The New Jerusalem Church was built in 1718 by the Royal Danish missionary Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg in the coastal town of Tranquebar, India, which was at that time a Danish India colony. In 1707, Bartholomaus Ziegenbalg founded the New Jerusalem Church here for the Lutheran congregation, as the existing Zion Church was not open to native worshipers. As for the natives, they were not comfortable with the white settlers who used the church for themselves. The New Jerusalem Church was consecrated on 11 October 1718, the birthday of King Frederick IV. The graves are located on either side of the church.