About

The ruins of St. Paul's Church are at the summit of St. Paul's Hill.

Built on the site of the last Malaccan sultan's istana (palace), it was constructed by Portuguese fidalgo (nobleman) captain, Duarte Coelho, in gratitude to the Virgin Mary for saving his life during a storm at sea. Roofless and covered in ferns, it was originally called the Nossa Senhora da Annunciada (Our Lady of the Annunciation).

Though it has been in ruins for more than 150 years, it is a beautiful, breezy sanctuary (reached after a steep flight of stairs) set near the remains of A' Famosa fort.

History

St. Paul's Church was enlarged to two stories in 1556 (after the Archbishop of Goa in India handed over the church to the Jesuits in 1548); between 1567 and 1596 the Portuguese added gun turrets to the chapel and it became a fortress.

In 1590 a belfry tower was added to the front of the church and it was renamed the Igreja de Madre de Deus (Church of the Mother of God). When the Dutch invaded Malacca in 1641 it was badly damaged (the belfry tower was destroyed) but the complex was later repaired and renamed St. Paul's Church, it was primarily used as a Protestant church for about 112 years until Christ Church was completed in 1753. After that, St. Paul's Church fell into disuse.

Under the British administration, a lighthouse was built and it eventually ended up as a storehouse for gunpowder. St. Fran