Ruwanwella fort (Sinhala: රුවන්වැල්ල බලකොටුව Ruwanwælla Balakotuwa; Tamil: உருவான்வெல்லைக் கோட்டை, romanized: Uruvāṉvellaik Kōṭṭai), was initially a fortified base camp erected by the Portuguese in 1590s at Ruwanwella, Kegalle, Sri Lanka.[1][2] It was captured by Dutch in 1665, who constructed a wooden fort (Ruanelle)[3] but abandoned it within a few years.[4] In 1817 the British built a stone fort on the site with two bastions.[5]
| Ruwanwella fort | |
|---|---|
| Kegalle, Sri Lanka | |
  Ruwanwella fort | |
| Coordinates | 7°02′46″N 80°15′15″E / 7.045984°N 80.254049°E |
| Type | Defence fort |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Government of Sri Lanka |
| Condition | good |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1817 |
| Built by | British |
Ruwanwella fort is currently being used as a police station.[6]
References
edit- ^ Valentijn, François; Arasaratnam, Sinnappah (1978). François Valentijn's Description of Ceylon. Hakluyt Society. p. 146. ISBN 978-0-904180-06-0.
- ^ Abeyasinghe, Tikiri (1966). Portuguese Rule in Ceylon, 1594–1612. Lake House Investments. p. 28.
- ^ "Ruwanwella". Atlas of Mutual Heritage. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ "Forte de Ruwanwella". Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ Fernando, Kishanie S. (29 August 2005). "Fort of Ruwanwella – A Historic Fort and a Wayside Ambalama". The Daily Mirror.
- ^ "Ruwanwella: Colourful history of battles and diplomacy". The Sunday Times. 1 July 2012. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
Further reading
edit- Nelson, W. A.; de Silva, Rajpal Kumar (2004). The Dutch Forts of Sri Lanka – The Military Monuments of Ceylon. Sri Lanka Netherlands Association.
External links
edit- Ruwanwella (in Dutch)