Charles Bénédict Nain (5 May 1870 – 28 June 1916) was a Catholic missionary, priest and architect active in

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

Seremban Seremban (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Somban'') is a city in the Seremban District and the capital of the state of Negeri Sembilan in Peninsular Malaysia. The city's administration is run by the Seremban Municipal Council, Seremban City Council. ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

. He designed the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the

Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel CHIJMES Hall was the former Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel located at the CHIJMES complex in Singapore. The former chapel was designed by Father Charles Benedict Nain, it currently serves as a function hall venue for weddings and corpor ...

and the Saint Joseph's Institution extension, all of which have since been designated National monuments of Singapore.

Early life and education

Nain was born in Farges-lès-Mâcon, France on 5 May 1870. According to historian Soon-Tzu Speechley, the "quality" of his draughtsmanship indicates that he was trained in architecture and it "seems likely that Nain studied at an architectural atelier in France, giving him the necessary skills required to design the sophisticated buildings he created for the Catholic Church in Singapore." Nain was listed as an "architect by training" by the convent. Nain was ordained a priest on 22 September 1984 and left for the Diocese of Malacca on 21 November.

Career

Nain arrived in Southeast Asia in December 1894. He was first assigned to the

Church of Saints Peter and Paul St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, and variations using Saint or Saints or other, may refer to one of many churches dedicated to the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul around the world, including: Armenia * Saint Paul and Peter Church, Yerevan (de ...

in Singapore, then within the Malaccan diocese, under Father Alphonse Vignol. While there, he learnt to speak

Hokkien Hokkien ( , ) is a Varieties of Chinese, variety of the Southern Min group of Chinese language, Chinese languages. Native to and originating from the Minnan region in the southeastern part of Fujian in southeastern China, it is also referred ...

. In 1896, he was assigned to the Church of Our Lady of Sorrows in

. Two years later, Bishop René Michel Marie Fée asked him to return to Singapore to serve as the vicar of the

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd ( zh, 善牧主教座堂) is the oldest Catholic Church, Catholic church in Singapore, built in 1847. It is located in the Museum Planning Area within the Civic District. Bounded by the parallel Queen Street, ...

. By then, he had learnt to speak

Teochew Min Teochew, also known as Swatow or Teo-Swa, is a Southern Min language spoken by the Teochew people in the Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong and by their diaspora around the world. It is sometimes referred to as ''Chiuchow'', its Cantonese ...

and

Hakka Chinese Hakka ( zh, c=, p=Kèjiāhuà; '' Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: '', zh, c=, p=Kèjiāyǔ; '' Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: '') forms a language group of varieties of Chinese, spoken natively by the Hakka people in parts of Southern China, Taiwan, some diaspora areas ...

. Nain was paid by Father Casimir-Jean Saleilles, the parish priest of the Church of the Nativity in

Serangoon Serangoon ( ) is a planning area and residential town located in the North-East Region of Singapore. Serangoon is bordered by these planning areas – Sengkang to the north, Hougang to the east, Ang Mo Kio and Bishan to the west, as well ...

, to design a new church for his congregation. The church was consecrated on 8 December 1901 and was later designated a National monument of Singapore. His next work was the

on Victoria Street, which was completed in 1904. Designed in the

Gothic Revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

, the chapel was "no doubt inspired by the churches of

Mâcon Mâcon (), historically Anglicization, anglicised as Mascon, is a city in east-central France. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Saône-et-Loire in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Mâcon is home t ...

and Fontaine, located close to his birthplace." The chapel, which came to be known as CHIJMES Hall, was one of two buildings within the

CHIJMES CHIJMES (pronounced "''chimes''") is a historic building complex in Singapore, which began life as a Catholic convent known as the ''Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus'' (CHIJ). The complex is located at Victoria Street in the Downtown Core, wi ...

complex to be designated a National monument of Singapore in 1990. In 1900, Nain was approached by Michael Noctor, then the director of the

St. Joseph's Institution St. Joseph's Institution (SJI) is an independent Catholic educational institution in Singapore. Founded in 1852 by the De La Salle Brothers, it is the first Catholic school and the third oldest school in the country. SJI has been offering a dual ...

to design an extension for the school. The extension, completed in 1903, included two curved wings and a "silvery dome". The extension gave the school a "baroque appearance" and a "resemblance to Saint Peter's in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. The newly extended building was hailed as "one of the most beautiful buildings in the East at that time." It was designated a national monument in 1992. In 1904, Nain was assigned to

. While there, he worked on the St. Paul's Institution. He returned to France for two years in 1907. While on leave, he established a branch of the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus for the training of Irish nuns who were to leave for

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British Empire, British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. Unlike the ...

. Nain returned to Singapore in 1909 and was appointed the priest of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, a role which he held until 1913. He succeeded Father Henri-Pierre Rivet in this position. He designed and built a new presbytery. In 1912, he began raising funds for a Bevington & Sons pipe organ, which arrived the following year. It remains the oldest pipe organ in Singapore and possibly in Southeast Asia. He was also responsible for installing electric lights and fans in the cathedral. In this period, Nain designed a holiday home for the

Brothers of the Christian Schools The De La Salle Brothers, officially named the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (; ; ) abbreviated FSC, is a Catholic lay religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in France by Jean-Baptiste de La Salle (16 ...

in Singapore in

Katong Katong (commonly referred to as Tanjong Katong) is a residential neighbourhood in the eastern portion of the Central Region of Singapore, within the Marine Parade planning area. The Katong district stretches from Fort Road area to the Joo ...

. This later became Saint Patrick's School.

Personal life and death

Nain returned to France in 1913 seeking treatment for a "bad attack of the

sprue A sprue may refer to: *Sprue (manufacturing), a feature in molding and casting molds *Coeliac disease, also known as sprue, a disease of the small intestine *Tropical sprue Tropical sprue is a malabsorption disease commonly found in tropical reg ...

." By then, his health "had been failing for some time." However,

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

broke out the following year and Nain enlisted in the military as a nurse. He then "fell dangerously ill with a serious heart condition", which led to his death at the military hospital in

Vichy Vichy (, ; ) is a city in the central French department of Allier. Located on the Allier river, it is a major spa and resort town and during World War II was the capital of Vichy France. As of 2021, Vichy has a population of 25,789. Known f ...

on 28 June 1916. He was buried at the Cemetery of Farges-lès-Mâcon. His name is listed on

The Cenotaph The Cenotaph is a war memorial on Whitehall in London, England. Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, it was unveiled in 1920 as the United Kingdom's national memorial to the dead of Britain and the British Empire of the First World War, was rededica ...

References

{{Reflist 1870 births 1916 deaths French missionaries