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Chennai churches chronicle city’s cultural heritage
On the occasion of Good Friday, when people seek the comfort of gathering together, here’s a look at some of Chennai’s ancient churches, their historicity and architecture
By
migrator
migrator
Chennai
Madras is incomparable for the sheer quality and variety of its church architecture. In all the length and breadth of India, there is no other city which can display anything approaching the same wealth of interesting and historically significant buildings that are still in use for worship.
The aim of this essay is to simply encourage in its own citizens and visitors to this coast, a greater awareness of the contribution that 500 years of church architecture has made to this urban landscape.
We first look at the various religious organisations responsible for building churches in Madras. The first on the scene were the Nestorian Christians, who established themselves early in the first millennium on the Malabar coast. Sadly, nothing remains of the church they erected in the 7th or 8th century at the summit of Saint Thomas’ Mount, which according to ancient tradition, witnessed the martyrdom of the Disciple.
Over a long period this church had decayed and when the Portuguese arrived on the beach o f Meliapore—as it was named at the time of the visit of Marco Polo in 1293—in the 16th century and learned its history, they rebuilt the church. This took place between 1543 and 1547 and a new dedication was bestowed upon it—Our Lady of Expectations’.
Since then, this Church has been an important Roman Catholic pilgrimage destination. There was extensive building by the Portuguese during their period of occupation. In Mylapore, at that time, a modest fishing village close to the mouth of the river Adyar, three very beautiful churches—two from the 1600s and one from a century later—can be found within easy distance of each other.
These are the St Lazarus, the Luz Church and the Descano Church, which is believed to have been erected by the Madeiras family, leading residents of Santhome. At this juncture, a reference to the contribution of the Armenian community is necessary.
In the early 18th century, Armenian merchants built a fine church, the Armenian Church, for their community in Black Town, the name used for the highly populous district to the northwest of Fort St George until 1906, when it was renamed to commemorate the Madras visit of the Prince of Wales, later George V. The Armenians were also responsible at this period for enlarging the church on St Thomas Mount and the construction of the steps that lead there.
Earlier in 1680, within the walls of Fort St George itself, the English East India Company erected the first Protestant Church east of the Mediterranean sea, the St Mary’s, for the use of the garrison and European merchants of the colony.
It was also intended to provide an arena in which the Governor could display himself along with his family, friends and colleagues before the congregation. Most important, the church provided a safe haven from the canon balls of the French men-of-war at sea.
The brick walls are almost 2 metres thick, and the immensely strong barrel vaulting over the nave and aisles is 0.6 m thick at it shallowest point and constructed of the same material. From this description it might seems as if St Mary’s is a ponderous and gloomy place for worship, but this it certainly is not so.
The masonary is clad in chunam, a finishing material capable of taking a high polish, and this ensures the light enters through the deep window embrasures and is faithfully reflected up again to the roof, and the tower, detached from the rest of the building for its first 60 years, is one of the best in Madras. St Mark’s on Popham’s Broadway, completed in 1800, catered to the overspill congregations which could no longer be accommodated within St Mary’s.
Once the 19th century was underway, it became more and more a matter of urgency to have a church available on the Choultry Plain, where loosely grouped colonies of garden houses sprang up. Thus came the St George’s Cathedral. It was and remains a noble conception and work of scholarship.
Elegantly proportioned and splendidly detailed, it was, for the first time in India, totally in accordance with established classical principles. The portico at the western end of the nave incorporates a covered canopy for carriages, among the finest anywhere. St George’s cathedral became the Madras Anglican Church in 1835. St Kirk’s Church built a few years later in Egmore must be judged to be the work of a genius. It was to be designed as a circular building. The site was a swamp.
Indeed once below the first half metre, probes encountered nothing more substantial than mud and finally silt and sand and water. It was doubtful if it could support the tremendous weight of the church. Major de Havilland in charge of the project, overcame this drawback by a method which had its origins in Indian temple buildings in coastal locations.
It was decided to construct no fewer than 300 brick and pottery drums or wells to sink them in more concentrated or looser groups according to calculated weights of the various parts of the building.
Once into mud, Indian divers, specialists in this field, were employed to excavate from under the drums and steer them slowly downwards, as succeeding rings were added on top. Down they went for 8 metres. Across the top of the drums on ground level, linked vaults of stone were constructed and these in turn were topped with a level platform.
All the churches described here are built of brick. It is the most economical materials available. In St Mary’s even the roof was built in the form of three semi-circular vaults. Brickworks were set up in church compounds, ensuring a constant supply.
Madras ‘mirror finish’ or chunam an ancient Indian form of plaster was made of pure egg shell lime, fine river sand, fermented kadukka and jaggery water. The Christian Missionary Chapel (Tucker’s Chruch) was built in 1820 in the corner of Audiappa Naicken Street, and St Mark’s in Pederiar Kovil Street in 1800.
They are excellent examples of low intensity classicism. There are many more churches in the Neo Gothic style but in quality they vary enormously. By the time 19th century was a quarter expedited, Gothic became the norm.
A scattering of Neo Classical buildings continued to manifest themselves, like the Christ Church on Mount Road. One Gothic church well worth a visit is the St Paul’s in Vepery (1858), built exclusively for the Tamil speaking population.
To select one church as the synthesis of all that is contained in high Victorian architecture is not difficult—that honour must fall to the thoroughly impressive and beautiful Basilica of San Thome, built in 1898 to commemorate certainly and enshrine too possibly, the actual grave of St Thomas on the beach of Mylapore, following his martyrdom in 72 AD.
The stained glass window depicting Thomas kneeling at the feet of Jesus and gazing at the wound in his side, itself justifies an expedition to Mylapore. Five centuries of church architecture first put down its roots on the Mylapore coast.
Classic Lines
- Mylapore boasts three very beautiful and ancient churches, Lazarus, the Luz Church and the Descano Church
- Nestorian Christians were reported to have erected a church in 7th or 8th century at St Thomas Mount, but no trace of it remains now
- Masonary in the historic St Mary’s Church in Fort St George is clad in chunam. This is an ancient Indian form of plaster made from egg shell lime, fine river sand, fermented kadukka and jaggery water
- St Paul’s Church, Vepery, built in 1858, was meant exclusively for use by the Tamil speaking population
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