The Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica, also known as Kotta Palli or Kottepalli, is located in

Fort Kochi Fort Kochi ( , ; Cochin Portuguese: ''Cochim de Baixo'', , Tamil: ''Koçhé Kōtàì''), formerly also known as Fort Cochin or British Cochin or Old Kochi, is a region of Kochi city in Kerala, India. Fort Kochi takes its name from the For ...

, Kochi. It is one of the thirty-four

basilicas In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and one of nine in Kerala. This heritage edifice of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

is renowned for its

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...

and Gothic architectural style. It serves as the

cathedral church A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

of the

Diocese of Cochin The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cochin () is a Roman Catholic Diocese in Cochin, Kerala, Kochi, Kerala, India. A constituent of the Latin Church, the diocese was established in 1557 after the domination of the Portuguese language, Portuguese-spe ...

. Originally built by the Portuguese in 1505 after securing the permission of the King of Cochin, it was elevated to a

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

Pope Paul IV Pope Paul IV (; ; 28 June 1476 – 18 August 1559), born Gian Pietro Carafa, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 May 1555 to his death, in August 1559. While serving as papal nuncio in Spain, he developed ...

in 1558. Although many Catholic buildings were destroyed by Dutch conquerors who arrived in Cochin in the 17th century, this cathedral was spared. However, the British who later arrived demolished it in 1795, and a new structure was commissioned in 1887 by the then bishop of Cochin, João Gomes Ferreira. The new building was consecrated in 1905 and proclaimed a basilica by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

in 1984. The Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica is one of the finest and most impressive churches in India, attracting tourists year-round. It is not only a place of devotion but also a center of historic significance, endowed with architectural and artistic grandeur.

History

Portuguese missionaries and Santa Cruz Church : 1505 - 1558

The Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica's origin is closely linked to significant historical events following the arrival of the second Portuguese fleet led by Captain

Pedro Álvares Cabral Pedro Álvares Cabral (; born Pedro Álvares de Gouveia; ) was a Portuguese nobleman, military commander, navigator and explorer regarded as the European discoverer of Brazil. He was the first human in history to ever be on four continents, ...

on 26 November 1500. The Portuguese fleet, comprising 13 ships and 18 priests, quickly won the goodwill of Unni Goda Varma Tirumulpadu, the then King of the

Kingdom of Cochin The kingdom of Cochin or the Cochin State, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It originated in the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until i ...

(''Cohim'', Kochi), who permitted four priests to conduct apostolic work among the early Christian communities in and around Cochin. The Portuguese missionaries established the Portuguese Mission in 1500. This cordial reception by the King of Cochin incited the

Zamorin The Samoothiri (Anglicised as Zamorin; Malayalam: , , Arabic: ''Sāmuri'', Portuguese: ''Samorim'', Dutch: ''Samorijn'', Chinese: ''Shamitihsi''Ma Huan's Ying-yai Sheng-lan: 'The Overall Survey of the Ocean's Shores' 433 Translated and Edi ...

Calicut Kozhikode (), also known as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. Known as the City of Spices, Kozhikode is listed among the City of Literature, UNESCO's Cities of Literature. It is the nineteenth large ...

(''Calecute'', Kozhikode) to declare war on the Kingdom of Cochin. In 1505, Portuguese forces under Dom Afonso de Albuquerque successfully defended the Cochin monarch. Grateful for their support, the king granted them permission to build the Portuguese fort ''Immanuel'' (Fort Kochi) and establish trade relations with

Quilon Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake and is 71 kilometers (44 mi) nort ...

(''Coulão'',

Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...

). This laid the foundation for the eastern

Portuguese Empire The Portuguese Empire was a colonial empire that existed between 1415 and 1999. In conjunction with the Spanish Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It achieved a global scale, controlling vast portions of the Americas, Africa ...

. Further developments in 1505 saw Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first viceroy of

Portuguese India The State of India, also known as the Portuguese State of India or Portuguese India, was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded seven years after the discovery of the sea route to the Indian subcontinent by Vasco da Gama, a subject of the ...

(''Estado da Índia'')., secure permission from the king of Cochin for further Portuguese fortifications of Fort Manuel on Cochin and approval to build two churches — Santa Cruz Basilica (1505) and St. Francis Church (1506) — using stones and mortar. This construction was unprecedented, as local prejudices typically reserved such materials for royal palaces or temples. The foundation of this church, was laid on 4 May 1505, aligning with the feast of the invention of the Holy Cross. Upon completion, the church was named Santa Cruz, meaning Holy Cross. This site was initially positioned on the eastern side of what is now the Children’s Park in Fort Kochi.

Raising to Cathedral and demolition : 1558 - 1795

In 1558,

elevated the Santa Cruz Church to the status of a

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

. This followed the establishment of the Archdiocese of Goa in 1557 as an independent archbishopric, with the newly formed

— one of the first dioceses in India — made its

suffragan see A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, ...

, along with the Diocese of Malacca. This brought the whole of the Eastern dioceses under the jurisdiction of Goa, extending its boundaries from the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

. When the Dutch conquered Cochin in 1663, they destroyed most of the Portuguese establishments, including Catholic buildings in the area. However, the St. Francis Church and the Santa Cruz Cathedral were spared. While the former remained a church, the latter was repurposed as an arms storehouse by the Dutch. Later, when the British expelled the Dutch on 20 October 1795, they maintained the church for a similar purpose, using it as a warehouse. In 1806, they demolished the Santa Cruz Cathedral.< This was part of a broader strategy of the British to dismantle Catholic infrastructure in the region. Despite the destruction, a part of the Cathedral survived as a monument. One of the decorative granite pillars from the demolished Cathedral has been preserved and is now situated at the southeastern corner of the present Basilica premises.

Erection of the present day Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica : 1886 - present

Following its demolition by the British, about a century later, Bishop João Gomes Ferreira (1887–1897), who served as both a missionary and the Bishop of Cochin, took the lead in reconstructing the Cathedral and initiating its construction plan. However, it was his successor, Bishop Mateus de Oliveira Xavier (1897–1908), who oversaw its completion. On 19 November 1905, Bishop Sebastião José Pereira, the Bishop of Damao, consecrated the cathedral. Recognizing its age, artistic significance, and historical importance, Pope

John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

, in a special Decree titled "Constat Sane Templum Sanctae Cruci" dated 23 August 1984, elevated the Santa Cruz Cathedral to the esteemed status of Basilica. The Basilica stands distinguished by its predominantly white exterior contrasting with a pastel-colored interior, graced with two imposing

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

s, exhibits a blend of Gothic and

architectural influences. Adorning the columns are intricate

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es and

mural A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...

s, with seven large canvas paintings portraying the passion and death on the Cross, including a captivating rendition of the

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, ''The Last Supper (Leonardo), The Last Supper'' (1495-1498). Mural, tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic ...

inspired by

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...

's masterpiece. Additionally, the Basilica's splendor is enhanced by its exquisite stained glass windows, and ceiling paintings portraying scenes from the

Via Crucis The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

. All of these artistic embellishments, including the main altar, were skillfully crafted by the acclaimed Italian Jesuit brother and painter Fr. Antonio Moscheni, alongside his disciple Fr. De Gama of Mangalore. Sadly, Fr. Antonio Moscheni passed away on 15 November 1905, just four days before the cathedral's inauguration. The basilica hosts the relic of The Holy Cross of Jesus Christ, located on the right side of the church. Additionally, a shrine dedicated to

Our Lady of Fátima Our Lady of Fátima (, ; formally known as Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of Fátima) is a Catholic title of Mary, mother of Jesus, based on the Marian apparitions reported in 1917 by three shepherd children at the Cova da Iria in Fátima, Portu ...

is situated outside the church.

Gallery

File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04a.jpg, Facade Of The Cathedral File:Back- santa cruz basilica.JPG, Back Side File:Ceiling of Santa Cruz Basilica.JPG, Ceiling Of the Church File:Santa Cruz Basilica Cochin ceiling paintings.jpg, Celling Paintings File:Church Jesus BN3Q4151.jpg, Altar Crucifix File:Inside santa cruz basilica, cochin.JPG, Interior Paintings File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04d.jpg, Side View of the cathedral File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04f.jpg, Interior View File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04i.jpg, Painting on the ceiling File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04j.jpg, Distant view of the altar File:Kathedralbasilika Santa Cruz 2018-04-04m.jpg, Shrine of our lady File:Pillar monument at Santa Cruz Basilica 02.jpg, Protected monument - the pillar of Santa Cruz Cathedral of 1505 File:Santa Cruz Basilica, Kochi altar 03.jpg, Main Altar File:Santa Cruz Basilica rear-side.jpg, Back Side File:Santa Cruz Basilica side shrine.jpg, Shrine File:Stained glass window of Santa Cruz Basilica, Kochi 02.jpg, Stained Glass Windows File:Stained glass window of Santa Cruz Basilica, Kochi.jpg, Window File:Statues of Santa Cruz Basilica, Kochi 03.jpg, Side Altar File:Statues of Santa Cruz Basilica, Kochi 04.jpg, Relic Of Holy Cross File:Santa Cruz Basilica..JPG, Inscription outside the church

References

External links

{{Christianity in Kerala Buildings and structures in Kochi Archaeological sites in Kerala Basilica churches in Kerala Colonial Kerala Churches in Kochi 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in India Roman Catholic churches in Kochi Churches completed in 1505 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1905 Religious organizations established in the 1550s 1550s establishments in Portuguese India Gothic Revival church buildings in India Portuguese in Kerala Portuguese colonial architecture in India British colonial architecture in India 1505 establishments in Portuguese India Monuments of National Importance in Kerala 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in India Tourist attractions in Kochi