Armenian Church

The Armenian Church of the Holy Virgin Mary stands on Armenian Street in George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, and is a reminder of the global trading community that settled in colonial Madras. Armenian merchants traded in Madras from the 17th century, dealing in textiles, gems and spices, and they were granted privileges by the East India Company. The present church was built in 1772 on the site of an earlier chapel and a burial ground that held Armenian graves of earlier decades. The building is a modest but elegant structure in a simple colonial style, with a white-washed facade, a short entrance porch and a tall, slender bell tower that rises prominently above the surrounding lanes. The tower originally held a ring of six bells, and the church is known among historians for them, as well as for its gravestones inscribed in Armenian. Inside, the hall is plain with timber furnishings, and an adjoining courtyard preserves memorial stones recording merchants and families of the community. The church is maintained today by a small Armenian trust and by the local community, because very few Armenians still live in Chennai, and it is usually closed to casual entry, opening for services on special occasions and to visitors by prior arrangement. For most visitors the experience is therefore an exterior view of the tower and the courtyard wall, together with a walk through the surrounding streets of George Town, where lanes preserve the names of trading communities. The church is in good condition and benefits from periodic restoration. It combines easily with the nearby Madras High Court, Fort St. George and Parry's Corner, which together give a sense of how George Town functioned as the commercial heart of the old city.