The Ochakiv Gates are one of the first structures in Kherson and part of the defensive complex of the Kherson Fortress. Despite the powerful fortifications and the presence of the best weapons and ammunition of the time, the fortress was never besieged.

Construction of the fortress began on September 8, 1778. From 1784, engineer Nikolai Ivanovich Korsakov conducted a thorough reconstruction. The fortress had two gates, named after the roads to Ochakiv and Moscow. According to the project of St. Petersburg architect Fyodor Danilovich Danilov, the Ochakiv Gates were designed in the form of triumphal arches. They faced the main street of the fortress, Dvortsovaya, which led to Dvortsovaya Square and the Moscow Gates.

According to the decree of Nicholas I from 1835, the fortress and the Kherson Military Admiralty were abolished. By 1881, the fortress was almost completely dismantled, and in 1902 it was damaged by an earthquake. In 1921, part of the buildings was dismantled or destroyed, and by the mid-20th century, almost all earthen ramparts had been removed. Today, the Ochakiv and Moscow Gates remain historical symbols.