People have lived in the territory that is now part of the Lepel district since ancient times.

The first settlements of ancient people in the Lepel district appeared in the Mesolithic era (Middle Stone Age). Mesolithic sites (9-6 thousand BC) were discovered by archaeologists on the southwestern shore of Lake Lepel in the Peschanitsa tract. Numerous tools were found during excavations: scrapers, cutters, awls, axes, etc. Later Neolithic sites (4 thousand BC – 2 thousand AD) were found on an island in Lake Lepel, at the mouth of the Essa River, and on the southern shore of Lake Okono.

In the 10th-12th centuries, the Lepel lands were part of the famous Polotsk principality, and later - part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

The first chronicle mentions of Lepel date back to 1439. Located on an important trade route of antiquity, known today as the "route from the Varangians to the Greeks", Lepel has had strategic importance since ancient times, which determined its centuries-old history. In the course of countless wars for the right to own the region, the city was repeatedly plundered and devastated, and the Lepel region - depopulated. But every time, like the mythical phoenix, Lepel rose from the ashes, was reborn, and proudly continued its journey through the centuries.

Lepel entered modern history as a city whose residents were granted the right of self-government. On April 5, 1805, by decree of Alexander I, the town of Lepel received the status of a district city. The construction of the Berezina Water System in 1797-1805, which connected the main water transport arteries of that time - the Dnieper and the Western Dvina, contributed to the development of the city, turning it into a significant economic and cultural center in northern Belarus.

In 1864, Lepel had 1 chapel, 3 Orthodox churches, 1 wooden Catholic church, 4 synagogues, 2 factories, 38 brick and 562 wooden houses. Among the factories: 1 tannery, 1 brewery and 2 brick factories. In 1844, the majestic Transfiguration Cathedral was built in the city (dismantled after the Great Patriotic War).

By the end of the 19th century, more than 6 thousand people lived in Lepel. Agriculture and industry were developing. In the Lepel district, there were tanneries, 2 brick factories and a brewery, a cardboard factory, 11 wineries, and 47 mills. However, logging and timber trade still held the leading position in the economy.

From 1814, the Berezina Canal school operated, where the famous Belarusian and Polish poet Jan Czeczot worked in the office from 1833 to 1839.

In the Lepel Noble School, opened in 1830, L. Yutsevich, a famous Lithuanian historian and ethnographer, taught.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, as a result of the construction of tens of thousands of kilometers of railway lines towards the Black and Baltic Seas, the Berezina Water System completely lost its economic significance. Today, this hydraulic structure, the most powerful for its time, is a most interesting historical monument.

The first half of the 20th century brought new trials to the Lepel region. The First World War, and then the Civil War, the Polish occupation, the era of Stalinist repressions brought an avalanche of grief and suffering to the Lepel land. Only in the period from 1920 to 1950, more than 800 people were repressed in the Lepel district, many of whom were shot or died in captivity. Among them was a native of the Lepel region – the famous poet Teodor Klyashtorny.

The full Cavalier of the Order of St. George, Konopko Dominik Vikentyevich, was born and lived in the Lepel region.

The Lepel land suffered even more tragic losses during the Great Patriotic War – over 12 thousand people died, 48 villages were burned.

The brave and freedom-loving people offered courageous resistance to the enemy. The Lepel region became one of the most important centers of the partisan movement in Belarus. 13 partisan brigades and 4 separate partisan detachments participated in combat operations in the district.

The Lepel region sacredly preserves the memory of its sons and daughters who gave their lives for the freedom and independence of the Fatherland. The Motherland highly appreciated the military feat of the Lepel residents. Five of them were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union (Tuftov I. N., Tomashevich N. N., Yalyugin P. V., Erashov I. N., Kvetinsky V. A.), Zanko F. P. – Cavalier of three Orders of Glory. Hundreds of Lepel residents were awarded orders and medals.

The Lepel region is the birthplace of the historian, archaeologist, member of the Imperial Archaeological Society M.F. Kustinsky, scientist, Doctor of Biological Sciences G.V. Bogatikov, Doctor of Military Sciences I.M. Zhernosek, Doctor of Medical Sciences M.L. Belenky, poets Teodor Klyashtorny, Anatoly Vertinsky, playwright P. Dudo.