Portuguese Ceylon

Portuguese Ceylon
Ceilão Português
Portuguese colony
←   ←   ← 1505–1658 →   →
Flag Coat of arms
Maximum extent of Portuguese rule in Ceylon in blue
Capital		Colombo
Languages		Portuguese, Tamil, Sinhala
Political structure		Colony
Captains
•	1518-1518	João da Silveira
•	1522-1524	Fernão Gomes de Lemos
Captain-majors
•	1551-1552	João Henriques
•	1591-1594	Pedro Homem Pereira
Governors
•	1594-1594	Pedro Lopes de Sousa
•	1656-1658	António de Amaral de Meneses
Historical era		Colonialism
•	Contact and trade with the Kotte Kingdom	15 August 1505
•	Fall of Portuguese Ceylon	14 January 1658
Currency		Portuguese Tanga (TCP)

Portuguese Ceylon (Portuguese: Ceilão Português, Sinhala: පෘතුගීසි ලංකාව Patugisi Lankava) was a Portuguese territory in present-day Sri Lanka, representing a period in Sri Lankan history from 1505–1658. The Portuguese first encountered the Ceylonese kingdom of Kotte, with whom they signed a treaty. Portuguese Ceylon was established through the occupation of Kotte and the conquest of surrounding Sinhalese kingdoms. In 1565 the capital of Portuguese Ceylon was moved from Kotte to Colombo. Christianization attempts by the Portuguese furthered friction with the Sinhalese people.

Eventually, the Ceylonese sought help from the Dutch Empire in their struggle for liberation. The Dutch Empire initially entered into agreement with the Kingdom of Kandy. After the collapse of the Iberian economy in 1627, the Dutch-Portuguese War saw the Dutch conquest of most of Portugal's Asian colonies. Eventually, Portugal's Ceylonese territories were ceded to the Netherlands. Nevertheless, there remain elements of Portuguese culture in Sri Lanka today from this colonial period.

Part of a series on the
History of Kandy
Kingdom of Kandy (1469–1815)
Founding Sinhalese–Portuguese War Kandyan Treaty of 1638 Portuguese Ceylon Treaty of Batticaloa Kandyan Wars
Colonial Kandy (1815–1948)
Kandyan Convention Matale Rebellion South East Asia Command
Kandy (1948–present)
Modern Kandy
See also
An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon List of Kandyan Monarchs History of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka portal

Administration

Portuguese Captains of Ceilão (1518–1551)

Main article: List of Captains of Ceilão

Portuguese Captain-majors of Ceilão (1551–1594)

Main article: List of Captain-majors of Ceilão

Portuguese Governors of Ceilão (1594–1658)

Main article: List of Governors of Ceilão

See also

• Dutch Ceylon
• British Ceylon
• Battle of Randeniwela

References

• Ceylon and the Portuguese, 1505-1658 (1920). Author: Pieris, P. E. (Paulus Edward), 1874-; Naish, Richard Bryant, 1891- Subject: Sri Lanka -- History
• Portuguese History in Ceylon
• C. Gaston Pereira, Kandy fights the Portuguese. Sri Lanka: Vijitha Yapa Publications, July 2007. ISBN 978-955-1266-77-6
• Channa Wicremasekera, Kandy at War. Sri Lanka: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2004. ISBN 955-8095-52-4
• Michael Roberts, Sinhala Consciousness in the Kandyan Period. Sri Lanka: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2004. ISBN 955-8095-31-1,
• Abeysinghe, Tikiri (2005). Jaffna under the Portuguese. Colombo: Stamford Lake. p. 66. ISBN 955-1131-70-1. 
• Kunarasa, K (2003). The Jaffna Dynasty. Johor Bahru: Dynasty of Jaffna King’s Historical Society. p. 122. ISBN 955-8455-00-8. 
• Gnanaprakasar, Swamy (2003). A Critical History of Jaffna (review of Yalpana Vaipava Malai). New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 122. ISBN 81-206-1686-3. 
• Senaka Weeraratna, Repression of Buddhism in Sri Lanka by the Portuguese (1505 - 1658)(http://vgweb.org/unethicalconversion/port_rep.htm)2005