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Putna monastery was built by the Walachian prince Stefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great) between 1466 and 1469. The consecration took place in 1470. The fortifications of the monastery also were part of a defence system designed by Stephen the Great to protect his country from invading armies. Following the destruction by Vasile Lupu, the church was reconstructed by the princes Gheorghe Stefan and Eustratie Dabija in 1654. Renovations took place in 1757 and, more completely, between 1966 and 1988. The only part remaining from the old monastery is the tower built by Stefan cel Mare in 1481.

The church of Putna monastery also was one of the greatest princely burial places in Moldavia. The necropolis in the church has unusually large dimensions (length 37 m, width 11 m, and height 33 m including the belfry). It houses the tombs of Stefan cel Mare, his second wife Maria de Mangop and his third wife Maria Voichita, as well as those of some of his descendants. Stephen the Great was canonized by the Orthodox Church in 1992.