Holy Trinity Church is an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

church in

Nuwara Eliya Nuwara Eliya ( si, නුවර එළිය ; ta, நுவரெலியா) is a city in the hill country of the Central Province, Sri Lanka. Its name means "city on the plain (table land)" or "city of light". The city is the administrativ ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

History

On 5 May 1845, a committee comprising Reverend Hermann Randall von Dadelszen, Colonel James Campbell, Colonel William Henry Slade (

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

), Captain Nelson (Royal Engineers), Lieutenant Albert Watson (

Ceylon Rifle Regiment The Ceylon Rifle Regiment (CRR) was a regular native regiment formed by the British in Ceylon. Its history goes back to 1795. The nucleus of the Regiment was two companies of Malays recruited from among prisoners at St Helena. In 1795 there were ...

), Mr E. R. Power (Ceylon Civil Service), Mr H. C. Selby, Mr C. Temple and Mr E. F. Gepp met to discuss the construction of a church in Nuwara Eliya, at an estimated cost of £900. Captain Nelson designed the building with the construction work done chiefly by the officers and men of the local garrison of the 15th Regiment, under the supervision of Major

James Brunker James Nixon Brunker (28 April 1832 – 5 June 1910) was an Australian politician, Minister of Lands in the Parliament of New South Wales. Early life and business Brunker was born in Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. He was the son of ...

. It took seven years after building commenced for the church to be completed. Upon its completion it was consecrated by

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

James Chapman on 24 February 1852 ( St. Matthias’ Day). The first

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of the Holy Trinity Church, from 1843 to 1846, was Rev. von Dadelszen. In the late 1890s the congregation proposed enlarging the Church, there was however some opposition, who proposed the construction of a new Church near the old cemetery. The majority of the congregation however preferred the existing site. In 1889 the church was enlarged. The original portion of the building is at the church's western end. The additions can be noted by the difference in size of the

corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the s ...

s supporting the main rafters. On 18 April 1954

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

and

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from El ...

attended services at the Holy Trinity church, with the Queen gifting a blue carpet and a stained glass window in remembrance of their visit. All Saints Church, Nuwara Eliya (2)

In 2001 the 100 year old Pipe Organ, which had been out of order for over 30 years, was restored at a cost of approximately half a million rupees. There are a number of memorial plaques on the church walls including Dr. G. Gardner, Superintendent of the

Royal Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya Royal Botanic Gardens, Peradeniya are about 5.5 km to the west of the city of Kandy in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. In 2016, the garden was visited by 1.2 million locals and 400,000 foreign visitors. It is near the Mahaweli River (The ...

; Captain William Fisher, father of Lord

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal, and theologian. Fisher was also an academic and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI. Fisher was executed by o ...

, who was thrown off his horse and killed; Reginald Beauchamp Downall, tea planter, Legislative Council member; and Lady Carolina Ridgeway, wife of Sir

Joseph West Ridgeway Sir Joseph West Ridgeway, (16 May 1844 – 16 April 1930) was a British civil servant and colonial governor. He was known as "Sir West Ridgeway". He was involved in the sodomy and child molestation charges against Hector Archibald MacDonald, com ...

Governor of Ceylon {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The Governor of Ceylon can refer to historical vice-regal representatives of three colonial powers: Portuguese Ceylon * List of Captains of Portuguese Ceylon (1518–1551) * List of Captain-majors of Portuguese ...

. The churchyard also several tombstones, including ones for Lady Olive Mary Caldecott, wife of Sir

Andrew Caldecott Sir Andrew Caldecott (26 October 1884 – 14 July 1951) was a British colonial administrator. Early years Andrew Caldecott was born on 26 October 1884 in Boxley, Kent, United Kingdom. He was the eldest child of Rev Andrew Caldecott and Isobel ...

, the last

, and the family members of Sir

Samuel Baker Sir Samuel White Baker, Order of the Bath, KCB, Royal Society, FRS, Royal Geographical Society, FRGS (8 June 1821 – 30 December 1893) was an English List of explorers, explorer, Officer (armed forces), officer, naturalist, big game hunter, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy Trinity Church, Nuwara Eliya Anglican church buildings in Sri Lanka Churches in Nuwara Eliya Churches completed in 1852 19th-century Anglican church buildings 1852 establishments in the British Empire Archaeological protected monuments in Nuwara Eliya District Church of Ceylon church buildings in the Diocese of Colombo 19th-century churches in Sri Lanka