Santa Cruz Church – the Portuguese legacy in Bangkok

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Santa Cruz Church
the Portuguese legacy in Bangkok

Santa Cruz Church, one of the many old Catholic churches in Bangkok, was built in 1770 during the reign of King Taksin (1867 – 1782). This Church of the Holy Cross is a legacy of Thai-Portuguese relations that date back to the 16th century.

Nestled among old houses on the river banks and newer buildings inland, the reddish dome of the old Catholic church is a prominent landmark on the Chao Phraya River.

On the banks of the Chao Phraya

Descendants of the early Portuguese Catholics built the first Santa Cruz Church in 1770 after the fall of Ayutthaya. The Portuguese, the first Europeans in Thailand, arrived in Ayutthaya shortly after they captured Malacca in 1511.

As the area was also claimed by the Thai King, the Portuguese shrewdly dispatched an envoy to the court of Ayutthaya in the same year to reassure the Thais that Portugal had no territorial ambitions in Thailand.

In 1516, Portugal signed a treaty with Thailand to supply firearms and munitions. With the treaty came with the rights to reside, trade and practice their religion in Thailand. This brought the first Portuguese friars in 1567 who established the Catholic Church in Ayutthaya.

After the fall of Ayutthaya in 1767, the Portuguese continued with their military support to King Taksin in his efforts to drive the Burmese out of Thailand. The supply of mercenaries, cannon and muskets contributed significantly to King Taksin’s army.

With Ayutthaya destroyed, the Catholics from the old city moved south to start a village by the Chao Phraya near Wang Derm, King Taksin’s Palace. In recognition of their services, King Taksin granted the Portuguese a plot of land to build a church. This grant was made during his royal visit to this village on 14 September 1769.

14 September, is of religious significance to the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. On this day in 336 AD, St Helena, mother of Roman Emperor Constantine, the first Christian emperor, made a miraculous discovery of the Holy Cross during a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

The day has been designated the Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross. For this reason, the church was named Santa Cruz (Holy Cross). A wooden church was completed on 25 May 1770.

Over the next 65 years, the wooden church fell into a state of disrepair. In 1835, Cardinal Pallegoix built a second church to replace the wooden one. Apparently this church had a rather Chinese design. So the villagers named the church “Kudi Jeen” or Chinese church.

For this reason, the community that grew around the church became known as Kudi Jeen. Santa Cruz Church is sometimes referred to as Wat Kudi Jeen.

In 1916 the third and present version of Santa Cruz Church was built during the reign of King Rama VI (1910 – 1925). The two renowned Italian architects Annibale Rigotti and MarioTamagno took on this task.

Santa Cruz today

The gate to the spacious courtyard is a short distance from the Santa Cruz Pier on the Chao Phraya. A crucifix is in one corner of the courtyard and a statue of Mary within a beautiful garden in the other.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2

The Holy Cross

Garden dedicated to the Virgin Mary

Within a smaller courtyard, surrounded by a low wrought iron fence, stands the neat cream colored church trimmed in reddish-brown and topped by a domed belfry. The sidewalls of the church are decorated with stained glass etched with biblical images.

To the rear of the church, away from the Chao Phraya, there’s a small cemetery with tombstones encased in marble. From the names on the tombstones, it’s apparent that these are the graves of former pastors of the church.

In the outer courtyard behind the church, the statues of Mary and Joseph stand like guardian angels over the Kudi Jeen community.

The church grounds are accessible to the residents in the area who walk through the courtyard to get to the ferry crossing. The gate between the church and Soi Kudi Jeen was opened during both my visits.

Soi Kudi Jeen leading from the church to the main road

Like the early Catholic churches in Thailand, Santa Cruz Church continues to play a major role in education. Two schools were built around the church; Santa Cruz Suksa School and Santa Cruz Convent. The convent was started by the Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres in 1906.

Santa Cruz Suksa School next to the church

The well-kept church grounds are quiet on weekdays save for the rhythmic strains of children reciting their lessons in the Santa Cruz Suksa School nearby and the occasional passerby on the way to the pier.

Like an urban oasis with narrow sois (lanes) leading to the busy streets outside, the Santa Cruz Church is all that remains of Portuguese influence in Kudi Jeen today.