, where he gradually rose through the ranks, becoming the chief steward in 1676. During the reign of Fyodor III Alexeyevich, he held important state positions and participated in the Chigirin campaigns. In 1682, during the Moscow uprising, Golitsyn supported the Miloslavsky faction and Tsarevna Sofia Alexeyevna, which allowed him to become the de facto first person in state administration. In 1683, he received the title of voivode and a title related to state and diplomatic affairs.

During Sofia's reign, Golitsyn headed several departments and was the initiator of the abolition of the mestnichestvo in 1682. He sought to reform the noble cavalry and the streltsy army, as well as develop plans for the transformation of Russia. In foreign policy, he advocated for rapprochement with Europe and successfully extended the Treaty of Kardis with Sweden, and in 1686 concluded a favorable 'Eternal Peace' with Poland.

In 1687 and 1689, Golitsyn led military campaigns against the Crimean Khanate, which, despite significant losses, weakened Crimea and Turkey. After the fall of Sofia's government in 1689, Golitsyn fell into disgrace, was stripped of his boyar status and property, and exiled with his family to Kargopol, and then to Yarenks. Later, accused of conspiracy against Peter I, he was exiled to the Pustozersk prison, and then to the village of Kologory in the Pinezhsky district, where he died on April 21 (May 2) 1714. He was buried in the Krasnogorsk Mother of God Monastery near Pinega.