Navy House was the

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

of the Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy, located in

SLN Dockyard Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) Dockyard is the largest naval base of the Sri Lanka Navy and a major shipyard located in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. Established by the United Kingdom, British as the Royal Naval Dockyard, Trincomalee, it was home to the East Indi ...

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; , ; , ), historically known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. Located on the east coast o ...

, Sri Lanka. It was formerly the official residence of the naval officer commanding, HM Dockyard, Trincomalee and later the Commander-in-Chief,

East Indies Station The East Indies Station was a formation and command of the British Royal Navy. Created in 1744 by the Admiralty, it was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, East Indies. Even in official documents, the term ''East Indies Station'' wa ...

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

History

The building was acquired for the Commander in Chief of the East Indies Station at a cost of £1,750 in 1810. A large bell, which was rung to summon sailors for duty, was donated by Rear-Admiral

Charles Austen Rear Admiral Charles John Austen CB (23 June 1779 – 7 October 1852) was an officer in the Royal Navy and the youngest brother of novelist Jane Austen. He served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and beyond, eventually ri ...

in 1850. The last British occupant of the building was Vice-Admiral Hilary Biggs. Security was provided by the

Ceylon Rifle Regiment The Ceylon Rifle Regiment (CRR) was a regular native regiment formed by the United Kingdom, British in Ceylon. Its history goes back to 1795. The nucleus of the Regiment was two companies of Malays recruited from among prisoners at St Helena. In ...

. On 15 October 1957, the Trincomalee Naval Dockyard was officially handed over by the Royal Navy to the Sri Lankan government and since then the property been a possession of the Sri Lanka Navy.English translation by Capt Akram Alavi SLN, of the Sinhala article titled "Nawika Medura" written by Lieutenant Commander (Retd) HCL Caldera SLN for "The Quartermaster" magazine in the year 2000 coinciding with the Sri Lanka Navy's Golden Jubilee.

References

Buildings and structures in Trincomalee Official residences in Sri Lanka SLN Dockyard {{SriLanka-struct-stub

History

See also

References