Cemetery of Munnar
THE REAL STORY BEHIND A CHURCH AND ITS CEMETERY....
A century-old church, owing its legacy to the British tea planters in Old Munnar, is a place where visitors from Britain, who are the third or fourth generation descendants of the planters, arrive to find the life their ancestors led in a far away land.
The present CSI church, built in 1910, is well preserved. It was constructed using rough hewn granites in Gothic style. The stained glasses on the sides of the church depict the saints and Biblical characters. It has a number of memorial brass plaques with the names of prominent planters inscribed on them.
One plaque reads, “In memory of Lee William Alexander, who worshiped here till Ju1y 1925, died on January 4, 1944.” Some others read, “In memory of Marjorie Innes”; “Archibald Williams”, and so on.
The history of the church is linked to the missionaries who arrived here. The first to be buried was young Ilianor Knight, wife of Henry Knight, and who is believed to have died of malaria in 1899.
Every love story is beautiful but the story of Eleanor Isabel and Henry Mansfield Knight will remain etched in your hearts once you visit Munnar.
Eleanor Isabel was the wife of Henry Mansfield Knight, an English man who served as the manager of Kanan Devan tea plantation in Munnar during the British rule. The couple came to Munnar for their honeymoon after tying the knot in November 1894.
Overawed by the magical beauty of Munnar, she playfully asked her beloved to bury her body on the hilltop after her death. Sadly, she fell ill the next day and died of cholera two days before Christmas the same year, at the age of 24. With immense love and an aching heart, Knight buried his wife’s body on the hilltop to fulfill her wish.
Oozing old world charm and standing tall, the century-old C.S.I. Christ Church was originally built by Henry Knight in memory of his wife, in front of a small hill where she was buried. Later a cemetery was constructed in the vicinity, exclusively for British planters.
The church was built in memory of her in front of a small hill where she was buried, later making it an exclusive cemetery for British planters. Before the church was constructed, there was a cemetery at the back of the present structure where many Britishers were laid to rest. History records that the work of the church was completed and dedicated on April 16, 1911.
An in-house publication of Tata-Finlay Ltd “Hundred Years of Tea Planting,” says that the church provided refuge for many during the heavy floods in Munnar in 1924. It was the first place people reached for refuge as it is on a hill and near the then main town.
It is reported that that young people from Britain used to come to Munnar only to visit the church. A few tombs have the names of persons buried there written on them, and their descendants come with details of those buried there.
“It is part of Munnar’s history and attracts tourists, especially foreigners and the church is maintained well”, said Riju Varghese, a former staffer of the church.
As one courses through the history of Munnar, where the Britishers introduced the rope way, railway and even the first motor bike, one finds many such monuments to its glorious past.
Carrying the legacy of a century, C.S.I Christ Church is the most revered place of worship in Munnar. It was constructed in 1910 using hewn granites and has various memorial brass plaques. Designed in the Gothic style of architecture, this Christ church has stained glasses depicting Biblical characters. Various third and fourth generation descendants of British planters still visit this attraction in Munnar to trace the history of their ancestors. Today, it is the head of CSI Munnar Pastorate with over a thousand Tamil families and 18 churches. You can capture the serene surroundings of the church and its ancient history with your camera. It makes for a rather captivating click.