This corner tower was named after boyar Beklemishev — his courtyard was located nearby in the 15th century. And the boyar's nickname “Berseny” in Old Russian meant “gooseberries”. It was this nickname, which meant snide, unrestrained people, that formed the basis of the name of the embankment, which became Bersenyevskaya.

Where there is malice, especially near the tsar, there are troubles — for leading the opposition and paying for his evil language, the boyar paid with his life and was executed. The courtyard and the tower, named after him, were turned into a prison.

The tower was built in 1487—1488 and its height is 48 meters. The tower was built by Italian architect Marco Ruffo, and its current name — Moskvoretskaya — was given to the tower in honor of the nearby Moskvoretsky Bridge. At one time, the tower performed a defensive function: a crossing over the river was laid near it and there was a ford. The building, since its main purpose was defense, has four tiers from which you can fire at the enemy. On the upper tier there is a combat platform. The tower had a well and a special cache so that it was impossible to dig. There are no floors inside.

Under Peter I, the tower was redesigned to defend against the Swedes: the loopholes were expanded - it was necessary to install more powerful guns that required space.

This is one of the few towers that has survived to this day almost unchanged.