[3] The Volkhov River served as a major waterway, a part of the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, since medieval times.

The city of Novgorod was one of the leading political, trading, and cultural centers of East Slavs since the 9th century, and its immediate vicinities were within the current boundaries of the district.

In the 1810s and 1820s, military settlements were organized in Novgorod Governorate, in accordance with the project designed by Aleksey Arakcheyev, an influential statesman.

The military settlements, however, were proven inefficient; in 1831 in particular, the local population participated in the Cholera Riots.

[16] Between August 14, 1941 and February 3, 1944, parts of Novgorodsky District was occupied by German troops.

[13] On July 5, 1944, Novgorodsky District was transferred to newly established Novgorod Oblast,[13] where it remained ever since.

[17] Effective October 1, 1927,[2] Medvedsky District with the administrative center in the selo of Medved was established as well as a part of Novgorod Okrug of Leningrad Oblast.

[15] Effective October 1, 1927,[2] Bronnitsky District with the administrative center in the selo of Bronnitsa was also established as a part of Novgorod Okrug of Leningrad Oblast.

Between October and December 1941, minor parts of Mstinsky District were occupied by German troops.

On July 5, 1944, Mstinsky District was transferred to newly established Novgorod Oblast.

The main agricultural specializations in the district are egg, meat, and milk production, as well as vegetable, potato, and crops growing.

The M10 highway connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg crosses the district, mostly following the left bank of the Volkhov River.

Other roads connect Veliky Novgorod with Pskov and with Staraya Russa via Shimsk, with Luga, and with Malaya Vishera.

For a long time, between the 9th and the 15th centuries, Novgorod was one of the leading political and cultural centers of Rus', and the Volkhov River, which connects Novgorod to the Baltic Sea, was the key part of the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks.

This is why the surroundings of Veliky Novgorod and the banks of the Volkhov contain a large amount of historical, architectural, and archeological monuments, many of which were created in the Middle Ages.

The Rurik hillfort, next to the Nereditsa Church, is an archeological site which was presumably an old location of the city of Novgorod.