Sri Lanka, the island’s back story

About Sri Lanka, the island’s back story

By the ULTIMATE Sri Lanka Editorial Team

Sri Lanka’s written history goes back more than two thousand years, recorded in chronicles such as the Mahavamsa. It is the story of great irrigation kingdoms, of Buddhism, of a trading crossroads in the Indian Ocean, and of three European powers in turn.

Ancient kingdoms

The first great kingdom grew up at Anuradhapura in the north-central plains, a capital for well over a thousand years. Its kings built huge reservoirs (tanks) and canals to store the monsoon rains, and the stupas they raised are among the largest brick structures of the ancient world. When Anuradhapura was abandoned, the capital moved to Polonnaruwa, which flourished in the 11th and 12th centuries. Later capitals moved south and west, ending at Kandy in the hills.

Buddhism arrives

According to the chronicles, Buddhism was brought to the island in the 3rd century BCE by Mahinda, son of the Indian emperor Ashoka, who met the king at Mihintale near Anuradhapura. A sapling of the tree under which the Buddha found enlightenment was planted in Anuradhapura, and the Sri Maha Bodhi is still venerated there. Later, the Tooth Relic of the Buddha became the symbol of royal authority; today it is kept in the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy.

Few islands pack so many layers of history into so small a space: in one day you can climb a fifth-century rock fortress and stay in a 17th-century Dutch fort.

A crossroads of trade

Set on the sea routes between Arabia, India and China, the island traded cinnamon, gems, pearls and elephants for centuries. Arab, Persian, Indian, Malay and Chinese traders all left their mark, which is one reason why Sri Lanka is home to Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians, and to Sinhala, Tamil, Moor, Malay and Burgher communities.

Portuguese, Dutch and British

The Portuguese arrived in the early 16th century and took control of the coast. The Dutch East India Company replaced them in the 17th century, building the forts of Galle and Colombo and the canals of the west coast. The British took the coastal provinces at the end of the 18th century and, in 1815, the Kingdom of Kandy, the last independent kingdom. Under British rule the island, then Ceylon, became famous first for coffee and then for tea.

A modern nation

Ceylon became independent in 1948, and in 1972 it took the name Sri Lanka, “the resplendent island”. Colombo is the commercial capital; the administrative capital is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, on the edge of the city.

Seeing the story

The National Museum in Colombo is the best introduction. Then follow history around the island: Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa for the ancient kingdoms, Sigiriya and Dambulla for royal and religious art, Kandy for the last kingdom, and Galle Fort for the European centuries.

Our advice: start your trip at the National Museum in Colombo, then visit the Cultural Triangle early in your loop, while the story is fresh. Hire a licensed guide at the big sites: the ruins come alive with someone to explain them.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Sri Lanka, the island’s back story before you go.