Assumption Cathedral

In 1809, Father Pascual, a descendant of Thai-Portuguese (ordained in 1805), collected 1,500 baht, which he shared with his Christian friends and relatives. He gave this money to Father Florance so that he could build a church in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On May 28, 1810, Father Florance wrote to Father Letandal that for this purpose:

        “I have purchased a plot of land for 250 baht. I will have to expand it a bit later so that I can build a church that is in accordance with the wishes of the donors, for the blessing of God and the Virgin Mary. This plot of land is on the river bank opposite our Santa Cruz Church, a little above the church of the Qismatics.” (now Kalwar Church)

        On November 21, 1810, Father Florentine wrote, “We are now preparing this land to build a church for Our Lady, in accordance with the wishes of the generous people who have already donated 1,500 baht, and which I received last year from Father Pascal.” In 1810, Bishop Garnault appointed Father Florentine as his successor bishop. Bishop Garnault traveled to Chanthaburi Church on the occasion of the vows of several Vietnamese nuns. He died among the Christians on March 4, 1811. Upon learning that Bishop Garnault was seriously ill, Bishop Florentine traveled to Chanthaburi.

        Finally in 1820 Bishop Florentine was able to purchase the entire land (banana plantation) from the land where the seminary of the mission was located to the riverside. The seminary land is now the location of Assumption College (for boys). The second plot, purchased in 1820, is the location of the present Assumption Cathedral, the school of the church (Assumption Suksa), the school of the Sisters of St. Paul de Chartres (Assumption Convent), the Bishop's Office, the Catholic Center, the East Asia Tick Company, the Christian House, etc. 

        The money received from Father Pascual was not enough to build a church. Bishop Florens had to rely on a generous cardinal from Rome who was willing to donate 1,500 years to build a church in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Work began immediately in 1820, leveling the land and building the first Assumption Church of brick, which was completed in 1821. In addition, a bishop's office was built, and Bishop Florens came to reside here.

         The consecration of the Assumption Cathedral was performed in grand style on the feast day of Our Lady of the Rosary in 1822. Bishop Pallegoix wrote about the construction of the Assumption Cathedral and the Episcopal Office in his book Narrative of Siam: “There are five Christian churches or Christian camps in the capital. The first is called the Assumption Camp, where the Seminary is located. Near the magnificent church of brick and mortar, it has been built for almost 40 years. The church is surrounded by a large garden, with Christian houses scattered around. About 100 meters from the deep river, you will see the tall Episcopal Office (built by Bishop Pallegoix), which cost about 3,000 francs to build. The ground floor of this building is devoted solely to the offices of the printing house. The upper floor, which is the only one, consists of two bedrooms and a large reception room…” 

        Since then, the Assumption has been the residence of the bishops of various missionaries in Thailand. At that time, the area was a suburb of Bangkok, and Christian families gradually moved to settle next door. The church was under the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, better known as Calvary Church (located above the Assumption Church) until 1884, when the city expanded to that area and the number of Christians increased, it was necessary to make that area a Parish. Unfortunately, the first baptismal records of the Assumption Church were lost in 1864, because the priests' houses of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and other records were burnt down by fire. Therefore, in 1864, Bishop Dupond officially established the Assumption as a Christian community. Father François Joseph Schmitt was the first pastor. Every temple account has been opened since 1864 (Evidence: AME Vol. 892 pp. 263, 264, 267; Ann. ME 1913 p. 91 Memoiral II.)