(1712 – 1772)
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There are no records to show when the Armenians first found their way to the Coromandel coast, but there exists authentic evidence which goes to prove that the Armenians were trading on the Madras coast in the early part of the 16th century.
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In the Vestiges of Old Madras, (Vol. I p. 277) by Henry Davison Love, it is stated:
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In 1507, Dom Francisco de Almeida, the Portuguese Viceroy at Goa, heard from some native Christians of Malabar that the house or Chapel of the Apostle (Thomas) still existed on the Coromandel coast. Of four men whom he sent round by sea to make enquiries, two died, but the survivors brought back a report which was transmitted to the King of Portugal. Ten years later, (1517) two Portuguese, named Diogo Fernandes and Bastiao Fernandes, arriving at arriving at Pulicat from Malacca, heard of the Chapel from some Armenian merchants. They all proceeded to the spot, some seven leagues distant, and discovered a very ancient edifice, constructed like a church with nave and aisles, and having timber pillars and roof. Its length was twelve cubits. A sacristy beyond, five cubits long, had a dome surmounted by a dwarf spire rising to the height of thirty cubits. Crosses and peacocks in plaster constituted the decoration. This structure was believed to be the sepulcher of the saint. (Thomas the Apostle).
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The Armenians flourished at Madras during the 17th and 18th centuries, when they had the trade of the Carnatic in their hands and carried on a lucrative trade with Europe and the East. From a valuable Armenian manuscript, written at Masulipatam by one Sarkies Johanness in 1790, we find that the Armenians settled permanently at Madras in the year 1666. The English had settled there in 1640. These opulent merchants were famous for their piety and true philanthropy, and for the great zeal they evinced in the advancement of Armenian classical literature in India. Their patriotism is perhaps unparalleled. They appealed to Catherine II of Russia to free Armenia from the Persians and place it under her sovereignty. Two millionaires volunteered to place their millions at the disposal of the Russian Government for the purposes of the projected war, but, somehow or other, the project was not matured.
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The first Armenian Church at Madras was erected as far back as 1712. It was one of the few magnificent edifices in the Esplanade of that city, but the Armenians were obliged to desert it after a time, as the British authorities would not permit so high an edifice to stand in the immediate vicinity of the Fort. The Latin church in the same neighbourhood was objected to for the same reason, and demolished.
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The present Armenian church, situated in Armenian Street, was erected in 1772, and dedicated to the Holy Virgin Mary, the site being the old Armenian burying-ground on which, moreover, a chapel stood, where they worshipped while the present church was in course of erection. The ground was the property of the famous Agah Shameer. His wife, Anna, had been buried there in 1765, and a room built to her memory. This room, which is still known as Shameer?s Room was attached to the church that was built seven years afterwards.
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Armenians in India, 629 pages, by Mesrovb Jacob Seth (First published 1937, Reprint 1983) Calcutta, 1983.
