The history of the main Orthodox cathedral of Odessa is closely intertwined with the history of the city itself. In ancient times, every city began with a temple. As people settled in a new place, they erected a cross, built a church on that site, and held the first prayer "for the foundation of this city." Over time, the city expanded, new churches appeared, but the first temple remained the most important.

The Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior, contemporary with Odessa, has witnessed many significant events in the city. The cathedral park, where the cathedral is located, was intended by its founders to become the main square of Odessa. The first stone for the temple was laid in 1795. The project by engineer V. Vonrezant planned for the construction to be completed in 1797, but it was halted because Paul I, who became emperor in 1796, stopped the funding promised by Catherine II. After his sudden death in 1801, thanks to the efforts of Osip Deribas, funding was resumed, and under the guidance of architect Franz Frappoli, construction was completed in 1809.

On May 25, 1809, the church was consecrated and named the Transfiguration Cathedral. Franz's brother, Giovanni Frappoli, also participated in the construction, creating the design for the bell tower, which stands 74 meters tall, built from 1825 to 1837. The main bell was cast from 28 Turkish cannons captured in 1828-1829. The spire of the bell tower was visible from the sea and was mentioned in nautical charts.

Historians suggest that Pushkin and Lermontov may have met in the cathedral. On October 9, 1828, Emperor Nicholas I prayed in the cathedral after being saved from a storm. In 1837, Odessa became the residence of the Kherson-Taurida archbishop, and the cathedral began to be rebuilt. Architect D. Heydenreich constructed the refectory part in 1841 and 1848, connecting the bell tower and the old church. In 1854, a copper cross was in the cathedral, cast from coins of soldiers passing through Odessa to Sevastopol.

During the Crimean War, the city was shelled, but the cathedral withstood. In 1889, Anna Akhmatova was baptized here. In 1894, the cathedral was renovated according to the project of L. Prokopovich, and from 1900 to 1903, a reconstruction was carried out, changing the facades and interior. After that, the cathedral could accommodate up to 9,000 people.

In 1919, the actress Vera Holodnaya was memorialized in the cathedral. Count Mikhail Vorontsov and his wife Elizabeth were buried here. In 1936, the cathedral was destroyed, and a monument to Stalin stood on its site in the 1950s.

The restoration of the cathedral began in 1999. It was recreated in the form it had after the 1903 reconstruction. The dimensions of the building are 46.6 by 90.6 meters, and the height of the bell tower is 72 meters. In 2008, a 14-ton bell, the largest in Ukraine, was cast. In 2010, Patriarch Kirill consecrated the main altar, completing the restoration of the cathedral. The central iconostasis was painted by artist Georgy Zhuravsky. In 2005, the remains of the Vorontsovs were reburied, and in 2010, the restored cathedral was consecrated.