Saint Joseph Catholic Church - Established in 1666 - French Settlement in Ayutthaya Thailand 2024

Founded in 1666, St. Joseph’s church served as the center of the French Catholic mission for about a century until the Burmese destroyed Ayutthaya in 1767. Rebuild and renovated several times, today St. Joseph’s is an active church.

The church is set on a large plot of land with a well kept garden. A primary school is next to the church. The deceased from the Ayutthaya Christian community have been buried at the graveyard. The oldest graves are those of the 32 French missionaries dating back to Ayutthaya era.

During the 17th century Ayutthaya did extensive trade with several European and Asian countries several of which including Japan, Holland and Portugal established foreign settlements off the historical island.

The French missionary wanted to build a Catholic church in Ayutthaya and asked King Narai for permission. The King granted the French permission and gave them a piece of land on the banks of the Chao Phraya river opposite the capital city on the island.

In 1666 a temporary wooden church was constructed. A few decades later construction was started on a brick building. The European style cathedral was completed in 1695.

When the Burmese attacked Ayutthaya in 1767 local Christians fled to the church and sought refuge there. The church grounds was used as a garrison to fight the invaders. Unable to stop the invading Burmese, the building was completely destroyed after a fire broke out nearby which spread to the church. The missionaries and Christians were taken into captivity and sent to Burma.

In the 19th century the church was rebuild. It has been renovated several times since then, the last time was in 2003.

The site is free to enter and worth a visit to see if you have time.

Enjoy the video!

You can also see my videos on Rumble, Bitchute, Odysee and Subscribe Star. If you have any questions or comments and wish to contact me directly I can be reached by email at endlessjourneytravels@gmail.com

https://www.bitchute.com/channel/pYUe8EgYcUMc/

https://odysee.com/$/latest/@EndlessJourney

https://rumble.com/c/EndlessJourney

https://www.subscribestar.com/endless-journey

Follow me on Twitter @AEndlessJourney

#endlessjourney
#travel
#thailand