Buried in the tranquil Old Protestant Cemetery for centuries, the foreigners from the past continue to be respected and remembered by loyal followers and lovers of history.
Located in the centre of Macao atop a hillside, lies a plot of land that honors the burials of 162 people of different nationalities, including some of the most famous foreigners who ever lived in the city. Known now as the Old Protestant Cemetery, the grounds have become an important feature of Macao’s history.
The Portuguese authorities who ruled Macao in the early years refused to sell land to Protestants for use as a cemetery. This left many individuals who had lost their loved ones with only one option, which was to bury them on random hillsides outside the city walls. However, it was important that their loved ones be buried on holy ground, close to a church and alongside others of the same faith.
By the second half of the 19th century, the population of non-Catholic foreigners in Macao was continuing to increase, especially due to the many employees working for the British East India Company, which was the most powerful maritime trading group in those days. Due to the poor hygiene conditions and limited medical care of that time, many of these foreigners experienced their final moments of life in Macao. As a result, the pressure on the Portuguese authorities to provide proper burial grounds increased significantly.
According to chapter 3 of Macau Protestant Chapel: a Short History Paperback, on June 10, 1821, the death of Mary Morrison, the daughter of a British East India Company surgeon, prompted the Company’s acquisition of the plot of land where the cemetery is now located. Mary was the wife of Robert Morrison, the first Protestant evangelist in China. Paying respect to Robert’s position, as well as to Mary herself, the Portuguese authorities acceded and allowed the Company to acquire the grounds near one of its official residences at that time. The grounds are meant to be a “place of sepulture where the remains of [their] Countrymen may repose in peace”, notes the Company’s records, as published in Macau Protestant Chapel: a Short History.
Next to the cemetery is a shady green courtyard area, highlighting the quaint Morrison Chapel as its main feature. The chapel is assumed to have been built shortly after the opening of the cemetery, holding its first recorded marriage in 1833. In 1921, approval was granted to completely rebuild the chapel, with two conditions – it had to be hidden from the street by a high wall, and a bell was not allowed to be installed. The reconstruction was completed in 1922 and the chapel remains in use to this day.
Although there are two short-limbed Greek crosses above the entrance gate to the courtyard and a Latin cross above the chapel’s west gable, not a single cross is represented on the graves as “the memorials were erected for a Protestant community predominately low-church and non-conformist”, according to another publication, An East India Company Cemetery: Protestant Burials in Macao.
This lack of symbology was intended to represent the Protestant opposition to Catholicism and an aversion to prominent displays of the cross. Instead, other symbology was placed throughout the grounds, including porcelain peaches which are Chinese symbols for longevity.
The cemetery itself is covered by the leafy branches of trees and surrounded beds of flowering shrubs to admire. Its west side is bounded by what is left of the Camoes Gardens wall, whereas on the east side, a rough stone wall separates it from one of the Chinese quarters of the city at that time.
In August 1844, Rebecca Kinsman, an American living in Macao, wrote that she “had never seen this burial ground, till one evening with Capt. Gore & his wife at the Camoen’s Cave Garden, [she] proposed to go in and [they] were very much pleased to find it a sweet, shady, secluded spot, containing many handsome monuments.”
When the British East India Company ceased operations in China in 1834, its property in Macao came under the ownership of the British government. The same year in August, Robert Morrison passed away at the age of 52 in Guangzhou, and was later buried in the Protestant Cemetery in Macao.
Of the many notable men buried on these sacred grounds alongside him, is his dear friend, George Chinnery, the most well-known Western painter in the city, and Captain Lord Henry John Spencer Churchill of the Royal Navy, who is the great-granduncle of Sir Winston Churchill – former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Others buried here include Joseph Adams, grandson of John Adams, the second president of the United States, as well as a number of American naval and merchant personnel, and British and American missionaries. The cemetery is also home to the remains of French, German, Danish, Dutch, Swedish and Armenian people as well, reflecting the international diversity of Macao from earlier times. Notably, only a few of them passed away due to old age, with many instead succumbing to tropical diseases, such as malaria, cholera, typhus and dysentery. Other causes of deaths recorded on the headstones include drowning, being killed in battle, suicide and even murder.
In 1857, the Portuguese authorities decided to put an end to burials taking place within the city and thus, the cemetery was closed. To compensate for this, the Protestant community purchased another plot near Garden of Montanha Russa, which came to be known as the new cemetery, and a board of trustees was put in charge of it.
Although Macao has gradually transformed into a major tourism destination over the years, in this small but central location of Macao, these foreigners of the city’s past are still honored and respected by local residents. During special memorial festivals, people lay flowers at the burial sites without fail, remembering the heroes who have quietly yet dramatically shaped Macao’s unique culture over the centuries.
With all the well-known individuals who mark their place in the burial grounds, today the site has become a popular stop for tourists and history buffs. While Macao is already teeming with historical locations, visitors can come to this secluded courtyard to experience a more tranquil side of the city, a tribute to the human experiences of the past. The chapel maintains its sweet charm, captivating the eyes with its beautiful stained glass window in the center of the wall behind the altar, as well as its traditional furnishings. In 2005, the cemetery was deemed part of the Historic Centre of Macao, which is an official UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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