British missionary activity 1800-30

‘Two brilliant cousins leave a tiny village in the west of Scotland sharing a mission: to make the world a better place.’ € This is a quote from the Kindle description of The Claudians: gardens, landscapes, reason and faith: John Claudius Loudon and Claudius Buchanan by Tom Turner, (Kindle, 2024). 

The missionary spirit and the British Empire

The early 19th century saw a religious revival in Britain and a growth of the evangelical movement. Missionaries were motivated by a sense of moral duty to spread Christianity. They saw their work as a way to counter the social and moral challenges brought about by industrialization, war, and political instability. The British Empire expanded significantly during and after the Napoleonic Wars, gaining control over vast territories, including in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. This expansion provided new opportunities for missionaries to travel and establish missions in these regions, often with the support or cooperation of colonial authorities. Many saw missionary work as a way to bring Christian civilization to ‘uncivilised’ parts of the world. Missionary societies were established, including  the Church Missionary Society (1799) and the London Missionary Society (1795). These bodies were instrumental in organising and funding missionary work, sending missionaries to various parts of the British Empire and beyond.

Claudius Buchanan's contribution to missionary activity in South and East Asia

Claudius Buchanan (1766-1815) played a significant role in the history of 18th and 19th-century protestant missionary activity, particularly in India. He went there as a chaplain with the East India Company. With his friend, the Reverend David Brown, he played a key role in establishing Fort William College in Calcutta. The Honourable East India Company wished to train British officials in Indian languages and customs. Brown and Buchanan wished to spread Christianity. Buchanan was an advocate and an actor in translating the Bible and other Christian texts into Indian languages to make them accessible to the local population.

Buchanan's writings exposed what he saw as negative aspects of Indian society, such as the caste system and practices like Sati (widow burning). These criticisms sparked debate and controversy but also brought attention to the need for social reform in India. Through his pamphlets and sermons, Buchanan stirred public interest in Christian missions in England. He lobbied for changes to the East India Company's charter to allow missionaries to enter India more freely. He influenced missionary societies like the Church Missionary Society (CMS) and inspired other missionaries like William Carey.

Serampore College, established after Buchanan's death, played a key role in the establishment of educational institutions in India. It was founded to train native missionaries and to promote higher education among Indians. This role continues with Serampore College the oldest university in India to have been in continuous operation.  It was founded in 1818 by three British missionaries known as 'the Ser, ampore Trio'. They were William Carey, Joshua Marshman and William Ward. 'It was in Martyn’s pagoda that Claudius Buchanan first broached his plan of an ecclesiastical establishment for India, and invited the discussion of it by Carey and his colleagues. Such a scheme came naturally from one who was the grandson of a Presbyterian elder of the Church of Scotland, converted in the Whitefield revival at Cambuslang.' (George Smith Life of William Carey, Shoemaker and Missionary, 1885, p.195). Martyn, like Buchanan, was an EIC chaplain and a friend of David Brown. Martyn's Temple survives at Serampore and is a rare example of a Hindu temple taken into Christian use.