The Saint Gregory the Illuminator Church, commonly called the Armenian Church of Baku, stands on Nizami Street near Fountains Square. Karl Hippius, a Baltic German architect, designed it. Javad Melikiants, a Baku-based Armenian philanthropist and founder of the city's first paraffin plant, funded it. It was built from 1863 to 1869 and consecrated on May 4, 1869.
In 1920 it became the cathedral of the Armenian Apostolic Diocese of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. It reopened in 1945 as the seat of the diocese of Azerbaijan. It was damaged in an arson attack on December 25, 1989.
In 2001 it was listed as a historical and cultural monument of national importance. In 2002 it was transferred to the Presidential Library, which now houses its archive. It no longer functions as a church.
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