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History
The first large-scale migrations from the Indian subcontinent to the island now
known as Sri Lanka began around 500 bc. Indo-Aryan people migrated from the
northern areas of the Indian subcontinent. Over time they became known as the
Sinhalese and developed a distinct language, Sinhala, based on the Sanskrit
language. Early migrations to the island also took place from south India among
Dravidian peoples, who spoke the Tamil language.
The principal source for the early history of Sri Lanka is the Mahavamsa (Great
Chronicle), written by Buddhist monks in the 500s ad. It provides a legendary
account of the first Sinhalese ruler in the 5th century bc and documents the
rise and fall of successive Buddhist kingdoms. Later Sinhalese history is
chronicled in the Dipavamsa (Lesser Chronicle), completed in the late 1700s ad.
Because the chronicles were written to glorify Buddhism and its royal patrons,
they present a relatively one-sided narrative of events.
According to the Mahavamsa, the first ruler of the island was Vijaya, a banished
prince from northern India, whose arrival coincided with the parinibbana
(passing away) of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, in 483 bc. This
legend helped establish the powerful belief among the Sinhalese that they were
the chosen guardians of Buddhism.
Ancient Kingdoms
In 377 bc the Sinhalese established Anuradhapura as the capital of their
kingdom. In 250 bc Sinhalese king Devanampiya Tissa converted to Buddhism during
a missionary visit by Mahinda, son of Indian emperor Ashoka. The Sinhalese
monarch became a powerful patron of Buddhism, firmly establishing it as the
official religion of his kingdom. The art and architecture of Anuradhapura
flourished under Buddhist influence and state patronage.
The kingdom prospered under a system of settled agriculture. By the 1st century
ad, the Sinhalese had built several large-scale irrigation works that included a
complex system of dams, reservoirs, and canals. The irrigation works allowed
them to cultivate rice and other crops on a grand scale in the dry north central
plains, where Anuradhapura was centered.
Despite recurring invasions from south India, Sinhalese kings held sway over
Anuradhapura for several centuries. In the late 900s, however, the Cholas (a
Tamil-speaking people from south India) conquered the capital and annexed
Rajarata, the agricultural center of the Sinhalese kingdom.
In 1070 Sinhalese king Vijayabahu I drove the Cholas out of Sri Lanka and
established a new capital at Polonnaruwa, about 80 km (about 50 mi) southeast of
Anuradhapura. The kingdom prospered until about 1200, when it entered a period
of decline marked by dynastic succession disputes, social and economic
instability, and repeated invasions from south India. When the kingdom finally
collapsed in the late 1200s, the Sinhalese abandoned their settlements in the
north central plains and migrated to the southwest. In the north, meanwhile, a
Tamil kingdom centered at Nallur (near present-day Jaffna) in the Jaffna
Peninsula expanded its influence during the 1200s and 1300s.
Foreign Contacts
Sri Lanka was known to seafarers since ancient times. Maps that the Greek
astronomer Ptolemy compiled in the 2nd century labeled the island Tabrobane.
Arab seafarers called it Serendip. From as early as the 700s, Muslim traders
called Moors established coastal trading communities in the island. Muslim
communities began to claim a significant share of maritime trade in the Indian
Ocean in the 1100s.
From about the 1400s, European maps identified the island as Seylan, which was
later anglicized to Ceylon. In the 1500s Portugal and Spain established their
dominance in the maritime trade of South and Southeast Asia. In the 1600s the
Dutch emerged as the dominant colonial power in the region, followed in the
1700s by the British.
Period of Colonial Rule
When Europeans first came to the island of present-day Sri Lanka in the early
1500s, it was fragmented between three local polities: two Sinhalese kingdoms,
centered in Sri Jayawardenepura (Kotte) in the southwest and Kandy in the
central highlands, and a Tamil kingdom centered in the Jaffna Peninsula.
Portuguese and Dutch Rule
The Portuguese decided the island of present-day Sri Lanka, which they knew as
Ceilao, was strategically important for dominating trade in the Indian Ocean. In
1517 the Portuguese founded a fort and trading post at Colombo. By 1619 they
controlled all but the central highlands, where the Kingdom of Kandy
successfully thwarted their attempts to seize control. The Portuguese waged a
vigorous campaign to convert the people of the island to Roman Catholicism,
destroying many Buddhist and Hindu temples. Kandy became a place of refuge for
Buddhist monks and others disaffected with Portuguese rule. Roman Catholicism
became the most enduring legacy of Portuguese colonial rule.
In the early 1600s the Dutch sought to wrest control of the maritime spice trade
from Portugal. With the help of local leaders, the Dutch attacked Portuguese
strongholds in the island, winning major victories in 1639 and 1640. The
Portuguese surrendered their last stronghold at Jaffna in 1658. The Dutch
developed a robust trade in cinnamon. They developed a network of inland canals
to transport the cinnamon and other goods to the coastal ports. Like the
Portuguese, the Dutch were unsuccessful in gaining control of the Kingdom of
Kandy. The Dutch tried with little success to supplant Roman Catholicism with
Protestantism. The most enduring legacy of Dutch rule was the development of a
well-organized judicial system based in Roman-Dutch law, modified to some extent
by Muslim and Tamil customary laws.
British Rule
In 1796 the British expelled the Dutch from the island. Ceylon, as it was known
to the British, officially became the first British crown colony in 1802.
Following several British military campaigns, the Kingdom of Kandy capitulated
to British sovereignty in 1815. Although segments of the Sinhalese population
rebelled in 1818 and 1848, the British used their superior military power to
ruthlessly suppress the uprisings. The 1848 rebellion forced the colonial
government to reassess some of its policies. It repealed some taxes that had
alienated Sinhalese farmers and adopted a more conciliatory policy toward
Buddhism.
In 1833 the British began to govern the country under a single administration.
Previously, the island had been governed under administrative divisions along
ethnic and cultural lines. The British also created an economy based on
plantation agriculture. The administration took over vast areas of land in the
central highlands, sold them cheaply to British nationals, and encouraged the
development of large plantations. Tea, rubber, and coconuts became the colony’s
principal exports. When local Sinhalese refused to work in the plantations, the
colonial administration brought in large numbers of Tamils from southern India
to work as migrant laborers.
The indigenous struggle for representative government led to some modest
improvements in 1910 and 1924. In 1931 a new constitution established universal
adult franchise and allowed significantly more indigenous representation in
government. However, the British governor general and British ministers retained
control over most matters.
During World War II (1939-1945) Sri Lanka was an important base of operations in
the Allied offensive against the Japanese and a major source of rubber,
foodstuffs, and other materials vital to the war effort. Negotiations during and
after the war between local leaders and British administrators resulted in the
Ceylon Independence Act of 1947. Ceylon formally became an independent dominion
within the British Commonwealth of Nations on February 4, 1948.
Developments since Independence
The constitution of independent Ceylon was modeled on that of Britain. The
nominal head of state was a governor general, who represented the British
monarch, but executive authority was exercised by a prime minister and cabinet
of ministers who were responsible to the legislature.
From: Encartar
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