Bandel Church was built in 1599 by Captain Pedro Tavares. This church was established by Christians, who already outnumbered the Hindus by 1598. By the mid 16th century the Portuguese used Bandel as a port.
The original building of the church was burnt down by the Moors in 1632 during the sacking of Hooghly. Gomez de Soto built a new church on the same site in 1660. The keystone of the older church can still be seen along the eastern gate of the church. It has three altars, several tombstones, an organ and a shrine of Mary.
The oldest church in Bengal. This Roman Catholic Church is one of eastern India's oldest churches, and still a major centre of Catholic pilgrimage. Consecrated by Portuguese Augustinian friars in 1599, it was destroyed by the Mughals during the brief reign of Shahjahan, and was rebuilt by the Portuguese in 1640. It was declared a basilica in 1988.