Robert Caldwell

Who was Robert Caldwell?

Bishop Robert Caldwell was an Evangelist missionary and linguist, who academically established the Dravidian family of languages. He served as Assistant Bishop of Tirunelveli from 1877. He was described in The Hindu as a 'pioneering champion of the downtrodden' and an 'avant-garde social reformer'. The Government of Tamil Nadu has created a memorial in his honour and a postage stamp has been issued in his name. On the Madras Marina, a statue of Caldwell was erected as a gift of the Church of South India in 1967.