When I started exploring the European grave markers in the St Francis Church [see here] and the Dutch Cemetery [see here] at Fort Cochin, it was done out of sheer curiosity. However, Veli Cemetery [see here] at Fort Cochin was an eye opener, as it was quite fascinating to learn that several European graves from the 19th century remained intact in the graveyard, yet hardly anyone notices them or is aware of their existence today. As I began to look for the other European burial sites of significance outside Cochin, what caught my attention the most was the cemetery of the St John’s Anglican church at Thalasserry [old Tellicherry], Kannur. The cemetery is renowned for the memorials associated with historic personalities like the philanthropist Edward Brennen, d. 1859 [established Government Brennan College, Thalasserry]; the Sub-Collector and District Magistrate Thomas Hervey Baber, d. 1843 [responsible for the capture and death of Pazhassi Rajah]; the planter of Anjarakandy, Murdoch Brown, d. 1828 [considered the father of land registration in Kerala] etc. The church and the cemetery were renovated and restored to their former glory in 2009 by the Department of Archaeology. Reports and videos appeared frequently highlighting the new state of the beautifully maintained cemetery with grasses cut and wild growth kept under check, featuring well-planned stone-paved walkways lit with solar-powered lights and benches to relax, and all this facing a beautiful beach. Therefore, with much hope and expectation I made my first exclusive trip to the Anglican cemetery at Thalassery on December, 2023. I also had a target to trace the grave of Captain Gaspar Moritz Gleetz (1730 - 1768) of Quedlinburg (Germany), which is said to be the oldest extant European grave in Thalassery [see here].
A view from the St John's Anglican Church Cemetery in December, 2023THE GRAVE OF GASPAR MORITZ GLEETZ [18 April, 1768]
However, upon reaching the site, I realized how wrong I was. The graveyard was incredibly overgrown and the vegetation was chest-high in places. Although a few graves were visible including that of Brennen and Murdoch, it was not practically feasible to explore the whole graveyard. Nevertheless, I still managed to identify 25 graves. Sunil, the friendly caretaker informed me that the church had plans to do the weeding on their own as the Archaeology department responsible for the maintenance was less responsive. He promised to inform me when this happens so that more graves can be identified, especially that of Gaspar Moritz Gleetz, the oldest in the cemetery, which he too was eagerly looking for. I made a short stop at the site on January, 2024, but situation remained the same. Soon afterwards, I got a call from him that the much awaited cleaning was undergoing. Finally, during my third visit to Thalassery on February, 2024, I saw a much different graveyard with several tombs emerging outside the thick vegetation. The grave of Gleetz still remained elusive until it popped out while I was cleaning an ordinary looking simple table-type grave. The epitaph was completely concealed under layers of mud and dried leaves, but on getting rid of the dirt, the inscriptions appeared clearly. Despite being more than 250 years old, this gravestone is still one of the best preserved in the cemetery. The gravestone says: Gaspar Moritz Gleetz, Captain of an Infantry was born at Quedlinburg on 16 December 1730 and died at Tellicherry on 18 April, 1768.
Location [see yellow arrow] of the grave of Gaspar Moritz Gleetz [d. 1768] before and after the cleaning in the cemetery
Before and after the cleaning the tombstone of Gaspar Moritz Gleetz [d. 1768] THE GRAVE OF HENRY JOHNSON [17 April, 1752 or 1759]
Almost a year after these trips, I decided to make a few posts on this cemetery and while going through the photographs taken, I accidentally came across the image of an ordinary unplastered grave with a simple 3-lined tombstone that says: Hen: Johnson, aged 23, died on 17 April 175(2 or 3). Now, here is a grave that predates Gaspar Moritz Gleetz by 16 years! I had a photograph of this unique grave with me all this time but I didn't notice. What is more surprising to me is that no one has specifically reported about the existence of this grave even after the cemetery was properly renovated and the epitaphs were numbered in 2009. Interestingly, his name appears in Julian James Cotton's monumental work, 'List of Inscriptions on Tombs or Monuments in Madras' (1946 ed., Vol. 2). Cotton reports 19 graves from Tellicherry, and Henry Johnson [died on 17 April, 1759, aged 23] is the oldest in the lot followed by Gaspar Moritz Gleetz [died on 18 April, 1768]. The inventory provided in Malabar Christian Memorial, Vol. 1 (Roberts and Chekkutty, 2013) also has Henry Johnson's name with the same details. Although, MCM, Vol. 1 has listed 5 burials before 1759 [all from the year 1756], they are reported without gravestones. When you look closely at the epitaph of Henry Johnson, the year appears to be 1752 (or 1753) instead of 1759. Nonetheless, even if the latter date of Cotton and MCM is taken, it is still about a decade older than Gaspar M. Gleetz. To the best of my knowledge, the grave of Henry Johnson (1752/3 or 1759) is the oldest surviving European grave in the entire Kannur District. The funerary marker displayed at the St Angelo's Fort in Kannur is from 1745 [see here], but it should be noted that it is a gravestone and not a tomb.
Location of the graves of Henry Johnson [1752] and Gaspar Moritz Gleetz [1768]-the two oldest in the cemetery
TOMBSTONES OF THE TWO OLDEST GRAVES IN THE ST JOHN'S ANGLICAN CHURCH CEMETERY, THALASSERRY- HENRY JOHNSON [1752] AND GASPAR MORITZ GLEETZ [1768].
In the upcoming posts, I will cover all the European graves in the cemetery of St. John's Anglican Church. Memorial tablets installed inside the church will also be discussed. Photographs of the tombs with enlarged view of their tombstones, transcripts of the epitaphs including that of Henry Johnson and Gaspar Moritz Gleetz will be uploaded.
References
Cotton, Julian James (1946 ed., Vol. 2)-List of Inscriptions on Tombs or Monuments in Madras
Roberts, John Cantwell and Chekkutty, N P (2013)-Malabar: Christian Cemeteries and Memorials at Cannanore, Tellicherry and Mahé, 1723-1990
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