The oldest Anglican church in the East Indies. The first chaplain who served the Company in the East Indies was John Cartwright of London on a salary of 3 pounds a month. 15 pounds was given for outfit. Until 1668 there was only one chaplain for the East Indies when it was made four and one was stationed in Fort St. George. Edward Terry was the first chaplain in the Coromandel coast. The spire of the St . Marys was built in 1692 and quarters for the chaplain was also built on the west end of the church. This house of the chaplain was demolished later and the present tower of the church is not the original one. The tower was damaged during the siege of Lally in 1759 by gun shots and shelling of the French and it was damaged beyond repairs. The tower was entirely rebuilt with some delay due to shortage of funds by the East India Company under the direction of Colonel Gents. The new tower was considerably taller than the old one and finer.
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