History · Moscow
A short history of Moscow: the Kremlin, the merchants and the modern city
Moscow’s story in brief, told through the buildings you can visit today. By the ULTIMATE Moscow Editorial Team.
Updated October 2026
A fortress on the river
Moscow is first recorded in the chronicles in 1147. The red-brick walls and towers of the Kremlin that you see today were built in the late 15th century, with Italian architects among the builders, and the Cathedral Square churches rose inside them (Wikipedia; kreml.ru).
St Basil’s and Red Square
St Basil’s, the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed, was built on Red Square in the 16th century; it is now part of the State Historical Museum (shm.ru).
Fire and rebuilding
Much of the city burned in the great fire of 1812, and Moscow was rebuilt in the decades that followed; the Bolshoi’s building and many of the classical mansions of the centre date from this time (Wikipedia).
The merchants and their collections
In the 19th century, Moscow’s merchants built grand houses and great collections: Pavel Tretyakov’s gift became the Tretyakov Gallery, and the Eliseev brothers opened their gilded grocery on Tverskaya (tretyakovgallery.ru; Wikipedia).
The Metro and the Seven Sisters
The Metro opened in 1935, and the seven high-rise towers known as the Seven Sisters were built from the late 1940s; VDNKh opened in 1939 and the Ostankino Tower was completed in 1967 (Wikipedia).
The new Moscow
In the 21st century the city opened Zaryadye Park beside the Kremlin in 2017, and GES-2, a power station remade by Renzo Piano, in 2021 (ges-2.org; Wikipedia).
Questions and answers
When was Moscow founded?
It is first recorded in the chronicles in 1147.
Sources: the venues’ own websites and, where those cannot be reached, English Wikipedia (checked 31 October 2026).