Odessa is a large city (1012.9 thousand inhabitants) and the center of the region, located on the Black Sea coast. People began to live in Odessa since the emergence of Greek settlements (VI century. BC) on the northern coast of the Black Sea.

In the second half of the XIV century, when these lands came under the control of the Grand Princedom of Lithuania, on the coast of Port Kachibey emerged that after the capture by the Turks is often called  Khadjibey. In the second half of XVIII century Turkish government, strengthening its northern borders, began to build a fortress - Yeni Dunya (Novy Svet) - beside the port.

During Russian-Turkish War (1787-1791) Russian troops under the command of General J. Gudovich and Vice-Admiral J. Deribas in 1789 captured the fort and the settlement.

After the Treaty of Jassy (1791) on the proposal of A. Suvorov the construction of the fortress started here (1793), and after the decree of Empress Catherine II (1794) - a new city.

The city was named Odessa in 1795 - derivative (as believed) from the Greek village ODESSOS, once located on the east bank of Tiligulsky estuary.

The city was built under the guidance of Vice-Admiral J. Deribas, his grateful descendants erected a monument to him (1994, sculptor A. Knyazik) only after two centuries.

The rapid development of Odessa was suspended during the reign of Paul I (1796-1801 gg.), who is known to be disliked by his mother - Empress Catherine II.

Only after the decree of Emperor Alexander I, who succeeded Paul I and who appointed the Duke de Richelieu the chief of city administration, the creation of the port city was resumed with renewed vigor.

It is written - "to the person who ruled from 1805 to 1814 Novorossiysk edge and established welfare foundation of Odessa" on the famous monument to A. de Richelieu.

This is an absolutely fair statement, because in Europe in XIX centurythe re was no similar city, developing so rapidly.

Becoming the main port of imperial Russia, on the Black Sea coast, Odessa was built up very quickly and qualitatively. One of the first facilities of the city is Potocki Palace (now the Art Museum) (1805-1810) - of the rich Polish family in 1817-1859 years.

Odessa had the right of free zones, that is it was kind of a free economic zone of the XIX century, which allowed duty-free sales and storage of foreign goods.

At the same time an architectural business card of Odessa was created - the ensemble of buildings and structures of the Primorsky Boulevard (1820-1840's, architect F. Buffet).

On the high coastal bluffs, along the edge of the sea there is a boulevard on the end of which complex structures of the Vorontsov palace (1824-1834) and the first Odessa Stock Exchange (now the City Duma) (1829-1834) were built, with a set monument to A. Pushkin (1888, J. Polonskaya sculptor, architect X. Vasiliev).

Along the boulevard there is a row of houses facing the facades to the sea, among which there is a a special hotel of architectural value "London" (1828, restoration -1899, architects Dmitrenko Y.) and the palace of Princess Naryshkina (now the Palace of culture of seamen) (1830).

In the center of Primorsky boulevard the houses are interrupted by a semi-circular area, a space which form the building official place (1827-1830, Architect A. Melnikov, F. Buffet) and hotel "St. Petersburg" (1833, architect A. Melnikov, F. Buffet).

In the center of the boulevard there is a monument to A. de Richelieu (1828, sculptor I. Martos, architect A. Melnikov), from which 192 steps of a grand Potemkin stairs (1837-1842) descend to the sea.

Its monumentality is reinforced by masterfully calculated proportions and perspective effect, achieved due to the difference in width between its lower and upper flights.

At the foot of the stairs there is a building of the Naval Station (1967, architects V. Golovin, V. Kremlyakov), essentially rebuilt to the 200-year anniversary of Odessa.

At the beginning of the XXI century the building of the luxury hotel "Odessa" radically wedged in the composition of the complex installations of marine station.

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