, missionary to India and
Persia , Tirunelveli - Built by Rev.
Charles Rhenius The
East India Company controlled access to India and only allowed its chaplains to work among the European communities.
The Reverend Henry Martyn wanted to offer his services to the
Church Missionary Society, however a financial disaster in Cornwall deprived him and his unmarried sister of the income their father had left for them. It was necessary for Martyn to earn an income that would support his sister as well as himself. He accordingly obtained a chaplaincy under the
East India Company and left for
India on 5 July 1805.
William Wilberforce campaigned for the revision of the charter of the East India Company to permit missionaries to work in India. When the Charter Bill was passed in 1813 the CMS had missionaries ready for the India mission. Charles Rhenius later worked in
Tirunelveli (Tinnevelly). The CMS sent 7 missionaries to India in 1814-1816: two were placed at
Chennai (Madras), two at
Bengal and three at
Travancore (1816). While the
Revolt of 1857 resulted in damage to the missions in the North West Provinces, after the revolt the CMS expanded its missions to
Oudh,
Allahabad, the
Santhal people (1858), and to
Kashmir (1865). ==Kolkata (Calcutta)==