Central Beijing's earliest church dates back to a chapel beside the house of Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, who brought Catholicism to China in the early 1600s. The current baroque structure is a 1904 rebuild following its razing by anti-Christian forces during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900. At the time of research, the church was closed for renovations.
Mass in English and French is held at the Cathedral of Our Saviour on Sundays at 2pm.
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, referred to as Nantang (southern church) since the early 20th century, is one of Beijing's four major catholic churches. The others are Cathedral of Our Saviour, Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (Xitang; western church) and St Joseph’s Church.
