The building complex was constructed as the House of Government of Georgian SSR on the site of the demolished 19th-century Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and adjacent churchyard, with burials of the Georgian cadets killed during the Bolshevik invasion of 1921.

The "lower" building, along Rustaveli Avenue, was constructed by the same architects with an input from Vladimer Nasaridze from 1946 to 1953.

The exterior facing the avenue is dominated by a monumental arcade, with massive eaves and "arch" pediment.

[1] The buildings are built of lightweight reinforced concrete, with exterior cladding of tufa rock, granite, and other materials.

[2] The complex was severely damaged during the December 1991–January 1992 military coup, during which the beleaguered President Zviad Gamsakhurdia was entrenched in the underground bunker under the government premises.