St. Francis Church in Kochi

St. Francis Church is India’s oldest European church that had its initial construction in 1503 by the Portuguese, dedicated to St. Bartholomew. The journey to Cochin by Portuguese traders with their Admiral Pedro Alvarez de Cabral was easy as they just had to follow the path of their legendary explorer Vasco da Gama, who landed at Calicut in 1498. They first made a construction with mud and wood only. In the year 1506, they received permission from the Cochin rulers to reconstruct it with stones. The reconstruction was in 1516 and they dedicated the new church to St. Antony.

During the year 1663, the Dutch invaded the Kingdom of Cochin and demolished all the churches made by the others. The Dutch could not keep Cochin under their possession for a long time as they had to surrender it to the British around 1804. During the British rule, the church was renamed and rebuilt to its present shape in 1886. Apart from these twists, the church is more famous for the fact that it was once the burial site of explorer Vasco da Gama, who died in Cochin in 1524. The eminent structure with a gabled timber framed roof covered with tiles adds charm to the beauty of the church.

A stepped summit is built on either side of the front which is quite appealing and the traditional charm is still maintained here. Its interior offers a striking view with two stepped summits topping the channel roof and the plain arched opening, dividing the chancel from the centre area of the church. Apart from all these, a cenotaph is also here that stands in the centre of the lawn which was built in the year 1920, dedicated to the people of Kochi who sacrificed their lives in World War 1. In 1923, the church became a protected monument.