When one hears about a 'Dutch Cemetery', what comes to mind is a graveyard meant specifically for the Dutch people. Ironically, today, in the 'Dutch Cemetery' of Fort Cochin there are more identifiable British funerary monuments than the Dutch graves. Although, the cemetery began as a Dutch graveyard in 1724, soon after the British conquest of Cochin in 1795, it became the final resting place of the English elite and their family members too. Only after the mid-19th century, the British had a separate cemetery in Cochin. The new British cemetery is in a place just outside Fort Cochin called Veli today. In a previous post, I described about three English graves in the Dutch cemetery. After I had the opportunity to access the graveyard, the whole area was scanned more elaborately. To the best of my knowledge, no studies have been conducted so far to document the current status of British funerary monuments in the Dutch cemetery of Fort Cochin. I have identified a total 12 British funerary monuments inside the cemetery (including the three previously mentioned). In addition, there are two graves that have not been determined as of now, but we know they are British from the rudimentary English inscriptions left over them. Thus, a total 14 tombs in the Dutch cemetery can be taken as British with certainty.
British Indian Army Officer and orientalist, Thomas Walters Venn gives a first hand information on the funerary monuments in the Dutch cemetery. Through-out this study, I will be depending heavily on two of his important works on Cochin, published in 1947 and 1950, respectively. The one major drawback of course is that, most of the tombs discussed by Venn lack epitaphs today or the inscriptions on them are obliterated. Nevertheless, using the vital clues provided by Venn, I am proposing a few more graves in the Dutch cemetery that can be classified as British.
- There are 14 graves in the Dutch cemetery with English inscriptions.
- The oldest grave with an English epitaph is for a Dutch woman who married a British Captain, and it is dated 1796.
- The oldest recognizable tomb for an British native is that of a 28 year old Captain, and it is dated 1815.
- The youngest buried is a 3 year old girl, who is the daughter of a British Captain.
- The oldest British interred is a Major, aged 82 years.
- The tallest funerary monument in the Dutch cemetery is also British (see here).
- The latest identifiable British grave in the cemetery is from 1906.
1) Maria Elizabeth de Graff (d. 06/1796, Aged 23)
This is the oldest surviving English inscription in the Dutch cemetery. Interestingly, the deceased is a Dutch lady of good family-Maria Elisabeth van der Graaf, widow of the late Dutch lieutenant of artillery, Karel Michael Hillerstein. She was married to the British Captain Thomas Grummont of the Madras army. Their marriage is recorded in the Doopboek of St Francis Church as: "den 8 Meij 1796. De weled. manhaften Heer Thomas Grummant Kapitain militair in dienst der Engelsche 0. Ind. Komp. met Maria Elis(abeth) de Graaff wed. van den manh. Luiten. der arthilleri, Karel Michael Hillersten, beide van de Geref. godsdienst". Note that Captain Thomas Grummont is identified as "De weled. manhaften" (a very gallant) military officer. In the grave marker, the date of Maria Elisabeth's death is given as 13th June, 1796, which would indicate that her second marriage (8 May, 1796) was very short lived. Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 147) has: "Grummant, Maria Elizabeth, nee Van de Graaf, wife of M. N. I. capt. Thomas Grummant, died 1796, age 23". For more details, see Venn, 1947, pp. 25, 59.
HERE LIES THE BODY
M. E. M. GRUMMANT
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE
THE 13 DAY JUNE 1796
AGED 23 YEARS
2) Charles Biddulph (d. 04/1815, Aged 28)
The tomb belongs to a 28 year old English Captain named Charles Biddulph, whose body was actually brought to Cochin on 20th April, 1815 for burial. The 22-lined eulogy briefly narrates the career of Capt. Biddulph, and it is probably the lengthiest English epitaph extant in Cochin. It is also the oldest identifiable British grave in the Dutch cemetery, if not the entire region of Cochin. Technically, the 1796 grave monument of Maria Elisabeth de Graff should be considered Dutch, even though the inscription on it is in English. Cotton's inventory that has appeared in the revised edition (1946, Vol. 2, p. 188) gives 6 British graves in the Dutch cemetery before 1815, the oldest being that of Charles Roland Esq., who was buried on 24th June 1807; unfortunately, none of the epitaphs have survived today! Venn (1947, p. 78) clarifies that Biddulph was the commander of the ship 'H. M. S. Hesper' and not 'H. M. S. Volate' as the headstone suggests. Venn has reproduced the log entry of H. M. S. Hesper recording the event that reads: "Departed this life at 7,50 Chas; Biddulph Esq., Commander. At 8 bore in for Cochin. Anchored in 7.5 fathoms". The obituary column in the Gentleman's Magazine for the year 1815 (p. 634) has this detail: "April 22. In the East Indies, in his 29th year, Charles Biddulph, esq. commander of H. M. Ship Hesper, second son of Sir Theophilus Biddulpb, bart. of Birbury Hail, co. Warwick". Cotton (1905, p. 271) has provided the full epitaph, but date of death given is 20th August, 1815; an error repeated in the inventory collected by Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 146) as well:- "Biddulpe Charles, capt. of H. M. S. Volage, died 20 August 1815, age 28-pulmononary disease". Cotton further notes that Biddulph's patron, Sir Samuel Hood is buried at Madras, and that his first cousin, Captain William married the eldest daughter of Dr. Nathaniel Wallick, a well-known Botanist and Curator of the East India Company's Garden at Calcutta. It is interesting how Venn describes the tomb as "an inconspicuous grave, embrangled in lantana canes" with deeply inscribed slate tablet (Venn, 1947, p. 78). Today, even after 75 years, the gravestone is still one of the best preserved in the cemetery!
Sacred to the Memory of
CHARLES BIDDULPH Esquire
Captain of H. M. S. Ship Voyage
He was second son of
SIR THEOPHILUS BIDDULPH
of Birbury in Warwickshire
and having made choice of the Navy
for his profession
he was brought up under the patronage
of the late Admiral SIR SAMUEL HOOD
Having after a life spent in the service
of His King and Country
just attained the Rank of Post Captain
He fell a martyr to a Pulmonary Complaint
caught in the execution of his duty
at the early age of 28-and has left
his Country to lament the loss of a most active
zealous and excellent Officer and his
relations and friends a most benevolent
and truly upright and honorable Man
He died at Sea off Cochin
on the 20th of April 1815
3) Sarah Wilhelmina Ives (d. 04/1820, Aged 3)
This is the grave of the youngest (British) identified to be buried in the Dutch cemetery. She is the infant daughter of the late Captain Ives, aged 3 years, whose loss is lamented by her deeply afflicted mother. The exact cause of her death is unknown, but it is recorded that only a few hours illness took her life. Venn records the father's name as Captain John Ives (1947, p. 63) or Lieut. Colonel Ives (1950, p. 64) of 2-14th Madras N. I, and his wife Maria Wilhelmina Souter, who died at the age of 75 as a widow. Roberts and Chekkutty (2017) is silent about this grave.
SACRED TO THE MEMORY
OF
SARAH WILHELMINA IVES
DAUGHTER OF THE LATE LUET COLONEL IVES
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE
ON THE 14TH OF APRIL 1820
AGED 3 YEARS
TO THE DEEP GRIEF
OF HER AFFLICTED MOTHER
4) Maria Evans (d. 07/1822, Aged 23)
This is the tallest funerary monument in the Dutch cemetery of Fort Cochin, and it is a British grave. I have already discussed about this grave monument and how it was identified. See my previous post here.
TO THE MEMORY OF MARIA
BELOVED WIFE OF CAPTAIN
CHAS (CHARLES) EVANS---
5) Arthur Frith (d. 04/1824, Aged 57)
According to Venn (1947, p. 21), Lieut.-Col. Frith of 2nd-1st Madras Native Infantry, died at Balghotty (Bolghatty) in 1832, but the headstone at the burial site gives the burial date as 1824. Cotton (1905, p. 272) reports that he was Commanding 2nd Batt. 1st N.I., and died on 22 April, 1824 at the age of 57 in Bolghotty Residency, which occupies the site of the Dutch Biergarten. Furthermore, on September 11th, 1811, he married Miss Jane Ellis Kerr. Elsewhere in the same work (1905, p. 214), Cotton gives the name of second son of Lieut. Colonel Arthur Frith, Ensign and Adjutant Charles Harris Frith, who died at Poondy on 7th June 1834, in the 25th year of his age. The obituary appeared in 'The Quarterly Oriental Magazine, Review, and Register' (1824) reads: On the 22nd of April, at Cochin, Col. Arthur Frith, of the Madras establishment, lately commanding at Quilon, deeply and sincerely regretted. In Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, 146): "Frith, Arthur lieut. col. 2nd/1st M.N.I., died 22 April 1824-Bolghotty Residence, age 57".
SACRED
TO
THE MEMORY
OF
LIEU. COL. ARTHUR FRITH
LATE COM 1st BT. REG. NI
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE
ON THE 22ND OF APRIL
1824
IN THE 57. YEAR OF HIS AGE
6) James Tate (d. 03/1827, Aged 75)
James Tate was a wealthy merchant who lived in a private domain at Paliporte (Pallippuram) near Cochin in 1810. He is addressed as an "opulent English merchant, formerly of Bombay". His enormous estate in Pallippuram is best described by Colonel James Welsh (1830, pp. 91-92) in the following passage: "Having obtained a grant of the ground to a considerable extent from the Rajah of Cochin, he is a little sovereign, with a free trade on both sides of his territory, which may be half a mile broad, and is several miles in length. The ground is low and productive, and possessing a free port, only fifteen miles from an English one, where the customs are exorbitant, he trades to great advantage. His bungalow, on the margin of the backwater, is delightfully situated, and, with the long ranges of go-downs for merchandize, has a most conspicuous appearance; whilst a neat village, Roman Catholic Church, Vicarage, Mosque, &c ., add very considerably to the interest of the scene". Venn records (1950, p. 54) that Tate died in 1827, very old and infirm; and not long afterwards his estate was purchased by a Dutch gentleman named Samuel James Adriaan Vernede. Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 143) states,"Tate, James, died 4 March 1824, age 73", however, the burial site is wrongly assigned to Veli cemetery. In the noted survey of Ward and Conner conducted in the Travancore and the Cochin states between 1816 and 1820 (Volume 1), he is probably the one mentioned as an English gentleman from the Travancore Government who held the chief place of a space of Pullypuram (Pallipuram).
SACRED
TO THE MEMORY OF
JAMES TATE ESQUIRE
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE
AT PALIPORT
IN THE 4TH MARCH 1827
AGED 75 YEARS
AFTER A CONTINUED RESIDENCE
OF NEARLY 50 YEARS IN INDIA
7) Peter Winckler (d. 1842, Aged 78)
This is the family tomb of Peter (Pieter) Winckler, the grandfather of Joseph Ethelbert Winckler, the latter was the last to be buried in the Dutch cemetery (Venn, 1947, p. 65). According to Venn, Pieter died in the year 1841 at the age of 78. Venn believes that the current epitaph must have been placed some years after the death of 'old Piet' as the new spelling (Peter instead of Pieter) appears for the first time when his great-granddaughter is baptized. You can see that the epitaph on the burial site gives the date 1842 for the family tomb. Venn (1947, p.65) places the Winkler vault in the north-east corner under coconut palms, but it is actually positioned in the north-west corner, and there are no coconut trees surviving in the graveyard today. It appears from Venn's observation that Joseph Winckler had a separate tomb. However, I couldn't trace the grave, which is somewhat surprising, considering that it was the last burial in the Dutch cemetery (dated 13 September, 1913). On the other hand, Roberts and Chekkutty (2017) lists both the tombs (Pieter and Joseph) wrongly in the Veli cemetery. If you remember my earlier post, Joseph Winckler was the Port Officer who erected the commemorative pillar for "the Great Fire of Cochin" in late 19th century (see here).
IN
MEMORY
OF PETER WINCKLER
AND
FAMILY
1842
8) Catherine E. Daly (d. 05/1844, Aged 12)
Catherine is another young British girl (12 years) to be buried in the Dutch cemetery, Venn names her Caroline (12 years) in 1947; or Catherine (13 years) in 1950. Catherine's father, Colonel Michael Daly was a military adventurer who commanded Carnatic Brigade stationed at Aleppey (Alappuzha). Her mother is named Henrietta Dikkers and both parents were of Irish heritage. Colonel Daly died in 1835 (Venn, 1947) or 1836 (Venn, 1950) at Tangacherry, aged 78. Venn names his eldest daughter Eliza Sarah married to Captain Alexander Macleod of the Madras Army; and eldest son, Henry Wolf Daly, a Lieutenant in the Madras Army. Colonel Daly had three more daughters (Marriott, Rae and Rosa) and a son (Charles Michael Daly), but he possessed a very moderate fortune to pass on to his 6 surviving children (for more details, see Venn, 1947, pp. 23-24; and Venn, 1950, p. 61). Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, pp. 138-139) has "Catherine E. (Caroline), da. of Michael Daly of Tangacherry, died 17 May 1844, age 12". Elsewhere (2017, p. 187), they mention the burial of Col. Daly at St. Thomas' Cemetery of Quilon, and the inventory reads: "Daly, Michael, col. formerly in the service of the Rajah of Travancore, died 22 July 1835, age 77/9". Strangely, another list collected by Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 196) has Col. Daly buried in Fort Thomas Cemetery of Tangacherry (Thangaserry) and it says: "Daly, Michael, Travancore Service col. ' died 23 July 1835, age 78".
TO THE MEMORY
OF
CATHERINE E DALY
DIED
17TH MAY 1844
9) Sarah Lascelles (d. 03/1845, Aged 33)
According to Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 140) there is a gravestone named after "Lascelles, Sarah Georgiana, wife of capt. Edward Wilson Lascelles, died 22 March 1845, age 33" in the Veli cemetery. However, I have traced this grave in the Dutch cemetery. Ironically, neither Venn nor Cotton mentions about a Lascelles grave at Cochin. It seems she had a daughter named Fanny Lascelles. We get this information from a marriage record, which says a wedding occurred in Cochin on 6 February, 1845 between Fanny, daughter of Capt. E. W. Lascelles, late of H. M.'s 22nd regt., and Lieut B. (Barnett) Ford of 12th N. I., unfortunately, the record does not mention the mother's name (Allen's Indian Mail, 1845). Another interesting detail is in 'RootsChat.com', a family history forum site, where Georgiana Sarah Lascelles is also identified with Sarah Georgina Guildfort and Georgiana Wagstaff, and her husband 'Edmund Wilson Lascelles' of the 45th Regiment, who served from 11/8/1825 to 31/12/1829 in Madras, and from 1/1/1830 to 11/1837 in Burma. I have not seen any of the original documents based on which these claims are made, so can't comment on the details. It should be however noted that the blurry epitaph in the original site reads Edward instead of Edmund.
SACRED
TO THE MEMORY OF
SARAH LASCELLES
THE BELOVED (?) WIFE OF
CAPTN EDWARD LASCELLES
LATE---
WHO DIED MARCH 22ND 1845
AGED 33 YEARS
10) Montague Ross Taynton (d. 10/1845, Aged 42)
Venn (1950, p. 207) has an amusing anecdote on Taynton, and it reads as follows: "Ross Taynton was the sub-collector, and whatever enemies he raised up against himself, he was soon to meet the last to be encountered in this world. He lies in the old cemetery under one of those mountains of masonry which have the appearance of a petrified Lord Mayor's couch". Taynton joined the army as a cadet for infantry in St George Fort, Madras for the season 1824; promoted to Lieutenant on 12 September, 1826; and was cashiered (dismissed from military) on 27 October, 1828 (The East-India Register and Directory for 1825, p. 268; Dodwell, 1838, pp. 176-177). Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, pp. 148-149) records: "Taynton, Montague Ross, died 16 October 1845, age 41/4/7. Gravestone : raised by Maj. Gen. William Cullen; St Francis Church memorial". Accordingly, the memorial in St Francis church had the details: "Montague Ross Taynton, died 16 October 1845, age 41 years" (Roberts and Chekkutty, 2017, p. 136). However, I could not find any such tablet in St Francis church dedicated to Taynton, may be it has been removed or lost.
TO
THE MEMORY OF
MONTAGUE ROSS TAYNTON ESQ
WHO
DIED 16TH OCTOBER 1845
AGED 42 YEARS
ERECTED BY
MAJOR GEN CULLEN AND
INTIMATE FRIENDS OF DECEASED
MARCH
1846
11) William Hamilton (d. 01/1882, Aged 72 or 82)
According to the gravestone in the Dutch cemetery, Major Hamilton died at the age of 82, and this would place him the oldest British to be buried in the graveyard. However, if we calculate his age based on the dates of birth (1810) and death (1882) engraved in the headstone, he died at 72 years only! Venn (1947, p 61) writes: "Another familiar character of Cochin was
Major Hamilton. He is believed to be the William Hamilton who arrived at
Madras as a cadet in 1781, then aged 31. If this is so his real age is
72, not 62 as stated in the burial records". The list of Roberts and Chekkutty (2017) also gives his age as 72 years, but both the date of death (1822) and the burial site (Veli cemetery) are erroneously recorded. Hamilton's tomb is just in front of Capt. Biddulph's (d. 1815) grave bordering the northern wall of the cemetery, both the tombs look structurally similar and even the black slate matches in their appearance with lengthy eulogies engraved. However, since they are separated by around eight decades, it is possible that Hamilton's tomb was inspired after Biddulph's grave.
IN THIS PLACE
ARE DEPOSITED THE REMAINS
OF
MAJOR WILLIAM HAMILTON
WHO WAS BORN
AT EDINBURGH IN 1810
AND DIED 28 JANUARY 1882
AGED 82
FORMERLY AN OFFICER
IN HIS BRITANNIC
MAJESTYS SERVICE
AND OF LATE A MAJOR
IN THE SERVICE
OF THE RAJAH
OF TRAVANCORE
12) Alice Elizabeth (d. 04/1906, Aged 32)
Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 134) reports a plaque for Edward H. M. Bove (8 October, 1874) and Elizabeth Bove (1 April, 1906) in the St Francis church. This is the latest British grave monument I could identify in the Dutch cemetery. The last burial in the cemetery, said to be that of Joseph E. Winckler, dated 15 September, 1913 (Roberts and Chekkutty, 2017, p. 145), cannot be traced. May be once the cemetery is properly tidied up, Joseph Winckler's grave can be tracked down. If there was indeed a memorial tablet for the Edward and Alice in St Francis church, it is also unaccounted for.
IN LOVING MEMORY OF
ALICE ELIZABETH
THE DEARLY LOVED WIFE OF
EDWARD H M BOWER
AND THE BELOVED ELDEST DAUGHTER OF
HODOSON AND EVA WILLIAMS
BORN 8TH OCTOBER 1874
DEPARTED THUS LIFE 12TH APRIL 1906
13) Anonymous 1
The grave remains anonymous as it is not possible to decipher the contents. I know its a British tomb, because of the faint English letters inscribed. All I could make out with some certainty is the name 'Thomas' and the month 'April'. If identified, I believe it will be one of the old British graves in the cemetery.
SACRED
TO THE MEMORY OF
---
THOMAS---SO
---PECT---
DEPARTED THIS LIFE -APRIL---
AGED-YEARS
THIS MON---
---
14) Anonymous-2
This grave located near the entrance of the cemetery appear blank at first go, because the gravestone is broken and heavily damaged. However, upon careful observation, one could read a line near the center of the gravestone in large block letters that says: "-2 MARCH 18--"; and just above this line we have 4 to 5 letters scribbled randomly, which at present make no sense. At least, one thing is certain that this tomb is British and not Dutch.
Speculated British Graves in the Dutch Cemetery
I will try to identify a few more graves in the cemetery using the information provided by T. W. Venn. Needless to say, there are no readable headstones for them, so the only details we have in hand are the observations made by Venn some seven decades before. Some are direct clues, and can be used to point out the monuments, others are speculations, but based on Venn's encyclopedic knowledge on Cochin's colonial heritage.
15) Lieut. Douglass (1810)?
You might have noticed that most of the graves in this cemetery are simple with plain inscriptions, without abundance of intricate patterns and symbols carved upon them. Even designs of cross, which are usually seen in Christian graveyards are rarely represented! Nevertheless, there are a few tombs which stand out in this regard. One such tomb is near the entrance with two shields, one with a cross and the other with a hand symbol. Venn (1947, p. 63) believes that the gravestone bearing the severed left hand upon a shield may be that of Lieut. Douglas or Duglas of the 2-17th N. I.; the crest of that family being the Red, or Bloody Hand of Douglas. Cotton's revised edition (1946, vol. 2, p. 188) has the name 'Lieut. Hugh Douglas' of the 17th Native Infantry, who died at 27th May, 1810. Interestingly, the name of Lieut. Douglass is not included in the original 1905-edition of Cotton's 'List of Inscriptions on Tombs or Monuments in Madras', so the information was mostly obtained afterwards, probably after the death of J J Cotton in 1927. It is not clear whether the detail was retrieved from an epitaph, but at least, it is certain that at the time of Venn's writing (1947), there was no such inscription, On the other hand, Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 146 ) has only: "Douglass-died 28 May 1810".
16) James Charles Sayer?
We have an important clue from Venn regarding another grave, located close by the tomb of Capt. Biddulph. It is the tomb of a young boy who died of Cholera, at the age of 13 at Cochin. In Venn's words (1950, p. 78): "James Charles Sayer, son of Stalker Sayer and his wife Matilda of Palghatcherry. The boy, aged 13, was being sent home by the ship ‘George,’ in which he had already embarked and was to sail next day, when he was taken by the fell disease and brought ashore for burial". The inventory in Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 142) is more precise when it notes: "Sayer, James Charles, son of Stalker Sayer and Martha, died 3 May 1822, age 13/1/10", but the burial site is again misidentified with the Veli cemetery. Venn does not give the exact date of death, but writes that the grave recalls the tragedy of 1836, when cholera seized the young life. Although, Cotton has no record on James Sayer's tomb in Cochin, he reports Martha Sayer's grave at St Peter's Cemetery at Tanjore (modern Thanjavur), who died on 25th January, 1844, at the age of 69. He also adds that, Mr. S. Sayer died at Paulghautcherry (modern Palakkad) on 11 March, 1817, aged 42, and the couple had three daughters, viz. Eliza, M. F. and Caroline (Cotton, 1946, Vol. 2, p. 245). In my opinion, the following anonymous funerary monument (see below) beside the tomb of Captain Biddulph is the best candidate we can bring forward, then again, there are no inscriptions to reach at a definite conclusion.
17) Captain Robinson?
After describing Captain Biddulph's tomb, Venn (1947, p. 22) notes: "There are three graves overtopped by columns at the foot of which lean the sailor's device for a life cut short-an ancient anchor and broken cable... the larger of these ...is probably over the remains of Captain Robinson, Indian navy, first Master Attendant of Cochin, who was laid to rest in 1797; but all are now nameless". The only grave overtopped by a column with a symbol of anchor, and located near Biddulph's grave, is this tomb shown below. Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 148) briefs: "Robinson, I. N. capt., died 1797 ". Cotton has no records of such a burial in Cochin. It would be interesting to learn more about this British captain who was buried as early as 1797 in a Cemetery at Cochin.
18 and 19) Alexander Allardice and his Wife?
While describing the graves in the Dutch cemetery, Venn (1947. pp. 21-22) points out that size of monument alone does not indicate rank, as instanced by a simple assistant surgeon Alexander Allardyce (1839), who is immured in "a lumbering chaise-like mausoleum" erected by his mother; his wife probably from Cochin itself, two years later, was "laid beside him". Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 136) is more detailed as the inventory gives information on both the husband and wife as follows:
"Allardice, Alexander, died 18 July 1839, age 33;
Allardice, Eliza Jane, widow of Alexander Allardice, died 10 February 1844, age 24".
It means the wife was interred about 5 years after the husband's death and not 2 years as Venn records. Once again the inventory compiled in 2017 has gone wrong with burial site, as it places the resting place of the couple in the Veli Cemetery instead of the Dutch graveyard. Cotton has no details on the Allardice tombs. Now, based on Venn's details, the grave we must be looking for should be a notable structure, with the shape of a chaise (wheeled carriage). The best monument I could come across is the one uploaded below, but again there are no legible inscriptions on the structure. For the time being, we can only say that this is the best candidate for the tomb of Alexander Allice, and one of the nearby unidentified graves might belong to his wife Eliza Jane.
20) Mary Frances Burnett?
Venn (1947, p. 21) while commenting on the graves in Dutch cemetery, takes particular notice of two massive funerary monuments. The largest is that of Mary Frances, Lady of Major Burnett, 7th M.N.I., and according to him "whose mark is a set of masonry towering above everything else, suggesting, perhaps, the amplitude of her virtues". Earlier, I identified the other massive sepulcher mentioned by him, which belonged to Marie, wife of Captain Evans. At present, there are no structures in the Dutch cemetery taller than the latter monument, so what happened to the Mrs. Burnett's towering grave which stood above everything else? How can such a colossal monument disappear without leaving any trace, given that the structure was intact until mid-20th century? Roberts and Chekkutty (2017, p. 146) has the following detail: "Burnett, Mary Frances, wife of 7th M. N. I. maj. Burnett, died 1822".
There are some interesting coincidences which might be pointed out with respect to these two tombs. First of all, the deceased have similar names, Mary and Marie; both were wives of military officers from the same regiment, 7th M N I; and more importantly both burials occurred in the same year, 1822! If the graves were constructed at the same period, and we know they were equally enormous, chances are that they resembled structurally too. In the cemetery, located near the western wall and close to the south-west corner, is a tomb with a massive base and a monumental pillar. Even though, height-wise the tomb is much smaller in size compared to the 'Mrs. Evans' grave, I believe the general structural features show high similarity. Anyways, its only a speculation now, hopefully in future, we might come across with more clues to solve this riddle.
REFERENCES
Cotton, Julian James (1946 ed., Vol. 2)-List of Inscriptions on Tombs or Monuments in Madras
Dodwell, Edward (1838)-Alphabetical list of the officers of the Madras army (1760-1834)
Roberts, John Cantwell and Chekkutty, N P (2017)-Malabar II: Christian Memorials Wynad to Travancore 1498-2014
Venn, T W (1947)-St Francis Church Cochin-Rotated
Venn, T W (1950)-Cochin Malabar Palms and Pageants
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