Situated at Parade Road, 2 Kms west of Mattancherry, Fort Cochin, this Church was originally dedicated to Santo Antonio, the patron Saint of Portugal. It was built by the Portuguese in 1510. It is the first church to have been built in the new European influenced tradition. Vasco - da - Gama who arrived in India at Cochin in 1502 and died here in 1524. He was originally buried in this church cemetery. After 14 years his remains were removed to Portugal. The gravestone of Vasco - da - Gama can still be seen here. The church was renamed as St.Francis in 1663, and the Dutch converted it to a protestant Church and substantially modified it. The Church was under the control of Dutch until 1795. In 1804 it became a Anglican Church. The congregation joined the church of South India in 1949. The Sunday service is at 0800 hrs, except the 3rd Sunday of each month. Opens from sunrise - sunset. The Santa Cruz Cathedral close to St. Francis Church was completed in 1904, which has some attractive paintings.