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Forts Of Sri Lanka
Forts and fortifications in Sri Lanka date back thousands of years with many being built by Sri Lankan Kings, these include several walled cities. With the out set of colonial rule in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka was occupied by several major colonial empires that from time-to-time became the dominant power in the Indian Ocean. The colonists built several western styled forts, mostly in and round the coast of the island. The first to build colonial forts in Sri Lanka were the Portuguese, these forts were captured and later expanded by the Dutch. The British occupied these Dutch forts during the Napoleonic wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren .... Most of colonial forts were garrisoned up until the early 20th century. The coastal forts had coastal artillery manned by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ("to make"). From very early history to modern times, defensive walls have often been necessary for cities to survive in an ever-changing world of invasion and conquest. Some settlements in the Indus Valley civilization were the first small cities to be fortified. In ancient Greece, large stone walls had been built in Mycenaean Greece, such as the ancient site of Mycenae (famous for the huge stone blocks of its 'cyclopean' walls). A Greek ''Towns of ancient Greece#Military settlements, phrourion'' was a fortified collection of buildings used as a military garrison, and is the equivalent of the ancient Roman, Roman castellum or English language, English fortress. These constructions mainly served the purpose of a watch tower, to guard certa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigiriya
Sigiriya or Sinhagiri (''Lion Rock'' si, සීගිරිය, ta, சிகிரியா/சிங்ககிரி, pronounced see-gi-ri-yə) is an ancient rock fortress located in the northern Matale District near the town of Dambulla in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. It is a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock approximately high. According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle the '' Cūḷavaṃsa'', this area was a large forest, then after storms and landslides it became a hill and was selected by King Kashyapa (AD 477–495) for his new capital. He built his palace on top of this rock and decorated its sides with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure; ''Sīnhāgiri'', the Lion Rock (an etymology similar to ''Sinhapura'', the Sanskrit name of Singapore, the Lio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trincomalee
Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. Located on the east coast of the island overlooking the Trincomalee Harbour, north-east of Colombo, south-east of Jaffna and miles north of Batticaloa, Trincomalee has been one of the main centres of Sri Lankan Tamil language speaking culture on the island for over two millennia. With a population of 99,135, the city is built on a peninsula of the same name, which divides its inner and outer harbours. People from Trincomalee are known as Trincomalians and the local authority is Trincomalee Urban Council. Trincomalee city is home to the famous Koneswaram temple from where it developed and earned its historic Tamil name ''Thirukonamalai''. The town is home to other hist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Fredrick
Fort Fredrick ( ta, திருகோணமலை கோட்டை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai Kōṭṭai; si, ත්රිකුණාමලය බලකොටුව, translit=Thrinkunamalaya Balakotuwa), also known as Trincomalee Fort or Fort of Triquillimale, is a fort built by the Portuguese at Trincomalee, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, completed in 1624 CE, built on Swami Rock-Konamamalai from the debris of the world-famous ancient Hindu Koneswaram temple (''Temple of a Thousand Pillars''). The temple was destroyed by the Portuguese colonial Constantino de Sá de Noronha under Phillip III, occupier of the Jaffna kingdom and Malabar country on the island. On the Konamalai cape was also built a new village of Portuguese and Tamil people, 50 Portuguese soldiers and inside the fort, a church named after "Nossa Senhora de Guadalupe". The ''Fort of Triquillimale'' was dismantled and rebuilt by the Dutch in 1665, renamed Fort Fredrick. Background Several Hindu shrines in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Fredrick05
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ("to make"). From very early history to modern times, defensive walls have often been necessary for cities to survive in an ever-changing world of invasion and conquest. Some settlements in the Indus Valley civilization were the first small cities to be fortified. In ancient Greece, large stone walls had been built in Mycenaean Greece, such as the ancient site of Mycenae (famous for the huge stone blocks of its 'cyclopean' walls). A Greek '' phrourion'' was a fortified collection of buildings used as a military garrison, and is the equivalent of the Roman castellum or English fortress. These constructions mainly served the purpose of a watch tower, to guard certain roads, passes, and borders. Though smaller than a real fortress, they ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort (Colombo)
Fort (Colombo) (; ) is the central business district of Colombo in Sri Lanka. It is the financial district of Colombo and the location of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the World Trade Center (Colombo), World Trade Centre of Colombo from which the CSE operates. It is also the location of the Bank of Ceylon headquarters. Along the foreshore of the Fort area is the Galle Face Green, Galle Face Green Promenade, built in 1859 under the governance of Henry George Ward, Sir Henry George Ward, the Governor of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during British Empire, British colonial era. Fort is also home to the General Post Office, Colombo, General Post Office, hotels, government departments and offices. History Known as ''Kolonthota'', the area became notable as the site of the first landings of the Portugal, Portuguese in the early 16th century and became one of their trading posts in the island. The Portuguese developed their trading post into a fortified base and harbour to extend their cont ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western Province, Sri Lanka
The Western Province ( si, බස්නාහිර පළාත ''Basnāhira Paḷāta''; ta, மேல் மாகாணம் ''Mael Mākāṇam'') is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Western Province is the most densely populated province in the country and is home to the legislative capital Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as well as to Colombo, the nation's administrative and business center. History Parts of present-day Western Province were part of the pre-colonial Kingdom of Kotte. The province then came under Portuguese, Dutch and British control. In 1815 the British gained control of the entire island of Ceylon. They divided the island into three ethnic based administrative structures: Low Country Sinhalese, Kandyan Sinhalese an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avissawella
Avissawella, ( si, අවිස්සාවේල්ල, ta, அவிசாவளை) is a township in Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council, situated on the A4 route from Colombo to Ratnapura, Colombo District, Western Province, Sri Lanka, approximately 40 km air distance and 48.1 km road distance from east of capital Colombo. It is also known as Seethawakapura. Overview It is on the periphery of the Western Province on its border with the Sabaragamuwa Province. This town has a rich and proud history in the annals of its military exploits against the Portuguese invaders as it was the capital of Sitawaka Kingdom from 1521 to 1593. Seethawaka was ruled by King Mayadunne and later his son Rajasinghe the First during this period. There is a lore that Rajasinghe was a parricide but some historians discount this as a story spread by jealousy. Avissawella is the junction from where the oldest land route to the Hill Country via Hatton and the road down South via Ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sitawaka Fort
Sitawaka fort ( si, සීතාවක බලකොටුව, translit=Sitawaka Balakotuwa; ta, சீதவாக்கைக் கோட்டை, translit=Cītavākkaik Kōṭṭai), was built by the Sitawaka kingdom in Avissawella Avissawella, ( si, අවිස්සාවේල්ල, ta, அவிசாவளை) is a township in Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council, situated on the A4 route from Colombo to Ratnapura, Colombo District, Western Province, Sri Lanka ..., Sri Lanka. It was adjoined with the palace of king Rajasinha I. The fort had been mounted with cannon on the river bank. Sitawaka fort is destroyed along with palace of king and only the ruins can be seen today by the side of the Avissawella – Panawala road. References {{Forts and fortresses of the Portuguese empire, state=collapsed Buildings and structures in Colombo District Forts in Western Province, Sri Lanka Kingdom of Sitawaka Archaeological protected monuments in Kegalle Distri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mapagala Fortress
Mapagala fortress was an ancient fortified complex of the Anuradhapura Kingdom long before Kasyapa I built his city, Sigiriya. It is located to the South of Sigiriya and closer to Sigiriya tank. It was built by using unshaped boulders to about 20 ft high. Each stone is broad and thick and some of them are about 10 ft high and about 4 ft long. It is believed that it was built before the time of usage of metal tools. Arthur Maurice Hocart Arthur Maurice Hocart (26 April 1883, in Etterbeek, Belgium – 9 March 1939, in Cairo, Egypt) was an anthropologist best known for his eccentric and often far-seeing works on Polynesia, Melanesia, and Sri Lanka. Early life Hocart's family had ... noted that cyclopean style stone walls were used for the fortress, and square hammered stones were used for the ramparts of the citadel. However, his note suggests metal (iron) tools were used for construction. Excavations work in this areas found a few stone forges, which proved Hocart's claim on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kingdom Of Kandy
The Kingdom of Kandy was a monarchy on the Sri Lanka, island of Sri Lanka, located in the central and eastern portion of the island. It was founded in the late 15th century and endured until the early 19th century. Initially a client kingdom of the Kingdom of Kotte, Kandy gradually established itself as an independent force during the tumultuous 16th and 17th centuries, allying at various times with the Jaffna Kingdom, the Madurai Nayak dynasty of South India, kingdom of Sitawaka, Sitawaka Kingdom, and the Dutch Ceylon, Dutch colonizers to ensure its survival. From the 1590s, it was the sole independent native polity on the island of Sri Lanka and through a combination of hit-and-run tactics and diplomacy kept European colonial forces at bay, before finally falling under British Ceylon, British colonial rule in 1818. The kingdom was absorbed into the British Empire as a protectorate following the Kandyan Convention of 1815, and definitively lost its autonomy following the Uva ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Citadel
A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. In a fortification with bastions, the citadel is the strongest part of the system, sometimes well inside the outer walls and bastions, but often forming part of the outer wall for the sake of economy. It is positioned to be the last line of defence, should the enemy breach the other components of the fortification system. The functions of the police and the army, as well as the army barracks were developed in the citadel. History 3300–1300 BC Some of the oldest known structures which have served as citadels were built by the Indus Valley civilisation, where citadels represented a centralised authority. Citadels in Indus Valley were almost 12 meters tall. The purpose of these structures, however, remains debated. Though the structures foun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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