Zachatievsky Monastery, founded in 1360 on Ostozhye at the initiative of Metropolitan Alexius of Moscow, is the oldest women's convent in Moscow. Its first wooden church was consecrated in honor of the Conception of Saint Anna, which gave the monastery its name. Later, an altar was added in honor of Alexius the Man of God, in memory of the founder. In 1514, the monastery suffered from a fire, and in 1547 it was so badly damaged by flames that it was moved to a new location, where the Cathedral of Christ the Savior now stands, and renamed Alexeyevsky. In 1584, Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich revived the monastery at its original site on Ostozhenka, but in the early 17th century, it burned down again during the Time of Troubles. Restoration was funded by Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov, and the architectural ensemble underwent many changes thereafter.

The cathedral of the monastery was named Zachatievsky, but the main altar was consecrated in honor of the Nativity of the Mother of God. In the choir, there was a chapel of the Conception of Saint Anna, and in the refectory, three more chapels. Each new building of the cathedral included elements from previous ones, and the last one, built between 1805 and 1807, contained parts from different eras. Overall, Zachatievsky Cathedral was executed in a pseudo-Gothic style, popular in early 19th century Moscow and perceived as 'an imitation of antiquity.'

The main entrance to the monastery was through the northern gate, above which in 1696, funded by the nobleman Rimsky-Korsakov, a single-domed church of the Savior Not Made by Hands was built, decorated with window frames featuring 'torn pediments,' characteristic of Naryshkin Baroque. In the western part of the monastery, near the hospital and almshouse, architect M.D. Bykovsky built the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit in Byzantine style between 1844 and 1850, funded by the widow of Colonel V.M. Golovina.

The monastery was closed in 1924, and its buildings were occupied by various institutions. The cathedral was demolished in the 1930s, and a standard school building was erected in its place, the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit was remodeled, while the gate church of the Savior avoided significant changes.

In 1991, the revival of the monastery began. In 1995, nuns returned, and the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit was restored. After the demolition of the school building, the question of restoring Zachatievsky Cathedral arose. After lengthy discussions, it was decided not to return to M.F. Kazakov's project, but to create a new cathedral in Russian style, on a high podium, where fragments of the foundations of the old cathedrals of the 16th and 18th centuries could be museified. During the restoration of the monastery complex, an ancient monastic cemetery was discovered, where archaeologists made many findings. In 2010, the construction of the new monastery cathedral was completed.

In 2018, the northern wing of the cells and the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit with the hospital building, built in the 19th century, were restored at Zachatievsky Monastery. Specialists updated the plaster covering of the facades, painted the walls, tidied up the white stone base and the surrounding areas of the buildings. They also installed a ramp at the northern entrance and replaced the drainage system.

In 2020, another important stage of restoration of the unique Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit was completed, during which the domes and crosses were renewed. Specialists carefully cleaned their metal surfaces, eliminated defects, prepared elements for gilding, and covered them with gold leaf.