The Wykehamist
Their use of the land-based route, which had rarely delivered Europeans, let alone Englishmen, as far as India, their ground-breaking journey emphasises the title‘ First Englishman in India’ ascribed to Stephens, who had travelled by sea. From Aleppo, a sandy crossing took them to Baghdad, whence they sailed down the Euphrates to Falluja and Basra. Their trouble started in Hormuz, an outpost controlled by the Portuguese. The Venetian consul, perhaps feeling threatened by the prospect of English traders, lobbied hard and scurrilously for their incarceration and encouraged the Portuguese administration to administer punishment for their false crimes. That meant sending them to Goa, for their case to be heard by the Portuguese Viceroy.
Leaving aside any religious differences, European rallied on behalf of European, none working harder than Thomas Stephens and his fellow Jesuit Jan Linschoten, who between them raised bail and sprang the merchants from gaol. Eventually returning home more than seven years after setting out, Fitch discovered that his family had already legally declared him dead! He was the only one of the original four to return home. His exploits caused quite a stir and were included in Hakluyt’ s 1598 second edition.
Fitch, Stephens and Hakluyt all made contributions that, by the turn of the 17 th century, had resulted in lavish publicity for India. So the claims that Stephens contributed to the creation of the East India Company have some small basis.
His influence on travel wring might be speculative, but there is no doubting the legacy Stephens left in his adopted home in Goa. From his arrival in 1579, Stephens spent 40 years at the Salcete mission( where the massacre had occurred in July 1583). He remarked that by 1581 he could deliver the sacrament to Goanese converts in the local Konkani language and over the course of his teaching he wrote many works in that language, of which the three most prominent are:
Doutrina Crista( written first, but printed 1622) which was a translation into local language of a Catechism for teaching to converts. In English it means the Teachings of Christianity.
But the new Christian pupils were not satisfied with the Catechism and so for the benefit of his Konkani flock, Stephens wrote the Purana Chistão in a mixture of Marathi and Konkani. The puranas are epic poems that were used to tell mythical and religious stories. Stephens adopted the same style to tell the story of Jesus. The Purana( full name Discurso sobre a vinda do Salvador ão Mundo) was completed in 1616.
The Arte da Lingoa Canarim( Konkani Language Grammar) was printed and revised after his death, but such is the importance of these three works that Stephens is known as the‘ Father of the Konkani Language’. It remains one of the official languages recognised by the Constitution of India.
Was Thomas Stephens the First Englishman in India? Possibly. It depends whether you can rely upon William of Malmesbury, who wrote in the 12 th century that Sighelmus, Bishop of Sherborne, was sent by King Alfred in 883 to Rome and, after presenting Alfred’ s gifts to the Pope, proceeded to the Indies to visit the tomb of Saint Thomas of Meliapur, bringing back precious stones and spices.
Was Thomas Stephens the first Englishman to travel to India by the sea route? Probably. The only other contenders would be undocumented English sailors aboard Dutch or Portuguese ships.
Whatever the answer, it was not a race that Stephens took part in. But he does deserve a more prominent place in our history.
AJCN( OW, 1976-81)
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