Franciscan Church (Kochi)
The Franciscan Church (English: St Francis Church) in Kochi , state of Kerala , is the first European church in India . It is the original burial place of the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama and an important monument of Indian colonial history, in which the colonial powers Portugal , the Netherlands and Great Britain left their mark. Today the house of God belongs to the diocese of North Kerala of the Protestant Church of South India , which was created through the union of the Anglican , Congregational , Presbyterian , Reformed and Methodist churches of South India. The listed building is under the supervision of the Archaeological Survey of India .
architecture
The church is considered a rather modest building with no particular architectural significance. However, it served as a model for numerous churches that were built on Indian soil.
The tall building has a gable roof that is covered with tiles. The facade faces west and has a main portal and three overlying windows that are arched in a semicircle. The facade ends in a stepped gable which is flanked by two pinnacles . At the top of the three-way gable front is a bell house. Inside, the choir is separated from the nave by a simple arched passage. The wooden roof structure is visible from the nave.
The main nave of the Franciscan Church
The air fans over the church seats
The choir
the pulpit
Beginnings under Portuguese rule
At an exposed point on a peninsula in front of a natural harbor in South India, the Portuguese built their first fortress soon after their arrival in 1503, Fort Emmanuel , whose location is now called Fort Kochi . The first Portuguese settlement with the first church dedicated to St. Bartholomew was built under the protection of this fortress . According to legend, the apostle Bartholomew preached the gospel in various Asian countries, including India.
The first construction was a simple wooden structure. In 1506 the Raja of Kochi gave the Portuguese viceroy Francisco de Almeida permission to build the fortress and the settlement in stone. The monks of the Franciscan order then rebuilt the church with masonry and a tiled roof in a more solid construction. After the completion in 1516, St. Anthony became the new patron.
Vasco da Gama died in Kochi on his third trip to India in 1524 and was buried in the church. 14 years after his death, his remains were exhumed and transferred to Lisbon. His burial place is still shown in the church and is visited by tourists. The north wall of the church shows further epitaphs from Portuguese deceased.
Original grave of Vasco da Gama
Portuguese tombstone from 1634
Dutch rule
In 1663 the Protestant Dutch conquered Kochi and made the city the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company . They destroyed all Catholic churches and monasteries except for this one main church and converted it into a state church. In 1779 renovations were carried out. On the south wall of the church, epitaphs of Dutch deceased can still be seen today. More tombstones can still be found today in the nearby Dutch cemetery.
Dutch gravestones on the south wall of the church
British rule
The British captured Kochi from the Dutch in 1795, but continued to allow them to use the church. In 1804 the Dutch voluntarily handed the Church over to the Anglican congregation. It is believed that the Anglicans renamed the church after Saint Francis .
The furniture and pulpit made of wood as well as the meter-long air fans ( pankha ), which are operated by hand over ropes, which were intended to fan the worshipers in the local hot weather, date from the time of the British . On the walls, plaques made of brass and marble commemorate the deceased British. In 1920 a cenotaph was erected on the square in front of the church for the residents of Kochi who had been victims of the First World War .
In April 1923 the church was listed as a historical monument (Protected Monuments Act 1904). The enclosing walls were erected in 1924.
British epitaph from 1912 on the north wall of the interior of the church
Cenotaph for the victims of the First World War from 1920 in front of the main entrance
Web links
- Kerala Tourism: St. Francis Church (English)
- Web India 123: St. Francis Church (English)
- Maps of India: St. Francis Church Kochi (English)
- Transpire Online: St Francis Church, the Colonial History of India in Stone (English)
Single receipts
Coordinates: 9 ° 57 ′ 57.6 ″ N , 76 ° 14 ′ 27.5 ″ E