This is Singapore's first purpose-built Catholic church. It was built between 1843 and 1847 and was consecrated a Cathedral on 14 February 1897.
The church owes its existence to a French priest, Father Jean-Marie Beurel who was also responsible for the establishment of two of Singapore's oldest Catholic schools, St Joseph's Institution and the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus. Father Beurel arrived in Singapore in 1839 and retired to Paris some 30 years later.
The design of the building is said to have been the result of a competition between two well-known residents, Denis Lesley McSwiney and John Turnbull Thomson, with McSwiney's design accepted as it was the less expensive of the two. An appeal for funds met with donations from France, the Philippines, China and Singapore's European community.
The design shows the influence of two famous London churches. The use of the Roman Doric style of architecture was derived from St Paul's in Covent Garden and the Greek temple-like proportions and belfry from St Martin-in-the-Fields. It was gazetted as a national monument in 1973.