Dharmapala or Dom João Dharmapala Peria Bandara (1541 – 27 May 1597) was last king of the

Kingdom of Kotte The Kingdom of Kotte ( si, කෝට්ටේ රාජධානිය, Kottay Rajadhaniya), named after its capital, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Kotte, was a Sinhala kingdom, Sinhalese kingdom that flourished in Sri Lanka during the 15th cent ...

, in present-day

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 ...

, from 1551 until 27 May 1597. He is also known as Dom João Dharmapala, the first

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

king in Sri Lankan history. He is widely known as the last true King and ruler of the capital city Kotte; under Portuguese military occupation, he attempted to reorganise his military and pursue a treaty with the Portuguese to save the Sinhalese Kingdom.

Birth

Dom João Dharmapala (Don John Dharmapala) was born as the eldest child of Weediye Bandara, a Prince from

Madampe Madampe is a town situated in the Puttalam District, of North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Madampe is a town with historical importance which was ruled by king Thaniwallbha according to the history. There are two areas: Old town and New town w ...

and his wife

Samudra Samudra (Sanskrit: समुद्र; ) is a Sanskrit term literally meaning the "gathering together of waters" (''-'' "together" and ''-udra'' "water"). It refers to an ocean, sea or confluence. It also forms the name of Samudradeva, the Hindu g ...

Devi, daughter of King

Bhuvanekabãhu VII Bhuvanaikabahu VII (1468 – 29 December 1550) was King of Kotte in the sixteenth century, who ruled from 1521 to 1551. He was the eldest son of Vijayabahu VII of Kotte, whom he succeeded, and his chief queen Anula Kahatuda. He was born in 1 ...

the King of Kotte. His exact date of birth is unknown, but the year is commonly regarded as 1541. A golden statue was sent to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

to be crowned by the Portuguese. It was sent by his predecessor King Bhuvanekabahu VII. Dharmapala's descendants include the Goonewardene & Rodrigo families of Kalutara who are of

Karava Karava () is a Sinhalese speaking ethnic group of Sri Lanka, whose ancestors from ancient times migrated from the Coromandel coast, claiming lineage to the Kaurava royalty of the old Kingdom of Kuru in Northern India. The Tamil equivalent is Kar ...

cast.

Personal life

He had a younger brother, Prince Wijayapala. And a younger half-brother Prince Sooriyabandara from his father's second marriage. His mother was murdered by his father when he was young, so his maternal grandfather King Bhuvanekabahu VII raised him under the supervision of the Portuguese. First, he married Princess Isabella of Kandy, daughter of King Jayaweera Wickramabahu of Kandy. After she died, he married Queen Dona Isabella's niece, Princess Margarida of Kandy, who was the eldest daughter of King Karaliyadde Bandara of Kandy. After his grandfather's death, he used to reside in the Colombo fortress instead of the Kotte Royal Palace. After his conversion from

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in 1565 he would bequeath (in 1580) his entire realm to the

King of Portugal This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Through the n ...

. The Portuguese takeover of Kotte, however, was resisted and would only be completed during the captaincy of Dom

Jerónimo de Azevedo Dom Jerónimo de Azevedo ( Estate of Barbosa, Entre-Douro-e-Minho, Portugal, ''circa'' 1560 – Lisbon, 1625) was a Portuguese fidalgo, Governor (captain-general) of Portuguese Ceylon and viceroy of Portuguese India. He proclaimed in Colombo, in ...

(1594 - 1612).

References

External links

Kings & Rulers of Sri Lanka

Codrington's Short History of Ceylon

Sinhalese kings Monarchs of Kotte 1541 births 1597 deaths House of Siri Sanga Bo 16th-century Sinhalese monarchs {{SriLanka-hist-stub

Birth

Personal life

See also

References

External links