Vailankanni History

Timeline

1570: First apparition of Mary
1572: Third apparition
1600: Portuguese arrival and renovation
1771: Church expansion and renovation
1833: Parish status
1962: Holy Shrine declaration in Minor Basilica status
2011: 440th anniversary celebration

Significant Events

1771

A severe cyclone destroyed the church, but the statue of Mary remained intact.

1839

A cholera epidemic ravaged the area, but pilgrims attributed their safety to Mary’s intercession.

2011

The shrine celebrated its 440th anniversary.

Other Historical Facts

Velankanni was a major port during the Chola dynasty (300-1279 CE).

Saint Francis Xavier, a Jesuit missionary, visited Velankanni in 1542.

History

Velankanni, also known as Vailankanni, is a small town located on the shores of the Bay of Bengal in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is a significant pilgrimage site for Christians, particularly Catholics, due to its association with the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Here’s an in-depth look at the history of Velankanni:

Apparitions of Mary (1570-1572)

Three apparitions of Mary are said to have occurred in Velankanni:

First Apparition

The first Marian apparition is said to have occurred in May 1570, when a local shepherd boy was delivering milk to a nearby house. Along the way he met a beautiful woman holding a child, who asked for some milk for the child. After giving her some milk, he continued on under the hot tropical sun, upon finishing his deliveries he found that the jug was still full of fresh and cool milk. A small shrine was built near the site where the boy encountered the woman, a location that came to be called Maatha Kulam, which means “Mother’s well” in Tamil Language.

Second Apparition

The second Marian apparition is said to have happened in 1597, not far from Maatha Kulam. A beautiful woman with a child in her arms appeared to a crippled boyselling buttermilk. The child asked for a drink of buttermilk. After he drank it, the woman told the boy to visit a gentleman in the next town and ask him to build a chapel in her honour at that location. As the boy setouthe realised he had been healed and was no longer lame. A small thatched chapel was built shortly thereafter in honour of “Our Lady of Good Health” or AarokiaMaatha in Tamil.

Third Apparition

The third notable incident occurred when a Portuguese ship sailing from Macao to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was caught in extreme weather in the Bay of Bengal. The terrified sailors invoked the aid of the Virgin Mary under her title Our Lady, Star of Sea. The raging storm suddenly subsided and the entire crew of 150 on board the ship were saved from capsizing. This happened on 8 September, the feast day of the Nativity of Mary. In thanksgiving the sailors rebuilt the shrine, and continued to visit and donate to the cause of the shrine whenever their voyages brought them to the area.

The shrine that began as a thatched chapel in the mid-sixteenth century and became a parish church in 1771, when Indian Catholics were persecuted in the erstwhile Dutch Coromandel, after the Luso-Dutch war was waged by Dutch Protestants.

In August 2024, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández confirmed to Bishop Sagayaraj Thamburaj Pope Francis’ approval of the devotion to Our Lady of Good Health at the Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health.

Shrine Construction and Development

1570s: A small thatched hut was built after the first apparition.
1600s: Portuguese and Jesuit missionaries arrived, renovating the shrine.
1640: A beautiful church was constructed.
1771: The church was expanded and renovated.
1833: The shrine was elevated to parish status.
1962: Pope John XXIII declared Velankanni a Minor Basilica.