History first records its name in 1480, when Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow, who had conquered Novgorod in 1471, settled many Novgorodians in the area.

[1] In 2014, Jacques von Polier designed the Raketa Monumental which is largest watch mechanism in the world.

In 1991 the statue of Dzerzhinsky was removed by liberal protesters following the failure of the coup attempt against Mikhail Gorbachev, and the square's original name was officially restored.

Originally built for the insurance company Rossiya, it later became better known for housing the headquarters of the KGB in its various incarnations.

It hosts in its main atrium the world's largest mechanical clock movement: Raketa Monumental.