Church of Immaculate Conception - Basseterre, St. Kitts

The Jesuits built a church on St. Kitts in 1670 dedicated to Our Lady (Notre Dame) that was located where St. George's Anglican Church now stands. It was burned in 1706 during the Anglo/French War and rebuilt by 710 as an Anglican church and called St. George's. That church was damaged by an earthquake in 1842 and by a hurricane in 1843 and replaced by the structure that is there now.

Church of the Immaculate Conception as viewed from the tower of St. George's Anglican Church. 

The conquering English forbade Roman Catholics to worship in public beginning in 1713, but in 1829 that ban was reversed. In 1856 the Church of the Immaculate Conception was built on East Square Street (the street on the east side of Independence Square) in Basseterre. In 1927 that church was razed and rebuilt by the structure that is there now. 

Immaculate Conception is the Co-Cathedral of the Diocese of St. John's - Basseterre which is a Latin Rite diocese. The other cathedral is The Holy Family Cathedral in St. John's, Antigua. The diocese covers 13 parishes in St. Kitts & Nevis, Antigua & Barbuda, Montserrat, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands. 

The main altar. 

View toward the entrance.

It has some intriguing Stations of the Cross made out of plaster that are chipped. Note the man to the left is missing his head. I love the bright colors and the compositions used in them. 

Basseterre seems quite poor and this church really seems to be a working church that is vital to the community with children coming and going.