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Of Churches, Monuments and their history
Church of Saint Cajetan
 Modelled
on the original design of St Peter's in Rome, this church was built
by Italian friars of the Order of Theatines, who were sent by Pope
Urban VIII to preach Christianity in the kingdom of Golconda (near
Hyderabad). The friars were not permitted to work in Golconda, so
settled at Old Goa in 1640 and the construction of the church began
in 1655. The altar is dedicated to Our Lady of Divine Providence,
but the church is more popularly named after the founder of the
Theatine order, St Cajetan, a contemporary of St Francis Xavier.
The facade of the church is classical in design and the four niches
on the front contain statues of apostles. Inside a clever use of
internal buttresses and four huge pillars has turned the interior
into a cruciform. Above the centre of which is the towering dome.
The inscription around the inside of the base of the dome is a verse
from St Matthew's gospel. The largest of the altars on the right
hand side of the church is dedicated to St Cajetan himself. As for
the baroque reredos, the composition is different to those of the
neighbouring churches, if only because it does not take up the whole
of the area behind the altar. Instead, it tapers gracefully towards
the ceiling, with large carvings of angelic figures near the base
and the whole crowned with a symbolic sun. Around the upper walls
of the chancel are a number of niches containing statues of the
saints.
Chapel of St Catherine
One hundred metres to the west of the Church of St Francis,
stands the Chapel of St Catherine. An earlier chapel
was erected on this site by Alphonso de Albuquerque in 1510,
to commemorate his entry into the city on St Catherine's Day.
In 1534 the chapel was granted 'Cathedral Status' by
Pope Paul III and in 1550 it was rebuilt. The inscribed stone,
which was added during the rebuilding, states that Alphonso de
Albuquerque actually entered the city at this spot. The chapel
was rebuilt in 1952, but unfortunately is rarely open for visitors
today.
Ruins of the Church of St Augustine
 All
that is really left of this church is the enormous 46m-high tower,
which served as a belfry and formed part of the facade of the church.
The few other remnants are choked with creepers and weeds, and access
is difficult. The church was constructed in 1602 by Augustinian
friars who arrived at Old Goa in 1587.  It
was abandoned in 1835 because of the repressive policies of the
Portuguese government, which resulted in the eviction of many religious
orders from Goa. The church fell to neglect and the vault collapsed
in 1842. In 1931 the facade and half the tower fell down, followed
by more sections in 1938. The tower's huge bell was moved in 1871
to the Church of our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Panjim,
where it remains and can be seen and heard today.
Convent of Saint Monica
This huge, three storied laterite building was commenced in 1606 and
completed in 1627, but was reconstructed after a fire accident. Once
known as the Royal Monastery, because of the royal patronage which
it enjoyed, the building was the first nunnery in the east. Like the
other religious institutions it was crippled by the banning of the
religious orders, but did not immediately close, although it was forbidden
to recruit any further. It was Finally abandoned when the last sister
died in 1885. During the 1950s and 1960s the buildings housed first
Portuguese and then Indian troops, before being reinstated to the
church in 1968. Now visitors are very rarely allowed inside.
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