Piarist church Krems, Gothic Catholic church in Krems, Austria.

The Piarist Church is a Gothic place of worship in Krems featuring steep structural forms, profiled pillars, and handcrafted details throughout its hall design. The interior displays characteristic Gothic architectural elements like capitals and columns that shape the spatial layout.

This building was constructed around 1284 and underwent major remodeling in the 15th century, when the choir was consecrated in 1457 and later sanctified again in 1508. These phases of transformation shaped the structure we see today.

The high altar's altarpiece, the Assumption of Mary, was painted in 1756 by Martin Johann Schmidt, known as the Kremser Schmidt. The right side altar shows Saint Joseph Calasanz, founder of the Piarist order, who took over the church from the Jesuits in 1776 at Maria Theresa's request. Further altars on the nave walls depict Saint Joseph and Saint Aloysius.

The church stands on the Frauenberg above Krems, reached by a covered staircase from Frauenberggasse. The Frauenbergturm, exempted from the Jesuit handover in 1616, served the citizens as a fire watch and bell tower, which is why it still bears the town coat of arms instead of a cross. The crypt below holds some 30 m³ of bones from the former cemetery and 68 burial niches.

The Frauenbergturm, the church's west tower, was excluded when the Jesuits took over the church in 1616, because it served the citizens as a city tower for fire watch and bell signals. It is Austria's only church tower topped not by a cross but by the town coat of arms. Its Piarist bell, cast in 1702 by Mathias Prininger, weighs 5016 kg and is rung by hand five times a year.