Vijayabahu I (born ''Prince Keerthi'') (ruled 1055–1110), also known as Vijayabahu the Great, was a medieval
king
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
of
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 ...
. Born to a royal bloodline, Vijayabahu grew up under
Chola
The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
occupation. He assumed rulership of the
Ruhuna
The Principality of Ruhuna, also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri Lanka. Magama, Ti ...
principality in the southern parts of the country in 1055. Following a seventeen-year-long campaign, he successfully drove the
Cholas
The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...
out of the island in 1070,
[ "In their expulsion from the island"] reuniting the country for the first time in over a century.
During his reign, he re-established
Buddhism in Sri Lanka
Theravada Buddhism is the largest and official religion of Sri Lanka, practiced by 70.2% of the population as of 2012.
Practitioners of Sri Lankan Buddhism can be found amongst the majority Sinhalese population as well as among the minority e ...
and repaired much of the damage caused to infrastructure during the wars. He offered the
Thihoshin Pagoda
Thihoshin Pagoda ( my, သီဟိုဠ်ရှင်စေတီ) is a famous Buddhist pagoda in Pakokku, Magway Region, Myanmar. The pagoda was built 800 years ago by King Alaungsithu. It was offered by King Vijayabahu I(Ashoka Rama), king ...
(Lord of Sri Lanka Buddha image) to Burma king
Alaungsithu
Alaungsithu or Sithu I ( my, အလောင်းစည်သူ ; also Cansu I; 1090–1167) was king of Pagan Dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) from 1112/13 to 1167. Sithu's reign was a prosperous one in which Pagan was an integral part of in-land a ...
and it is now still in
Pakokku
Pakokku ( my, ပခုက္ကူမြို့, ) is the largest city in the Magway Region of Myanmar. It is situated about 30 km north-east of Bagan on the Irrawaddy River. It is the administration seat of Pakokku Township , Pakokku Distric ...
.
Early life
Vijayabahu was born around 1039, by the name of Kitti (Keethi) in
Ruhuna
The Principality of Ruhuna, also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri Lanka. Magama, Ti ...
principality, under
Chola occupation.
[''Indian History with Objective Questions and Historical Maps Twenty-Sixth Edition 2010, South India page 59''] As a result there were When he was fifteen years old Kitti defeated the last of such rulers, Lokissara, with the aim of becoming the king of Ruhuna. Subsequently, in 1055, he became king of Ruhuna and attained the name of Vijayabahu.
According to the "Panakaduwa Thamba Sannasa" (Panakaduwa inscription which written on copper sheets about the gifts, offerings and given by King Vijayabahu I to his higher military officer) King Vijayabahu I's own words says that Prince Kiththi and King Moggallana's whole family was under the protection of Ruhunu Dandanayaka Sitnaru-bim Budalnavan and he provided a great support to the king to make the country under the same flag.
The Chola army frequently attacked Vijayabahu's troops in Ruhuna. However, he managed to free Ruhuna from the Cholas by 1058 and take it under his complete control.
First attempt to capture Polonnaruwa
After securing Ruhuna, his intention was to capture Polonnaruwa, the capital of the country. In 1066, he launched the first attack on Polonnaruwa,
and captured and held the city for a brief time. However, after receiving reinforcements from South India, the strengthened Chola army attacked again, forcing Vijayabahu to flee.
[Prince Kurukulattaraiyan, Vijayabahu the Great's commander: The Karava of Ceylon, M.D.Raghavan, p.9-10](_blank)
/ref>
He established himself in Wakirigala after this and concentrated on organizing his army for a fresh attempt to capture Polonnaruwa. During this time, he also had to face rebellions from other Sinhala leaders fighting for the throne. Overcoming these rebellions, Vijayabahu continued to muster his armies in order to retake the Capital, but was not strong enough to attempt another attack against the Chola army. He made Katharagama in Ruhuna as his capital and also he started to organize an army to defeat the Cholas.
Second attack on Polonnaruwa
Civil war broke out during 1069–1070 in the Chola Empire
The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...
in South India, Tamil Nadu, throwing the country into turmoil. The concerns within Chola empire prevented the empire from focusing on Sri Lanka, providing an opportunity for Vijayabahu to attack again while the Chola forces in Polonnaruwa were more or less isolated.
He has gained the support of many kingdoms to defeat the Cholas such as Burma and Pandya who also wanted to defeat Cholas in their kingdom.
Starting from Mahanagakula on the south of the Walawe river, Vijayabahu dispatched three armies to attack Polonnaruwa from three fronts. One army was sent along the western shore of the country to Mahathittha port to deal with any reinforcements arriving from South India. Afterwards, part of this army moved towards Polonnaruwa and attacked from the North-west, while the other part held the ports to prevent reinforcements from arriving. A second army was sent from the east across Magama to attack Polonnaruwa from the east. The third and main force advanced across the country, led by the king. Surrounded by these three armies, Polonnaruwa was besieged for seven months before king Vijayabahu’s forces entered the city. In 1070, Vijayabahu became the ruler of Polonnaruwa. At that time Sri Lanka was known as Thambapanni.
Ruling of the country
After the victory at Polonnaruwa, Vijayabahu had to face more rebellions. This caused him to delay his coronation, which took place in 1072 or 1073, eighteen years after being crowned as Vijayabahu in Ruhuna and after a military campaign
A military campaign is large-scale long-duration significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of interrelated military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war. The term derives from the ...
that lasted seventeen years. Polonnaruwa was renamed “Vijayarajapura” and chosen as the capital, making Vijayabahu the first Sinhala king of the Polonnaruwa Kingdom
The Kingdom of Polonnaruwa ( si, පොළොන්නරුව රාජධානිය, Polonnaruwa Rājādhaniya) was the Sinhalese kingdom that expanded across the island of Sri Lanka and several overseas territories, from 1070 until 1232. ...
. The coronation ceremony was held in a palace built for this purpose in Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...
, the former capital of the country. Vijayabahu took Lilavati, the daughter of Jagatipala of Kannauj
Kannauj ( Hindustani pronunciation: ənːɔːd͡ʒ is a city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city's name is a corrupted form of the class ...
as his queen. He also married Tilokasundari, a princess from Kalinga Kalinga may refer to:
Geography, linguistics and/or ethnology
* Kalinga (historical region), a historical region of India
** Kalinga (Mahabharata), an apocryphal kingdom mentioned in classical Indian literature
** Kalinga script, an ancient writ ...
, with the view of strengthening ties with the Kalingas.
During the Chola rule and the wars, Buddhism in the country had suffered a lot and Buddhist monks were few. Five ordained monks—necessary for the upasampada (ordination) of Buddhist monks—could not be found in the whole country. To re-establish Buddhism in the country, Vijayabahu sought help from King Anawrahta
Anawrahta Minsaw ( my, အနော်ရထာ မင်းစော, ; 11 May 1014 – 11 April 1077) was the founder of the Pagan Empire. Considered the father of the Burmese nation, Anawrahta turned a small principality in the dry zone ...
in Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
. As a result, ordained monks were sent from Burma to Sri Lanka. These monks helped to re-establish Buddhism by ordaining new monks and teaching the Pitaka. In addition to this, Vijayabahu also repaired several Buddhist temples that were abandoned and destroyed. A new temple was also constructed in Polonnaruwa for the keeping of the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha.The history says that the monks in both countries got together to make an acceptable version in the scriptures when the interpretation of the "Thripitaka" are different with each other.
Vijayabahu also reconstructed a number of tanks
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine ...
in Rajarata
Rajarata ā dja ra tə(Meaning: King's country) ( Sinhala: රජරට) (Tamil: ரஜரட) was one of three historical regions of the island of Sri Lanka for about 1,700 years from the 6th century BCE to the early 13th century CE. Several anc ...
destroyed during the wars, in addition to constructing several new tanks. This reconstruction of the irrigation system
Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been develop ...
in Rajarata area was important to the development of the country since the country depended mainly on paddy cultivation
A paddy field is a flooded field (agriculture), field of arable land used for growing Aquatic plant, semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in sout ...
.
Around 1084/1085, another quarrel with the Chola kingdom erupted when some ambassadors of Vijayabahu sent to West Chalukya were harassed by them. However, the king's decision for another war against the Chola Empire caused the Velakkara Velakkaras are royal guards mentioned in various historical accounts of Sri Lanka. The general prevailing notion is that they were Tamil mercenaries employed by the Sinhala and Tamil kings. They were considered to be loyal to the king, but occasiona ...
mercenaries serving in Vijayabahu’s army to rebel against him. Several generals of the army were killed by the mutineers and the royal palace was burned down. Vijayabahu fled to Wakirigala again but returned to Polonnaruwa and recaptured it, suppressing the rebellion. The rebel leaders were captured and executed.
Vijayabahu is also noted for constructing roads to Sri Pada
Adam's Peak is a tall conical mountain located in central Sri Lanka. It is well known for the Sri Pada ( si, ශ්රී පාද), i.e., "sacred footprint", a rock formation near the summit, which in Buddhist tradition is held to be ...
and building resting places called ''ambalama
An ambalama ( Sinhala: අම්බලම) is a place constructed for pilgrims, traders and travellers to rest in Sri Lanka. This is a simple structure designed to provide shelter for the travellers. The last examples of anbalange remained unt ...
'' for the benefit of the pilgrims. He also granted villages and cultivations for the service of the pilgrims and the shrine. This is recorded in the "Ambagamu" inscription which situated by the King Vijayabahu I.
Death
Vijayabahu died in 1110, having reigned as king of Sri Lanka for fifty-five years. He was then known as “Mahalu Vijayabahu” (Vijayabahu the old) due to his age and long rule of the country. He is also commonly referred to as Maha Vijayabahu (Vijayabahu the great). The Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment
The Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Sri Lankan Army. Formed on 22 March 1988, it is named after Vijayabahu I of Polonnaruwa (King Vijayabahu, 1055 to 1110 AD). The regiment consists of 17 regular battalions, 9 volunt ...
of the Sri Lanka Army
ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம்
, image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army
, start_date ...
is named after him.
See also
* Mahavamsa
* List of monarchs of Sri Lanka
The Sinhalese monarch -- anachronistically referred to as the Kings of Sri Lanka—featured the heads of state of the Sinhala Kingdoms, in what is today Sri Lanka.
The Sinhalese monarchy originates in the settlement of North Indian Indo-Ar ...
* History of Sri Lanka
The history of Sri Lanka is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia, Southeast Asia and Indian Ocean.
The early human remains found on the island of Sri La ...
* Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment
The Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Sri Lankan Army. Formed on 22 March 1988, it is named after Vijayabahu I of Polonnaruwa (King Vijayabahu, 1055 to 1110 AD). The regiment consists of 17 regular battalions, 9 volunt ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vijayabahu 01 Of Sri Lanka
Monarchs of Polonnaruwa
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Buddhist monarchs
Sri Lankan Buddhists