During the Times of Troubles almost 300 troops from Arzamas and Ryazan were killed in 1608 on the outskirts of Zaraisk during a battle with Polish-Lithuanian interventionists. They were buried in Zaraisk in a mass grave and a small wooden church was build nearby dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. In 1777 work on replacing the wooded church with a stone one started. The bell tower was completed in 1825 and a covered vestibule was constructed to link the two parts in 1863. One of its relics is the memorial-heraldic flag given to it by the people of Arzamas to mark the 300th anniversary of the battle.