 |
 |
Jan 5, 2003
TheWeek - India Weekly
|
 Half
an hour's drive from the temple town of Chidambaram lies Tranquebar,
a tiny fishing hamlet in Nagapattinam Quaid-e-Milleth district. It stands as
if at the edge of another time. Known as Tarangambadi, 'the place of the
singing waves', it owes its place in history to the advent of the Danes on the
Coromandel Coast. During my sojourn at the celebrated ancient port of
Kaveripoompattinam (Poompuhar), I stumbled upon Tranquebar and stopped by to
explore the relics of this long-forgotten Danish outpost.
Entering the outpost through a deep baroque archway inscribed with the royal
insignia and the year 1792, I was caught in a time warp. The ambience is laid
back; life moves in measured paces. The streets are desolate, save for the
passing tourist taxi or a couple of cyclists. The Danish historian Sven
Frokjaer-Jensen, on a visit in 1993, remarked: "Tranquebar today is like
a Danish town 45 years ago."
 Walk
through history: The stately Dansborg Castle affords a commanding view of the
sea(above left); a memorial to the landing of the Danes in Tranquebar
The archway leads into King's Street lined by solid colonial
houses, all with pillared verandahs and cool inviting inner courtyards. I
found the tranquility of the place simply overwhelming. I couldn't help
marvelling at the New Jerusalem Church, a serene, white-tiled shrine bearing
the royal crown on its facade and the year 1718. Equally interesting are the
Governor's Bungalow (used as the residence of the Danish governor in 1784),
the Collector's House built in the colonial style, and other Neo-Classical
buildings in a town which at one time housed 150 Europeans. There is a
cemetery where rest Danish descendants.
With its Dansborg Castle, fort, churches, temples, missions, mosques, public
buildings, and spacious houses of traders and officials, the hamlet is indeed
a heritage buff's delight. Tranquebar was founded in 1620 by the Danish East
India Company during the reign of King Christian IV. Ove Gedde, the visionary
captain of a fleet of five Danish ships, came sailing across the high seas to
negotiate with the Nayak king of Tanjore the lease of the port in exchange for
18 iron cannons. Four years later, the seaport became the property of the king
of Denmark. Denmark sold Tranquebar to the English East India Company for £125,000
in 1845. Not long afterwards, Tranquebar lost its importance as a trading
colony and its glory.
It is believed that, until a generation ago, the town had Indian residents who
knew Danish. As I walked to the far end of the street I could hear the waves
lashing against rocky shores. Close to the shore is a memorial to the landing
of the Danes. A few metres away, on the seashore, is the ancient Masilamani
Natha Temple gravely threatened by the sea. Further on are the remnants of the
breakwaters, a sad reminder of the havoc created by the raging sea.
One can walk through the pages of history here. At the Lutheran Teachers'
Training College, I saw the portly bust of the first Protestant missionary to
the port, Bartolomeus Ziegenbalg, shaded by a multi-coloured umbrella. He had
arrived in 1706 to establish the Tamil Evangelical Lutheran church, which runs
several schools, orphanages, hostels and training centres in south India. The
missionary resurrected printing which had faded after its introduction by the
Portuguese. The first Tamil Bible was printed here.
The stately Dansborg Castle affords a commanding view of the sea and the
surrounding countryside. Atop its ramparts stood powerful cannons that pounded
over the waves. By 1755, the rough seas destroyed much of the fort.
A museum within the fort contains maps, photographs, marine exhibits and
memorabilia, including a printed document giving permission to the Danes to
set up 'fortresses' to carry on trade with Tanjore. The original gold leaf
document granted by Thirumalai Nayak is in a museum in Copenhagen, and it
mentions that only the Portuguese and the Danes would have the right of trade.
The museum has architectural drawings of important buildings that are still in
use. A map of Tranquebar shows a fortified town with gates, a thriving Tamil
town with residences, paddy fields and thick clumps of trees. A large canopied
grave with an unusual emblem is seen in one of the few photographs. Poor
lighting and the damp roof in the museum give an eerie feeling.
Tranquebar was designated a special tourism area in the early nineties. Though
the Danes promised assistance for the restoration of some of the finest
colonial buildings of the 17th century, it was only after a decade that they
sanctioned funds for the preservation of the Governor's Bungalow. Tranquebar
is a historian's delight despite its lost glory.
 Fact
file
Getting there: By air: Tranquebar is 280 km
from Chennai airport.
By rail: It is 35 km from Nagapattinam and
Chidambaram.
By road: Chidambaram, 35 km; Poompuhar, 20 km;
Pondicherry, 70 km
Where to stay: There is no hotel in Tranquebar but
visitors are well looked after by the missions. Snacks and
refreshments available in tea shops may not be clean. There are a wide
range of hotels in Nagapattinam and Chidambaram.
Best season: August to February.
|
| subscribe
| query
| chat
| guest
book | search-archive
| home
| to the editor
|
|
