George Bennet (missionary)
English missionary (1774–1841)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Bennet (16 April 1774 – 13 November 1841) was an English missionary from Sheffield, Yorkshire. He travelled widely in Asia.
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- Missionary
- philanthropist
George Bennet | |
|---|---|
| |
| Born | 16 April 1774 |
| Died | 13 November 1841 (aged 67) London, England |
Resting place | St Thomas's Square Chapel burial ground, Hackney, London |
| Occupations |
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| Known for | London Missionary Society deputation voyage, 1821–1829 |
Life
Bennet was a Congregationalist organiser in Sheffield.[1] He was also a philanthropist.[2] In 1821 he set out with Daniel Tyerman, supported financially by the London Missionary Society. They travelled together to China, Southeast Asia, and India.[3][4]
Bennet stopped in Macau during his Pacific voyage. He was impressed by the garden and aviary of opium trader Thomas Beale, devoting 45 pages of his travelogue to them.[5] Bennet and Tyerman made an extended stay in Tahiti, and Bennet's letters from there were published in the Sheffield Iris by James Montgomery.[6] Tyerman died in Madagascar, where they had set up missions with the support of King Radama I.[7]
Bennet also travelled to the Sandwich Islands, New Zealand, New South Wales, Java, Singapore and Calcutta.[8]
After his voyage, Bennet gave historical artifacts that he had collected to the London Natural History Museum. He died in London on 13 November 1841.[9] His funeral was held at the St Thomas's Square Chapel, Hackney, and he was interred in the adjoining burial ground.[10] There is an inscribed monument in his memory in Sheffield General Cemetery.
