Sir Velupillai Coomaraswamy,
CMG
CMG may refer to:
Companies
* Capitol Music Group, a music label
* China Media Group, the predominant state radio and television broadcaster in the PRC
* China Media Group Co., Ltd., publicly listed Chinese holding company in the media sector
* ...
(25 September 1892 – 13 November 1972) was a
Ceylonese civil servant and diplomat. He served as the
Ceylonese High Commissioner to Canada and
Ceylonese Envoy to Burma.
Early life and family
Coomaraswamy was born on 25 September 1892.
He was the son of Velupillai from
Vaddukoddai
Vaddukoddai (also spelt Vattukkottai, Vatukotai, Vattukotai) ( ta, வட்டுக்கோட்டை, si, වඩුකෝඩයි) is small but important town in the minority group, minority Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamil dominated J ...
in northern
Ceylon
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 ...
.
[ Coomaraswamy passed the London Interscience Examination after school.][
Coomaraswamy married Thayalnayaki, daughter of M. Sinnathamby.][ After Thayalnayaki's death he married Nesamani, daughter of J. T. Bartlett.][
]
Civil service career
Coomaraswamy worked as teacher before joining the Ceylon Civil Service
The Ceylon Civil Service, popularly known by its acronym CCS, was the premier civil service of the Government of Ceylon under British colonial rule and in the immediate post-independence period. Established in 1833, it functioned as part of the ...
in 1913.[ As a cadet, he served in the Puttalam Kachcheri and the Anduradhapura Kachcheri. He was Police Magistrate and District Judge in Puttalam, Negombo, Kegalle and Panadura, thereafter served as the District Judge, Kegalle.]State Council of Ceylon
The State Council of Ceylon was the unicameral legislature for Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), established in 1931 by the Donoughmore Constitution. The State Council gave universal adult franchise to the people of the colony for the first time. It r ...
, serving as Clerk of the State Council and Secretary to the Board of Ministers from 1932 to 1933.Malaya
Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia:
Political entities
* British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...
.Permanent Secretary
A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day ...
to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Rural Development.[ He was the first native Government Agent of the Western province.]
Diplomatic career
Coomaraswamy served as the Deputy Ceylonese High Commissioner in London in 1948.Rangoon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
and thereafter he was appointed Ceylonese High Commissioner in Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
in 1958.[ Coomaraswamy died on 13 November 1972.]
Honours
Coomaraswamy was made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III.
...
(CMG) in the 1947 Birthday Honours
The 1947 King's Birthday Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth Realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made "on the occasion o ...
. He was knighted in the 1952 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1952 were appointments by King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire and Commonwealth. They were announced on 1 January 1952 for the British Empire, Austra ...
as a Knights Bachelor.
See also
* Sri Lankan Non Career Diplomats
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coomaraswamy, V.
1892 births
1972 deaths
High Commissioners of Sri Lanka to Canada
Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Myanmar
Permanent secretaries of Sri Lanka
Government Agents (Sri Lanka)
Ceylonese Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George
Ceylonese Knights Bachelor
People from Northern Province, Sri Lanka
People of British Ceylon
Sri Lankan Tamil civil servants
Sri Lankan diplomats
Sri Lankan Tamil teachers
Tamil people