St Francis Church Travel Map

St. Francis CSI Church is the landmark building, which was foundby the Portuguese. This edifice is built on the site, where the body of late explorer Vasco da Gama was originally buried. Originally built in 1503, this church is the oldest European church in India. The church was initially a simple wooden structure, which was dedicated to St Bartholomew. Reconstruction of the church in stone was initiated by the Portuguese Viceroy, Dom Francisco Almedia, on the command of the Raja. The new reconstructed church was completed in 1516 and was dedicated to St Antony. In 1663, the church was taken over by Dutch and was converted into their government church. Until 1795, Dutch administrated the church, which was then passed to the British. In 1923, under the Protected Monuments Act of 1904, the church was declared as the protected monument. The church can be reached by hiring a cab or boarding an auto-rickshaw or bus for Fort Kochi.