St. Gregorius im Elend, Baroque Revival church in Altstadt-Süd, Germany

St. Gregorius im Elend is a red brick church in Cologne's Altstadt-Süd, set behind a brick wall with an arched gateway and black metal gate. Its front facade has tall arched recesses holding statues, partly hidden by a large green shrub. A steep dark grey roof rises to a triangular pediment with sculpted figures, crowned by a green-patinated lantern with columns and a spire.

The church was built in 1765 and suffered heavy damage during the Second World War. The outer walls survived and the interior was rebuilt, with the reconstruction completed in 1967.

The name comes from the Katharinengässchen, once called "im Elend"; a 1335 document names the churchyard "ellendiger kirchooyv". It was the burial ground for strangers who died in Cologne without a home, and for suicides and executed people. Gravestones in the small churchyard survive, including that of Kaspar von Kleingedank (died 1590) and a memorial to the Mennonite family of Joost van den Vondel, who fled Antwerp.

The church sits in the southern old town near Katharinengässchen and is easy to reach on foot from the city center. Visitors are welcome during opening hours, either for services or to walk through the interior on their own.

The churchyard was first recorded in 1335 as "ellendiger kirchooyv", before any chapel stood here. It served as burial ground for strangers who died in Cologne without a home, and for suicides and executed people, later called the "non-Catholic dead". Gravestones in the small churchyard survive, including that of Kaspar von Kleingedank, died 1590.