Alexander Nicholas de Abrew Abeysinge (1 May 1894 - 15 September 1963) was a Ceylonese politician.

Early life and education

Alexander Nicholas de Abrew Abeysinge was born in

Kosgoda Kosgoda is a small town in the Galle District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka. It is situated on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, approximately south of Galle and south of Colombo. The town is known for its turtle nesting areas, where fiv ...

on 1 May 1894, the son of

Mudaliyar Thuluva Vellalar (Thondamandala Tuluva Vellalar), also known as Agamudaya Mudaliars and Arcot Mudaliars, is a caste found in northern Tamil Nadu, southern Andhra Pradesh and southern Karnataka, India. They were originally significant lando ...

Alexander de Abrew Abeysinge and Louisa. He was educated at St. Thomas College, Colombo.

Political career

In July 1949 he was elected to the

Negombo Municipal Council The Negombo Municipal Council is the local council for Negombo, the largest city in Gampaha district. The council was established under the Municipalities Ordinance of 1878 as a Local Board of Negombo and Gate Mudaliyar A. E. Rajapakse was the f ...

in the Kundnnnawila Ward following a by-election, as a result of the resignation of the sitting member, C. M. Fernando. In January 1950 he was elected as the first mayor of

. At the 2nd parliamentary elections held between 24 May 1952 and 30 May 1952 he successfully contested the seat of

Negombo Negombo (, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the west coast and at the mouth of the Negombo Lagoon, in Western Province, from Colombo via Colombo - Katunayake Expressway. Negombo is one of the major commercial hubs in the country an ...

. He polled 22,721 (57.42% of the total vote) and 13,325 votes clear of his nearest rival.

Honours

He was ex officio Unofficial magistrate and Justice of the peace during his tenure as mayor of Negombo. He was appointed

member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE) in the 1949 Birthday Honours for services to the co-operative movement and was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the 1954 Birthday Honours.

Family life

He married Leila Mildred née Rajapakse, daughter of

Gate Mudaliyar Mudali (or Mudaliyar) was a colonial title and office in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) which was part of the native headman system. The Portuguese colonials created the Mudaliyar class in the 17th century by enlisting natives of different castes from ...

Alexander Edmund De Silva Wijegooneratne Samaraweera Rajapakse, OBE. He died on 15 September 1963. His son was

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

A. E. R. Abeyesinghe, KSV former Deputy Commandant of the Volunteer Force.

Early life and education

Political career

Honours

Family life

References

Further reading