In 1817 before a visit to Poltava Tsar Alexander II by order of the Governor-General Prince Nikolay Repnin in Poltava was created Monument to Rest of Peter the Great. It was created on the place where was the house of Cossack Vasyl Magdenko where in the apartment of Alexey Kelin - commandant of Poltava fortress rested Tsar Peter the Great after Battle of Poltava.

There is a legend that Peter the Great during his stay in apartment of Alexey Kelin in Poltava once heard a baby cry - it was son of Vasyl Magdenko - ordered to bring the boy to him, took the boy in his hands, shaking and told him that the Tsar himself was nursing him so he must will be diligent servant of the Tsar!

This house is no longer exists. In 1804 by order of Governor-General Alexey Kurakin it was dismantled and moved to the estate of landowner Vasyl Magdenko.

In 1847 Tsar Nicholas I ordered to create a new Monument to Rest of Peter the Great. Design of the monument was created by a professor of architecture Alexander Briullov. In 1849 new Monument to Rest of Peter the Great was cast in Saint Petersburg and on winter roads brought to Poltava by Boris Maksimov and Leon Filippov who were paid 1725 rubles of Russian Empire.

The new Monument to Rest of Peter the Great was opened on 27th of June 1849 on the anniversary of Battle of Poltava.

Architecture professor Alexander Briullov performed Monument to Rest of Peter the Great in the form of a massive rectangular column on a granite base. On top of the column there are symbols of a warrior - helmet, shield and sword. On the monument was inscription: "Here Peter the Great rested after his labors on 27th of July 1709". Under the inscription there is coat of arms of Russian Empire and under it - a bronze plaque with the inscription: "Created 27th of June 1849 during the reign of Tsar Nicholas I" and below the bas-relief of resting lion. The fence of the monument is made of old guns dug into the ground.

Shortly after 1921 the bronze plaque was removed from Monument to Rest of Peter the Great. During the German occupation of Poltava in 1941-1943 all bronze parts of the monument were taken to Germany.

In the early 50s of XX century Monument to Rest of Peter the Great was reconstructed in its original form except the bronze plaque.

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