The Kirk celebrates 200-year milestone, marks laying of foundation stone in 1818

CHENNAI: Monday, April 6, 1818. A foundation stone stamped with a brass plate holding an inscription in English and Latin, with coins of the British and Madras currency below it was placed on the ground. Alongside was laid a parchment with an inscription in Tamil and Telugu, sealed in a bottle along with more coins of the period. A simple ceremony ensued, the stone, and the little time capsule, marking the commemoration of the building of St Andrew’s Church or ‘Kirk’, among the oldest in the city.
On Friday, the church will burst into celebration with a Thanksgiving service highlighting the architectural heritage of the building as well as its significance through the years.A commemorative booklet will be released during this service with an account of the the construction, while another service at 9am on Sunday, will continue the celebrations. “The faith, belief and passion of the Scottish community at the time inspired them to build a place of worship of this scale, when the area around it was a flat plain. Today, St Andrews is a living church with a congregation of more than 500 families,” said Rev Isaac Johnson, pastor of St Andrews Church (the Kirk).
The church, which was consecrated in 1821, and follows the Scottish Presbyterian tradition, stands on a foundation of a 150 wells on what was once a marshy flood plain to the south of the Cooum. These were dug from 14 feet to 50 feet deep and layered with bricks and baked rings filled with small stones, shingle, and sand to make it firm for the masonry foundation to be established.
Designed and built by Major Thomas de Havilland, the structure is perfectly circular, with an inner circle of 16 Corinthian columns that hold up a dome 51 ½ feet in diameter. The dome was later coloured with lapis lazuli and dotted with stars to depict the night sky. The 111 ¾ foot high steeple of the Kirk, the tallest in in the city, is a landmark that soars 166 ½ feet above the ground. “Its design is recognized as one of the most beautiful Georgian structures in the world,” says Dulip Thangasamy, secretary of the Kirk Session.