Nagercoil - Influence of European Missionaries

Influence of European Missionaries

The foundation of several educational institutions by English, German and other Western Christian missionaries in the 19th century and the development of social infrastructure by the Travancore administration raised the social status and literacy of the people, ahead of many other urban centres in Southern India. Today, streets, schools and colleges in the town are named after these European missionaries ; many of these missionaries were also noted educationists and scholars.

The European missionaries converted a section of the people to Protestant Christianity. Roman Catholicism had been introduced earlier by St. Francis Xavier in the 16th century and later by other Jesuits.

St. Francis Xavier, the Roman Catholic missionary, made Kottar locality in the town his principal residence for two years in the 16th century, while preaching around the town and in neighbouring Tirunelveli district.

Of the Protestant missionaries, the services of two European missionaries are particularly notable. One is C. Mead, who after arriving in 1817 in Nagercoil, as a missionary of the London Missionary Society (LMS), made immense contributions to the cause of education in the town and in Travancore. In 1818, he founded the Nagercoil Seminary, which became one of the first regular institutes to impart English education in Travancore state and also in Southern India. In 1855, in recognition of his contributions to the cause of education, the Travancore Government appointed him Superintendent of Schools, and while in this office he encouraged women's education in Nagercoil and in the state of Travancore. He started the Nagercoil Mission Press, the first printing press in the state of Travancore. Mead fought to abolish forms of indentured labour rampant at that time.

The other great missionary was William Tobias Ringeltaube, a native of the then Prussia (present Germany), who established schools and worked among the poor and downtrodden around the town. He started one of the first regular schools in Travancore at Mylaudy, near Nagercoil which is still active.

Like the London Missionary Society (LMS), another organisation that rendered valuable services to the cause of education and upliftment of the socially downtrodden has been the Church Missionary Society (CMS). Both these societies still have a presence in Nagercoil (nearly two centuries after inception).

Home church is one of the important places for worship. This was built by Thurivankur King.

The Salvation Army is known in the town for their medical services in and around the town. Their Catherine Booth Hospital in the Vadasery locality of the town was established in the 19th century and is still active.