Sri Vikrama Rajasinha

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His Royal Highness Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, Last King of Kandy
His Royal Highness Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, Last King of Kandy

Sri Vikrama Rajasinha (1780 - January 30, 1832) was the last monarch of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). He came to the throne in 1798 after the previous king, Sri Rajadhi Raja Singha, died childless. He was eventually deposed by the British following his defeat in the Kandian Wars.

Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, prior to his coronation was known as Prince Kannasamy. He belonged to the Nayakar dynasty (Nayaks of Kandy) and was the nephew of King Rajadhi Raja Singha. Kannasamy ascended the throne in 1798; adopting the name, Sri Vikrama Raja Sinha at his coronation. He would be the last king of the Nayakar dynasty and the last king of Sri Lanka.

However, there was a rival claimant to succeed King Rajadhi Raja Singha, the brother of Queen Upendramma, who had a stronger claim. However, Pilimatalawe, the first Adigar (Prime Minister) chose Prince Kannasamy, with reportedly deep seated plans to usurp the throne to set a new dynasty of his own. The young king, upon ascending the throne faced many conspiracies and reigned through one of the most turbulent periods in Sri Lanka's history.

[edit] Internal Conflict

During his time, the British who had succeeded the Dutch in the Maritime Provinces had not interfered in the politics of the Kandy. But Pilimatalava, the first Adigar of the king started covert operations with the British, to provoke the King into acts of aggression, which would give the British an excuse to seize the Kingdom. The Adigar manipulated the king into beginning a military conflict with the British, who had gained a strong position in the coastal provinces. War was declared and on March 22, 1803 the British entered Kandy with no resistance, Sri Vikrama Rajasinha having fled. The adigar massacred the British garrison in Kandy in June and restored the king to the throne. Pilimitalava plotted to overthrow the king and seize the crown for himself, but his plot was discovered; and haivng been pardoned on two previous occasions, he was executed.

The disgraced adigar was replaced by his nephew, Ehelepola, who soon came under suspicion of following his uncle in plotting the overthrow of Sri Vikrama Rajasinha. A rebellion instigated by Ehalepola was suppressed, who then fled to Colombo and joined the British. After failing to surrender (after 3 weeks of notice), the exasperated king, dismissed Ehelepola, confiscated his lands and ordered the imprisonment and execution of his wife and children. A propogandised account of the execution was widely circulated by sympathisers.

Ehelepola fled to British-controlled territory, where he persuaded the British that Sri Vikrama Rajasinha's tyranny deserved a military intervention. The pretext was provided by the seizure of a number of British merchants, who were detained on suspicion of spying and were tortured, killing several of them. An invasion was duly mounted and advanced to Kandy without resistance, reaching the city on February 10, 1815. On March 2, the kingdom was ceded to the British under a treaty called the Kandyan Convention. Sri Vikrama Rajasinha was captured and taken as a royal by the British to Vellore Fort in southern India. He lived on a small allowance given to him and his two queens by the British Government. He died of dropsy on January 30, 1832 aged 52 years, bringing to an end the royal line of Kandy.

Regarding the King's reign, the historian L.E. Blaze states that "He was not as ardent a patriot as his immediate successors; nor did he show those mental and moral qualities which enabled former kings to hold their own against rebellion and invasion. To say he was cruel does not mean much, for cruel kings and nobles were not rare in those days; and it is questionable whether all the cruel deeds attributed to Sri Vickrema Rajasinghe were of his own devising or done by his authority. It might be more fair to regard him as a weak tool in the hands of designing chiefs than as the monster of cruelty, which it is an idle fashion with some writers to call him. And it should not be forgotten that he did a good deal to beautify his capital. The lake and the Octagon in Kandy have always been considered the work of the king."

[edit] Miscellaneous

- The current flag of Sri Lanka was Sri Raja Vikrama Sinha's Royal Standard. In September 1945 it was proposed in an address to the State Council that the flag be adopted as Sri Lanka's national flag.

-In 2008, the ‘Sri Lanka Janatha Urumayan Surekeeme Jathika Vyaparaya’ in a written representation to President Mahinda Rajapaksa has said that it has been discovered that the royal standard of the Kandyan Kingdom, last used by King Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe, is now in the possession of a British national. The discovery has been made by a former curator of the Kandy National Museum Senarath Panawatte, the letter addressed to the President by Ven. Medagama Dhammananda Thero and S. Liyanage, President and Secretary respectively of the organisation has said. The organisation also made representations to the Chief Minister, Central Province Sarath Ekanayake regarding the importance of the recovery of the flag

"This House is of opinion that the Royal Standard of King Sri Wickrama Raja Sinha depicting a yellow lion passant holding a sword in its right paw on a red background, which was removed to England after the Convention of 1815, should once again be adopted as the official flag of Free Lanka."

- It is claimed that an allowance was paid to his next-of-kin for next 156 years, ending after Sri Lanka gained independence from Great Britain.

- Kandy Lake, an artificial lake overlooking Kandy was constructed by Sri Vikrama Raja Singha.


[edit] Sources

Sri Vikrama Rajasinha
Regnal titles
Preceded by
Sri Rajadhi Raja Singha		 King of Kandy
1798.–1815		 Succeeded by
George III of the United Kingdom
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