Dudley Shelton Senanayake (
Sinhala: ඩඩ්ලි ශෙල්ටන් සේනානායක: ta, டட்லி சேனநாயக்கா; 19 June 1911 – 13 April 1973), was a
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
n
statesman who served as
Prime Minister of Ceylon from 1952 to 1953 (first term as the second prime minister of Ceylon), in 1960 (second term) and from 1965 to 1970 (third term) and
Leader of the Opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
from 1960 to 1964. Senanayake's tenures as prime minister were associated with
democratic socialist
Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management withi ...
policies focused on agricultural and educational reforms with a pro-western alignment.
Born to a
political family, he was the eldest son of
D. S. Senanayake who lead the
independence movement which gained self-rule to Ceylon in 1948 with D. S. Senanayake becoming the prime minister of Ceylon. Dudley Senanayake who was educated at
S. Thomas' College
, motto_translation = Be Thou Forever
, song = Thomian Song
, athletics = Yes
, sports = Yes
, nickname = Thora
, denomination = Anglican
, patron ...
and at
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus"), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th century through to the early 19th centur ...
, qualified as a barrister before entering national politics in 1936 when he was elected to the
State Council State Council may refer to:
Government
* State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President
* State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative autho ...
and succeeded his father as
minister of agriculture and lands in 1946. He served in his father's
cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
as minister of agriculture and lands from 1947 to 1952. Following the sudden death of D. S. Senanayake, Dudley Senanayake succeeded his father as the second prime minister of Ceylon. He resigned shortly after the
Hartal 1953 1953 வேலைநிறுத்தம்
The Hartal 1953 ( si, 1953 වර්ජනය, translit=Varjanaya) was a country-wide demonstration of civil disobedience and strike, commonly known as a hartal, held in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) on 12 Au ...
on health ground and was succeeded by his cousin Colonel
Sir John Kotelawala. He returned to active politics in 1957, and held his party the
United National Party
The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP ( si, එක්සත් ජාතික පක්ෂය, translit=Eksath Jāthika Pakshaya, ta, ஐக்கிய தேசியக் கட்சி, translit=Aikkiya Tēciyak Kaṭci), ...
to a short lived administration in 1960. His second term as Prime Minister lasted four months and he served as the Leader of the Opposition from 1960 to 1964. He formed a
national government A national government is the government of a nation.
National government or
National Government may also refer to:
* Central government in a unitary state, or a country that does not give significant power to regional divisions
* Federal governme ...
in 1965 and served his third term as prime minister till 1970 during which he initiated planning for the most ambitious construction projects in Sri Lanka, the
Mahaweli Development programme. Following the election defeat in 1970, Senanayake remained a member of parliament and the partly leader until his death on 13 April 1973.
Early life and family
Dudley Senanayake was born on 19 June 1911 to the wealthy Senanayake family which was at the time becoming active in local colonial-era politics. His paternal grandfather
Mudaliyar Don Spater Senanayake established the family wealth through
graphite
Graphite () is a crystalline form of the element carbon. It consists of stacked layers of graphene. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Synthetic and natural graphite are consumed on la ...
mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...
, which he later expanded into plantations and investments in the
arrack renting franchise.
[Nobodies to Somebodies: The Rise of the Colonial Bourgeoisie in Sri Lanka]
Kumari Jayawardena, pp. 192-3 & 267 (Zed) His parents were
Don Stephen Senanayake and
Molly Dunuwila. He was the eldest in the family with a younger brother Robert.
His father D. S. Senanayake, who was engaged in the family business at the time of his birth, along with his brothers (Dudley's uncles)
F. R. Senanayake
Fredrick Richard Senanayake (known to as F. R. Senanayake) (October 20, 1882 – January 1, 1926) was a Ceylonesen lawyer and independence activist. A leading member of the Sri Lankan independence movement, he was an elected member of the Col ...
and D.C. Senanayake were active in the
temperance movement
The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...
. Following the early death of F. R. Senanayake, D. S. Senanayake took over his role in the local politics, becoming a legislator and eventually leading the island's
independence movement and becoming the first prime minister of Ceylon and founder the
United National Party
The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP ( si, එක්සත් ජාතික පක්ෂය, translit=Eksath Jāthika Pakshaya, ta, ஐக்கிய தேசியக் கட்சி, translit=Aikkiya Tēciyak Kaṭci), ...
which is still one of the main political parties in Sri Lanka and of which Dudley would become a lifelong member. He grew up in the comfortable family home ''
Woodlands'', but was greatly affected by the events of the
1915 riots
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
*January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction".
* January ...
when his father was arrested by
Punjabi soldiers. Imprisoned by the British military, his father and uncles faced the possibility of execution under
martial law
Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory.
Use
Marti ...
.
[Dudley Senanayake's 84th Birth Anniversary](_blank)
/ref>
Never married, he remained a lifelong bachelor.
Education
Dudley received his secondary education at the prestigious S. Thomas' College
, motto_translation = Be Thou Forever
, song = Thomian Song
, athletics = Yes
, sports = Yes
, nickname = Thora
, denomination = Anglican
, patron ...
, where he excelled in his studies and sports. He became the Head Prefect, captained the college team at cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...
at the Royal-Thomian and gained colours in hockey, boxing, and athletics. He won the ''Victoria Gold Medal'' for the most outstanding student at S. Thomas'. Senanayake then went on to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus"), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th century through to the early 19th centur ...
to read for Natural Science Tripos and after graduation gained admission to the Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...
as a barrister.
Political career
State Council
After returning to Ceylon in 1935, Dudley took oaths as an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Ceylon
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka ( si, ශ්රී ලංකා ශ්රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණය, Sri Lanka Sreshthadikaranaya; ta, இலங்கை உயர் நீதிமன்றம், Ilankai uyar neetimanram) is th ...
and briefly embanked on a legal practice under H. V. Perera, KC before entering politics on his father's urging. He was elected from the Dedigama electorate in 1936 to the State Council State Council may refer to:
Government
* State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President
* State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative autho ...
, while his father was Minister of Agriculture and served as a back-bencher for ten years. As State Councillor of Dedigama, he undertook much development work in his electorate developing roads, hospitals, schools and police stations.
During this time he became active in the Ceylon National Congress
The Ceylon National Congress ( Sinhala: ලංකා ජාතික කොන්ග්රසය ''Lanka Jathika Kongrasaya'') (CNC) was a Nationalist political party which was formed in Ceylon on 11 December 1919. It was founded after national ...
(CNC) having been appointed in December 1939 as its joint secretary with J. R. Jayewardene another young lawyer who had been elected to the Colombo Municipal Council
The Colombo Municipal Council is the municipal governing body of Colombo, the largest city and financial centre in Sri Lanka. It consists of a directly elected executive Mayor of Colombo, current elect is Rosy Senanayake, and 119 elected 119 mun ...
. The CNC was urging for the independence of Ceylon to the extent his father, D. S. Senanayake resigned from the congress because he disagreed with its revised aim of achieving complete independence from the British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...
, preferring Dominion
The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire.
"Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 1926 ...
status and its inclusion of Marxists. Following his father's resignation, Dudley succeeded his father as Minister of Agriculture and Lands in the second board of ministers of the state council in 1946.
Minister of Agriculture and Lands
Taking on his father's ministry he carried forward many of the agricultural projects initiated by him such as the Minneriya irrigation project. Contesting in the 1947 general elections from the Dedigama electorate, he was elected to the first parliament of independent Ceylon and was appointed to the cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
as Minister of Agriculture and Lands by his father, D. S. Senanayake who became the first Prime Minister of Ceylon in 1947. He continued many of the agricultural projects he started in his first year and started the ambitious Gal Oya Project which provided water for the cultivation of over 120,000 acres. He initiated guaranteed price scheme for paddy and farmers. He received the portfolios of Health and Local Government when S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike resigned and crossed over to the opposition.
Second Prime Minister of Ceylon
He was still serving as agriculture minister when his father died unexpectedly. Four days later, on 26 March 1952, to the surprise of many, Dudley was chosen as prime minister by the Governor-General
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
Lord Soulbury over his cousin Sir John Kotelawala. He called a general election, which the UNP won. The government became unpopular a year later, in 1953, when the price of rice was raised and subsidies were cut. Though the UNP remained in power, the Hartal 1953 1953 வேலைநிறுத்தம்
The Hartal 1953 ( si, 1953 වර්ජනය, translit=Varjanaya) was a country-wide demonstration of civil disobedience and strike, commonly known as a hartal, held in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) on 12 Au ...
greatly effected the administration and Senanayake personally, he resigned as prime minister on health grounds in October, leaving politics and the public limelight.
Return to politics
In 1954, he accompanied his successor Sir John Kotelawala and the leader of the opposition S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike
Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப ...
on a state visit to India on Sir John's invitation. He returned to politics in 1957 when the UNP lost elections and was appointed President of the UNP. He supported the efforts of J. R. Jayewardene in establishing UNP trade unions known as ''Jatika Sevaka Sangamayas'' and opposed nationalization of insurance companies and the Colombo port by Bandaranaike.
Following the assassination of Bandaranaike in 1959, the caretaker prime minister Wijeyananda Dahanayake
Wijeyananda Dahanayake ( si, විජයානන්ද දහනායක ta, விஜயானந்த தகநாயக்கா; 22 October 1902 – 4 May 1997) was a Sri Lankan politician. He was the Prime Minister of Ceylon from Sept ...
called for elections after a year of turmoil. In March 1960, the UNP managed to form a government after elections and Senanayake became prime minister again, but the coalition fragmented and Dudley resigned as prime minister after only four months in office after new elections were held in which the UNP won fewer seats. He became the leader of the opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
and help force early elections in 1965 by persuading 14 supporters of Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike
Sirima Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සිරිමා රත්වත්තේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சிறிமா ரத்வத்தே டயஸ் பண்டாரநாயக்கே; 17 April 191 ...
to defect.
Third term as Prime Minister
Senanayake was able to form a government following the 1965 elections and served his longest term as prime minister from March 1965 to May 1970. He had narrowly missed an assassination attempt on 23 March 1965, when a bomb was thrown into Esmond Wickremesinghe house moments after Senanayake had left the premises while negotiations were underway to form a government.
His government originally consisted of six other parties and included both Tamil and Sinhalese
Sinhala may refer to:
* Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka
* Sinhalese people
* Sinhala language
Sinhala ( ; , ''siṁhala'', ), sometimes called Sinhalese (), is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language prima ...
nationalists. Much of his term was carryout under a state of emergency (since January 1966) due to sporadic occurrences of communal violence, however Senanayake was able to control these effectively and was able to give Tamil language official status in Tamil speaking areas, which became step closer to address the grievances of the Tamil community on language after S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike had replaced Sinhalese as the official language replacing English. He established the Poya holiday, the day of Buddhist sabbath and rendered formal recognition for the Mahanayaka theros. He established a University for Bhikkus in Anuradhapura. He undertook many educational reforms, expanding vocation education by setting up the Ceylon College of Technology, Katubedda in 1966 and six Junior University Colleges in 1969.
In 1966, his government claimed an attempted coup d'état and the commander of the army and several military personnel were arrested. They were later acquitted of a plot to overthrow the legally elected government, which greatly discredited the Senanayake administration along with the bribery trail of Dr Mackie Ratwatte, brother and former personal secretary of Sirimavo Bandaranaike.
He paid a private visit to the United States for treatment at Walter Reed Hospital, during which he met President Lyndon Johnson, who informed no large scale aid would be provided by the United States to Ceylon. He stopped off at London, but was forced to return to Ceylon following rumors of his impending death.
His government has been credited with restoring the Sri Lankan economy. He initiated planning for the most ambitious construction projects in Sri Lanka, the Mahaweli Development programme. His administration initiated the expansion of the tourist industry which in later years became a major source of foreign exchange and employment in Sri Lanka. However, he and his allies were defeated in the 1970 elections.
Later life and death
In the 1970 elections, the UNP won the largest vote share of any individual party. However, the UNP was thrown from office after the United Front
A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts and/or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political a ...
coalition (SLFP, LSSP, and the Communists
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...
) lead by Sirimavo Bandaranaike won a large majority of 91 seats. Senanayake retained his Dedigama seat in the election, which was one of the few rural seats won by the UNP in the election. Although he remained a member of parliament and active in politics, he did not accept the post of leader of the opposition for health reasons, allowing J. R. Jayewardene to serve as leader of the opposition and become de facto leader of the UNP.
He died aged 61 while being member of parliament for Dedigama on 13 April 1973 due to a heart ailment. Since his Cambridge days he had suffered from a stomach ailment that was only diagnosed later as a birth defect which got aggravated when under stress.
Legacy
Dudley Senanayake, is respected by most Sri Lankans as a statesman of simplicity, democratic toleration and moderation. He is remembered for carrying forward his father's legacy; specially in the areas of agricultural reforms and large scale projects, introducing his own and initiating more such as the Mahaweli development programme. His foreign policy was pro-western, yet he maintained good relations with communist countries such as China establishing the Ceylon-China Trade Agreement of 1952.The Significance of the Ceylon-China Trade Agreement of 1952
/ref>
Statues of Dudley Senanayake have been erected in many parts of the island, including one at the Old Parliament Building, Colombo and many schools, libraries and public buildings have been named in his honor. Dudley Senanayake's funeral took place at Independence Square, where J. R. Jayewardene, delivering a moving speech ended it by saying "Good night sweet Prince".
Electoral history
See also
*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 ...
* Don Stephen Senanayake
* Rukman Senanayake
References
External links
The Senanayake Ancestry
Website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka
Remembering Dudley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Senanayake, Dudley
1911 births
Senanayake,Dudley
Senanayake,Dudley
Leaders of the United National Party
Members of the 1st Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 2nd Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 4th Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 5th Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 6th Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 7th Parliament of Ceylon
Sri Lankan Buddhists
Leaders of the Opposition (Sri Lanka)
Sinhalese lawyers
Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Members of the Middle Temple
Members of the 2nd State Council of Ceylon
Sinhalese politicians
People of British Ceylon
Alumni of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia
Defence ministers of Sri Lanka
Health ministers of Sri Lanka
Agriculture ministers of Sri Lanka
Local government and provincial councils ministers of Sri Lanka
20th-century Sri Lankan lawyers
Children of national leaders
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...