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{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Tranquebar Mission
| native_name = Trankebarmissionen
| native_name_lang = தரங்கம்பாடி மிஷன்
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| successor = [[Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church]]
| formation = 1706
| founder = [[Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg]] and [[Heinrich Plütschau]]
| founding_location = [[Tranquebar]], [[Danish India]]
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| headquarters = [[Tiruchirappalli|Trichinopoly]], India
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| language = Tamil
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| leader_title = Bishop of Tranquebar
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}}The '''Tranquebar Mission''' ({{langx|da|Trankebarmissionen}}; {{langx|ta|தரங்கம்பாடி பணி}}) was established in 1706 by two German missionaries from [[Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg|Halle]] namely, [[Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg]] and [[Heinrich Plütschau]]. Ziegenbalg and Plütschau responded to the appeal of King [[Frederick IV of Denmark]] to establish a mission for the natives, living in the [[Danish East India Company]] colony of [[Tranquebar]].<ref name=Kiefer>{{cite web|last1=Kiefer|first1=James E|title=Biological sketches of memorable Christians of the past: Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg, Missionary to India|url=http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/107.html|website=Anglican|access-date=26 August 2015}}</ref> The mission was responsible for the printing and publication of the [[Bible]] in the Tamil language.<ref name=Muthiah /> In 2006, the 300 years anniversary of the mission was celebrated by the [[Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church]] (TELC), with many international delegates in attendance. A monument to acknowledge 300 years of the mission was raised by the TELC on this occasion.<ref name=Hindu-Saqaf /><ref name=Hindu-2006 />

==History==
[[File:Ziegenbalg Landing Plaque, Tranquebar 3.jpg|thumb|Ziegenbalg Landing Plaque, [[Tharangambadi]] (Tranquebar)]]
In 1620, the village of [[Tharangambadi|Tranquebar]] was acquired for the Danish Crown, by the Danish Admiral [[Ove Gjedde]], by signing an agreement with the [[Raghunatha Nayak]] of the [[Thanjavur Nayak kingdom|Tanjore Nayak Kingdom]] on behalf of the King of Denmark.<ref name=Frontline>{{cite journal|last1=Moorthy|first1=M|title=Danish flavour|journal=Frontline|date=24 October 2009|volume=26|issue=22|url=http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2622/stories/20091106262211800.htm|access-date=25 August 2015}}</ref>

King [[Frederick IV of Denmark]] was very keen to spread Christianity among his non-European subjects and called from Royal missionaries. However, there was a lack of interest to his call among his Danish subjects. Hence, the king gave the task of finding the right people to his court chaplain Franz J Lütkens. After a search in German universities, [[Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg]] and [[Heinrich Plütschau]] were selected. After being ordained in Copenhagen, they sailed to [[Tranquebar]] with a royal charter on the ship Sophia Hedewig on 29 November 1705, arriving on 9 July 1706.<ref name=Boston>{{cite web|last1=Anderson|first1=Gerald H|title=Ziegenbalg, Bartholomäus (1682–1719): Pioneer German missionary in South India|url=http://www.bu.edu/missiology/missionary-biography/w-x-y-z/ziegenbalg-bartholomaus-1682-1719/|website=Boston University: Department of Theology|access-date=26 August 2015|date=1998}}</ref><ref name=Fenger /><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Klosterberg|first=Brigitte|date=2020|title=The "Mission Archives" in the Archives of the Francke Foundations in Halle|url=https://www.projekt-mida.de/reflexicon/the-mission-archives-in-the-archives-of-the-francke-foundations-in-halle/|journal=MIDA Archival Reflexicon|pages=1}}</ref>

At this point around 15,000 people lived in Tranquebar and its surroundings, with the population consisting of Hindus, Muslims, Indian Catholics, as well as Europeans working for the East India Company. After initial conflicts with the [[Danish East India Company]], which even lead to a four month incarceration of Ziegenbalg, he established the Tranquebar Mission in 1706.<ref name=":0" /> They baptised their first convert after 10 months of establishing the mission. The mission faced opposition from the authorities of Danish settlement, in spite of the royal charter, as it was felt that by encouraging conversion, Ziegenbalg was encouraging dis-order and rebellion at [[Tranquebar]]. Under Ziegenbalg, the mission set up the very first Tamil press in India at Tranquebar, and set about the task of translating the Bible into Tamil. In 1716, a seminary for training native clergy was established by the mission. When Ziegenbalg died in 1719, he had finished translating the [[New Testament]] and chapters [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]] to [[Book of Ruth|Ruth]] of the [[Old Testament]], and the mission had 2 church buildings, a seminary and a native congregation of 250 people.{{fact|date=July 2020}}

Another notable missionary was [[Christian Friedrich Schwarz]] (born 1726), who served the Tranquebar Mission for 48 years.<ref name=Kiefer />

==Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg==
[[File:Ziegenbalg.png|thumb|left|Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg (1682-1719)]]
[[File:Ziegenbalg Leaving Tranquebar (p.170) - Copy.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Ziegenbalg Leaving Tranquebar (p.170, 1890), London Missionary Society<ref name=LMS>{{cite journal|title=Ziegenbalg Leaving Tranquebar|journal=Chronicles of the London Missionary Society|date=1890|url=https://archive.org/details/chroniclelondon00unkngoog|access-date=2 November 2015}}</ref>]]
{{main|Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg}}
[[Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg]] was the first [[Protestant]] missionary to land in India, sent as a Royal Missionary by [[Frederick IV of Denmark|King Frederick IV]], from the Kingdom of [[Denmark]]. Ziegenbalg landed at Tranquebar, then part of [[Danish India]] colony of the [[Danish East India Company]], on 9 July 1706. Ziegenbalg attended the local school, sat amongst the village children and learnt [[Tamil language|Tamil]]. He set up a Tamil seminary in 1707, and preached Christianity to the villagers. In 1711, he was able to convince the [[Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg|University of Halle]] at [[Halle (Saale)|Halle]] to start scholarly study into the [[Tamil language]].

In 1715, he translated the [[Bible]] into Tamil and helped set up India's first printing press at Tranquebar, with Tamil being the first Indian language to be printed. Ziegenbalg championed the cause of women's education and abolition of caste system, and gained the respect of the local people. Ziegenbalg established the very first school for girls (all-girl school) in India at Tranquebar in 1707. In 1713, in a letter written to Johann Georg von Holstein the privy counsellor to [[Frederick IV of Denmark|King Frederick IV]], Ziegenbalg mentions 47 students in the [[Tamil language|Tamil]] school, 20 pupils in the [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] school and 15 pupils in the [[Danish language|Danish]] school, with the students of the Tamil and Portuguese schools being provided free tuition, boarding, lodging and food. Between 1717–1718, he helped establish the New Jerusalem Church at Tranquebar for the use of the native people, conducting services in Tamil. Ziegenbalg died on 23 February 1719, aged 37, and is buried in the New Jerusalem Church.<ref name=Muthiah>{{cite news|last1=Muthiah|first1=S|title=The legacy that Ziegenbalg left|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-sundaymagazine/article3232261.ece|access-date=26 August 2015|issue=Sunday Magazine|work=The Hindu|date=2 July 2006}}</ref><ref name=Hindu-Saqaf>{{cite news|last1=Saqaf|first1=Syed Muthahar|title=Tercentenary of Tranquebar Mission|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/tercentenary-of-tranquebar-mission/article3100867.ece|access-date=25 August 2015|issue=Tamil Nadu|work=The Hindu|date=6 July 2006}}</ref><ref name=Hindu-2006 /><ref name=Fenger>{{cite book|last1=Fenger|first1=Johannes Ferdinand|title=History of the Tranquebar Mission worked out from the Original Papers|date=1863|publisher=Evangelical Lutheran Mission Press|location=Tranquebar, British India|edition=Francke, Emil|url=https://archive.org/details/historyoftranque00fengrich|access-date=26 August 2015}}</ref><ref name=Shantz>{{cite book|last1=Shantz|first1=Douglas H|title=An Introduction to German Pietism: Protestant Renewal at the Dawn of Modern Europe|date=6 March 2013|publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press|location=Baltimore, Maryland|isbn=978-1421408804|pages=520|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ST4kjIT7nsC&dq=jerusalem+church+tranquebar&pg=PT192|access-date=25 August 2015}}</ref><ref name=Jeyaraj>{{cite book|last1=Jeyaraj|first1=Daniel|title=Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg, the Father of Modern Protestant Mission: An Indian Assessment|date=2006|publisher=Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (ISPCK)|location=Delhi, India|isbn=8172149204|pages=151–154|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CZYAOyJ-6SMC&dq=jerusalem+church+tranquebar&pg=PA147|access-date=25 August 2015}}</ref>

==New Jerusalem Church==
{{main|New Jerusalem Church, Tranquebar}}
The New Jerusalem Church was established by the Tranquebar Mission, built in 1718 by the Royal Danish missionary [[Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg]] in the coastal town of [[Tranquebar]], India which was at that time a [[Danish India]] Colony.<ref name=Hindu-2006>{{cite news|title=New Jerusalem Church rededicated|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/new-jerusalem-church-rededicated/article3102831.ece|access-date=24 August 2015|issue=Tamil Nadu|work=The Hindu|date=10 July 2006}}</ref> The church is located on King Street,<ref name=TripAdvisor>{{cite web|title=New Jerusalem Church founded in 1718 AD|url=http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g1119849-d601070-i31254583-The_Bungalow_on_the_Beach-Tharangambadi_Tamil_Nadu.html|website=Trip Advisor|access-date=24 August 2015|date=24 July 2015}}</ref> and church services are conducted every Sunday.<ref name=Jayanth>{{cite web|last1=Jayanth|first1=Joseph|title=1718 church in Tranquebar|url=http://www.potofthots.com/2012/11/1718-church-in-tranquebar.html|website=Pot of Thots|access-date=24 August 2015|date=2 November 2012}}</ref> The church, along with other buildings of the Tranquebar Mission was damaged during the [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami|tsunami of 2004]], and were renovated at a cost of [[Indian rupee|INR]] 7 million, and re-consecrated in 2006.<ref name=Hindu-2006 /><ref name=Frank>{{cite news|last1=Imhoff|first1=Frank|title=Tamil Lutherans Rededicate Tranquebar Mission Church in India|url=http://archive.wfn.org/2006/07/msg00180.html|access-date=24 August 2015|publisher=Worldwide Faith News|date=19 July 2006}}</ref>

==Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church==
{{main|Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church}}
On 14 January 1919, the Tamil congregation of different German, Danish and Swedish Lutheran missions, joined together to form the Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church (TELC). In March 1921, the constitution of the TELC was amended to include the structure of episcopacy. In 1921, a Swedish missionary Rev. Dr. Ernst Heuman, was ordained as the first bishop of the TELC. The bishop of TELC holds the title '''Bishop of Tranquebar'''. In 1956, Dr. Rajah Bushanam became the first Indian to be ordained as the bishop of TELC.<ref name=Vethanayagamony>{{cite web|last1=Vethanayagamony|first1=Peter|title=The Lutheran Churches of India|url=http://www.lutheranforum.org/extras/the-lutheran-churches-of-india/|website=Lutheran Forum|access-date=26 August 2015|date=15 December 2009|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120906075803/http://www.lutheranforum.org/extras/the-lutheran-churches-of-india/|archive-date=6 September 2012}}</ref>

==300 Years Celebration==
To mark the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Tranquebar Mission, the [[New Jerusalem Church, Tranquebar|New Jerusalem Church]] at Tranquebar was re-consecrated by Rt. Rev. [[Margot Käßmann]], Bishop of the [[Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Hanover]], Germany on 9 July 2006. The event was organised by the [[Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church|Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church (TELC)]], with many international delegates from USA, France, Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, etc. in attendance. The function was presided by Rt. Rev. T Aruldoss, Bishop of TELC, with Rt. Rev. Mark Hanson, President, Lutheran World Federation (LWF) giving thanks. The re-consecration was attended by nearly 10000 people.

To mark the occasion, a printing technology institute was inaugurated at the same place where Ziegenbalg started the first [[Tamil Language|Tamil]] printing press. A souvenir detailing the services rendered by Ziegenbalg was also released. The local villagers of Tranquebar made a request for a memorial to be for Ziegenbalg on this occasion.<ref name=Hindu-2006 /><ref name="Frank"/>

[[India Post]] also released a special stamp to mark the occasion, with a portrait of Ziegenbalg and the [[New Jerusalem Church, Tranquebar|New Jerusalem Church]] in the background. The stamp was released in Madras, on 10 December 2006 by the then Union Minister [[Dayanidhi Maran]].<ref name=Maran-Hindu>{{cite news|title=Stamp on Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg released|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/stamp-on-bartholomaeus-ziegenbalg-released/article3032329.ece|access-date=31 August 2015|issue=Chennai|work=The Hindu|date=11 December 2015}}</ref><ref name=Sinha>{{cite web|last1=Sinha|first1=Aniruddha|title=A commemorative postage stamp on Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg, the German Theologist & Scholar|url=http://www.istampgallery.com/bartholomaeus-ziegenbalg-india-stamp/|website=iStamp Gallery|access-date=31 August 2015|date=2015}}</ref><ref name=Thirumalai>{{cite journal|last1=Isaiah|first1=Sudhir|last2=Thirumalai|first2=M S|title=Three Hundred Years of Evangelization in India – The First Missionary to India: Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg|journal=Globeserve|date=1 June 2007|url=http://www.globeserve.org/three-hundred-years-of-evangelization-in-india-the-first-missionary-to-india-bartholomaeus-ziegenbalg/|access-date=31 August 2015}}</ref><ref name=Stamps>{{cite web|title=Stamps 2006|url=http://postagestamps.gov.in/Stamps2006.aspx|website=India Post|access-date=31 August 2015|date=28 August 2015}}</ref>

== Sources ==
* Excerpts from the history of the Tranquebar Mission, in: Werner Raupp (Ed.): Mission in Quellentexten. Geschichte der Deutschen Evangelischen Mission von der Reformation bis zur Weltmissionskonferenz Edinburgh 1910, Erlangen/Bad Liebenzell 1990, p. 138–163 (1. [[August Hermann Francke]]; 2. [[Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg]]; 3. Es begann in Tranquebar; incl. introd. and lit.)

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Portal|Denmark|Germany|India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tranquebar Mission}}
[[Category:Tranquebar]]
[[Category:Christianity in Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Lutheranism in India|India]]
[[Category:1706 establishments in Asia]]
[[Category:Danish India]]
[[Category:Lutheran missions]]
[[Category:1706 in Christianity]]
[[Category:History of Christianity in India]]

Tranquebar Mission - Revision history

BarneyMoh54: created first data w/ infobox