Charles Edgar Corea was a politician and a prominent freedom fighter of Sri Lanka.
Early life
![EdirilleGedera](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/EdirilleGedera.jpeg)
C.E.Corea was born in the west coast town of Chilaw, in Sri Lanka.
His parents were
Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea, a leading lawyer from Chilaw and Henritta Seneviratne. He was educated at
Royal College Colombo
Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janu ...
where he excelled in his studies. He earned a reputation as a first rate orator. Charles Edgar Corea was the eldest of five children. His brothers and sisters were –
James Alfred Ernest Corea
James Alfred Ernest Corea was a Sri Lankan public official. He was born in 1870. His father was Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea who was a Proctor of the Supreme Court. His mother was Henrietta Seneviratne. J.A.E Corea's father died in 1872 w ...
,
Victor Corea
Charles Edward Victor Seneviratne Corea was born in Chilaw, Sri Lanka, on 29 January 1871 to Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea, a famous lawyer, and Henrietta Seneviratne. He was the youngest out of five children, three boys and two girls, Ch ...
, Agnes Corea, and Evangeline Henrietta Corea.The family came from a wealthy background, owning vast tracts of
coconut estates and paddy lands. The Sunday Times newspaper of Sri Lanka writing about the three sons of Charles Edward Bandarnaike Corea, noted: 'Of the three boys, the eldest, Charles Edgar Corea, was educated at Royal College and having excelled in studies and cricket, he passed out as a proctor of the Supreme Court, took to politics and in 1924 was elected president of the Ceylon National Congress. Warden Stone of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia, described old Royalist C.E. Corea as one of the finest speakers of the English language. The second boy in the family was Dr. Alfred Ernest Corea who was educated at S. Thomas' College. He passed out as a doctor of medicine and chose to practise in Chilaw. He was a clever doctor and what was unique about him was that he charged no fees from the poor for his services. '
Writing in 1907, The English author, Arnold Wright in 'Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon,' said: 'Charles Edward has left three sons, the eldest of whom, Charles Edgar, a Proctor, is the unofficial leader of the Chilaw Bar, a member of the
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...
, and Chairman of the Chilaw Association. In 1899, he was elected by the various native associations of Ceylon, and a public meeting in
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...
, to proceed to England as a delegate of the people of Ceylon, to lay before the
Imperial Government
The name imperial government (german: Reichsregiment) denotes two organs, created in 1500 and 1521, in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation to enable a unified political leadership, with input from the Princes. Both were composed of the em ...
a representation against the Waste Lands Ordinance. The second son, Alfred Ernest, is a physician, and the youngest, Charles Edward Victor, is an Advocate of the
Supreme Court.'
The Sri Lankan author Kumari Jayawardena, writing about the Coreas noted: 'Unconnected to the liquor trade but making their money on plantation ventures was the Corea Family of Chilaw, an influential goyigama group with a history going back to Portuguese rule when they were warriors to Sinhala kings. During Dutch and British rule, members of the family were officials serving the state in various ways and rewarded with titles. Some members of the family took to the legal and medical professions, most notably the sons of Charles Edward Corea (a solicitor), who were active in local politics and in the Chilaw Association which campaigned against British land policies – especially the Waste Lands Ordinance, and for political reforms. The most active of Corea's sons was C.E.(Charles Edgar) who spoke up for peasant rights and was militant in his stand against the government. He was President of the Ceylon National Congress in 1924. C.E.Corea's brother, Alfred Ernest, was a doctor and the youngest Victor Corea was a lawyer who achieved fame for leading a campaign (and going to jail) in 1922 to protest the Poll Tax on all males; he was the first President of the Ceylon Labour Union led by A.E.Goonesinha and was active in the Ceylon Labour Party. While being professionals and political activists, the Coreas were also important landowners. '
The Royal-Thomian Encounter of 1885 (The 9 runs match)
Corea was an accomplished cricketer at Royal College Colombo, he played first XI cricket for his school. He was in the Royal College team in the historic Nine Run Match played in Sri Lanka on 12 and 13 March 1885, on the CCC grounds, in Galle Face – Royal scored 9 runs, and St Thomas' replied by scoring 170 for 6. According to legend, the match was abandoned due to rain, but this has been disputed.
C.E.Corea, who was in the Royal College team, in an article in the 1932 Royal-Thomian souvenir had this to say about fielding conditions on the first day – "On the first day we batted in a deluge of rain and submitted to the leather hunting which followed over mud and sludge, weighed down in sodden clothes, up to the very minute fixed for drawing stumps, without protest or grumble".
Political career
![Repub building](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Repub_building.jpg)
C.E.Corea followed in his father's footsteps by studying law. He went on to become a
proctor of the Supreme Court of Ceylon. He then practised at the Chilaw court. What pre-occupied C.E.Corea was the fact that the people of Ceylon were struggling under the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
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or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
. He spoke out against the injustice suffered by ordinary people at the hands of their colonial masters.
Corea became a fearless
freedom fighter
A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...
– together with his younger brother Victor Corea, he founded the Chilaw Association and used it to campaign hard for independence, for the people of Ceylon. He was elected a member of the
Legislative Council and later a founding Member of the Ceylon National Congress, together with Victor Corea, E.W. Perera, Sir
Ponnambalam Ramanathan
Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan, CMG, KC ( ta, பொன்னம்பலம் இராமநாதன், translit=Poṉṉampalam Irāmanātaṉ; 16 April 1851 – 26 November 1930) was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer, politician and Solicitor-General ...
, Sir
Ponnambalam Arunachalam
Ponnambalam Arunachalam ( ta, பொன்னம்பலம் அருணாசலம், translit=Poṉṉampalam Aruṇācalam; 14 September 1853 – 9 January 1924) was a Ceylonese civil servant and a member of the Executive Council of Cey ...
, and Francis de Zoysa.
C.E.Corea was elected President of the Ceylon National Congress in 1924.
Corea was very much the elder statesman and gained a reputation as a moderate voice of the independence movement.
The visit of Mahatma Gandhi to Chilaw
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
, the 'Father of India' had developed a very close relationship with C.E.Corea and his brother Victor Corea. C.E.Corea wrote many letters to Gandhi in India, on the subject of independence. Gandhi arrived on the shores of Ceylon on 12 November 1927, on his first and only visit to the island.
He was accorded a warm welcome in
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...
and he travelled all over Sri Lanka. Mahatma Gandhi made it a point to see his friends C.E.Corea and Victor Corea. A massive banquet was organised in his honour, in a Corea home called 'Sigiriya,' in Chilaw. There he met with members of the Corea Family – he stayed with the Coreas for several days.
Death
He died in Chilaw on 7 February 1946. Just two years later Ceylon won her independence on 4 February 1948 thanks to the valiant efforts of freedom fighters like Charles Edgar Corea.
See also
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National Heroes of Sri Lanka
National Hero is a status an individual can receive in Sri Lanka for those who are considered to have played a major role in fighting for the freedom of the country. The status is conferred by the President of Sri Lanka. The recipients of the a ...
*
Dominicus Corea
Dominicus Corea (Sinhalese family name Edirille Bandara) also known as Domingos Corea and Edirille Rala, was the son of Don Jeronimo Corea and Anna Corea. Don Jeronimo Corea was also known as Mudaliyar Vikramasinha, Commander-in-Chief of King May ...
*
Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea
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James Alfred Ernest Corea
James Alfred Ernest Corea was a Sri Lankan public official. He was born in 1870. His father was Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea who was a Proctor of the Supreme Court. His mother was Henrietta Seneviratne. J.A.E Corea's father died in 1872 w ...
*
Victor Corea
Charles Edward Victor Seneviratne Corea was born in Chilaw, Sri Lanka, on 29 January 1871 to Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea, a famous lawyer, and Henrietta Seneviratne. He was the youngest out of five children, three boys and two girls, Ch ...
*
List of political families in Sri Lanka
This is a partial listing of prominent political families in Sri Lanka.
Abdul Majeed
*A. L. Abdul Majeed (15 November 1933 – 13 November 1987) also known as Mutur Majeed, former Deputy Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Member Parl ...
*
Edirimanne Corea Family Union
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Mahatma Gandhi's visit to Chilaw, Sri Lanka
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Sri Lankan independence activist Sri Lankan independence activists are those who are considered to have played a major role in the Sri Lankan independence movement from British Colonial rule during the 20th century.
List of prominent Sri Lankan independence activists
* A. E. Goon ...
*
Sri Lankan independence movement
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Govigama
Govigama (also known as Goyigama, Govikula, Govi Vansa or Goyi Vansa) is a Sinhalese caste found in Sri Lanka. They form approximately half of the Sinhalese population and are traditionally involved in agriculture. The term Govigama became popula ...
*
List of Govigama people
References
Bibliography
*''Great Sinhalese Men and Women of History – Edirille Bandara (Domingos Corea)'' By John M. Senaveratna, (1937)
*''A History of Sri Lanka'' By Professor K.M.De Silva (1981)
*''Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon: Its History, People, Commerce, Industries and Resources'' By A.W. Wright, Asian Educational Services, India; New Ed edition (15 Dec 2007)
External links
A national hero is honoured in his home town
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corea, Charles Edgar
National Heroes of Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan independence activists
Sinhalese lawyers
Sri Lankan Christians
1866 births
1946 deaths
Alumni of Royal College, Colombo
Members of the Legislative Council of Ceylon
Charles Edgar
People from Chilaw
Gandhians