St Matthew's Church, Nathia Gali

St Matthew's Church, sometimes written St Matthews Church, stands on the wooded slope above Nathia Gali's bazaar, a small cedar-wood building completed in 1914 that has become one of the most photographed places of worship in the Pakistani hills. It has no regular congregation, but a Muslim family has looked after it for three generations, and the short, steep walk up to see it is one of the reasons people stop in Nathia Gali at all.

This guide covers the church's history, who looks after it today, what you can see, and how to get the best out of a short visit.

A colonial-period hill church

Nathia Gali was the summer headquarters of the British administration based in Peshawar, and, like the other hill stations of the Galiyat and Murree, it grew a small colonial infrastructure to go with it: rest houses, a bazaar and a church for the administrators and their families who moved up from the plains each summer. St Matthew's was built for that community, completed in 1914 to a design by Colonel Hope Waddell Kelsall, with its foundation stone laid on 26 September that year by J.S. Donald, then Chief Commissioner of the North-West Frontier Province.

What sets the building apart is its material: it is built entirely of cedar wood, unusual for a church of its period and setting, giving it a warmer, more rustic look than the stone churches built elsewhere in British India. The compound also has a purpose-built rectory, lodging rooms, a staircase and an old piano, reminders that this was once a working parish building rather than only a place for a single Sunday service.

The family that has kept it standing

St Matthew's has had no regular congregation for many years, since the community it was built for left with the end of British rule. What has kept the building standing and cared for since then is not a church body but a local Muslim family, who have looked after it for three generations. The arrangement has been documented in international media: one recent caretaker, from the third generation of his family to hold the role, had served the church for 17 years at the time it was reported, following his father's 45 years and his grandfather's 35 years before that.

It is an unusual and, in its own quiet way, a moving story: a Muslim family maintaining a Christian church in a Muslim-majority country for close to a century, simply because it is the family's job and, evidently, something more than that to them.

What you can see

Whether you can go inside depends on the caretaker being present when you visit; there is no fixed public opening schedule. Even if the door is locked, the walk up is worthwhile for the building itself, cedar-shingled and weathered, set among tall pine and fir with the forested hills behind it, and for the quiet of the compound, a contrast to the bazaar a few minutes' walk below.

If the caretaker is there and lets you in, the interior keeps its wooden pews, the old piano and a simple, unadorned character that fits the building's age and setting far better than anything grander would.

Photographing the church

St Matthew's is one of the most photographed churches in the Pakistani hills, and it earns the attention. A few things help:

• Go in the morning, when the light through the trees is softer and the compound is quieter.
• Step back for the full cedar facade against the forest, rather than only close-up detail shots.
• Ask the caretaker before photographing them or the interior, as a matter of courtesy, if they are present.
• Visit outside peak weekend hours for a clearer shot of the building without other visitors in frame.

Getting there

The church sits above the bazaar, and the walk up is short but steep, on a path that branches off the main road. It is easily combined with the rest of a morning in Nathia Gali: most people see it on the way to or from the Lalazar wildlife park or the start of the Miranjani trail, both close by. Our places to visit in Nathia Gali guide sets out how the church fits into a fuller day, and the Miranjani Top hike guide covers the trail that starts nearby.

Is it worth the walk?

Yes, for almost anyone spending a morning in Nathia Gali. It costs nothing, takes under an hour including the walk, and gives you both a piece of colonial history and one of the better photographs the town has to offer, whether or not the door happens to be open. It suits families, couples and anyone with even a passing interest in the region's history; there is little for anyone expecting a grand cathedral or a formal museum experience. If you are planning a longer stop in the Galiyat, send us your dates and we can build the church into a wider itinerary.

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