The stele, dedicated to the 850th anniversary of the city, which is a year older than Moscow, was installed in 1996 in the city center at Metallurgov Square. It is designed in the form of the silver goddess of Victory, Nike, standing on a white column with the city coat of arms and flags: Russian, Soviet Red Army, and naval St. Andrew's.

Mtsensk is first mentioned in the Nikon Chronicle in 1146 under the names Mtsenesck or Mtsynesk, being part of the Chernigov principality.

From the 13th century, Mtsensk was subjected to raids by the Mongol-Tatars. In 1238, the city was destroyed by Batu's troops.

On the map of the Novosil principality from the 13th-14th centuries, Mtsensk is marked as part of this principality since 1246.

Since 1320, the city was under the rule of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After the death of Grand Duke Roman Mikhailovich, Mtsensk and Lyubutsk were not retained by Bryansk. From 1408, Mtsensk became the center of the Mtsensko-Lyubutsk governorate, established by Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas. By the mid-15th century, these cities were subordinated to Smolensk, maintaining a special governorship.

In the summer of 1492, the Russian army under the command of voivode Fyodor Telepnya Obolensky captured Mtsensk: "the city of Mtsenesck was taken, the land was conquered, their voivode Boris Semyonov son of Alexander and many others were captured and brought to Moscow."

Raids by the Crimean Tatars on Mtsensk continued until the 16th century. Mtsensk finally entered the Moscow state in 1505.

In 1555, in a decree on the recruitment of troops for the campaign against the Crimean Khanate, Mtsensk, Odoev, Belev, and Novosil were mentioned among the "Siverian" cities.

In the 16th-17th centuries, the Mtsensk fortress was one of the largest in the south of the Moscow state, but in the second half of the 17th century, it lost its military significance.

In 1708, Mtsensk became part of the Kiev province, and from 1719 was assigned to the Oryol province. In 1727, the province became part of the Belgorod governorate.

In 1778, Mtsensk became the district town of Mtsensk district of the Oryol governorate, and from 1796, of the Oryol governorate. In 1780, a general plan for the city was approved.

From the early 19th century, the city began to develop rapidly as a trade center with a river port. In 1868, the Moscow-Kursk railway passed through the city, leading to the decline of the grain port.

In the 19th century, the city had an underground wooden water supply about 1 km long. By the end of the 19th century, there were 164 stone and 1,673 wooden houses in Mtsensk. The city was famous for its crafts, especially the production of Mtsensk lace.

On October 14, 1919, parts of the Kornilov regiment of the 1st army corps of the Volunteer Army made a short raid on Mtsensk, quickly capturing it, but soon retreated, shooting the red commandant, former general Sapozhnikov. Mtsensk became the farthest point of the advance of the Armed Forces of Southern Russia under Denikin's command.

On May 19, 1924, after the abolition of the Mtsensk district, Mtsensk was transformed into an urban-type settlement, but on July 6, 1925, it regained city status.

In 1928, the city became the center of the Mtsensk district of the Oryol region of the Central Black Earth region, and from 1937, it became part of the Oryol region.