Cecil Henry Polhill

Early Years in the Army

Cecil Henry Polhill (Chinese name Bao Yaoting, 宝耀庭; also known as Du Xide, 杜西德) was born in 1860 into a landed gentry family in Bedfordshire, England; his original surname was Polhill-Turner. He was one of the well-known “Cambridge Seven” and the elder brother of Arthur Twistleton Polhill (Chinese name Du Mingde, 杜明德), also one of the Seven, and the two went to China together. He was educated at Eton College and at Jesus College, Cambridge, and as a young man was commissioned a lieutenant in the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays). He could have inherited the family estate and enjoyed a comfortable military career.

Giving Himself to China

Moved, however, by J. Hudson Taylor and by revival on campus, he and six other young Cambridge men resolutely gave up their worldly prospects and devoted themselves to missions. On February 5, 1885, the “Cambridge Seven” left London to go to China with the China Inland Mission. Their act of dedication stirred the British academic world and inspired a whole generation of young believers to give themselves to overseas missions.

Pioneering on the Sichuan–Tibet Frontier

After arriving in China, Polhill turned his attention to western China and the Sichuan–Tibet borderlands, resolving to bring the gospel to the Tibetan people, and he became a pioneer of mission to the Tibetans. He served for about 15 years on the borders of Sichuan and of India and Tibet. In 1892 he went with his wife and helpers deep into Songpan, Sichuan, to open a mission station. In July of that year a riot broke out there; he was beaten and bound by the mob and thrown out under the blazing sun, nearly losing his life, and was then forced to withdraw. After a short rest he moved to Kalimpong, India, and later settled in Tachienlu (now Kangding), using it as a base for long-term work directed toward the Tibetan areas.

Danger and Return to Britain

When the Boxer Uprising broke out in 1900, the mission work was forced to stop, and because of the situation and his health he returned to Britain, after which he traveled back and forth between China and Britain many times. Around the time of his return he suffered the loss of his wife and of a son, and he also inherited from his family an estate near Bedford and a large fortune.

The Pentecostal Movement

In his later years Polhill's spiritual life entered a new stage. Early in 1908 he traveled to Los Angeles, witnessed the Azusa Street Revival firsthand, and in February of that year experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit. From then on he became an important leader and patron of the Pentecostal movement in Britain. In 1909 he and Alexander A. Boddy founded the Pentecostal Missionary Union, of which he served as president until 1925. He devoted his wealth to supporting the training of missionaries and the work of missions, and for many years took part in the Whitsuntide conventions in Sunderland.

Looking Back on His Life

Polhill died in Britain in 1938. From a gifted Cambridge man to a pioneer on the Sichuan–Tibet frontier, and then in later life a patron and leader of the Pentecostal movement in Britain, his life spanned the barracks, the study, the snowy lands of Tibet and the pulpits of England, and he laid down his family standing, his wealth and his life. His pioneering care for the Tibetan people and his sustained support for missions and revival movements left a lasting mark on the history of modern missions to China and on the history of the church in Britain.