Purple bamboo forest Church

The Catholic purple bamboo forest church, built in 1872, is named after the purple bamboo forest village in the French concession. The purple bamboo forest church is made of green brick and wood, and then decorated with traditional Chinese brick carvings, which is majestic and elegant. From the outside, the church is hidden in the green forest, the gray house, the church is not high, it looks very historic

At that time, most of the people who went in and out of the church were foreigners with status and those with status among Chinese believers, and it was difficult for ordinary believers to join them. Now the old glory can not be seen in the interior of zizhulin Catholic Church. The church is not open to the public at present, but there are nuns.

Purple bamboo forest Church

In terms of taste, the old Tianjin church is no better than the zizhulin church on the Bank of Haihe River in the French concession. Most of the people who go in and out of the church are foreigners with status and people with status among Chinese believers, and it is difficult for ordinary believers to be among them. Catholic purple bamboo forest church, built in 1872, is located on St. Louis Road, also known as St. Louis church, on the Bank of Haihe River at the east end of today's Yingkou Road. The church covers an area of 6.8 mu, with a construction area of 779 square meters.

Historical records

According to historical records, zizhulin church is named after zizhulin village in the French concession. Purple bamboo forest was very important in the early development of the concession, which was the first place occupied by Britain, France and the United States. Therefore, the name of zizhulin appeared many times in the early works of foreigners in China. Wilfred Pennell, chairman of the old Rotary Club of Tianjin, wrote in his article "Tianjin purple bamboo forest": "purple bamboo forest, the name of a Chinese village, was formerly located in a mud and swamp, from which the foreign concession originated." Another book records that "the area allocated to the British, French and American concessions is around zizhulin village, and the central point is two miles away from the South Gate of Tianjin city. This area is on the right bank of the Haihe River and has a riverside area of nearly two miles.

Church scenery

In the interior of the Catholic Church in zizhulin, the old glory can no longer be seen.

These works also described the local conditions and customs of the area during the British French Concession survey: "in the winter of the year after Beijing ratified the Treaty of Beijing, Captain Gordon, the British Royal engineer, and a French engineer officer demarcated the territory of the British French Concession due to the right to slightly amend the treaty of Tianjin." "The two officers laid boundary stones in a terrible area. In this area, there are some civilian docks, vegetable gardens, earth mounds, fishermen, sailors and such people's huts, and these dilapidated huts are separated only by a narrow ditch, on both sides of which are some deserted and unmanaged paths. The two concessions are dirty and unhealthy marshes, and the dry areas around the marshes are the graves of countless generations. "

The broken chanting tower of the Catholic Church in zizhulin

What was the name of zizhulin village in those years? It is said that there was a zizhulin temple in zizhulin village in the early years. This temple was small in scale. It worshipped Guanyin Bodhisattva between the main halls, and planted several purple bamboos in its courtyard. During the Xianfeng Period of the Qing Dynasty, zizhulin temple had disappeared. This area was still very desolate, with sparse farmhouses and wisps of cooking smoke dotted the West Bank of the Haihe River. After the forced delimitation of the concession, the French planned and developed the area, built docks, warehouses and banks along the Haihe River, built roads and planted trees, and built a French market on the former site of zizhulin temple. New purple bamboo forests have sprung up.

The only stained glass in the purple bamboo forest Catholic Church

There are also different views on the origin of the construction of zizhulin church. It is generally believed that after the case of Tianjin, the French missionaries, who were still in fear, began to use the special rights and interests of the concession to transfer the activity center of the church to the concession. Among the construction costs of zizhulin church, 90000 taels of silver came from China's "apology" compensation. The shape of zizhulin church has the typical style of late Renaissance architecture, absorbing the positive factors of ancient Greek and Roman architectural art. The architectural style is harmonious and cheerful, and the layout is orderly. It is not only majestic and powerful, but also lively and relaxed, giving people a kind and pleasant feeling. The famous Florence cathedral in Italy is known as the "primrose of the Renaissance". St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome is a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture and the greatest Church in the world. The purple bamboo forest church is made of green brick and wood, and then decorated with traditional Chinese brick carvings, which is majestic and elegant.

In today's zizhulin church, the wall on the west side of the altar is inlaid with a piece of white marble, which is engraved with the name of the donor in French. The vicissitudes of time have not obliterated it.

In the old days, most of the people who went to zizhulin church for religious activities were European and American expatriates. The furnishings in the hall are elegant and unique. There are two sacred statues on both sides of the altar, one is Louis IX, the king of France, and the other is Joan of arc, the heroine of France. The wall on the west side of the altar is inlaid with a piece of white marble and engraved with the name of the donor for the church building in French. The semicircular arched windows on both sides of the hall are made of diamond colored glass. The sunlight is projected into the hall through the red, orange, green, blue and purple glass, making people seem to enter a colorful and strange world. As you climb up the spiral staircase to the chanting tower, the western classical organ stands out, and the copper pipes are arranged against the wall and straight to the roof. When playing, the voice is grand and full, mellow and harmonious, with a wide range of voices, and the accompaniment of the choir is sacred and solemn. It is said that when playing in the dead of night, you can hear it clearly from more than ten miles away. It is said that this was one of the only two organ sets in Tianjin at that time.

In the Boxer Movement, the Western church became the first target. "It doesn't rain, the ground is dry, the church covers the sky!" Most of the churches in Tianjin's urban and rural areas were burned down, and the purple bamboo forest survived because of the favorable location of the concession. It has become a refuge for believers and refugees from all over the world. There are as many as 1000 or 2000 believers at one time.

Standing outside today's purple bamboo forest Catholic Church, it's hard to imagine its past scenery

Since the beginning of the Republic of China, Tianjin has gradually become an important foreign port city, with more and more foreign businessmen coming to Tianjin. Because zizhulin church is located in an important part of the concession, not only expatriates living in Tianjin, but also some Chinese who work in foreign factories and foreign firms come here to live a religious life. Therefore, it has become a place of religious activities with strong exotic atmosphere.

Address: 16 Yingkou Road, Heping District, Tianjin

Longitude: 117.210967

Latitude: 39.127911

Tour time: 1 hour

Traffic information: take Metro Line 3 to Heping Road station

Ticket information: Free

Opening hours: not open, architecture can be enjoyed from outside

Chinese PinYin : Zi Zhu Lin Jiao Tang