Saint Thomas the Apostle Thomas the Apostle ( arc, 𐡀𐡌𐡅𐡕𐡌, hbo, תוֹמא הקדוש or תוֹמָא שליחא (''Toma HaKadosh'' "Thomas the Holy" or ''Toma Shlikha'' "Thomas the Messenger/Apostle" in Hebrew-Aramaic), syc, ܬܐܘܡܐ, , meaning "twi ...

Horniman Circle The Horniman Circle Gardens is a large park in South Mumbai, India, which encompasses an area of 2½ acres (10,100 m²). It is situated in the Fort district of Mumbai, and is surrounded by office complexes housing the country's premier banks. D ...

Flora Fountain Flora Fountain is a Fountain located at the Hutatma Chowk is an ornamentally sculpted architectural heritage monument located at the southern end of the historic Dadabhai Naoroji Road, at the Fort business district in the heart of South Mum ...

Cathedral and John Connon School The Cathedral & John Connon School is a co-educational private school founded in 1860 and located in Fort, Mumbai, Maharashtra.Anglican

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

(then called

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

), within the walls of the fortified

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building * Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fin ...

. The cathedral is a landmark in

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Anglo-Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahim and Sion neighbour ...

and is one of the oldest churches in India. The Cathedral and John Connon School was created in 1860, in order to provide choristers to the church. It is used by the school for its Founder's Day Service on 14 November every year, Carol Service on the last day before the school's Christmas vacation and other special occasions. The

Churchgate railway station Churchgate (station code: CCG) is the southern terminus on the Western Line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway. It is located in Churchgate in South Mumbai, Maharashtra. History Early history The Fort area built by the British had three main gate ...

derives its name from the St. Thomas Cathedral, as the station was linked to the cathedral by a road leading through one of the three gates of the fortified island city of

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

. The walls of the Bombay Fort were demolished in 1862 and the gate leading to the church was replaced by the

Flora Fountain Flora Fountain is a Fountain located at the Hutatma Chowk is an ornamentally sculpted architectural heritage monument located at the southern end of the historic Dadabhai Naoroji Road, at the Fort business district in the heart of South Mum ...

in 1864.

History

The name of nearby Churchgate Station refers to this church. One of the gates in the fort which the East India Company had built to protect their settlement was the entrance to the St. Thomas Church. It was called Churchgate. That is why the whole area towards the west of the church is called "Churchgate" even today. The street leading to the church was originally called Churchgate Street and was later renamed like many streets in Bombay, and is now known as Veer Nariman Road. The island of Bombay which was a Portuguese possession became a part of the dowry of the Portuguese princess Infanta Catherine of Braganza on her marriage to Charles II of England under the Anglo Portuguese treaty of June 1661. In 1668 King Charles transferred it to the East India Company for a loan of pounds Sterling 50,000 at 6% interest and with a rental of pounds Sterling 10 per annum.

Gerald Aungier Gerald Aungier (1640 – 30 June 1677) was the 2nd Governor of Bombay. He was made the president of the Surat factory and the governor of Bombay in 1669, which posts he held until his death in 1677. He was responsible for the initial growth o ...

was placed in charge of the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

's newly acquired factories at Surat and Bombay, which had until then belonged to Portugal. As governor of Bombay from 1672 to 1677, Angier built a church, a hospital, a court of justice and other civic amenities on the English model, and fortified the company's commercial establishment. The foundation stone for the church was laid in 1676, on Bombay Green, at the present site of the St. Thomas' Cathedral, but over 40 years elapsed before construction could be completed. Richard Cobbe, the chaplain, completed the construction of the building between 1715 and 1718. It was opened for divine service on Christmas Day 1718, and since then has served continuously as an Anglican place of worship. However, in 1816 the church was dedicated to St. Thomas, the apostle, by

Thomas Middleton Thomas Middleton (baptised 18 April 1580 – July 1627; also spelt ''Midleton'') was an English Jacobean playwright and poet. He, with John Fletcher and Ben Jonson, was among the most successful and prolific of playwrights at work in the Jac ...

, the first Bishop of Kolkata. The church was consecrated as a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

in July 1837 concurrent with the appointment of the first Bishop of Bombay, Thomas Carr. The tower and the clock at the western end were added in 1838. About 25 years later a major renovation scheme was launched to enlarge the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

. This was completed by 1865.

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

and Queen Mary attended divine service at the church in 1911 prior to their departure to the third Delhi Durbar held in the Coronation Park,

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

. They occupied the chairs in the first row and the chairs have been preserved until now with names of the King and Queen written in brass plates. A beautiful fountain stands at the entrance of the church. It was financed by Parsi entrepreneur and philanthropist Cowasji Jehangir Readymoney. It was designed by George Gilbert Scott and installed in the 1870s.

Memorials

The cathedral contains many carved stone memorials from the eras of

Company rule in India Company rule in India (sometimes, Company ''Raj'', from hi, rāj, lit=rule) refers to the rule of the British East India Company on the Indian subcontinent. This is variously taken to have commenced in 1757, after the Battle of Plassey, when ...

and the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

. Significant among this number: * Memorial to Thomas Carr: Recumbent effigy of Thomas Carr, First Bishop of Bombay by British sculptor

Matthew Noble Matthew Noble (23 March 1817 – 23 June 1876) was a leading British portrait sculptor. Carver of numerous monumental figures and busts including work memorializing Victorian era royalty and statesmen displayed in locations such as Westminster Ab ...

* Memorial to officers and crew of steam ship Cleopatra: Cleopatra was a steam operated wooden paddle sloop that sank of the Malabar coast on 15 April 1847. The ship was transporting 100 convicts from

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. The ship had a crew of 15i, including 9 officers. The plaque contains the names of te nine officers and mentions about the 142 other crew members, but there is no mention of the 100 odd convicts. * Memorial to Frederick Lewis Maitland:

Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...

died on 30 November 1839 whilst at sea on board the Wellesley, off

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

. He was buried at

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

. * Memorial to Captain Hardinge: Captain

George Nicholas Hardinge Captain George Nicholas Hardinge (11 April 1781 – 8 March 1808) was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Possessing an ability to endear himself to senior officers through his intellect ...

was the captain of San Fiorenzo, which was involved in a small three-day (6-8 March 1808) but epic naval struggle against the French ship Piedmontaise, off the cost of

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...

, Ceylon. Hardigne died of a grapeshot wound, shortly before the French surrendered. His elaborate memorial was executed by John Bacon. * Memorial to John Campbell: John Campbell was Lieutenant-Colonel of the British army who took an active part in the

Siege of Mangalore The siege of Mangalore was conducted during the Second Anglo-Mysore War by Tipu Sultan and forces of the Kingdom of Mysore against a British East India Company garrison led by Colonel Campbell. The port city of Mangalore on the west coast of I ...

Fort and subsequent conflict with Tippoo Sultan. He died in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

on 23 March 1784 out of exhaustion. The marble memorial consists of life-sized figures of Death and Hope flanking an urn on a tall pedestal. It was designed by

Charles Peart Charles Peart (22 December 1759 – 1798) was a British sculptor of the late 18th century. Life and career Peart was born at Newton, a rural parish located immediately north-east of Monmouth After leaving the school, he worked as an assistant to ...

.

Mumbai Zero Point

The cathedral marks colonial Bombay's point zero, the exact centre of the city. From the church 16 mile stones were laid out, leading to the north of the city. The milestone measured 4 feet in height but are submerged by the increasing road level. So far, 11 of the 16 milestones have been located.

Present day

After completion of a major restoration work the cathedral was selected in 2004 for a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Asia-Pacific heritage conservation award. The current congregation at St. Thomas Cathedral is led by Rev. Avinash Rangayya.

Gallery

File:St. Thomas Cathedral, Mumbai (interior).jpg, St. Thomas Cathedral, interior, nave File:St. Thomas Cathedral, Mumbai (chancel).jpg, St. Thomas Cathedral, interior, chancel File:St.Thomas Cathedral - Mumbai.jpg, Stained glass window of St. Thomas Cathedral File:St Thomas Cathedral 2.jpg, St Thomas Cathedral

References

External links

*
"St. Thomas' Cathedral", ''Maharashtra State Gazetteer: Greater Bombay District'' (1986-7; online, 2007)

360° panorama of the interiors of St Thomas Cathedral
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Thomas Cathedral, Mumbai 1718 establishments in Asia 1718 establishments in the British Empire Church of North India cathedrals Churches in Mumbai History of Mumbai Religious organizations established in the 1710s UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards winners Churches completed in 1718 Churches completed in 1837 19th-century churches in India 18th-century churches in India

History

Memorials

Mumbai Zero Point

Present day

Gallery

See also

References

External links