On this day, Thomas Fanshaw Middleton, the first Bishop of Calcutta, arrived in India. His appointment was not achieved without difficulty, according to a 1924 account by Eyre Chatterton, Bishop of Nagpur.
When a section of the Church in England strongly recommended the establishment of a Bishopric in Calcutta, it faced opposition in the House of Commons. The critics felt that the institution would offend the religious prejudices of the people of India. But a Bill was finally passed, making provision for a Bishop of Calcutta as well as for Archdeacons for Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras.
Middleton had been recognised widely as a biblical scholar after publication of his study The Doctrine of the Greek Article Applied to the Criticism and Illustration of the New Testament (1808).
The salary of the Bishop of Calcutta was £5000; that of the three Archdeacons, £2000 each, Chatterton says. As Bishop of Calcutta, Middleton would be in charge of Anglican missionaries in India.
In 1818, Middleton introduced his idea for setting up Bishop’s College in Calcutta, for the education of Indian clergy. His name is remembered most in the city for this college. It was his favourite scheme. The foundation of the college was laid in December,1820.
Middleton passed away on July 8, 1922.