Bandel Church

Hi! I am Jayshri please visit my blog to know about Bandel Church .

BANDEL CHURCH

  Bandel Church is a historical place .It is one of the oldest churches in West Bengal.

It can be seen as a memorial of the Portuguese settlement in Bengal .Around 1571, the Portuguese began to use Bandle as a port .The Mughal Empire Akbar gave them permission to build a town in Hooghly.The Portuguese called over Augustinian monks from Goa to build a charge at Bandel in 1599 .

  Bandel Church was destroyed during the Mughal Siege of Hooghly .The priest, father John  da Cruz,along with a few thousand Christians ,was taken to Agra fort before the Mughal Empire Shah Jahan .His order was punish the prisoners. So they were made to stand before ferocious elephants .But surprisingly one  elephant carried father John da cruz right up to the emperor and knelt before him as if asking for mercy.This peculiar incident impressed Shah Jahan. He set the Prisoners free .Shah Jahan granted money to reconstruct the charge and also donated 777 bighas of land to the church in the year 1633 . Since then it has been modified and reconstruct at different times.

Pryer hall, the mast ,the cemetery and also the statue of Mother Marry and we will be seen many wall painting of Christ and the huge clock with four faces.