Rodolph DeRodt

Last Name:

DeRodt

First Name:

Rodolph

Grave Plot No.:

322

Spatial:

Titles:

Reverend

Date of birth:

02/02/1814

year of death:

1844

date of death:

29/08/1844

Ethnicity / Origin:

Swiss

Age at death:

30 years

Gender:

Male

Relationships:

Son of Bernard von Emmanuel Rodt, member of the Grand Council of Berne, Prefect of Moutier(1815-1822) and a prolific historian, served as the President(1842-1848) of "Allgemeine Geschichtsforschende Gesellschaft der Schweiz" or the Swiss Society for History.

Full Epitaph:

In Memory of the Rev. Rodolph DeRodt, A Missionary of the London Missionary Society, This tablet is erected by his attached friends of different denominations. He was born at Berne, Feb. 2d, 1814, landed in India April 11th, 1836, and slept in Jesus August 29th, 1844. He was a good man, full of the Holy Ghost and of faith.

Occupation:

A Missionary at the London Missionary Society

Place of birth / origin:

Berne

Places mentioned 1:

Berne

Place of death:

Calcutta

places mentioned 2:

Calcutta

Detailed information:

Rodolph DeRodt was born in Berne, Switzerland in 1815, in a patrician family of Berne. He was the son of Bernhard Von Rodt, who served as the Secretary of Berne War Council in 1802. Bernhard Von Rodt was also a member of the Grand Council of Berne and after the Vienna Congress of 1815 was given the Prefectship of the newly created district of Moutier, an office which he held for seven years. Bernhard Von Rodt was also a member of Court of Appeal but he is chiefly remembered as a historian and his most noted work is the, "History of the Bernese Warfare". Von Rodt co-founded the "Allgemeine Geschichtsforschende Gesellschaft der Schweiz" or the Swiss Society for History in 1811 and was the Society's President from 1842-1848. Rodolph DeRodt's mother Elisabeth von Graffenried, hailed from the Graffenried clan of Berne and was the daughter of Emmaunel von Graffenried, who was the President of the Helvetic Society in 1786.

Rodolph DeRodt after completing his education decided to join the Church. However, he had reservations against the national church and adopted the ways of the dissenting churches of Switzerland. In 1832 he joined the school established by the Evangelical Society in Geneva. While serving in the school, Anthony N Groves,who led a mission to Baghdad, encouraged DeRodt to serve as a missionary in Bengal. DeRodt reached Calcutta on 11th April, 1836 and was commissioned to take charge of the school founded by the London Missionary Society in Sonamukhi(presently in Bankura District of West Bengal). In 1838 at the request of Reverend Lacroix, DeRodt came back to Calcutta where he was instructed to preach regularly at the Society's various chapels located in the northern quarters of the city. In 1839, missionary activities took DeRodt to the country of the Kol tribes in Orissa and also to the annual Gangasagar fair at Sagar. DeRodt was also a member of the Christian Tract Society and Calcutta School Book Society. Besides composing religious tracts like "Muktamimangsha" or "On Salvation" DeRodt wrote a Bengali Spelling Book and a treatise on Geography on behalf of the Calcutta School Book Society. DeRodt passed away on 29th August, 1844 shortly after his trip to the Sunderbans.

A plaque dedicated to him can be found in the Dhurumtollah Union Chapel.

Any reason for importance:

A Missionary of Swiss origin, composed tracts in Bengal and son of Bernhard Von Rodt who was a member of the Grand Council of Berne and served as the President of Swiss Society for History.

Tomb built by:

Murdoch & Co

Buried by:

T. Boaz, Dissenting Minister

Weblink 1:

http://tinyurl.com/ne84x3l

Weblink 2:

http://tinyurl.com/z3tejke

Photo name/s: