The cathedral is the oldest part of the Nizhny Novgorod Fair. It was built on the left bank of the Oka River near Nizhny Novgorod soon after the Fair had been launched. The Cathedral brings to mind Augustine Betancourt, the first architect of the Fair, and his disciple Auguste Montferrand (best known for the famous St. Isaac's Cathedral in St Petersburg) and is representative of the architectural traditions of that time. Unfortunately, the cathedral's interior has been lost. The art on the cathedral walls was painted by students from the Stupin School (the only provincial art school in Arzamas, attended, among others, by Vasily Perov, a famous Russian painter). The iconostasis was made much later, yet with all due regard for the canons of classicism.

There is a nearby chapel to the south of the cathedral which is connected with the history of the Nizhny Novgorod Eparchy. The chapel is the final resting place of Nicholas, the Metropolitan of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas.