The Xikai Church, also called the
French Church, is a famous Catholic church in Tianjin City. It is located at the
area of Old Xikai out of Yuanqiangzi River, Dushan Road, Bingjiang Street in
Heping District, Tianjin City.
The existing buildings, constructed by
French Catholicism, include the catholic chief church built in 1914 and the
cathedral built in 1917. The whole church follows the European style, adopting
French Romanesque architecture technique. The church takes up an area of 1,585
square meters, and is 45 meters high. It has a long cross-shaped layout. There
are three tall towers standing at the apexes of a triangle, at the front and the
back of the church. The pedestals of the towers are built by laying yellow and
red bricks, with emerald cyrtostyle spires at the top. There are semicircular
arched windows below the eaves. There are three corridors inside with luxury
colored frescoes on the inner wall.
The Xikai Church is the largest church in
Tianjin, and it can accommodate many adherents. Now it is still the local center
of Catholic activities.