Sri Lanka Kandyan Sinhala Family

Sri Lanka Kandyan Sinhala Family Genealogy

EHELEPOLA - Family #3114 (aka referred to as AHELEPOLA, EYHELEPOLA, EHELAPOLA)

Although many famous authors of the calibre of Paul E Pieris and Wimalananda Tennekonn have archived many authentic records on the political life of the last Ehelepola Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram there is still much discrepancy in the many articles and stories written on his descent and life. This is usually caused by writers looking to delve on myths and legends attached to this family and its people, which causes them to become undisputed heroes or even despicable traitors.

The most common deficiency encountered when researching this family s the fact that most of their documented pedigree is confined to one or two generations. However, when one looks at the family from its "Wasagama" (Village of origin) perspective, from which their forefathers had emerged, then it becomes much easier to collect and publish the rest of the clan with their links.

The village of the origin of the Ehelepola family is situated in Udugoda-Udasiya Pattu of Matale North. In fact Ehelepola is not only a village by itself but a cluster of villages (Wasama) under the control of a single Arachchi or Headman. This Wasama includes, Kinigama, Urulemulla, Kohona, Koholanwela, Dalupota, Walmoruwa, Demeda-Oya, Homapola, and Ehelepola. Four of these villages are connected to the ancestry of the Ehelepola family and are situated in close proximity to each other. One of them is identified, in the present day, as Monaravila (Mondaruvila) which lies in the Koswatta Wasama of Udugoda-Udasiya Pattu in Matale North and comes under the supervision of the Arachchi of Beligomuwa. The others are the villages of Medabedda in Pallesiya Pattu-Udugoda Matale, and the villages of Palle and Uda Waradamuna in Gampahasiya Pattu in Matale South. Of the four ancestral residences, "Ehelepola Walauwa" and "Monaravila Walauwa" were in Udugoda-Udasiya Pattuwa. The "Hulangamuwe Walauwa" was in Kohona Siya Pattuwa and the "Nugahapola Walauwa" was in Udugoda-Pallesiya Pattuwa.

The immediate Pata Bendi name by which this family is identified is "Wijayasundera". The full family name with all its complimentary and varied usages appears as, "Wijeyasundera-Wickremasinha Chandrasekera Seneviratne" / var "Senanayake Jyatilleka Ekanayake / Amarakoon / Rajapaksa (Wahala) Panditha Mudiyanse. The senior Ehelepola Maha Disava of Uva, up to the year 1807, who was the father of Ehelepola 1st Adikaram of 1811-1814, used both variants of the full family name. On most occasions he used both honorifics (garu nama) of Jayatillaka and Ekanayaka, together with the full compliment of "garu" and "patabendi" names of the family.

The earliest descent and certain parts of the family history are recorded in a Sannasa dated, Monday the twentieth day of the waning moon of the month of Nikini, in the Saka Year of 1667, which is the equivalent of Aug-Sep 1745 AD. This is the particular Royal Grant that is popularly known as the "Ehelepola Sannasa". The family had previously received another Sannasa dated Saka 1644 (1722 AD), which grants a different set of lands within the Maha Disavani of Matale. The Sannasa of 1745 included the grant of many lands in the Arachchi Wasama, (the smallest administrative subdivision) of Ehelepola, and it is only after that the family became to be known as the "Ehelepola" family.

The forming of the principalities of Matale took place during the final years of reign of King Senerath (1605-1635). The two principalities of Matale and Uva were formed by the King, in order to accommodate his two nephews, Prince Wijayapala and Prince Kumarasinha. They were half brothers of King Senerath's own son Rajasinha II, begotten from the common mother Kusumasana Devi, alias Princess Dona Katharina, the daughter of the once deposed sub-King of Kanda-Uda-Rata, Jayavira Bandara (1551-1561) alias "Karaliyadde Bandara".

The demise of King Senarath and the ascent of his son Rajasinha II took place in 1635. Etipola Maha Disave fits into the reign of Rajasinha II of Kandy, who was at that time engaged in a war, together with the Dutch, to expel the Portuguese. Etipola Disava is supposed to have contributed much to the storming of the Portuguese fort at Trincomalee, which took place around the months or March and April, after which the Portuguese capitulated on May 2 1639. The Fort of Batticaloa had fallen a year earlier on April 18 1638. Lawrie, states in his "Gazeteer" that, "Then after a lapse of nearly a century: Ehelepola - 1711 AD was Disawa of Matale,". Other records show that between 1638 and 1709 there were at least eight men who succeeded Etipola Disawa as Maha Disawa of Matale. They were, Dullewe, Ratwatte, Etipola, Udugama Appuamy (executed in 1680), Migastenne Vijeyaratne Mudiyanse, Morahera Mannapperuma Mudiyanse, Yalegoda (executed in 1709), and Monaravila Maha Disave. Of these the Nilame resident of Monaravila was Maha Disawe of Matale for the years 1709 and 1710 before the first Nilame identified with the Wasagama, or the village name of Ehelepola, succeeded him in 1711.

@ WWW Virtual Library Sri Lanka

Ehelepola Family Tree

1 'Hulangamuwe' Rate Adikaram circa 1670 during the reign of Rajasinha II of Kandy [Hannas (Sannas) Maha Nilame, made first attempt to form a settlement in the village of Waradamuna in the District of Matale during the reign of Prince Vijayapala (1634-1654) of the principality of Matale from Godapola]

2 'Medabedde" Ekanayake Mudiyanse - Maha Disava of the Sath Korale between the period 1680-1693 serving King Rajasinghe II and later King Vimaladharma II during his early reign

3 Rajapakse Wickremasekera Mudiyanse Ralahamy from the Wasagama of Keppetipola in Galbodda Korale-Keeravali Pattu of the Sathara Korale, settled down in the village of Monarawila in the Sath Korales circa 1700 AD (possibly during the latter years of the reign of King Vimaladharmasuriya II), aka 'Monaravila' Ralahamy, Monarawala Maha Disave of Matale & Nilame between 1708 & 1710, held office as the Bath Wadana Nilame at the Royal Palace, Diyawadana Nilame of the Dalada Mandire, Maha Disawe of Sath Korale, Disawe of Tamankaduwe and Maha Disawe of Matale. d:circa 1720 + Waradamunne Loku Mahatmayo

4 Monaravila (daughter) + Thalagahagoda of Matale

4 Monaravila (daughter) + Etipola of Matale

4 Monaravila (daughter) (was once a concubine of King Narendra Sinha, King of Kandy 1707-1739) + Pilimatalawe Udagampahe Adikaram in 1742-45, and 1760-66, Maha Adikaram Nilame of the Plilimatalawa family

5 Pilimatalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram 1734-1737 & 1747-1758 from the Wasama of Ehelepola

6 [1] daughter - Pilimitalawe Kumarihamy + [2] Ehelepola Maha Disawe - 'Hulangamuwe' Wijayasundera Wickramasinha Chandrasekera Seneviratna (var: Senanayake Jayatillekje Ekanayake, Amarakoon, Rajapaksa (Wahala) Panditha Mudiyanse) Adikaram up to the time of his death in 1807

7 [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame **, b:circa 1773, d:1829, Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1803-1804 succeeding Unambuwe 2nd Adikaram, 2nd Adikaram for second time from 1808-1811 succeeding Pilimitalawe-Kapuwatte Adikaram (younger bro of Pilimitalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram), 1st Adikaram of 1811-1814 + [4] Golahela Keppetipola Kumarihamy, daughter of Keppetipola 'Diva Nilame alias Golahela (below)

8 Loku Banda (put to death by execution together with their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

8 Maduma Banda (put to death by execution together with their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

8 Name Not Known (put to death by execution together with their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

7 2nd spouse of [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame **, b:circa 1773, d:1829 + [18] Pilimatalawe Kumarihamy (widow of Migastenne)

7 [5] Ehelepola Disawe of Matale, when Gen McDowall was Ambassador (1800-1803)

7 [6] Ehelepola Menika Kumarihamy alias Ehelepola Tikiri Kumarihamy + [19] Golahela Saluwadana Nilame, b:1790 who inherited the Eda Vevela (staff of office) of the last Ehelepola Adikaram and is also identified as the "Bena" (nephew) of the Adikaram

8 adopted 'Dulewe' Loku Banda (s/o first marriage of 'Dullewe' Kuruwe Lekam & 'Unambuwa' Kumarihamy; grandson of Dullewe Disava of Walapona in 1815, who was a signatory to the Kandyon Treaty and also 2nd Adikaram in 1829 & Diyawadana Nilame of the Dalada Maligawa in in July 1839, was a suspect in the "Matale Rebellion" of 1848 and was imprisoned and deprived of office, died 1st June 1849 and his last will is dated 6 July 1840; great grandson of Dullewe alias Kobbekaduwa Siyapattuwe Adikaram of 1811). 'Dullewe' Loku Banda took the name of 'Dullewe' Wickramasinha Samarakoon Jayatilleke Panditha Mudiyanse alias William Abraham Dullewe of Beligomuwa aka Dullewe Adikaram and received his honorable rank by 1887. He inherited 65 acres if field land and 92 acres of Hena land at Ehelepola, Polgolla, Paldeniya, Medabedda, Beligamuwa, Waradamuna, Galewela, Andawala, Gantunne, Gurussa, Wekuluwea and Haduwa by the Sannasa of 1722 and 1745.

7 [7] Ehelepola Tikiri Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Migastenne Amunugama Abeykoon Sahala Panditha Mudiyanse alias Migastenne Junior 1st Adikaram (1804-1806)

7 2nd spouse of Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Nugagahapola Disawe of Matale in 1819, also Atapattu Lekam, Nanayakkara Lekam and Basnayake Nilame of Pattini Devale Kandy in 1820 (s/o Nugahapola Adikaram & second wife Mampitiya Kumarihamy)

7 3rd spouse of Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Godigamuwe Banda aka Godigamuwe Basnayake Nilame, elder son of Junior Dodanwela Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1785-1786

8 adopted son from the family of Angamanna, Basnayake Nilame of Ganegoda Devale 1828-1835 & RateMahatmaya of Udapalatha from 1835-1844

8 adopted daughter also from the family of Angamanna, Angamanna Tikiri Kumarihamy

9 daughter

[it is also suggested by historians that both Ehelepola Menika Kumarihamy and Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy were one and the same person]

6 'Keppetipola' Monaravila Maha Disawa of Matale in 1794

7 [8] daughter + Keppetipola 'Diva Nilame alias Golahela (Keppetipola) Diyawadana Nilame of the Royal Bath or Ulpenge from 1793-1797

8 [10] Keppetipola the "Rebel" Disawe of Uva from 1815-1818 who was beheaded.

9 [11] Name Not Known

10 [12] son (Name Not Known), Disawe of Matale South in 1890

11 [13] daughter

11 [14] daughter

11 [15] daughter

11 [16] Beatrice Keppetipola, b:20-May-1873 at 'Hulangamuwa Maha Walauwa' also referred to as 'Keppetipola Disawe Walauwa' in Matale

12 [17] Annabelle Taldena. b:28-Apr-1891 at the same Maha Walauwa home as above in Matale

8 [4] Golahela Keppetipola Kumarihamy + [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame, b:circa 1773, d:5-Apr 1829, Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1803-1804 succeeding Unambuwe 2nd Adikaram, 2nd Adikaram foir second time from 1808-1811 succeeding Pilimitalawe-Kapuwatte Adikaram (younger bro of Pilimitalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram), 1st Adikaram of 1811-1814

9 Name Not Known (put to death by execution and their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

6 Pilimatalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram aka Pilimatalawe 'Maha Nilame' (executed for treason in 1811) aka Pilimatalavuva Vijesundara Rajakaruna Seneviratne Abhayakoon Panditha Mudiyanse alias Urulevatta Agra Senadhipathi alias Arave

Maha Adikaram III

Basanayaka Nilame-Maha Devale &alavatugoda Devale

Disava (many areas eg. Matale, Puttalam. Etc.)

Maha Disava- Sath Korale

(need to add lots of info here) Executed 1811

Wives: a. Maralanda Kumarihamy

**b. Dodanvala Kumarihamy daughter of Junior Adikaram

Children : 7 Pilimatalavuva Loku Manike +

a. Meegastenne alias Dumbara died 1808 (husband)

b. Ehelapola Adikaram died 1829 (husband)

7 Pilimatalavuva Manike + Ratvatta Devamedde Nilame (Executed in 1811).

7 Pilimatalavuva Vijesumdara Rajapakse Bandaranayaka Mudiyanse (Junior) +

Disava Udunuvara 1804

(need to add lots of info here) Signed Convention 1815

Banished to Mauritius by the British in 1820

Returned and died 1833

Wives: a. Molligoda Loku Kumarihamy Sister of Adikaram

b. Maralanda Tikiri Kumarihamy

7 [18] Pilimatalawe Kumarihamy + Amunugama alias Migastanne, Junior Adikaram, d:circa 1806

7 2nd spouse of [18] Pilimatalawe Kumarihamy + [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame, b:circa 1773

7 daughter + 'Ratwatte' Nilame, in charge of the Pahala Dolos Pattu of the Sath Korale and was since styled "Devamedde Disawa" (also executed for treason together with his father-in-law in 1811)

7 Pilimatalawe Junior, Maha Disawe of Sathara Korale from 1810-1811 & Sath Korales from 1817-1818

2 First Disawe of Tamankada from the Keppetipola family whose Walauwa was located at Monaravila

3 Wijayasundera Mudiyannehe, Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram, alias Ehelepola Maha Disawe aka Ehelepola Maha Basnayake Nilame and also Ehelepola Maha Adikaram, from 1711-1721, Maha Disawe of Uva from 1716-1717 from the village of Waradamune, during the reign of King Narendsrasinha of Kandy, Basnayake Nilame of Maha Vishnu Devale of Kandy in 1717 also held the office of Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram for a year in 1706 and was succeeded by the first Nilame from the village of Rammalaka (Rammolaka) in Kandupalatha Korale, Udunuwara as 'Udagampahe' in 1707 + lady from Dumbukola Chandrasekera Family of Wariyapola Wasama in Meda Siya Pattu Matale South

4 Ehelepola Wijeyasundera Nilame, Disawe of Udapalatha in 1717, Maha Disawe of Matale 1717-21, Pallegampaha 1st Adikaram 1734, Maha Disawe of Sath Korale in 1737 and again for a period of 14 years in 1745, Basnayake Nilame of Maha Devale 1745-48, Maha Disawe of the Sathara Korales and of the Thun Korales in Oct 1749

5 Ehelepola Paindakara Nilame, Chief of Royal Messengers in 1769, Maha Disawe of Uva in 1780, yielded his post to 'Palingupana' Rajakaruna Ananda Rajapaksa Nilame from the village of Palipana in Pallegampaha Korale of Harispattuwa

4 [2] Ehelepola Maha Disawe - 'Hulangamuwe' Wijayasundera Wickramasinha Chandrasekera Seneviratna (var: Senanayake Jayatillekje Ekanayake, Amarakoon, Rajapaksa (Wahala) Panditha Mudiyanse) Adikaram up to the time of his death in 1807 + [1] Plilimatalawe Kumarihamy (older sister of Pilimatalawe Pallegampahe Adikaram)

5 [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame, b:circa 1773, d:5-Apr1829 in Mauritius where he was exiled, Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1803-1804 succeeding Unambuwe 2nd Adikaram, 2nd Adikaram for second time from 1808-1811 succeeding Pilimitalawe-Kapuwatte Adikaram (younger bro of Pilimitalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram), 1st Adikaram of 1811-1814 + [4] Golahela Keppetipola Kumarihamy, daughter of Keppetipola 'Diva Nilame alias Golahela (below)

6 Name Not Known (put to death by execution and their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

5 2nd spouse of [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame, b:circa 1773, d:5-Apr 1829 in Mauritiuas where he was exiled + [18] Pilimatalawe Kumarihamy

5 [5] Ehelepola Disawe of Matale, when Gen McDowall was Ambassador (1800-1803)

5 [6] Ehelepola Menika Kumarihamy alias Ehelepola Tikiri Kumarihamy, d:1846 + [19] Golahela Saluwadana Nilame, b:1790 who inherited the Eda Vevela (staff of office) of the last Ehelepola Adikaram and is also identified as the "Bena" (nephew) of the Adikaram

6 adopted 'Dulewe' Loku Banda (s/o first marriage of 'Dullewe' Kuruwe Lekam & 'Unambuwa' Kumarihamy; grandson of Dullewe Disava of Walapona in 1815, who was a signatory to the Kandyon Treaty and also 2nd Adikaram in 1829 & Diyawadana Nilame of the Dalada Maligawa in in July 1839, was a suspect in the "Matale Rebellion" of 1848 and was imprisoned and deprived of office, died 1st June 1849 and his last will is dated 6 July 1840; great grandson of Dullewe alias Kobbekaduwa Siyapattuwe Adikaram of 1811). 'Dullewe' Loku Banda took the name of 'Dullewe' Wickramasinha Samarakoon Jayatilleke Panditha Mudiyanse alias William Abraham Dullewe of Beligomuwa aka Dullewe Adikaram and received his honorable rank by 1887. He inherited 65 acres if field land and 92 acres of Hena land at Ehelepola, Polgolla, Paldeniya, Medabedda, Beligamuwa, Waradamuna, Galewela, Andawala, Gantunne, Gurussa, Wekuluwea and Haduwa by the Sannasa of 1722 and 1745.

5 [7] Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Migastenne Amunugama Abeykoon Sahala Panditha Mudiyanse alias Migastenne Junior 1st Adikaram (1804-1806)

5 2nd spouse of Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Nugagahapola Disawe of Matale in 1819, also Atapattu Lekam, Nanayakkara Lekam and Basnayake Nilame of Pattini Devale Kandy in 1820 (s/o Nugahapola Adikaram & second wife Mampitiya Kumarihamy)

5 3rd spouse of Ehelepola Tikiri Menika Kumarihamy alias Nugagahapola Menike, d:15-Jul-1824 + Godigamuwe Banda aka Godigamuwe Basnayake Nilame, elder son of Junior Dodanwela Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1785-1786

6 adopted son from the family of Angamanna, Basnayake Nilame of Ganegoda Devale 1828-1835 & RateMahatmaya of Udapalatha from 1835-1844

6 adopted daughter also from the family of Angamanna, Angamanna Tikiri Kumarihamy

7 daughter

4 2nd spouse of [2] Ehelepola Maha Disawe - 'Hulangamuwe' Wijayasundera Wickramasinha Chandrasekera Seneviratna (var: Senanayake Jayatillekje Ekanayake, Amarakoon, Rajapaksa (Wahala) Panditha Mudiyanse) Adikaram up to the time of his death in 1807 + Niyarepola Kumarihamy from the 'Ranpanhinda Walauwa' in the Ratwatte Wasama of Udasiyapattu Matale. She was a descendant of Niyarepola Alahakoon Mohottala who was made Maha Lekam and given the Ranpanhinda (golden stylus) when King Senarath formed the first Maha Disawani of Matale during the third decade of the seventeeth century

5 son (Ehelepola Junior), Disawe Ihala Dolos Pattu in the Sath Korale from Sep 1811-1812 + Kahande Ellepola Kumarihamy (both husband and wife died suddenly oif a disease called Kola Sanniya or Pneumonic Coma sometime between Sep and early Nov 1812)

5 son, Sulu Disawe of Kadawata and Nalanda in the Maha Disawani of Matale up to 1813 (also executed with his nephews mentioned above in 1814)

5 Ehelepola Kumarihamy alias Ehelepola Tikiri Menike Kumarihamy + Unambuwe Basnayake Nilame

4 [9] Keppetipola 'Diva Nilame alias Golahela (Keppetipola) Diyawadana Nilame of the Royal Bath or Ulpenge from 1793-1797 + [8] daughter of Keppetipola 'Monaravila' Maha Disave of Matale in 1794

5 [10] Keppetipola the "Rebel" Disawe of Uva from 1815-1818

6 [11] Name Not Known

7 [12] son (Name Not Known), Disawe of Matale South in 1890

8 [13] daughter

8 [14] daughter

8 [15] daughter

8 [16] Beatrice Keppetipola, b:20-May-1873 at 'Hulangamuwa Maha Walauwa' also referred to as 'Keppetipola Disawe Walauwa' in Matale

9 [17] Annabelle Taldena. b:28-Apr-1891 at the same Maha Walauwa home as above in Matale

5 [4] Golahela Keppetipola Kumarihamy + [3] 'Ehelepola' Wijayasundera Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Mudiyanse, Maha Adikaram Nilame, b:circa 1773, Udagampahe 2nd Adikaram from 1803-1804 succeeding Unambuwe 2nd Adikaram, 2nd Adikaram foir second time from 1808-1811 succeeding Pilimitalawe-Kapuwatte Adikaram (younger bro of Pilimitalawe Pallegampahe 1st Adikaram), 1st Adikaram of 1811-1814

6 Name Not Known (put to death by execution and their mother by drowning in the Bogambara Wewa in 1814)

4 daughter + Golahela Mudiyanse

5 [19] Golahela Saluwadana Nilame, b:1790 + [6] Ehelepola Menika alias Ehelepola Tikiri Kumarihamy, d:1846

5 2nd spouse of [19] Golahela Saluwadana Nilame, b:1790 + Ranwala Kumarihamy, b:1828 (surviving widow of 'Keppetipola' Golahala Saluwadana Nilame) who was interviewed personally by P E P{ieris in 1905 when she was 77 years old in which she claimed she was 18 years old when she married and her husband was 56 years old at the time, in 1846.

4 daughter + 'Katugaha Mohottala' Bandaranayake Herath Mudiyanse, d:circa 1825, Disave Mohottala of Uva, (as written by Sylvester Douglas Wilson, 1st Assistant to the British Resident and Magistrate at Badulla who wrote from Uva to Simon Sawers, the Revenue Agent in Badulla on 25 Jan 1817), Appointed Rate Adikaram in charge of the villages of Akkiriya and Komarikja in the Uva by the British on 26 Nov 1818, Disave of Meda Palatha and Dambawinne Palatha (3115)

5 daughter + Galagoda alias Peradeniya Lekam alias Miwature Maha Lekam (1813-1815), third son of Galagoda 'Munwatte' Maha Disawe of Uva in 1752 and Udagampahe Adikaram of 1766

Four Kandyan Families - by Sunil Madugalle

** Ehelepola Wijayasundara Wickremasinghe Chandrasekera Seneviratne Amarakoon Wasala (Ahelepola Maha Adigar) 1773-1829, Born:1773 at Matale Ahelepola

Walauwa. Educated at Ven. Kobbekaduwa Yatawatte Maha Nayaka Thera. Wife and family arrested and killed by the last King of Kandy, Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe.

Was appointed to King’s service as:-

Paniwidarkara Nilame,

Maduwe Lekam,

Pallewahala Nilame,

Maha Gabada Nilame,

Dissave Sat Korale. 1803.

Uva Dissava second Adikaram and Dissava, Sabaragamuwa March 1808.

First Adigar 1812-1814,

Staged rebellion against the King of Kandy at Sabaragamuwa, March 1814 and helped the British to invade the Kingdom of Kandy in 1815. Signed the Kandyan Convention

which ceded the Kandyan Kingdom territories to the British on 18-Mar-1815, together with:-

Robert Brownrigg (British Governor)

Pelime Talawe (Pillimtalawe), 2nd Adigar and Disawa of Saffragam

Pelime Talawe (Pilimitalawa), Disawa of the Four Korales

Monarawila, Disawa of Uva

Ratwatte, Disawa of Matale

Molligoda, Disawa of the Three Korales

Dullewe, Disawa of Walapane

Millawa, Disawa of Wellassa & Bintenne

Galagama, Disawa of Tamankada

Galagoda, Disawa of Nuwara Kalawiya

in the presence of,

J D'Oyly, Chief Translator to Government, James Sutherland, Dep Secy to Government.

Refused to accept the post of Pallegampaha Adigar offered to him by the British. Rejected

1,000 Gold Pagodi also offered by the British. Wished to be the King. Was then appointed as Head of Lascoryn, 23-Mar-1815. Joined the rebels in 1818 to overthrow

British rule. Was arrested on suspicion on 2-Mar-1818 near Magul Maduwa. Brought to Colombo and was imprisoned until May-1825 and then was deported to Mauritius

on 14-May-1825 aboard the ship “Alexander”. Arrived in Mauritius on 6-Jun-1825 and was imprisoned at Ponplemuses. Wrote a last will before his death.

Died: 5-Apr-1829. Tomb erected in Mauritius Nov-1830.

Obituary:

EHELEPOLA - SENARATH BANDARA (Rtrd. Assistant Superintendent of Police). Beloved husband of Padma Wegodapola, loving father of Gayan (Assistant Superintendent - Kirkoswald Group - Bogawantalawa), Chalani (Emirates U.A.E.), Chanika (Dolly) (T.N.T. - U.A.E.), father-in-alw of Sanjeewa Kulatunga (African & Eastern U.A.E.), Ruwani Herath (Matale), Niroshan Ekanayake (Emirates U.A.E.), beloved Aththa of Otara (U.A.E.), loving brother of Amitha Dodanwala, Wijewathi Mapitigama, Sudharma (Rtrd. Teacher Maliyadeva Balika Vidyalaya - Kurunegala), Sujatha (C.T.B., Kurunegala North), Ranjini (Teacher National School Kundasale), passed away. May he attain Nibbana. Funeral will be held on 19th May. Cortege leaves residence 1.00 p.m. for cremation at General Cemetery Kurunegala at 3.30 p.m. Aluth Walawwa, Madahapola Melsiripura. DN Thu May 17 2007

Ehelepola Ehelepola Monument

Ehelepola the Great

(@by Dr. Mirando Abeysekere/The Island)

Ehelepola Maha Adigar or Ehelepola the Great was the leader of the successful coup against the despot King Sri Wickrema Rajasingha (1798 - 1815). He planned to overthrow the king because he ruled as a despot and he was a cruel tyrant. Although the people hated him they were powerless as the king was well guarded by foreign mercenaries.

Ehelepola, was a pure bred Brahmin and a very devout Buddhist. In addition to that he was a very loyal, efficient, leader who served the country and the people faithfully.

He offered his Walawwa to the Maha Sangha and he settled down in Kandy. Now it is a famous temple situated at Mahawela, Matale. He was a militant chief. This was partly due to his noble birth and ancestry. His father and all his paternal ancestors had been devout Buddhists and had served the armies as leaders. It is very relevant to discuss the illustrious background of Ehelepola Maha Adigar. Hence, I would give a brief history of his ancestors and close relatives.

Mudaliyar Nandiris Wijesekera of Brahmana Watte Walawwa - Welitota was the father of the illustrious and brave leader Don Cosmo Wijesekera - Mudaliyar of the Portuguese Army. According to the records of the Portuguese and Dutch Mudaliyar Don Cosmo Wijesekera was a key figure in the Portuguese Army. He was almost the general. His step sister Edanduwawe Gehenu Dissawa - female Dissawa of Edanduwawe alias Galagoda Swarnapali Kumarihamy was a Dissawa under king Rajasingha II.

Therefore Don Cosmo had an underground friendship with King Senarath (1604 - 1627). This was because he did not condone the cruelties inflicted on the Sinhalese by the Portuguese. Although he served as a General in the Portuguese Army inwardly his objective was to liberate the country from the Portuguese. He knew all the tricks of the Portuguese militia.

The lion of Randenigala

It was a decisive day for the Sinhala forces of King Senerath. The King sent a secret message to Don Cosmo through the step sister of Don Cosmo, Edanduwawe Kumarihamy asking him to help the Sinhala forces. This message was sent for the sake of Buddhism and the country. Mudaliyar Don Cosmo accepted the king's request and did his duty as promised.

When the battle started at Randenigala all the regiments under Don Cosmo fought against the Portuguese. Constantine de Zaa, the leader of the Portuguese army was beheaded by Don Cosmo himself and his head was sent to king Senerath as proof of loyalty to the King. The chief reason for the victory of the Sinhala army was the brave and gallant leadership given to the Sinhala forces by Don Cosmo.

King Senerath was so overjoyed with the victory that he hosted the leaders of the Sinhala army to a grand reception. Don Cosmo was of course greeted as a hero by the entire Sinhala population of the country.

Prince Rajasingha, the son of King Senarath embraced the hero Don Cosmo and exclaimed, 'Don Cosmo! you are more than a brother to me! You had really shown the calibre of your Brahmin nobility. You have brought honour to all your Brahmin ancestors.

Thereafter the grateful people of Uva erected a Manor House in the village of Katugaha and Don Cosmo had two children - a son and daughter. The son Mudaliyar Theodore Wijesekera married Maria Corea and lived at Rassaya Muna Kanda Walawwa, Mutwal, Colombo. Theodore Wijesekera's only daughter Catherine married Kumara Bandara alias Juan Mirando of the Murunda Dynasty. Don Cosmos' only daughter Helena Swarnapali married Wijesundera Brah-mana Mudiyanse, the Royal Astrologer of King Rajasinha II. Wijesundara Brah-mana Mudiyanse the Royal Astrologer and his wife settled down at Katugaha Walawwa as it was given for their dowry by Mudliyar Don Cosmo.

Ehelepola the First Dissawa of Matale was the son of Wijesundera Brahmana Mudaliyar of Katugaha Walawwa. Wijesundera Mudi-yanse's daughter, Kumarihamy married Bandaranayaka Mudiyanse of Chilaw and settled at Katugaha Walawwa after contracting a Binna marriage. The famous Katugaha Bandara-nayaka Mudiyanse Dissawa of Uva was his son.

So, Ehelepola alias Chandrasekera Mudiyanse migrated to Matale for Public Service and settled down at the village of Ehelepola. His ancient Walawwa built at Ehelepola village is known as 'Nekathge-dera' because he too was an astrologer like his father. This identical Ehelepola the First had a few children and one daughter got married to Monarawila Disava a direct descendant of Mona-ravila Danta Brahmana Mudiyanse.

The elder son of Ehelepola the First, Chandrasekera Amara-koon Mudiyanse became the Ratema-hatmaya, Dissawa and the chief of the Army respectively. He was known as the 'Padikara Mudiyanse' of Ehelepola. Chandra-sekera Amarakoon Mudiyasne too followed the footsteps of his parents., married Kosshinna Kumari-hamy of Kosshinna Brahmana Family. He died of cancer in the jaw. Chandrasekera Amarakoon Mudi-yanse was the father of Ehelepola Maha Adigar or Ehelepola the Great.

Ehelepola the Great was a very versatile person having a sound knowledge of English, Pali, Sanskrit and Tamil. He was educated at a Buddhist Pirivena and he became a Rate Mahatmaya in his youth. At the King's Palace he had a militant look.

According to some historians Haggard, D'Oyly and Donold James the young and handsome Ehelepola had many clandestine affairs with the concubines in the King's harem. One day he was caught red handed by the King at the residence of Alutgama Biso Menike, a woman of the King's harem and the King ordered six strokes to be delivered with a whip on the back side of the accused. But when the King's henchmen came to execute the order they were mercilessly assaulted by Ehelepola.

Ehelepola Kumari-hamy was his cousin and he began to love her when she visited her uncle's Walawwa . The view of the astrologers was that anyone who married her would be king as her horoscope was very good and powerful. Her uncle Chandrasekera Mudiyanse used his good offices and saw to it that she married the daughty warrior Ehelepola.

True to the astrologerss' predi-cations Ehelepola got promotion after promotion and after the demise of Pilima Talauwa, Ehelepola was promoted to the highest rank of Maha Adigar. Pilimatalawas, Lewkes and Ratwattas were high class Brahmins.

The King Sri Wickrama Rajasingha being a Waduga by birth always suspected the noble families and began to eliminate them either by killing them or by forcing them to flee the Kandyan Kingdom.

The Rev. Paranatala Anunayaka Himi of the Malwatta Chapter, Lewke Nilame, Halangoda, Aluvihare Bandara, Ratwatte - Devamedde Dissawa, Pilimatalawa Maha Adigar etc. were all killed on the orders of the despot King.

However Ehelepola remained loyal to the King. But the king lived in fear of Ehelepola as he was a talented warrior and he feared that one day he might usurp the Kingship.

During this period the killing of excessive children especially female children was very common in the Kandyan Kingdom. Ehelepola issued an order that no child should be killed on that account and that if any family felt that they could not bear the burden of these excess children that he would help. (PP. 217 - Sinhala Social Organization).

During a certain period he was the Dissawa of Sathkorale and later on Sabaragamuwa. When the King's cruelties increased Ehelepola planned a liberation struggle against the despot. At the preliminary stages he had discreet discussions with his relations in the maritime provinces those living in Kalutara and Balapitiya.

They were the Mudaliyars of Carlo Walawwa, Mutwal, Nagoda Walawwa, Kalutara and Maha Kappina Walawwa at Balapitiya. He knew that through the good offices of his relatives he could obtain the support of fiery Brahmin warriors of southern province. His chief aim was to liberate the country against Nayakkar rule. Unfortunately for Ehelepola the King's spies came to learn of this conspiracy and they scretly informed the King.

'Wal Raja'

The King was not only a despot and cruel tyrant but he was also a highly lecherous sex maniac. He was popularly known as 'Wal Raja'. No pretty woman was safe from his lecherous advances. Through fear of reprisals by the King many women gave in to his advances.

The King now made an order for the arrest of Ehelepola. He was in a frenzy but he knew that it was a very difficult task as Ehelepola was also influentical and powerful. The Maha Adigar went from place to place incognito and finally he sought refuge in the low country. Gradually the British too came to know of the presence of the Maha Adigar in their territory. To make things easy for him Maha Mudliyar Adrian de Abrew Rajapaksha of Maha Kapina Walawwa, Welitota introduced him to the British. (*ola manuscript of Nilgalle Walawwa)

When the king found that he could not have Ehelepola arrested, he arrested his wife, children and sister. He told the wife and sister that unless both of them agreed to have sex with him they would be killed. They refused and they were killed.

The ideology of the the Kandyan Convention was conceived at the discussion between Ehelepola, Brownrigg and Maha Mudaliyar Rajapaksha at the premises of 'Carlo Walawwa' in Mutwal. According to the reports of J. Campbel and A. C. Lawrie the British Governor had promised to appoint Ehelepola Maha Adigar, as Sub King of Kandy, but the British who were experts at the policy of 'divide and rule' offered the same post to Ehelepola.

After the deportation of King Sri Wickrema Rajasingha and the signing of the Kandyan Convention the entire island came under the rule of the British. The hero and the mastermind behind all these machinations was none other than Ehelepola the Great.

Col. John Davy had stated that Ehelepola was promised several honours and titles but he wanted none other than the Sub Kingship of Kandy. The Uva rebellion of 1818 which was a spontaneous rebellion erupted as a result of the cruelties inflicted by the British rulers on the people. Elelepola appointed his brother-in-law Mona-ravila Keppitipola to be in charge of the area under rebellion but as history reveals he joined the rebels and became their leader. The rebellion was doomed to fail as it was badly organized and was no match for the modern arms of the British.

Although Ehelepola helped the British to oust the despot king the British were always suspicious of him because he was very clever. They thought that after ousting the king he might try to oust the British from Kandy and become King. Ehelepola had all the qualifications and the intellect to be the king but the British were not even willing to make him the Sub King.

It was a convention and a privilege that if there was no suitable person to be the King a Brahmin was appointed. That is how after the demise of King Vijaya (543 - 505. B.C.) Saligrama Brahmin Upatissa became king.

Ehelepola the Great, former Maha Adigar, a pure bred Brahmin Buddhist overthrew the cruel and despot King and tried to restore peace in Kandy with the help of the British. Naturally he also wanted a due place and wanted to be the Sub King but the British who secretly had other ideas did not give him his due place. As the people were disunited and disorganized he was unable to achieve his final objective of overthrowing the British and restoring the Kandyan Kingdom to the rightful owners - the people.

Ehelepola was banished to Mauritius and passed away on the 5th of April at Pampla Mousasou in the year 1829. Elelepola was a hero and a martyr and Lanka should be proud of him.

May his name live for long years to come and may be attain the Supreme Bliss of Nibbana.

Ehelepola Madduma Bandara - A Child Hero by S B Karaliyadda (Island)

Keppetipola Disawa - The matchless hero

by Aryadasa Ratnasinghe DN Monday 26 Nov 2001

After signing the Kandyan Convention on March 2, 1815, between the British Governor, Sir Robert Brownrigg, and the Kandyan chiefs, the sovereign rights of the last politically independent remnant of the Sinhalese were irrevocably surrendered to the British Crown. The British, after taking control of the whole island, made drastic changes in their administrative policy.

John D'Oyly was appointed the British resident in Kandy, Simon Sawers as Judicial cum Revenue Officer, Col.O.Kelly as Garrison Commander and James Sutherland as Secretary to the Kandyan provinces. The Maha Adikaram Molligoda was appointed as the civil authority for the internal administration of the fallen kingdom. From 1815 to 1817, the Kandyan provinces were peaceful and remained tranquil. However, with the passage of time, the chiefs found the British to be delusive and their behaviour repulsive.

The depressed and frustrated chiefs were anxious to overthrow the alien rulers, and it did happen in October 1817.

Muslims

The Muslims of Wellassa, who supported the British, now sought the help of Sylvester Douglas Wilson, the Assistant Resident in Badulla, to have a man of their own appointed as the Village Head man of Wellassa.

Accordingly, Wilson appointed a Muslim named Haji Muhandiram alias Marikkar to the post, despite objections raised by Millewa Disawa, who held authority over Wellassa and Bintenne.

Not only the Muslims had their wish fulfilled but also began to repudiate the authority of the Dissawa, by with holding payment of dues and taxes, which caused the Disawa much loss by revenue to his utter indignation.

In the meantime, Wilson received information that a stranger, claimed to be a member of the exiled royal family, had come with a retinue of Buddhist priests to Wellassa to capture the Muslim Headman.

Wilson, believing it to be a rumour, sent the Muslim Haji Muhandiram, to investigate and report on the matter, but enroute, he was captured and killed.

Wilson who went to inquire into the incident was also killed. On the advice of D'Oyly and as instructed by Simon Sawers, Keppetipola Disawa of Uva was sent to Wellassa to curb the uprising and arrest the rioters. However, his patriotism did not encourage him to attack the Sinhalese.

The result was that he became the leader of the rebellion against the British.

Keppetipola Disawa who brooked on the idea of supporting the Sinhalese, returned the arms and ammunitions supplied to him by the British, to the armament depot in Badulla, "not wishing to fire a single bullet to shed the blood of the Sinhalese in action".

Rebellion broke out with serious consequences and soon began to spread to Bintenne, Ulapane, Walapone, Hewaheta, Kotmale, Dumbara and other surrounding villages.

The member of the royal family who received the support of the Sinhalese was Doresamy. Although the British were quick and took immediate action to apprehend the imposter Doresamy, the pretender to the throne, it all proved futile. However, notwithstanding all the exertions by the British to curb the rebellion, the spirit of the insurrection developed in great magnitude. By March 1818, the whole country was up in arms against the British. Most of the chiefs fanned the rebellion, while pretending to be loyal to the British.

Traits

In the eyes of the British, it was a partisan warfare which, from its very nature, was severe and irregular. The traits of heroism among the Sinhalese, their undaunted courage and patriotism were well and visibly seen. Keppetipola Disawa was very active, valiant, enterprising and an ambitious leader praised by the men.

When the position of the country turned from bad to worse, the governor placed the entire kingdom of the Kandyan provinces under martial law.

A great offensive and defensive battles raged between Keppetipola Disawa and Major Macdowall for nine days, and the death toll, on both sides, rose day by day. The decreasing strength of the British troops was given a new life by getting down reinforcements from India. "If not for this move, the Disawa would have wiped out the British quite easily" was the view of Simon Sawers.

Monaravilla dynasty,

Keppetipola Disawa alias Keppetipola Rajapakse Wickremasekera Bandaranayake, hailed from the aristocratic Monaravilla dynasty, well known for heroism. He was born at Galboda in the Four Korales, whose sister Ehelepola Kumarihamy was married to Ehelepola Adikaram, who was instrumental in deposing the last king Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe of Kandy, with the connivance of the British.

Finally, thinking that further attempts to fight the British, would only result in the death of the Sinhalese troops, Keppetipola Disawa disbanded his rebellious army, and made his way towards Anuradhapura, hoping to launch another offensive, at a later date, when the time would prove favourable. From Anuradhapura, he went to Nuwara Kalaviya to live in peace, free from political interference. However, When news reached D'Oyly that Keppetipola Disawa had taken refuge at a place in Nuwarakalaviya, he immediately despatched Capt. O'Neil to follow the rebel chief and arrest him and produce him before Col, Kelly to be tried for organising the rebellion to oust the British from the Kandyan territory.

Courageous

Keppitipola Disawa soon became aware that British troops were on trail to arrest him to be dealt with under the law. Without fear or favour, he impatiently awaited the arrival of the troops under Capt. O'Neil. When he saw the Captain coming to arrest him, without the least hesitation, he went to meet him, shook hands with him and identified himself by saying "I'm Keppetipola". His words were firm and clear and his vibrant voice showed his courage.

Capt. O'Neil was surprised to have confronted with the man he was searching for, in a peaceful manner and without the least resistance, which was unusual for a man who hated the British. Keppetipola was brought to Kandy under escort, and produced before Col. Kelly to be tried for high treason. After trial, he was found guilty against the charges framed. On Nov. 26, 1818, he was taken to be executed followed by two royal executioners, carrying their lethal weapons over their shoulders. It is said that Keppetipola Disawa "walked languidly, without any signs of regret or fear, as a brave man ready to face death for good and valid reasons".

Execution

At the execution grounds, "Keppetipola Disawa rose to his feet, as a brave patriot, and looking at the executioner Iriyagama Kankanama, said that he should give only one blow at his neck and not two. So saying the Disawa asked for the sword from the executioner and checked its sharpness." Thereafter, he had tied his long hair into a knot over his head, and made his neck clear to receive the sword.

Preserved skull

Dr. Henry Marshall, Medical Officer and Deputy Inspector of the Services Hospital, who knew the Disawa well, as a great man who was brave, forward and courageous, with qualities not generally found among men. With due respect to the deceased, Dr. Marshall took his skull to England to be placed at the Phrenological Society in Edinburgh where skulls of great men are kept preserved in honour of the dead.

The skull was returned to the island in 1954, at the request of the Sri Lanka government. It now lies in Kandy for the people to see. The public opinion was that the Disawa should have faced death for a better cause than what he had faced.

Pilimatalave Keppetipola

The heroic saga of Monarawila Keppettipola

Janaka Perera - DN Wed Nov 28 2007

This week marks the 189th anniversary of the execution at Bogambara, Kandy of patriot and national hero Monarawila Keppettipola, who led the 1817-18 Uva rebellion against the British two years after the fall of the Kandyan Kingdom.

The British in fact never conquered the kingdom but seized it through craft and deceit taking advantage of the public opposition to Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe's tyrannical rule and the divisions and intrigue among the Sinhala aristocracy. No English soldier was killed or wounded in the process although they had suffered many casualties an earlier unsuccessful attempt in 1803 to capture the kingdom by armed force.

The alien occupation of the kingdom in March 1815 signalled the end of over two thousand years of self-rule and the whole island became part of the British Empire, paying homage to the English monarch. In should be noted here that the former Nayakkar Kings of Kandy - though their ancestral religion was Hinduism - ruled according to Sinhala customs and recognized Buddhism as the State religion.

Before long the Kandyan Chiefs and the people realised their freedom had been bartered. The Bhikkus joined the people in demanding the King of their own to protect Sinhala way of life and to uphold age-old Buddhist religious traditions.

The British - in accordance with their divide-and-rule policy - appointed one Hadjee as Muhandiram of Wellassa in Uva. Elated by his power the muhandiram began to harass Sinhala villagers by forcibly requisitioning their grain, cattle and temple property causing a racial and cultural conflict.

In the midst of this there appeared a pretender to the Kandyan Throne, known as Wilbawe alias Doraisamy who proclaimed himself king claiming relationship to the late King Rajadhi Rajasinghe (1782-1798). This gave the people a good reason to rise against the British in 1817.

The then Assistant Government Agent, Badulla, S.D. Wilson immediately dispatched a small force under the Muhandiram Hadjee's command to investigate and report. But the rebels captured and killed him along with the guards. Bewildered, Wilson himself led a larger contingent of troops but he too was killed. This prompted the British to declare Martial Law in the entire Kandyan Kingdom.

By 1818 the entire hill country - except part of Sabaragamuwa - had risen against the British. The colonial rulers then sent Monarawila Keppettipola Dissawe with a squad of English soldiers to suppress the rebellion. However the pleadings of his fellow countrymen very much disturbed his conscience.

Keppettipola decided to join the patriots and before taking over their command, dismissed his foreign troops, asking them to take back with them their ammunition and guns. In doing so he declared that it was unbecoming of the Sinhala nation to use the enemy's weapons against the enemy.

The rebellion flared up under Keppettipola and spread through Wellassa, Bintenne, Ulapane, Hewaheta, Kotmale and Dumabara and continued for a year (October 1817 - October 1818). But the rebel force was no match for the superiorly armed British who, with the arrival of foreign reinforcements, eventually captured top rebels - all Kandyan Chieftains - one by one.

The rebels fought more in spirit than in might.

In an act of revenge against the Sinhala peasants for daring to rise against the King of England, the British ordered their troops to destroy all property belonging to the peasants. Soldiers entered villages and completely destroyed houses by setting them on fire, cutting down their fruit trees, jak, bread fruit and coconut. The marauders destroyed the harvest having killed or robbed their cattle.

Sinhala peasants were subjected to horrible deaths - by execution, hunger and disease. They laid waste to the entire area of Wellassa. Many a Sinhala noble and bhikku linked to the rebellion were beheaded to terrorize the population.

No Sri Lankan Government will be able to totally undo the damage that they did to the Uva Province socially, economically and culturally, in the course of brutally crushing the uprising. The repercussions of this genocidal scorched earth policy are felt to this day in the region, where entire villages were wiped out and crops and livestock destroyed.

The London Times of October 7, 1818, reported: ``the plan of destroying all the grain and fruit trees in the neighbourhood of Badulla seems to have been completely carried into effect, a dreadful measure.''

Justice Lawrie, Senior Puisne Judge in colonial Ceylon in A Gazetteer of the Central Province of Ceylon wrote: ``... The story of English rule in the Kandyan country during 1817 and 1818 cannot be related without shame. In 1819 hardly a member of the leading families, the heads of the people, remained alive; those whom the sword and the gun had spared, cholera and small pox and privations had slain by the hundred.'' (Revolt in the Temple )

Keppettipola was arrested at Nuwara Kalaviya, Anuradhapura in October 1818. Following his arrest and that of his lieutenant Madugalle, both were tried by a Court Martial on November 13 and sentenced to death on November 26, 1818. Both of them were beheaded.

Altogether, the death penalty was imposed on 29 rebel leaders while 27 others, including Pilimathalawe, Ihagama, were banished from the country. Ihagama, once a bhikku, was the guiding force behind the rebellion that Keppettipola led.

The then British Deputy Inspector General of Hospitals in Sri Lanka Henry Marshall was sympathetic to Keppettipola and visited him in prison on several occasions. To Marshall (a Scotsman) Keppettipola was like the Scottish Freedom Fighter, Sir William Wallace, whom the English executed in 1306 for `treason' after he rebelled against King Edward I.

Marshall was so impressed by the Kandyan Chief's bravery and intellect that he took possession of the rebel leader's skull after the execution and presented it to the Phrenological Society of Edinburgh.

Returned to Sri Lanka in 1955, the skull now rests in a monument in the Kandy esplanade. A statue of him stands on the Nuwara-Eliya-Badulla road backing the Uva hills where he fought for his motherland.

A very fair British historian, Marshall's believed that ``had the insurrection been successful he would have been honoured and characterised as a patriot instead of being stigmatised and punished as a traitor.''

To this day, tiny villages are found in the Uva Province - up in the mountains and deep down in the valleys. In these huts scattered in the most inaccessible areas live the descendants of the few survivors who escaped the wrath of British troops and hid in remote hamlets.

Ehelapola: ‘Prince of Kandy’ in Mauritius

Lal Keerthie Fernando - DN Wed, Mar 11 2009

We drove from ‘Port Louis’, Capital of Mauritius, going North about 18 km. Once you enter the town, Arsenal, we continued, another 500 metres and at the end of forest by the side of the dual carriageway, a monument I wanted to visit - Monument of Ehelapola.

Reasonably maintained, needing a coat of paint, the monument had its abode since 1829. Mauritian National Heritage Law, cares it well... A short fence which surrounds the monument, reminding us that this ‘Prince of Kandy’ is alone. From the large forest at the back, now and again, a light wind..., which embraces, the monument and them, who are there to pay homage and remember.....!

The odd tourist, usually a British, on his way to the beautiful North of the Island: the coast, dotted with Beach Resorts of repute; where the wealthy and the well known remain in solitude...., would drop by at the monument, to get a glimpse of the British past and history. One or two Sri Lankans, now having stayed in Mauritius for almost three decades, would drop in, on April 24 at the monument; once again to remember....

They would light a candle or a Hadunkooru, on that day, where Ehelapola’s body was laid to rest, in the year, 1829. And..., according to Mauritians - British had collected the ashes after the cremation of Ehelapola, also according to his wishes and Buddhist traditions and placed in a pot made out of copper which was buried beneath the monument. It took me sometime to get over my instincts, as I peeped closer to look at the inscription in English on a faded epitaph, in the sturdy monument.

There it was: “Sacred to the memory of Ehelapola, Wijesundara, Wickramasingha, Chandrasekara, Amarakoon, Wahala Mudianse, late First Adiga or Prime Minister to the King of Kandy, who died on April 24, 1829 - age 57 years”..... It took 133 years for Lanka to have another Prime Minister after the 1815 rebellion! Remaining silent for a while, I was far keener to look around this magnificent monument.

The back of the monument, faced the forest and it was here and to my amazement, I was able to read.., the Sinhalese letters so clear, even after 179 years, inscribed on marble stone. It was a translation of what was on the epitaph in front of the monument. British rulers that time had the inscriptions done in Ceylon and had the plaques shipped to Mauritius.

The Sinhala letters are clear but the style could be easily traced back to the Kandy area, where the inscriptions, probably done by local stone masons. The respect given to Ehelapola, by British rulers willfully eloquent and were to remain, as years passed by.... for others, probably very few to read.

Mauritius was a British colony that time and was known as the ‘Penal Colony’, where British subjects of ill repute and others were deported to Mauritius, from various colonies of the British Empire. Was Ehelapola a traitor or a despotic leader? It is not heard of that British rulers built and preserved monuments for such persons. Or was he just another victim of the British political astute of the bygone period during Governor Robert Brownrigg (1812-1818), Kandy in turmoil?

Ehelapola lived in Mauritius for seven years, probably, arriving there in 1822, as persona non grata, in his own home country but never lived as prisoner confined to four walls but known and well written about him in Mauritius, as the ‘Prince of Kandy’. He lived in style and was in residence at Chateau Mon-Plasir, a mansion, architecture of French Renaissance period.

It was built by the French, by Count Mahe de La Bourdonnais (1735), as Mauritius was a French colony before and the British conquered the island in 1810. It is now owned by wealthy Franco - Mauritian family. It is open to the public; an exclusive restaurant added to its past glory. Ehelapola, must have been at home in such surroundings, reminding him of his own ancestral past and home, ‘Ehelapola Wallauwwa’, the present folklore and Gem museum, at Ratnapura.

The distance from the monument to the traffic congested dual carriage proceeding North is about 10ft. The local Municipality has its plans for development and road widening. Is time running out for history - and for them, who are more keen to know, what historians of varied colour differed?

Sometimes, it is better to see the truth, rather wait to read?

Between Kandy and Matale is the Hamlet - Ehelapola.. Probably, thousands await, not knowing what they should have known! Air Lines of the two countries have now signed a Memorandum of Understanding (M.O.U) for the inauguration of flights between the two countries, Mauritius/Colombo and was headlines in Mauritian media, sometime back.. In the successfully completed SAARC Summit in Colombo, recently, Mauritius held observatory status. As it is said: What “was” ours - “is” ours.

media.fernando@ webspeed.dk