India has been a former colony to the British, French, Portuguese and Dutch. While the first three have left a mark over the whole of India, very few travellers know that you can explore the Danish culture in the quaint town of Tranquebar in Tamil Nadu.
As you enter the gates of this town, the royal Danish insignia inscribed on it, is like a portal that admits visitors to a different era. From the midst of rural Tamil Nadu, travellers are suddenly transported into a historical oddity.
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It was historically called Tharangambadi, ‘the place of musical waves’, before the Dutch renamed it to suit their tongues. The town is lined with thatched huts of fishermen and swaying palms against a breezy coast. Even today, the air is so calm and isolated from the rush of the rest of the country, that it feels the place has been held back by a thread to its history.
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The village’s Danish connection began in 1618 when an admiral, Ove Giedde, landed on the coast and fell in love with its tranquillity. The Danish acquired trading rights from the Maharaja of Tanjore and built a fort here to strengthen their slice of the pepper trade. They lived in Tranquebar until 1842, when they could no longer afford to maintain overseas colonies, and sold it to the British East India Company.
Though the beach is not apt for swimming, relaxing with a book facing the waving sea or taking a midnight stroll on its boulder strewn coast can take you back in time. You can also take a boat ride up the Upannar river or hike around the Dansborg Fort.
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History buffs can take a walking tour though the town. Begin at the town gate or the Landporten, which is the first sight that catches the traveller’s eye upon reaching Tranquebar. Lining both sides of King Street, there are colonial era buildings, carriage porches and stucco walls, a fort and majestic churches. Rehling’s House, a colonnaded house at the western end of the street, used to be the Danish Governor’s residence. Next to it is Van Theylingen house, which is home to a small maritime museum.
If you have explored Puducherry for its French ambience, then taste a bit of Dutch at Tranquebar, a forgotten piece of history, a living remnant on the Indian land.
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