Glinka went back to Russia. He wrote two great operas. The first one was called "Ivan Susanin". The story of the opera, set in 1612, is about a poor peasant Ivan Susanin who dies to save the life of the Tsar (the Tsar was the ruler of Russia, like a king or emperor). The Tsar liked the opera and thought that it should be called "A Life for the Tsar". It was a big success when it was first performed in 1836.