Wooden pews in Bengaluru's 155-year-old East Parade Church have slots to hold rifles
The church was meant for army stationed in the British cantonment.
By Divya Shekhar, ET Bureau |
Agencies
East Parade Church
An inscription on the East Parade Church premises states that its foundation stone was laid on October 6, 1863. The church, whose wooden pews (benches) with slots for rifles indicate that it was meant for the army stationed in the British cantonment, is one of the oldest in Bengaluru.
The building itself was completed in 1865. According to Rev Nebu Skariah, presbyter-in-charge of its Malayalam congregation, this is possibly the only church in the city that serves both the Tamil and Malayalam congregations. “The name is derived from the fact that the church was located on the eastern side of the Parade Ground. The grounds, in those days, stretched from Cubbon Park to present-day Dickenson Road,” he said.
The church was built by Rev Thomas Hodson, founder of the Wesleyan Canarese Mission. He arrived in India at the age of 25, served in Calcutta for about three years before he was stationed in Bengaluru in 1833. A linguist fluent in Bengali, Tamil and Kannada, he authored the book ‘An Elementary Grammar of the Kannada, or Canarese Language’ in 1864.
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(Image: www.nationalmuseumindia.gov.in & Tex: Viandra Dsouza)
Hodson concentrated his efforts on the Tamil population that had migrated along with the British to set up the civil and military station in the city in 1809. The Malayalam congregation had its first service on September 3, 1961, almost 95 years after the church was built. Earlier, the CSI Malayalam congregation used various locations for worship, including the Haigh Memorial Hall (situated behind the Unity Buildings), the Hudson Memorial Church and the St Mark’s Cathedral.
Hodson, who later became the chairman and superintendent of the Wesleyan Canarese Mission in Mysore in 1853, eventually returned to his hometown in Mansfield, England. He died on September 1882, at the age of 78 years.
Apart from a row of towering trees, the East Parade Church sports eight Corinthian columns at the entrance. “What is unique about this church is that are no columns or pillars inside, which results in an unobstructed view of the altar,” said Rev Skariah.
The annual report of the Wesleyan Mission of 1903 said that the church building accommodated about 700 people. Currently, about 1,175 families of both the Tamil and Malayalam congregations are members of the church. The heritage building has been preserved intact with its classic Greek architecture. A restoration was undertaken in 2006.
An inscription on the East Parade Church premises states that its foundation stone was laid on October 6, 1863. The church, whose wooden pews (benches) with slots for rifles indicate that it was meant for the army stationed in the British cantonment, is one of the oldest in Bengaluru.
The building itself was completed in 1865. According to Rev Nebu Skariah, presbyter-in-charge of its Malayalam congregation, this is possibly the only church in the city that serves both the Tamil and Malayalam congregations. “The name is derived from the fact that the church was located on the eastern side of the Parade Ground. The grounds, in those days, stretched from Cubbon Park to present-day Dickenson Road,” he said.
The church was built by Rev Thomas Hodson, founder of the Wesleyan Canarese Mission. He arrived in India at the age of 25, served in Calcutta for about three years before he was stationed in Bengaluru in 1833. A linguist fluent in Bengali, Tamil and Kannada, he authored the book ‘An Elementary Grammar of the Kannada, or Canarese Language’ in 1864.
(Image: www.nationalmuseumindia.gov.in & Tex: Viandra Dsouza)
Hodson concentrated his efforts on the Tamil population that had migrated along with the British to set up the civil and military station in the city in 1809. The Malayalam congregation had its first service on September 3, 1961, almost 95 years after the church was built. Earlier, the CSI Malayalam congregation used various locations for worship, including the Haigh Memorial Hall (situated behind the Unity Buildings), the Hudson Memorial Church and the St Mark’s Cathedral.
Hodson, who later became the chairman and superintendent of the Wesleyan Canarese Mission in Mysore in 1853, eventually returned to his hometown in Mansfield, England. He died on September 1882, at the age of 78 years.
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Apart from a row of towering trees, the East Parade Church sports eight Corinthian columns at the entrance. “What is unique about this church is that are no columns or pillars inside, which results in an unobstructed view of the altar,” said Rev Skariah.
The annual report of the Wesleyan Mission of 1903 said that the church building accommodated about 700 people. Currently, about 1,175 families of both the Tamil and Malayalam congregations are members of the church. The heritage building has been preserved intact with its classic Greek architecture. A restoration was undertaken in 2006.
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