Vimaladharmasuriya I of Kandy
Vimaladharmasūriya I | |
---|---|
Thrisinhaladheeshwara King of Kandy | |
Reign | 1592–1604 |
Predecessor | Rajasinha I of Sitawaka |
Successor | Senarat of Kandy |
Born | Konappu Bandara Peradeniya, Sri Lanka |
Died | 1604 Royal Palace, Kandy, Sri Lanka. |
Burial | Royal Cremation Yard, Asgiri Temple, Kandy, Sri Lanka. |
Consort | Queen Kusumasana Devi of Kandy |
Spouses | Dona Amelia (Yakadadoli) |
Issue |
|
Sinhala | පළමුවන විමලධර්මසූරිය |
Father | Virasundara Bandara |
Mother | Kosbokke Gedara Vimalu (concubine of Virasundara Bandara) |
Religion | Theravada Buddhism previous Roman Catholicism |
Vimaladharmasūriya I was a king of
Origin
Name
Vimaladharmasuriya I is referred to by four names by different sources. Rajavaliya[2] mentions his early name as Konappu Bandara and says he is the son of a Kandyan chieftain, Weerasundara Bandara of Peradeniya. Reports of early Dutch visitors Sebald de Veert and Joris van Spilbergen mention him as Don João da Austria.[3] Joao Rebeiro mentions one Don Juan Appuhamy, a commoner who was sent to conquer the kingdom of Kandy and of Konnapu Bandara. Historians have also noted that from 1604 to 1617 there is little information available as to what happened in the Kandyan Kingdom.[4] Therefore, there is the possibility of mixing up of several personalities by later historians in reconstructing the history of that period. As per the deed given by this king to the chief commander of Campaign of Danture, his mother's name is Kosbokke Gedara Vimalu, after whom he took up his name Vimaladharmasuriya.[5][6]
Early life
Vimaladharmasuriya I, known as Konappu Banḍāra or Galagoda Wimaladharmasurya Bandara before his ascension, was the son of a distinguished aristocrat, from
Trouble in the Kingdom
Under the Portuguese and Baptism
Because of his father's murder Konappu Bandara secretly ran away from Kandy to the Portuguese fort at Colombo. He was sent to Goa by the Portuguese and in there he was Baptised as Dom João and learned fighting techniques from Portuguese. It was said that he attended some of the battles there with the Portuguese. The ruler appointed by Rajasinghe l for the Kandyan Kingdom was Nikapitiye Bandara who turned out to be a ruthless ruler.
Reign
Kingship
King Vimaladharmasuriya is regarded by some historians as the Kandyan Kingdom's second founder, responsible for its revival. He was baptized under the
Welcoming the Dutch
The Dutch explorer
Buddhism
At the time of Vimaladharmasuriya's coronation Buddhism was on the verge of disappearing from the island. The king learned that ordained Buddhist monks no longer existed on the island so he sent one of his ministers to
In popular culture
- Portrayed by Sangeeth Satharasinghe in the 2019 TV Derana TV series Kusumasana Devi.
See also
References
Citations
- ^ "chapter 1, Kandyan kingdom, page 15".
- ^ "රාජාවලිය - රාජාවලිය iii - Wikibooks". si.wikibooks.org. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- ^ Earliest Dutch Visitors to Ceylon, Nissanka Perera, S. Godage and Brothers, 2008
- ^ Kandy Fights the Portuguese, C. Gaston Perera, Vijithayapa Publications, 2007
- ^ "What happened at Danthure 400 years ago". archives.sundayobserver.lk. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- ^ "මවගෙ නමින් රජවූ අපූරු සිංහලයා". 2019-10-02. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
- ^ Obeyesekere 2017, p. 161.
- .
He also took actions to enhance the cotton industry. He took steps to develop thee iron and steel industries at Kotmale and Walpane, as well as the nitrite industry in the Kandyan Kingdom.
- ISBN 9788170172819. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- ^ Culavamsa
Bibliography
- Gananath Obeyesekere (2017). "Between the Portuguese and the Nāyakas: the many faces of the Kandyan Kingdom, 1591– 1765". In Biedermann, Zoltan; Strathern, Alan (eds.). Sri Lanka at the crossroads of history. London: UCL Press. ISBN 9781911307846.