Church of the Saviour

Former church of the Caucasus Germans in Baku, now a concert hall — a quiet witness to German history on the Caspian Sea.

The Church of the Saviour in Baku is a quiet witness to German history in the Caucasus. In the late 19th century a significant community of Caucasus Germans — descendants of settlers who had come to the Russian Empire under Tsar Alexander I — lived in Baku. They built this Lutheran church with donations from their community, with the businessman Adolf Eichler playing a leading role. It was consecrated on 14 March 1899. The historicist building features a slender tower and a plain but dignified facade. After the Soviet takeover the congregation was dissolved and the building put to other uses. Today it serves as a concert hall of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture and occasionally hosts classical concerts — an unusual afterlife for a house of worship.