The civil building located within the Novgorod Kremlin, known in the 19th-20th centuries as the Nikitin Corps, has a complex history closely linked to the episcopal residence of the Lord's Court. This building adjoined the 15th-century fortress wall that protected the eastern part of the Lord's Court. The 15th century was a time of active construction in this area.

The name Nikitin Corps suggests its connection to Bishop Nikita, dating back to the early 12th century. However, there is no confirmation of this, and mentions of the Lord's Court appear only after 1136. In the 12th century, the court of the Novgorod lord is mentioned twice more: in 1142 and 1191. It is possible that before the early 12th century, the bishop did not have a sufficiently organized economy, as he was funded from the princely treasury.

No traces of the Nikitin chambers from the 12th century have been found, except for remnants of masonry discovered by G.M. Shtender near the northern wall of St. Sophia Cathedral. However, it cannot be said with certainty that these are the remains of an ancient building adjoining the cathedral or of buttresses. Until 1350, the Nikitin chambers could have been the only civil structure on the territory of the Lord's Court.

The complex of buildings was significantly reconstructed under Metropolitan Pitirim in 1669-1670, and in 1672, the northern part of the corps was built. From that moment, the corps became a single building.

A plan from September 1823 indicates the 1st and 2nd floors of part of the corps slated for demolition. The entrance was located in the southwest corner. The lower floor was divided into two halls and a corridor with a staircase to the second floor. The upper floor in the preserved part of the corps expanded to the south, while the part slated for demolition was divided into small rooms. The project for the reconstruction of the southern part was implemented in 1831. The southern part housed part of the brotherly corps, while to the north was the brotherly bathhouse. The northern part of the corps was used for economic needs: next to the bathhouse was a kitchen, and the northern section housed a kvass brewery.

The Nikitin Corps consists of two parts, differing in the time of construction. At the junction of the narrower southern part and the northern part under the roof, an ancient pediment has been preserved. The earliest part of the corps likely consisted of ancient cells, a cross chamber, and a treasury chamber. Until the 1670s, the corps did not reach the Kremlin wall, and the Lord's Court was enclosed by the ancient 15th-century wall.

The Nikitin Corps, the only surviving civil structure of the Lord's Court, has undergone numerous changes in architecture and use of premises throughout its existence.