Christianity

Channar revolt over the upper cloth

Nadar women in southern Travancore, including today's Kanyakumari district, struggled for decades for the right to cover their upper bodies.

Church Missionary Society begins work in Madras

After the Charter Act of 1813 allowed missionaries into India, the Church Missionary Society placed its first missionaries at Madras in 1814.

St. George's Church built in Madras

St. George's Church on the Choultry Plain was opened in 1815 and later became the cathedral of the Diocese of Madras.

Abbe Dubois's account of south Indian customs published

Abbe J. A. Dubois's account of south Indian customs and institutions appeared in London in an English translation.

LMS seminary moves to Nagercoil

Charles Mead shifted the London Missionary Society's seminary from Mylaudy to Nagercoil, where it grew into Scott Christian College.

Rhenius begins CMS mission in Tirunelveli

Church Mission Society missionary C. T. E. Rhenius arrived in Tirunelveli and built a large Protestant mission based at Palayamkottai.

First girls' school opens in Tirunelveli

The first school for girls in the Tirunelveli region was opened in 1821.

St. Andrew's Church (the Kirk) consecrated

Built in Egmore for the Scots of Madras, St. Andrew's Church was consecrated in 1821.

Bishop Reginald Heber dies at Tiruchirappalli

Reginald Heber, Bishop of Calcutta and hymn-writer, died suddenly at Trichinopoly during a tour of South India.

St. Stephen's Church founded at Ooty

St. Stephen's Church at Ootacamund, whose foundation stone Governor Stephen Lushington laid, opened for worship in 1831.

Anglican Diocese of Madras created

Daniel Corrie was consecrated the first Bishop of Madras, and St. George's Church became the cathedral of the new diocese.

General Assembly's School, origin of Madras Christian College

Scottish missionary John Anderson opened the General Assembly's School in Madras, which grew into Madras Christian College.

Robert Caldwell arrives in Madras

Robert Caldwell, who would go on to write the Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian languages, reached Madras as a missionary.

Death of missionary C. T. E. Rhenius at Palayamkottai

C. T. E. Rhenius, the missionary known as the Apostle of Tirunelveli, died at Palayamkottai.

G. U. Pope begins mission work at Sawyerpuram

In 1839 George Uglow Pope set sail for South India and took up missionary work at Sawyerpuram, close to Thoothukudi.

Jesuits found St. Joseph's College at Nagapattinam

French Jesuits opened a college at Nagapattinam that later moved to Tiruchirappalli as St. Joseph's College.

Denmark sells Tranquebar to the British

Denmark sold its settlement of Tranquebar (Tharangambadi) to the East India Company, ending Danish rule on the Tamil coast.

Kodaikanal hill station established

In the Palani Hills, American missionaries from the Madurai Mission founded Kodaikanal as an escape from the summer heat.

Robert Caldwell consecrated Bishop of Tirunelveli

Missionary and Dravidian scholar Robert Caldwell, based at Idaiyangudi, was consecrated as a bishop for the Tirunelveli mission.

American College established in Madurai

American missionaries raised their Madurai mission school to a collegiate department in 1881, creating the American College.

St. Joseph's College moves from Nagapattinam to Tiruchirappalli

St. Joseph's College, a Jesuit institution established at Nagapattinam in 1844, relocated to Tiruchirappalli.

Sarah Tucker College opens in Palayamkottai

In 1895 the Sarah Tucker High School at Palayamkottai became a college, the earliest women's college in South India.

San Thome Cathedral rebuilt and consecrated

The church over the traditional tomb of St Thomas at Santhome, Madras, was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style and consecrated on 1 April 1896.

Ida Scudder opens a dispensary in Vellore

Ida Scudder, an American medical missionary, started a dispensary with one bed in Vellore, from which the Christian Medical College grew.

Highclerc School, later Kodaikanal International School, opens

Margaret Eddy opened Highclerc School at Kodaikanal for missionary children on 1 July 1901; it became Kodaikanal International School.

Women's Christian College founded in Madras

Twelve missionary societies from Britain, Canada and the USA jointly founded the Women's Christian College in Madras in 1915.

Union Mission Medical School for Women opens at Vellore

Ida Scudder began training women doctors at Vellore with the Union Mission Medical School for Women, opened in 1918.

Loyola College founded in Madras

Loyola College in Madras, affiliated to the University of Madras, was established by the French Jesuit Francis Bertram.

Madras Christian College moves to Tambaram

After a century in the city centre, Madras Christian College moved to a large new campus at Tambaram.

Tambaram World Missionary Conference

Madras Christian College at Tambaram hosted the International Missionary Council's world conference, a landmark in the ecumenical movement.

Christian Medical College Vellore begins MBBS course

Ida Scudder's medical school at Vellore became a university-affiliated medical college and began offering the MBBS degree.

Velankanni shrine raised to a minor basilica

Pope John XXIII raised the Marian shrine of Our Lady of Good Health at Velankanni to a minor basilica.

Mandaikadu Hindu-Christian clashes

Tensions between Hindus and Christians in Kanyakumari district escalated during the Mandaikadu temple festival, leading to police firing and deaths.

Tamil Nadu anti-conversion law

The AIADMK government introduced a law against forcible religious conversion, which was withdrawn after the 2004 Lok Sabha election and formally repealed in 2006.

Separate reservation for Backward Class Muslims and Christians

Under a 2007 Act, Backward Class Muslims and Christians received their own portion of the backward class quota.