The city was built on , a hill on the western side of the . It was  by  in the late 7th or early 6th century BC. The ruins of the site are now located in the modern city .

Kerch. Founded 2,600 years ago as an , Kerch is considered to be one of the most ancient cities in Crimea. The city experienced rapid growth starting in the 1920s and was the site of a  during .

Today, it is one of the largest cities in Crimea and is among the republic's most important industrial, transport and tourist centres.

Kerch Fortress (Fort Totleben) is a fortress in eastern , located on Cape Ak-Burun (English: White Cape) at the narrowest point of the . Built in the 19th century, the fortress was originally intended to protect the southern border of the .