An Uneasy Alliance: Traders, Missionaries and Tamil
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An Uneasy Alliance: Traders, Missionaries and Tamil Intermediaries in Eighteenth-Century French India by Danna Agmon A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Anthropology and History) in The University of Michigan 2011 Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor Diane Owen Hughes, Co-Chair Professor Sumathi Ramaswamy, Co-Chair, Duke University Professor Dena Goodman Professor Webb Keane Professor Ines G. Županov, Chargée de Recherche, CNRS Copyright: Danna Agmon 2011 Acknowledgments A list such as this often refers to debts acknowledged; but the word “debt” does not come close to conveying my pleasure at being able to thank the mentors, friends and family who have made the process of researching and writing this dissertation so fulfilling, meaningful and – more often than not – fun. The members of my committee have been unfailingly and uncommonly generous with their time, ideas, and enthusiasm. My co-chairs, Diane Owen Hughes and Sumathi Ramaswamy, serve as my model for a scholarly life. Collectively and individually, their curiosity, energy, creativity and empathy (for both their students and the subjects of their research) are exceptional and inspiring. They responded to long and rambling reports from the archives, read multiple drafts of chapters, and encouraged me through the years to follow my fascination with the stories told here. I could not have completed this work without their unflagging support. Having Dena Goodman as a reader was a blessing and an education: she continually and productively pushed me to make my work sharper and more nuanced, generously digging deep into the text again and again. Webb Keane was my first and most important guide to anthropology. His trademark question – what are the stakes? – is never far from my mind. I am especially fortunate to have Ines Županov as a mentor and guide. Her warm welcome in Paris to an unknown student and her expertise on all things Jesuit, Pondichéry, and Nayiniyappa have been a gift. I also wish to thank ii Gadi Algazi and Aviad Kleinberg in Tel Aviv University, who were my first guides to the pleasures of the historical chase. Several institutions have made possible the research and writing of this project. A Bourse Chateaubriand allowed me to spend precious time in France, and research in France and in India was supported by the Council for European Studies, and the University of Michigan’s International Institute, Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, and Center for World Performance Studies. The archivists and other staff I met in Aix-en-Provence, Paris and Pondichéry were uniformly kind and helpful; special thanks is due to the staff at the wonderful Centre des archives d’outre-mer in Aix-en- Provence, Mme. Brigitte Appavou of the archives of the missions étrangères de Paris , Mme. Cécile de Cacqueray of the Bibliothèque Francisicane des Capucins in Paris and Père Robert Bonfils of the Jesuit archives in Vanves. I am grateful to the American Institute of Indian Studies and especially to Purnima Mehta in Delhi for her assistance, which made possible my time at the archives of the Record Centre, Pondicherry. Once there, Assistant Archivist Mr.Murugesan was exceptionally helpful. The writing stage of this dissertation was supported by the University of Michigan’s Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, the Rackham Graduate School, and most significantly, the Institute for the Humanities. The year I spent as a fellow at the Institute, under the directorship of Danny Herwitz, was uniquely meaningful. The sense of community and engagement that was created by the fellows of 2008-2009 made that year a joyous one, and turned writing into an immeasurably less solitary pursuit. Special thanks to Eva-Marie Dubuisson, Amy Rodgers, Monica Kim, Joshua Cole, Paul Christopher Johnson, and Susan (Scottie) Parish. iii I have had opportunity to present portions of this work in many settings, and careful commentators have offered me insightful suggestions. For this I am grateful to Emma Anderson, Dan Birchok, Adriana Chira, David William Cohen, Paul Cohen, Héloïse Finch-Boyer, Daniel Hershenzon, Maya Jasanoff, Paul Christopher Johnson, Bhavani Raman, Natalie Rothman, Robert Travers, and Gary Wilder. The organizers of the Séminare collectif du groupe de recherches sur les missions religieuses in Paris invited me to present work at a crucial stage of the development of this project. Anwen Hughes took time from a busy schedule to let me grill her about interpreters in courts. Caterina Guenzi welcomed me in Pondichéry, and made my time there a pleasure. Dr. Parasuraman of the Pondicherry Institute for Linguistics and Culture met with me daily and good-naturedly endured endless questions. Friends around the world have been my fellow-travellers on intellectual and physical journeys. The Doctoral Program in Anthropology and History provided an unusual and exciting space, and I feel privileged to have been educated by my fellow students. For their willingness to read multiple drafts, talk about Big Ideas and make nerdy but funny jokes, special thanks to my dear friends Federico Helfgott, Nafisa Essop Sheik, Stephen Sparks, and Dan Birchok. I am particularly grateful to Héloïse Finch- Boyer for first suggesting, when I was still finding my way into a project, that I might want to look around in French India. Minayo Nasiali was in Marseille while I was in Aix, and provided a real sense of camaraderie and lots of food as we found our way in the archives. Tal Zalmanovich and I took our first steps in historical research together in Tel Aviv, and though we have had all too little time in the same town since those days, she has remained the person I turn to for the stellar combination of deep and abiding iv friendship and incisive commentary on work. My friendship with her and with Iris Kashman has now been going strong for fifteen years, and is a continual source of love and laughter. During the final few months in Ann Arbor, Xochitl Ruiz provided daily and much-appreciated support. I can’t imagine the last two-year stretch without the critical help of my writing partner, Bridget Guarasci, who offered thoughtful and incisive comments on every single chapter and offered sage advice on how to get it done. My parents, Ora and Tamir, to whom this work is dedicated, are exemplars of how to lead a life motivated by passion and curiosity, and I hope I have learned their lessons well. Their love and that of my sister, Tal, has nourished me over the years and across the seas. To Eli, who introduced so much unanticipated joy, laughter and delight into my life, at just the right time, I am grateful. And above all, to Dan, to and for whom I am thankful beyond words. v Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................... ii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................... viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .............................................................................. ix ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... x CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER II “FULL LIBERTY OF COMMERCE AND CONSCIENCE”: THE PONDICHÉRY DESERTIONS OF 1701-1715 ................................................ 46 CHAPTER III L’AFFAIRE NAYINIYAPPA: A COLONIAL SCANDAL ............................. 99 CHAPTER IV FAMILIES IN THE MIDDLE: THE EFFECTIVE POLITICS OF KINSHIP ............................................................................................................................. 141 vi CHAPTER V MEDIATING A POLYGLOT COLONY: FRENCH, TAMIL AND PORTUGUESE IN PONDICHÉRY AND IN L’AFFAIRE NAYINIYAPPA ............................................................................................................................. 190 CHAPTER VI INTERMEDIARIES ON THE MOVE: MOBILITY, STABILITY AND THE FOREIGN CONDITION ........................................................................ 231 CHAPTER VII CONCLUSION .................................................................................................. 273 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................. 286 vii List of Figures Figure 1: The Indian Ocean……………………………………………. ……….17 Figure 2: India in 1707…………………………………………………………...18 Figure 3: The Disputed Temple in Pondichéry…………………………………..68 Figure 4: Fort St. Louis, Pondiochéry………………………………………..…106 Figure 5: A Timeline of the Nayiniyappa Affair…………………..………...…139 Figure 6: Pillai Family Tree…………………………………………………….148 Figure 7: Ananda Ranga Pillai’s Mansion………………………………...……274 Figure 8: A Statue of Ananda Ranga Pillai………………………………..……275 Figure 9: An Eighteenth-Century Portrait of Ananda Ranga Pillai………….…276 viii List of abbreviations AN: Archives nationales, Paris BNF: Bibliothèque nationale française, site Richelieu, Paris C²: Sous-Série C². Inde et Compagnie des Indes (1649-1808) CAOM: Centre des archives d’outre-mer, Aix-en-Provence Capuchins: Bibliothèque franciscaine des Capucins, Paris DPPC: Dépôt des papiers publics des colonies FM: Fonds ministériels MEP: missions étrangères de Paris NAF: Nouvelles acquisitions françaises NAIP: National Archives of India, Pondicherry Record Centre Vanves: Archives de la Province de France de la Compagnie de Jésus, Vanves ix Abstract This dissertation examines