Sri Lanka has a rich history dating back thousands of years.
543 BCE
Prince Vijaya comes to the island from India. Kuveni, a Raksha princess, falls in love with the invader, and their descendants form the Sinhala race, displacing the original inhabitants of the land, the Veddhas.
3rd Century BCE
The Indian emperor Asoka sends his son, the Thera Mahinda, to convert King Tissa of Lanka to Buddhism. Buddhist culture and the Sinhala identity develop. Anuradhapura, the island’s first royal capital, is founded. For 1,500 years extraordinary monuments and architectural masterpieces are built-temples, dagobas, gigantic statues, and huge lakes used for agriculture.
11th century AD
Chola warriors from southern India invade Sri Lanka and destroy Anuradhapura. The Cholas rule Sri Lanka as a province of South India for 75 years and make Polonnaruwa the royal capital. Vijayabahu I drives away the Cholas in 1070.
After the Polonnaruwa era, the royal kingdoms shift southward. Outstanding rulers protect the island’s sovereignty against foreign invaders until the arrival of the Portuguese.
1500
Three kings rule the island—the King of Kotte in the west, King of Jaffna in the north and central hills, and the King of Kandy.
1505
Portuguese merchant ships arrive by accident and the Portuguese establish a trading settlement in Colombo. They build small forts and churches along the coastline. Harsh toward other religions, they convert west coast fishing communities to Roman Catholicism.
1638 - 1658
The King of Kandy allies with the Dutch to rid the island of the Portuguese. Portuguese occupation ends, leaving the Dutch and the King of Kandy to battle for control.
1796
The British drive away the Dutch.
1815
The fall of Kandy leads to British rule of the entire island. The British introduce the plantation system and establish coffee, coconut, cinnamon, and rubber estates, bringing in more than 200,000 Indian workers to work the plantations.
1867
Tea cultivation replaces coffee when fungus destroys the coffee harvest.
