300 Year Old St Thomas Cathedral
Curious why the 300 year old St Thomas Cathedral is the most significant in Bombay?
300 Year Old St Thomas Cathedral is where Bombay began and ended , literally
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You’ll be surprised to know most Mumbaikars might refer to the St Thomas Cathedral as “that church near Flora Fountain.” This cathedral has stood at that spot for 300 years, a long time for a city like Bombay.
Standing near its entrance in this 21st century, the first thing you’ll notice is the movement of cars, people, food stalls and busy taxis. And as you step inside the white washed walls, its all peace and quiet.
It’s not like you think. St Thomas Cathedral is no a stranger to noise. In it’s early days, the cathedral would be surrounded by shouts of people haggling with the grocer and gossiping about their neighbours. The St Thomas Cathedral was so much a part of daily life that it was a landmark that existed forever.
Bombay began and circled around it.
The shouts of shopkeepers have now changed into the busy feet of people in the finance industry, and the stench of road-side food carts.
And yet amidst all the chaos, there is that landmark you could still refer to. Aren’t such roots deep?
You must step inside the St Thomas Cathedral and experience its mystery and a sense of welcome.
Your first impression might be to gawk at the high reaching memorials and the elaborate stones. The memorials, in their diversity tell stories of dangerous times, something from your historic period drama. How one poor soul was ambushed by highwaymen, how a ship drowned or how someone tragically fell ill and died in the peak of their youth.
You’ll find yourself looking around, in front and down. In its whitewashed walls, the St Thomas Cathedral holds simplicity, beauty and questions about the multitude of lives that were a part of it.
What you might definitely forget to observe are the seats. The wooden chairs aren’t anything out of this world. There are two chairs at the end of the nave near the altar which you must not miss. They are precious. It’s almost short of sitting on a throne. A small brass plaque says these chairs were used by King George V and his wife Queen Mary when they visited India. And you can sit on those chairs… You’ll know the feeling if you’re a British Royalty fanatic.
If British Royalty isn’t what catches your fancy, Mother Theresa should. This incredible woman prayed at the St Thomas Cathedral in 1983.
She sat on the boxes called pews. Another one of those brass plaque remembers her at the cathedral.
And that’s not all that awaits you.
It might seem intimidating at first, but brace your necks and crane them to read all the memorials. Like I mentioned before the memorials are an interesting testament to history. You might even come across someone important who shaped Bombay into what it is today.
Probably you’ve guessed that St Thomas cathedral wasn’t a private church. It was an important one like St Paul’s to London.
In fact it was so significant that the cathedral held records for the entire Bombay Presidency.
It’s like winning a lottery when I tell you, most of these old records of baptisms, marriages and deaths survive.
And one very fascinating entry is Mr. Rudyard Kipling himself who was born on 30th December 1865 and baptised a year later on 22nd January in the Cathedral itself (if my guess is right).
What’s more, it is absolutely true when I say, Bombay began and ended at St Thomas Cathedral. The Cathedral was the 0th mile meaning all distances were calculated from the Cathedral.
In an exhibition at my local museum, they claimed there are a few milestones around the city, a symbol of the glorious days of St Thomas Cathedral.
What’s the story of this historic church? Mind you, it’s a long one, somewhat 300 years long. Brace yourself, here goes a long story
History of St Thomas Cathedral
The story might start with Charles II marrying Catherine of Braganza.
When he received the 7 islands of Bombay, the King remarked something akin to “They’re worthless!”
This short sightedness sent Bombay into the grasp of the British East India Company. And the company played their part stupendously, transforming Bombay into the London of the East.
It wasn’t some magical British wand that said, ‘Leviosa’ and brought Bombay’s imposing Gothic structures to life.
Sir John Oxinden, the first Governor of Bombay, realised his companions needed a church.
Unfortunately before he could turn this thought into reality, Oxinden boarded a ship back home.
The new Governor, Gerald Aungier was quick to get down to business. He wrote to the Court of Directors to –
“erect a small church for the public worship in the centre of town.”
They opened up a fund to collect money. The Englishmen didn’t hold back. Some people apparently donated their wages, entirely or partly. They managed to collect about Rs. 50,000! That might not even buy you basic raw materials for construction today. Surely it was a small fortune back then, much before the ‘good old’ days of your parents.
The foundation stone was laid in 1676 and construction continued for 3 years. Aungier died in 1677 and the ‘Anglo-Indians’ as the British migrants called themselves, fell in trouble.
Their beloved church and all the Rs 50,000 of hard earned money turned into mist. Construction came to a standstill. The walls stood still at 15 feet.
It might have been a sad sight. Imagine donating your years wages for a monument that might never be built.
I don’t know what happened to those Rs.50,000. Considering the rules and legal set up during those days, I don’t reckon the money was returned.
All was not lost in vain. There was one man who landed on Bombay’s shores and took it upon himself to built the church.
Richard Cobbe was a Chaplain and probably a persuasive orator.
He delivered one of his best sermons on one Sunday in June, 1715. A sermon that made you want to part with your money and give it to build a church.
Cobbe’s higher-ups were so impressed, they gave him leave to build the cathedral.
Armed with a fund, determination and construction plans, Cobbe looked on with pity at the beautiful organ Aungier’s men had ordered thirty years ago from Britain. Cobbe remarked how the organ was ‘quite out of order, broken and useless.’ That was good money gone to waste.
Cobbe’s determination might inspire you. He faced political opposition but stuck to the schedule.
On the 25th of December 1718, as Santa Claus looked on, a completed St Thomas Church was celebrated in a grand ceremony.
They fired a 21 guns salute from the castle and hosted a grand dinner.
What did the Church look like?
Not much like it does today. It might even have been a bit strange.
Just hear the description before you decide upon your opinion.
The Windows of the church were covered with oyster shells and the flooring made up of cow-dung.
Both these techniques, Mrs.Gillian Tindall (author on various Urban history books) explains, were in use locally. The British always tried to incorporate Indian and European styles.
The Cow-dung was used in Indian homes instead of tiles. You’ll only find it in rural homes now. Yours truly can vouch for their use, having experienced their magic. These cow-dung plastered houses keep the heat at bay, bring in oxygen, all without the need of air conditioning.
The Oyster Shells, as you might have wondered about their use, blocked light. Since Bombay is an island with its coast, these oyster shells are locally available and kept the heat out, oxygen in.
Mrs.Tindall tells us they had to have the Evensong at 4pm since it would get dark inside.
This ventilation stood the church in good stead as it didn’t have ‘pankhas’ or fans till the 19th century.
The Church meant the Anglo-Indians were close to their religion and belonged to a community. That’s reassuring when you’re 4500 miles away from home without phone or internet.
The New Weird Noisy Page
In 1810, they fashioned this church to suit its green surroundings. They covered it with palm branches and plantation trees. Not very fashionable, is it?
Three years later, the town flocked outside the church for daily supplies. It was the local market where you’d call the shopkeeper by name and haggle with him. Despite the growing populace in this area, its Church had no name.
Bishop Thomas Fanshaw Middleton on the 7th of June 1816 consecrated the church and named it St Thomas Church.
Lo and Behold, I’m a Cathedral Folks
Things were taking a turn for the better from all that green when, the Church was cast into the limelight in 1837. Bishop Thomas Carr created the diocese of Bombay. And the new Bishop’s seat was our very own ‘green’ cathedral.
Now I like to believe they removed all the palm leaves when they welcomed the new Bishop, I don’t really know the how or why of this strange fashion.
Thomas Carr introduced the St Thomas Church as the Cathedral of the See.
New Looks, Same history
The church had to look like a cathedral.
After some damage to its towers in the 1855 hurricane, they called up plans to restore the lost heritage.
Ten years later, James Trubshawe proposed an elegant neo-gothic structure.
From his design you can understand that this restoration project in the 19th century was a major one. It transformed the cathedral into something you and I would recognise today.
My only regret is the spire Trubshawe had designed. This spire would remind you of the one at Salisbury Cathedral and would have given the cathedral a distinctive look. They didn’t stick to Trubshawe’s plan though.
The spire was instead built as a tower with a belfry standing at 149ft.
It’s almost laughable (no skyscrapers!!) when I say this tower was visible from ships docking at the Bombay harbour.
A skeptical Victorian Lady wrote :
“….The tower of the Cathedral, rising in the centre, is the only feature of the scene which boasts any architectural charm.”
She might not have gotten a look inside St Thomas Cathedral as yet.
Charles Eamer Kempe, Lavers & Barraud, Henry Holiday were commissioned to add in the beautiful stained glass that every Gothic cathedral needs. During your visit, you’ll be mesmerised by this stained glass and its magical patterns.
By the end of this restoration in the 19th century, the landscape of Bombay had changed along with its cathedral.
The Churchgate station had been built in 1870 and the greenery was slowly changing into an urban scene.
Bombay’s Cathedral had turned into a Mixitiform structure, a mixture of sequential architectural styles across time.
The fort’s gate that stood near the church was taken down along with the fort walls. In its place was built the Flora fountain.
The Church Gate Street (Veer Nariman Road) still connects the St Thomas Cathedral with the Flora Fountain. As you take a walk you’ll be engulfed with road-side shops selling cheap jeans and the metro construction blocking your view of the bay beyond.
The Cathedral has come miles from the bad tempered Victorian Lady’s remark which spoke about a quaint Bombay. The Cathedral is now surrounded by the clinking of gold as people make money in its neighbouring Stock Exchange.
Yet 300 and 1/2 years hence, the faith and tranquility of St Thomas Cathedral remains the same if not stronger.
Have you been to this cathedral before? Are you curious now to explore this 300 Year Old St Thomas Cathedral? Comment below if you have or now plan to explore Bombay.
Here are a few tips that might help. Before we dive into them, I’ve got to tell you. There will be several more places like this cathedral that I shall be exploring in the future. Sign Up in the box below right now so you’ll be updated every Saturday with a new heritage monument (and you’ll find a gift in your inbox) here:
So yes to the tips
Look around when you walk around. Like when you step out of the CST station look ahead at the glorious structure, the BMC building.
Read about the beautiful Gothic BMC Building
Visit museums in your city. Mumbai has got a few, the two most famous are the Bhau Daji Lad Museum in Byculla and The CSMVS Museum near Kala Ghoda
Read about The Bhau Daji Lad Museum
Make sure you tell you’re friends about the 300 Year Old St Thomas Cathedral! Share this article with your folks
Bibliography
City of Gold- Gillian Tindall
The Living Cathedral Exhibition at CSMVS Museum based on the book ST. Thomas’ cathedral Bombay: A witness to history – Dr. Vijay Gupchup
Stories in Stones – ST. THOMAS CATHEDRAL, Mumbai – Evolving Through Ages by Ritika Athwani
St Thomas Cathedral Mumbai: Official Site
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