We are pleased to announce the publication of The Basel Mission between Switzerland, Germany and South India: Entangled Histories from Conversion to Commerce, published by Leiden University Press. This volume is co-edited by Amal Shahid, a member of our research group and SNSF Senior Researcher at the Institute of Political Studies, University of Lausanne, alongside Dr. Mukesh Kumar (University of Zurich) and Ella Daisy Müller (ETH Zurich).
The book brings together an international group of scholars to provide a comprehensive, interdisciplinary account of the Basel Mission’s activities in India since 1834. Founded in 1815, the Mission established profound connections between the Swiss-German world and South India, particularly in Kerala and Karnataka. Beyond theological endeavors, the Mission combined religious ideals with technical expertise, fostering schools, industries and congregations that linked Europe and India in unprecedented ways. Drawing on new archival and museum sources, including collections at the Museum der Kulturen Basel, the chapters examine diverse themes ranging from Pietism and industrial enterprise to caste, gender, education, and material culture. It includes a chapter by Bernhard C. Schär, which examines the links between evangelical missionary activity in India and bourgeois philanthropy in Europe against the shared backdrop of industrialisation and colonialism.
Amal Shahid’s co-editorship and contribution underscore the group’s commitment to exploring the intersections of imperialism, global history, labor, and political economy. The volume reassesses the Mission’s theological, social, and economic legacy, offering fresh perspectives on how faith, labor, industry, and material culture intersected to shape an entangled world across the continents.
The Basel Mission between Switzerland, Germany and South India was released on 31 March 2026 (Hardback, 308 pages). It is available through Leiden University Press.