Armenian Church of St Gregory the Illuminator

A small congregation, a very long shadow: the orchid, the newspaper and the hotel all trace back here.

Give the Armenian Church a quiet half-hour on any Civic District walk: it is free, it is the oldest Christian church in Singapore, and its memorial garden explains more about how the city was built than most museums manage. It suits history lovers and anyone after a few minutes of genuine calm off Hill Street. The compromise is that it is a working church, so check ahead in case a wedding or service is on, and know that the heritage gallery next door is by appointment only.

Start in the garden. By 1947 Singapore's Armenian community had dwindled to 62 people, according to the National Heritage Board, yet the tombstones here include Agnes Joaquim, who bred the orchid Vanda Miss Joaquim, named the national flower in 1981; Catchick Moses, co-founder of The Straits Times; and the Sarkies brothers, whose hotels included Raffles. These are tombstones, not graves: the church says they were moved here from Bukit Timah Cemetery in the early 1970s by Levon Palian, an American-Armenian then living in Singapore.

The church came first. Armenian merchants arrived soon after 1819, worshipped in borrowed rooms and appealed for land in 1833. The foundation stone was blessed on 1 January 1835 and the church consecrated on 26 March 1836, paid for half by local Armenians and half by Armenian communities in India and Java, with help from European and Chinese merchants. The architect was George D Coleman, the colony's first Superintendent of Public Works. Outside, it is white Doric columns and triangular pediments on a cross-shaped plan; the porticos were once carriage porches, with steps added later for people on foot. The original domed bell turret was swapped for a square tower in 1847, then for the current belfry in 1853.

Step inside for the details. The interior is circular, which is rare among Singapore's churches. The pre-war pews have rattan backs for the heat, the altar carries a painting of the Last Supper, and Armenian initials on the marble altar front mean "Christ our Saviour". In 1909 it was among the first public buildings in Singapore to get electric lights and fans.

It hasn't been an easy run. Bombing damaged the buildings during the war, and looters took an embossed Bible, vestments and 19th-century prayer books. The last resident priest left in the 1930s; Armenian services now happen mainly for big occasions or when a visiting priest is in town, and other Christian groups use it for quiet worship. Next door, the 1905 parsonage, funded by Nanajan Sarkies in memory of her husband, has housed the Armenian Heritage Gallery since 2018.

How to do it well: come on a weekday, sit in a rattan-backed pew for a few minutes, then walk the garden and read the names. It is a short walk from City Hall MRT, and anyone who has eaten scones at Raffles will find the family that built it waiting in the garden.

Good to know The church is at 60 Hill Street, a short walk from City Hall MRT, and entry is free. It is still an active church that hosts weddings and services, and the Armenian Heritage Gallery is by appointment only, so check armeniansinasia.org first.

Armenian Church of St Gregory the Illuminator | 60 Hill Street, Singapore 179366 | Nearest MRT: City Hall