Ruperti's careful administration of St. Mary's left a "well-ordered house" at the end of his pastoral term in 1731. The Church had money to invest, and, while they tended to favor Bank of England securities, they did invest, in 1745, one hundred guineas in the East India Company. There was a big increase in capital when Johan Michael Harnigk, a wealthy church member, left 1,280 pounds Sterling to the church at his death. By 1765, the church capital amounted to 3,700 pounds.
Heinrich Werner Palm succeeded Ruperti and he stayed seven years. His leaving left a bitter taste in the Church. He took a chalice belonging to the church, and he left, for Germany, owing the congregation 30 pounds. The church councillors were not about to forgive this debt and they threatened to sue him. They did recover some of the money.
Palm was followed by Justus Christoph Bartheldes who remained two years. His biggest problem was with the school, which was threatened with closure. The current teacher was not gifted and many parents stopped sending their children to the school. In 1740, the Church was promised 40 pounds a year from the King’s purse which was kept up until 1883.
Bartheldes was succeeded by Johann Reichard Pittius. He took an interest in the school. The school question was clouded by a conflict between the councillors and the pastor. To the councillors, the school was a nuisance and they were interested in the Church itself. The pastors had a different outlook and they realized the future of the Church lay in an educated membership. Remember that compulsory education in England did not come about for another 125 years.
After Pittius had obtained the councillor's consent to support the school, he next tried to negotiate a raise for himself but was not as successful in this. When the Verger died in 1746, it was found that his wife had no financial means. The council felt obligated to do something for her. The care of the poor was always a problem in London. The Poor Law, enacted during the reign of Elizabeth I, made it mandatory for Churches to care for the poor and to provide them with work. St. Mary's had never been content with the rate set by law for caring for the poor, but had done better, especially for impoverished members. The situation became better in 1756 when Johann Caspar Fechting left his fortune to the Church for caring for the poor who had been faithful Church members.
Another feature introduced by the time of Pittius was the annual collection for the East India Mission. Perhaps the influence of Friedrich Michael Ziegenhagen, the Court Chaplin, was a major force. He was interested in missions in America and in East India. Historians have been surprised by the large amounts the Germans in London donated for missions. They also helped build churches in Germany.
(14 Mar 05)
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.