Saint Mungo's Church of Scotland, Lucknow Cantonment

 A visit to Lucknow: The Colonial Legacy

St. Mungo is the patron saint of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. In Wales and England, this saint is known by his birth and baptismal name "Kentigern." A number of churches dedicated to St. Mungo exist in the UK, as well as in Canada, New Zealand, and interestingly, in Lucknow, India.

Most citizens of Lucknow may not be even aware of the brooding ruins of St. Mungo's Church, which are still extant in the cantonment area of the city. Details of this church are sparse, but apparently it was consecrated in 1909. It is no secret that Scottish Highlanders had a prominent presence in Lucknow, from 1857 till Independence. The Highland regiments, in kilts, plaid uniforms and playing bagpipes (often called petticoated devils) represented a romantic visual of British exploits in India.

After 1947, the devout had all but vanished, and this church was de-consecrated at some point of time. Now it is no longer a place of worship, but a casual godown for army supplies. A view of the majestic, Gothic ruins give an indication of how this church might have been in its better days. It is too strongly built to collapse and vanish on its own, and it’s too prominent to be bull-dozed and levelled to the ground. Hence, it stands, ignored, its spire towering and dwarfing neighbouring structures. Waiting for its slow, imminent and eventual end.

Is there no way the building can be restored to its former glory - as a tourist attraction or as a war memorial, if not as a church?

Guest Post by Dr. PC Sarkar.

Dr. Sarkar holds a Ph.D in organic chemistry and is presently working as a scientist in the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Govt. of India. He completed his schooling from St. Francis' College, Lucknow , followed by college education from Lucknow Christian College and Lucknow University. He imbibed a passion for the Nawabi and Colonial heritage of Lucknow during his childhood.

All Saints Garrison Church (CNI), Lucknow - current structure dating 1914

All Saints Garrison Church is located in Lucknow Cantonment. Formerly Anglican, it is now part of the Church of North India denomination of Protestant churches in India. Rev. Daniel Subhan is the serving Presbyter in charge. The Church has regular Sunday services. There used to be an English service on Sunday mornings till few years ago, however, both the Sunday services now are now in Hindi.

Please visit my other blog posts for more pictures of the church. Click here and here.

Here’s some history of the church I found on the net. Source here.

The All Saints Garrison Church was designed by James Ransome, Consulting Architect to the Government of India, around 1908. Since Ransome left India for England shortly after, the design was executed by his successors, John Begg and Frank Lishman. Elements of the design were borrowed from Magdalene College, Oxford, and sketches and designs Ransome found in an architecture magazine. The Church was designed in a style that was considered “modern” for the time. However, Ransome’s original design was much more grand (and probably expensive) than what was finally executed by Begg and Lishman. Begg and Lishman simplified the side walls, which Ransome’s original design would have made very expensive to construct. They also lowered the height of the bell tower. But inspite of all their simplifications, the All Saints Garrison Church appears striking and magnificent today. The Church was built between 1911 and 1913, and the cost of construction was Rs. 90,000.

 

Rev. Daniel Subhan before the Church service

 

The Church as it appears from one of the entrance gates

 

The Church as it appears from one of the entrance gates

 

Another view of the Church

 

One of the side entrances to the Church and the Church compound

 

The Apse end of the Church as it appears from outside

 

The Nave as it appears from the main entrance door (under the bell tower)

 

The bell tower

 

The Baptismal font with the Nave of the Church

 

The Baptismal font and the main entrance door behind

 

A close up of the Chancel and the choir pews on both sides

The Church was meant for the use of British Military officers. Now members of all trades worship here. The original structure was built in 1860, as Lucknow Cantonment began to expand, the number of troops increased and the church was expanded to meet their spiritual needs. A prominent feature of the church pews is that every bench has a niche for keeping guns on the upper-back side.

 

The niche to hold the gun

 

View from the chancel

 

Picture taken during one of the Sunday worships. At the lecturn the presbyter in charge and lay leader behind

 

The Holy Altar

 Another view of the Apse and the Holy Altar

 The congregation at the Altar rail

 The Pulpit

 

One of the few memorials in the Church - In memory of the soldiers of No.3 Company 8th Battalion Royal Artillery, killed in 1857 and 1858

 

Another memorial to soldiers of Perthshire Regiment (apology for the poor resolution picture)

 

The Lady Chapel - not in use

The Church is part of the rich Lucknow heritage. While not in the best of condition, it still functions strong and serves to the spiritual needs of all who come here. If you have any old pictures of All Saints, then please share with me on my email: niklucknow@gmail.com. I'll upload them here with due credit. Please leave a comment as well, if you liked my post.