Establishment of British Power in Sri Lanka PDF

C H A P T E R 2 Establishment of British Power in Sri Lanka Introduction You studied in grade 10, how the Portuguese came to Asia and how the Portuguese and the Dutch people occupied the coastal region of Sri Lanka. After those two nations, the ne...

C H A P T E R 2 Establishment of British Power in Sri Lanka Introduction You studied in grade 10, how the Portuguese came to Asia and how the Portuguese and the Dutch people occupied the coastal region of Sri Lanka. After those two nations, the next European nation that imposed its power on Sri Lanka was the British. They who spoke English language were called the English. This lesson explains how the English established their power in Sri Lanka and the struggles that arose against them in the first half of the 19th century. 2.1 Arrival of British in Asia The English who noticed that the Portuguese and the Dutch people were earning a lot of profit from the trade activities in Asia, also paid their attention to Asia. As a result, a group of English businessmen established the East India Trade Company in December 1600, by a royal warrant obtained from Queen Elizabeth I to do trade activities in Asia. The first fleet of ships of this company had gone to Sumatra islands and started trade. Then, another fleet of ships came to India under William Hokins and conducted discussions about trade with the Mughal emperor, Jahangir. At the beginning of their visits to Asia, the English tried to tighten their trade relations with Southeast Asian region. There had been fights between the Portuguese and the Dutch to claim the trade power in Southeast Asia during the first two decades of the 17th century. At certain occasions, the English have given their assistance to the Dutch against the Portuguese. The Dutch never expected to see the English developing a power in Southeast Asian islands where spices grew well, although they obtained the help of the English to fight their common enemy, the Portuguese. Because of this, in 1623, the Dutch attacked a fortress in a spices island, Ambon and killed a group of English people living there. As the English did not have sufficient power in the region to retaliate the Dutch attack, they withdrew themselves from the southeast asian region. It seems that they completely focused their attention on India after that. - 19 - It took more than 10 years for the English to establish trade relations with India though they tried it since 1607. As the English worked very tactfully in India, they were able to start trade centres in several areas such as Bombay, Calcutta and Madras by the latter part of the 17th century. Yet, the English had to compete with the French other than the Dutch to protect their trade because from 1664, the French also came to India and established trade centres in places like Pondicherry, Karikal and Chadranagar. A political battle began between the British and the French by the 18th century to establish their power in India. 2.2 The British focusing their Attention on Sri Lanka The English did not pay any attention to Sri Lanka for about a century after they came to India. The reasons for this are that the English had not yet firmly established their power in India and the Dutch had a strong fort system in the coastal line of the island followed by the Portuguese. The English began to pay more attention to Sri Lanka when they who were satisfied so far with trade power, started exercising political power on India in the first half of the 18th century because the Mughal empire in India started to decline. There were two major reasons for that special attention. 1. The location of Sri Lanka 2. Getting valuable trade items such as cinnamon from Sri Lanka The English felt the importance of Sri Lanka owing to two reasons. They were; the location of Sri Lanka close to India and Sri Lanka being an excellent centre for the administration of naval and trade activities in the maritime zone around India including the Bay of Bengal. The English strongly felt the necessity of a harbour to repair the ships damaged due to enemy attacks in the fights between the British and the French around the Bay of Bengal. The English had a special interest in the Trincomalee harbour. Some reasons that made the English to pay attention to the Trincomalee harbour are given below.  The location of Sri Lanka facing the Bay of Bengal  It was important for the British to protect the naval power in the eastern coast of India  The ability to use Tricomalee harbour to protect ships from monsoon winds that come from Northeastern region - 20 -  Trincomalee harbour Map 2.1 – Location of Sri Lanka and the Trincomalee harbour The English knew that if the Trincomalee harbour which was an excellent centre for the security of India and for regulating the naval activities in the Indian Ocean fell into the hands of the French it would be a great loss for them. Hence, the importance of the geographical location of Sri Lanka and the great importance of the Trincomalee harbour became the major reasons to draw the attention of the English to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka was a famous country for spices like cinnamon even by that time. The English knew that Sri Lanka produced high quality cinnamon which had a good demand in the European market and the Dutch earned a great profit by selling cinnamon. Therefore, the English wanted to take the sole authority of selling cinnamon into their hands. Other than cinnamon; pepper, cardamom, cloves, pearls, gems and ivory were some other items that had a good market. The English wanted to establish the political power in this country because of the above mentioned reasons.  ACTIVITY 1 Discuss the factors that drew the attention of the English to Sri Lanka under the following headings. - Location of Sri Lanka - Ability to obtain spices such as cinnamon - 21 -  Diplomatic Relationships between the English and the Kandyan Kingdom In the same way that they sought the assistance of the Dutch to chase the Portuguese away from Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan kings thought of seeking the assistance of some other nation to drive away the Dutch too. Therefore, King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe sent messengers to both the English who were in India and the French. That paved the way for the English messengers to reach the kingdom of Kandy. Three English messengers had visited the Kandyan kingdom several times before they captured the hill country.  In 1762, John Pybus came to the hill country  In 1782, Hugh Boyd came to the hill country  In 1795, Robert Andrews came to the hill country King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe was the ruler of the upcountry when John Pybus came there. The other two messengers came during the reign of King Rajadhirajasinghe. The English intended to establish trade relationships with Sri Lanka through the visits of John Pybus and Hugh Boyd. The English and the Dutch stopped their fighting during these visits and used the Trincomalee harbour in mutual understanding when it was needed. As a result the English were reluctant to help the king against the Dutch. The kings of the hill country were not interested in creating bonds with a nation that was not ready to help them defeat the Dutch. Therefore, the first two diplomatic visits were not successful. After the English navy captured the Trincomalee harbour which was in the hands of the Dutch, in 1795, Robert Andrews visited the hill country and met King Rajadhirajasinghe. The purpose of his visit was to discuss with the king how they could get the assistance of the kingdom of Kandy in the fights to conquer the areas governed by the Dutch. The king agreed to support the English forces. Yet, the English, after capturing the Dutch fortresses, understood that the battle against the Dutch was not as hard as they anticipated. Therefore, the English did not like to share with the Sinhala kings, the profits they would receive by capturing the Dutch held areas. As a result, the English did not wish to agree to the conditions of the king and establish long lasting relationships with the king of the hill country. - 22 -   ACTIVITY 2 Complete the following table with the information about the diplomatic visits by the English to the hill country. Year Name of the messenger Purpose of the visit Result 2.3. Establishment of British Power Three distinguished stages can be seen in the colonization of Sri Lanka by the British.  The English East India Trade Company capturing the coastal areas of the island in 1796.  Turning the coastal areas governed under the East India Trade Company into a colony of the British crown.  Capturing the hill country by the British in 1815.  Establishment of British Power in the Coastal Areas of Sri Lanka The new political situation that emerged in Europe after the French revolution in 1789, affected the colonization in Asia by the Europeans. The army of the newly formed French government after the French revolution invaded Holland in 1794. King William V who was the Stadtholder of Holland escaped to Britain. Holland, the country of the Dutch fell into the hands of the French. As a result there was the danger of the Sri Lankan coastal areas governed by the Dutch, falling into the hands of the French. The English, who very well knew the value of Sri Lanka, used this opportunity to capture Sri Lanka. The English made the Stadtholder of Holland who was seeking refuge in Britain due to the French attack, send a letter to their advantage to the Dutch governor of Sri Lanka. - 23 - Because the Stadtholder sent the letter from the Kew palace of Britain, it is known as the Kew letter. The letter said that the English troops should be allowed into the Dutch held areas of Sri Lanka in order to prevent them from falling into the hands of the French. The Dutch governor of the island, Funn Englebeck received the letter in February 1795. Yet, he was reluctant to let the English troops into his fortresses. Because of that the English attacked the Dutch held Trincomalee in 1795. The Dutch surrendered to the English with no conditions. Fig 2.1 – The Dutch stadtholder , William V Fig 2.2 – The Kew Palace in England After Trincomalee fell into the hands of the British many other fortresses such as; Batticaloa, Mullathivu, Point Pedro, Jaffna, Mannar soon surrendered to the English. Because both Colombo and Galle surrendered to the English, all areas that were under the Dutch fell into the hands of the English. A treaty was signed between the Dutch and the English, allowing the Dutch to leave the country peacefully, avoiding a further loss for them. This was signed on February 16th. With that the coastal areas which were in the hands of the Dutch fell into the hands of the English.  Governance of the Coastal Areas under the East Indian Trade Company When the Portuguese and the Dutch ruled the coastal belt of Sri Lanka, they had organized the administration well using native officers as much as possible. Yet, the English Trade Company did not understand this. Therefore the English hired - 24 - officers from the Madras government and governed the parts they captured under Madras rulers. This lasted from 1796 to 1798. A Resident was appointed to Sri Lanka under the Madras administration to rule the coastal areas of Sri Lanka. A group of assistant supervisors was appointed under the Resident to collect income and they were named as collectors. Their service centre was named as Kachcheri. That was how the Kachcheri system was started in Sri Lanka. Another group of officers was appointed in assistance to the collectors who were called as Avumildars. More officers were there to help the Avumildars and all these groups were engaged in collecting income under the supervision of collectors. The local officers like Mudliers were ignored in the English administration. People were brought from Madras for the above posts and those who came from Madras did not have any knowledge about the local languages, culture and traditions. The relationship between the general public and the administrative officers became distanced because such a group of officers was appointed for the civil administration, legal system and income collection. The India Trade Company had spent a lot of money in capturing the coastal belt of Sri Lanka. Another significant feature of the British administration is their attempts to cover the above mentioned cost and to achieve fast profits. They imposed several new taxes in the coastal areas to meet the above target. People in the coastal areas were in trouble when they had to pay those taxes in cash. One such example is the newly introduced ‘tax on coconut trees.’ Thus, someone who owned more than 10 coconut trees had to pay a tax of one silver panam (six cents) for each coconut tree. People were irritated because the tax was charged without considering the nature of the harvest and they had to pay it in cash. This soon became an insurgency due to the repugnance of the general public towards the new administration. This rebellion that began in 1797 against the India Trade Company extended to all coastal areas quickly. This was suppressed after much effort by the British. This insurgency gave evidence to the fact that there was much resistance to the English administration at its very beginning. Therefore, a commission was appointed to look into the situation of the coastal areas and suggest changes. This commission was named as Meuron commission after the name of Brigadier General De Meuron who headed the commission. Some proposals of the Meuron Commission; Replacing the madras tax collecting officers with local officers. - 25 - Removal of new taxes including the tax on coconut trees. Appointing officers for legal affairs and income collection separately. Re-establishment of the Dutch court system. A change occurred in the English administration of the coastal areas of this country since October, 1798. Thus, the British government appointed a governor for the administrative and political affairs. That is how the governor, Fredric North came to Sri Lanka. Still, it was the Trade Company that was in charge of collecting income to cover up the expenditure incurred by the English Trade Company, in capturing the coastal areas of Sri Lanka. The governor is responsible for the British crown and should follow the instructions of the board of directors of the Trade company. This system of administration was known as ‘dual administration.’ This system continued from 1798 to 1802. The officers of the Trade Company in Sri Lanka did not give enough support to the governor, North. Due to such failures in the dual administration system, it was discontinued in 1802 and the coastal regions of Sri Lanka were declared a colony of the British crown. After that all parts that belonged to the British were directly governed by the British government.  ACTIVITY 3 Build short questions and answers under the topic, “Conquering the Coastal Parts of Sri Lanka by the British.”  Conquering the Hill Country by the British Fig 2.3 – Kandy, a natural place of security - 26 - There were two Nayakkar princes who were heirs to the throne by the time King Rajadhirajasinghe died in 1798. One was Kannasami and the other was Muththusami. According to a plan of Pilimathalawe who was the ‘Maha Adikaram’ of the hill country kingdom, prince Kannasami was coronated as ‘Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe.’ Then, prince Muththusami escaped to the English for protection. The British, soon after establishing their power in the coastal regions of the country, eyed on the hill country kingdom also. The policy of the governor, Fredric North is very significant here. He tried to get the consent of the hill country king to a treaty which was more advantageous to the British. He sent envoys to the hill country headed by Commander MacDowell in 1800. He strengthened the convoy with 1164 soldiers and 8 cannons in order to display their military power and get the king’s consent to a treaty which was more beneficial for them. Yet, King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe denied the permission of allowing such a massive army and cannons entering the Fig 2.4 – King Sri Wickrama upcountry. As a result the envoys had to enter the Rajasinghe kingdom alone leaving the soldiers and cannons outside the upcountry. Though MacDowell had discussions with the king and the other aristocrats, the king did not agree to the conditions of the British. So, this mission became a complete failure. North was distressed because he could not get the sanction of the king. He considered the independent government of the upcountry as a threat to their power in the coastal regions. Because the British had to employ a massive army for the security of the coastal areas and the protection of the inland territories, they were forced to bear a huge cost. Another problem they faced was that the general public of the coastal areas still accepted the upcountry king as their king too and when there were insurgencies the upcountry king helped the rebels. The British further knew that if the upcountry king happened to request the support of the French who were the enemies of the British, that would be an added threat to their administration. On the other hand, the English wanted to have contact with Trincomalee which was their main naval centre from the administration centre of Colombo via land. They had to cross the territories of the upcountry in order to keep contact between Colombo and Trincomalee. The English wanted to build a road between these two cities. Owing to the above reasons, the British paid their attention to either conquering the upcountry or winning their good will. - 27 -  Invasion of the Hill Country in 1803 When MacDowell’s mission failed to give the expected results, the governor, North decided to invade the hill country. So, North sent two troops of soldiers to the hill country from Trincomalee and Colombo in January and February, 1803. In this invasion, which was headed by MacDowell, the British troops entered the hill country on 21st of February. King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe and the citizens vacated the city as a security measure and started organizing themselves. The British named prince Muttusami who had been brought to the upcountry with them as the king. But, the people of upcountry started to get together with king Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe and prepared for the war ignoring Muttusami. The British had to face unexpected difficulties with the beginning of the rainy season because epidemics started spreading among the British troops. At the same time, as a result of the upcountry people blocking all supply means, the English suffered due to lack of food and difficulty of communication with Colombo. The English troops suffered heavy losses under the timely attacks of the upcountry people. Happening to let their puppet ruler, prince Muttusami to be captured by the upcountry people, provides evidence to the seriousness of the defeat the British experienced. Before this attack, the governor North did not have a clear understanding about the hill country. Yet, when his invasion ended in defeat, he understood that the upcountry kingdom is strong and it cannot be overpowered by such attacks. Hence, the British moved into a highly tactful policy regarding the hill country after the invasion of 1803.  Invasion of the Hill Country in 1815 Thomas Maitland was appointed the governor of Sri Lanka at the end of the governor North’s session of duty in 1805. Unlike North, he did not hasten to invade the hill country; instead moved into a strategic policy and started carefully laying the platform for a future invasion. He employed an efficient civil servant named John D'Oyly for this.  John D'Oyly John D'Oyly was a graduate of the Cambridge University. He tried to understand the local culture after coming to Sri Lanka unlike the others who looked down upon it. He engaged himself in studies under the Buddhist monks like Rev. Korathota - 28 - Dhammarama and Rev. Morathota Dhammakkandha. The folklore says that D'Oyly was capable of composing poems in contest to Gajaman Nona. D'Oyly who had an excellent knowledge about local customs was in the habit of chewing betel also. As a result he was capable of winning the hearts of not only the general public but also the aristocrats of the hill country. D'Oyly completed his duty successfully using his sharp intelligence and talents. Fig 2.5 – John D'Oyly with the hill country aristocrats John D'Oyly worked hard to cultivate secret connections with the upcountry aristocrats and tried to win them towards the English people. Further, he took steps to send spies in the disguise of sellers and palm readers and got them to gather all information about the internal affairs of the kingdom. As a result he was able to find out information about the internal security of the hill country, which all other Europeans were ignorant of. It was Robert Brownrigg that became the governor of Sri Lanka after Maitland who took the advantage of the conditions created by Maitland and D'Oyly and took further steps to capture the hill country. It was not only the strategies of the British that paved the way to the falling of the hill country to the hands of the British. A number of other situations that accelerated the downfall of the hill country had been created during the reign of King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe. The king who was very young and inexperienced seemed to have taken decisions following the advice of his Nayakkar relations. The last two Maha Adhikarams of the hill country had had disagreements with the king. Pilimathalawwe Maha Adhikaram who worked to offer the throne to the king too was sentenced to death by the king as a result of the problems they had with each other. There were incongruities between Ehalepola Adhikaram who was the successor of Pilimathalawwe Maha Adhikaram and the king. During the reign of King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, disparities among the aristocrats increased. As a result, the majority of the aristocrats worked against the king. They - 29 - were the group that acted as the leaders in organizing the general public to protect the king and the kingdom during the early invasions of the Europeans. The relationship between the king and the monks had also been broken because several monks had been killed during that time. The bond between the king and the people had also been broken due to some decisions the king made during the last few years of his reign. The king prohibited staying in the city at night for the people who had come from regions like Sabaragamuwa, Sath Korala and Sathara Korala for the services like extending the Bogambara tank, building the ‘Paththirippu’ (the octagon) and renovations of the Kandy city. Therefore, they faced a number of difficulties. Though the rebellion against the king that arose in Sabaragamuwa could have been, easily suppressed more than 100 individuals were killed in it. History says that the king ordered to brutally massacre the wife and the children of Ehalepola because he could not be arrested after the rebellion. These inhuman acts of the king had created a wide gap between the king and the people of the country by 1815. Whenever the Europeans invaded the upcountry, the aristocrats and the general public sacrificed their lives to protect the king. The same human shield that guarded the upcountry kingdom turned against the king because of his own deeds. As a result the king was at danger in his own kingdom and this became an advantage to the British. The governor, Brownrigg took advantage of this situation and when he invaded the upcountry in January 1815, people did not come forward to protect the king. The governor had spread messages among the upcountry people saying that their real enemy was not the British people but the king himself and the invasion is really for the sake of the upcountry people. King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe gave up the Kandy city and escaped to a secure place as the British invaded the upcountry. The upcountry people themselves surrounded the place where the king was hiding which was in ‘Medamahanuwara.’ They captured the king and the queens and handed them over to the British on the 18th of February, 1815. The British were able to record a victory that any other European nation could not record in the hill country with this arrest of the king. But, the British did not think that they captured the whole upcountry just because they caught the king. They could arrest the king because they were supported by the aristocrats. Therefore, the British took steps to sign a treaty with the aristocrats and complete the process of capturing the whole of the upcountry. - 30 -  Fig 2.6 – The monument established in Medamahanuwara, at the place where King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe was arrested  Upcountry Treaty – 1815 On the 2nd of March, 1815 a treaty was signed between the aristocrats representing the upcountry people and the governor, Brownrigg representing the British government at the royal courts (Magul Maduwa), about the yielding of upcountry kingdom. This is known as the upcountry treaty. Fig 2.7 – The moment when Rev. Wariyapola Sri Sumangala thero hoisted the Sri Lankan national flag dragging down the English flag There is a belief that Rev. Wariyapola Sri Sumangala thero dragged down the English flag and hoisted the Sri Lankan flag when some Englishman hoisted their flag before the treaty was signed after the statements of the treaty were read and explained on the 2nd of March in the royal courts. Some records say that the governor, Brownrigg and some aristocrats signed the treaty on the 10th of March. - 31 - The upcountry treaty is an important historical document that officially accepted the surrendering of the upcountry kingdom to the British. From the first three statements of the treaty King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe and his relations were stripped off of their rights to the upcountry kingdom. The fourth statement declared that the upcountry kingdom surrendered to the English government and further informed that they would govern the country in such a way that the rights and privileges of the traditional aristocrats of the upcountry are protected. The fifth statement promised the continuation of Buddhism and Devagam and the protection of monks, temples and devalas. The other statements explained how they expected to conduct the judiciary system of the upcountry. With this treaty Sri Lanka completely lost its sovereignty which lasted unbroken for more than 2000 years and became a colony of a foreign country. The British started enjoying the power vested upon them by the treaty and appointed John D'oyly as a residential representative of the governor for regional affairs. His office was opened in Kandy and a group of officers was appointed to assist him. The English government offered positions for the aristocrats who agreed to serve under the British administration. Thus the people of the upcountry who used to enjoy an independent ruling system for more than three centuries had to live under an administration system run by a group of foreign rulers.  ACTIVITY 4 Prepare a book of short questions for the following headings. The background of the British arrival to Asia The British paying attention to Sri Lanka The British establishing power in Sri Lanka 2.4. Protests against Foreign Domination Although the people of the upcountry could escape the obstinate ruling of King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe with the arrival of the British to the hill country in 1815, they did not have any partiality to the administration system that continued thereafter. They, in no time understood that they had lost the independence that they protected by fighting and sacrificing their lives against the European invaders like the Portuguese and the Dutch. Therefore, they rose against the English in 1818 and 1848 using their traditional ways of attack. The natives called them as attempts to win the lost independence back by chasing the foreigners away from the hill country whereas the British interpreted them as rebellions against the government. - 32 - Therefore they became the first freedom struggles that arose against the British administration. Let’s now discuss the struggle of 1818.  The Struggle for Freedom in 1818 The armed insurgencies against the English government that existed from September, 1817 to October 1818 in the hill country were called as the Struggle for Freedom in 1818. The aristocrats and the general public moved to such a struggle even before three years after the English administration started because of the dissatisfaction they had about the ruling system. This proves that there had been several reasons that encouraged the hill country people for the 1818 struggle.  Reasons for the 1818 Struggle The regret of the loss of a king and the freedom. It is clear that the people of the upcountry had grievances over the loss of freedom they enjoyed under a ruling system of their own even during the times when the low country was governed by the Portuguese and the Dutch. Even though it was announced after the colonization that the king of Britain was the king of the upcountry also; the people of the hill country had never seen the so called king. They wanted a king who lived in their capital city, who could listen to their grievances and give solutions to them instead of a never seen king who lived in a country thousands of miles away. Because they could not see a king they tend to believe that the country was throneless. The following two poems believed to be composed by a monk who lived those days displaying the distress they had because they did not have a king. Oh! Dear ants you have a king what can we do this is our destiny when will we have a king to celebrate with milk rice respect with pageants chant with “sadu sadu” Fig 2.8 – The throne of King Sri Wikrama Rajasinghe - 33 -  Emergence of Problems about Religion and Culture The people of the hill country did not believe that a set of foreigners who are not Buddhists would give the same protection that would be given by a Buddhist king although the English had promised in the 5th statement of the upcountry treaty to protect Buddhism. This is evident in the statements such as, conducting pageants and chanting ‘sadu, sadu’. Another example for this is the support of monks for the struggle. The people of the hill country suspected that their traditions and culture would be destroyed in the hands of foreigners. Under a traditional ruling system a king’s major duty was to protect the customs. There were a number of traditions regarding the palace, courts and administration matters. Uniforms were designed for each post under the old administration in a way that they were honoured and respected. But, the English soldiers who came to the Kandy city did not follow those traditions. As a result, a gap was created between the British and the people of the hill country religiously as well as culturally. This generated a desire for freedom in the hearts of the upcountry people.  Attacks on the Upcountry Aristocrats Although the British continued with the traditional upcountry posts according to the 1815 treaty, the social status and the power of the aristocrats were not stable. They had complained to D'oyly that the British soldiers did not respect them. The traditional earnings of the aristocrats too were challenged. One example for this is the loss of income the aristocrats suffered because the English cancelled the tax called “kadwath badda”. The British could change the traditional posts of the aristocrats as well. There was a tradition to always appoint a Sinhalese to the post of ‘Madihe Mohandiram’ who was in charge of upcountry transport. But the British breaking this tradition, appointed a Muslim called ‘Hajji Marikkar’ to this post. This created a distress among the aristocrats of Uva Wellassa. They tend to lead the struggle because their privilege, status and earnings were attacked in many ways.  Nature of the Struggle While there was a growing displeasure about the British administration among the upcountry people, a person called Doresami emerged from Wellassa who claimed to be an heir to the throne. The Badulla agent Douglas Wilson, came to know that he was gathering forces to regain the kingdom with the help of the local elite like ‘Kohu Kumbure Rate Rala’. Hence, Douglas Wilson sent a platoon with Hajji Muhandiram to arrest Doresami. Yet, he was killed by the rebels. Then Douglas - 34 - Wilson too was killed by an archer when he set out to arrest Doresami. When the government noticed that the people of Wellassa were gathering around Doresami, they sent Kappetipola who was in charge of Uva to control the situation. Nevertheless, Keppetipola returned the English troops that came with him and joined the rebels. This resulted in the fights spreading to many parts of the upcountry. Among the aristocrats, only Molligoda and Eknaligoda Disawe did not join the fights. Doresami was declared the upcountry king by the rebels under the guidance of Kappetipola. Kappetipola Disawe was appointed the Mahaadikaram of the new king. Another problem the British faced was the Tooth Relic which was believed to be the symbol of the kingship falling into the hands of rebels. Ehelepola too was suspected by the British because of the close kinship he had with the other aristocrats who were leading the struggle though he did not join the fights. Because of that he was arrested and brought to Colombo by the British. The British were too vicious in suppressing the battle. The governor imposed martial law to the upcountry in February, 1818. The British troops that were there in the coastal regions were summoned to the upcountry. They followed a land sweeping policy to wipe out the rebels. Setting fire to villages, arresting as many men as possible and prosecuting under martial law were some strategies they used. The upcountry people could not persist with the battle in the face of the harsh retaliation of the British. So, the British were able to arrest several leaders of the battle. Some of those arrested were Maththamagoda, Kobbekaduwa, Dambawinna Disawe and Galagedara Mohottala, Basnayaka Nilame of Katharagama, Butawe Rate Rala and Ehelepola Adikaram. The English spread news saying that the Fig 2.9 – Kappetipola Disawe one who said to be the king in the battle was not the real Doresami and he was not the real heir to the throne. There were disputes among the main leaders of the struggle such as Kappetipola, Madugalle - 35 - and Pilimathalawe. By August and September of 1818, the battle had died down a lot. The English were able to arrest Kappetipola and Madugalle in October. They were sentenced to death by the court martial. They were executed by the British on the 26th of November, 1818.  Failure of the 1818 Battle and Its Effects The rebellion spread fast within a few months after the beginning. When the British forces chased away the rebels from one area by destroying property, the battle started in another place. Yet, the upcountry people failed to launch a combined attack when the English started a heavy retaliation with extra forces. They had an advantage when it became possible for them to keep contact with Colombo via Sathara Korala because the in-charge of that area, Molligoda Nilame was partial to the British. Thus, there were several reasons for the loss of the battle. Some of them can be summarized as follows.  Reasons for the failure of the 1818 Battle:  The heavy retaliation launched by the British  Shortage experienced by the upcountry people, of weapons and other resources that are needed for a long battle  Disorganized nature of the battle  The exposure of the real identity of the person who claimed to be the heir to the throne. As a result of the battle for freedom, leaders like Ehelepola, Kappitipola, Madugalle had to sacrifice their lives for the independence of the country. Property of some more aristocrats were confiscated. Some leaders who supported the battle were banished from the country. Those who went against the government were punished thus whereas the other aristocrats like Molligoda, Eknaligoda who were partial to the English were rewarded. The British were able to strengthen their grip of the upcountry region because the 1818 battle was lost. The governor, Brownrigg issued a special announcement strengthening his power in the upcountry on the 21st of November, 1818. This long document which consisted of 56 statements curtailed the power of the aristocrats. Steps were taken to establish the English legal system in the upcountry reducing the legal power enjoyed by the aristocrats. It seems that the 1818 November document made the British power in the upcountry complete. - 36 -  Struggle for Independence in 1848 In about 30 years following the failure of the 1818 struggle, there was another battle against the British government. This struggle which tried for the second time to reestablish the imperial system the upcountry people used to have, can be named as the second armed battle for the independence. There were several reasons that led to the emergence of such a battle which began in 1848.  Causes of the Battle There were two major factors that led to the 1848 struggle as the effects of the Colebrooke reforms and the new tax policy of the government.  Effects of the Colebrooke Reforms Land Policy of the Government The government launched a policy of selling lands under the Colebrooke reforms which were started in 1833. The government land policy was problematic for the general public of the area because the land in the upcountry was rich and the environment was conducive for coffee cultivation. According to the Barron Land Act imposed in 1840, uncultivated lands that could not be proven of their continual ownership for 30 years were confiscated. There were no legal documents to prove the ownership of lands of the upcountry people that came to them from their descent. As a result, many of their Chena lands were taken back to the government. The government sold these lands for very cheaper prices to the foreigners. Because the people lost their lands and the cultivation was disturbed thus, they were distressed about the government. Discontinuation of “Gam Sabha” The existence of ‘Gam Sabha’ was challenged because the compulsory service system and the duty labour system were banned by the Colebrooke Commission. The building and maintenance of lakes, bunds, canals and dams of each area were done by the Gam Sabha (village council). The major method the Gam Sabha got labour was the system called "duty labour". Yet, when this method was cancelled, the Gam Sabha found it difficult to get necessary labour forces. The Gam Sabha did a good service by solving the minor problems in the area. But, they lost their judiciary power due to the reforms in 1833. The villagers had to suffer due to such reasons. - 37 - New Judiciary System Villagers had to go to courts even for a small matter according to Cameron’s legal reforms. Earlier, they could get such matters resolved in their villages. They were not aware either of the English language or the rules and regulations that were in function in the new courts. Some other problems the villagers had to face were that they had to pay all lawyers’ charges, stamp fees in cash and had to spend days in the court when they went for legal matters. As a result, their agricultural work including the protection of their cultivations was neglected. Distancing Relationship between the People and the Government The decisions to reduce the number of civil service posts and allowing the civil servants to engage themselves in estate cultivation following the Colebrooke recommendations, made the local administration inefficient. As a result, the area of the administration officer expanded and they found it difficult to supervise such a big area. Because some officers were more attentive on cultivation, they did not have enough time to attend to the needs of the people. As a result, the problems of the general public were not properly informed to the government and it affected to widen the relationship between the people and the government. The New Tax Policy of the Government The closest reason for the struggle was the decision of the governor, Sir Torrington to impose new taxes in 1848. Because the government income had gone down, the governor made a tax reform with the purpose of earning a considerable sum from the people. A stamp fee, cart and catamaran tax, tax on shops, tax on guns, body tax, and tax on dogs were those new taxes. People opposed all those taxes; especially the protest against the taxes on guns, body and dogs was significant. The villagers used guns to protect their cultivations. They had to pay two shillings and a half every year for the tax on guns. The villagers had to go to government offices for this and to fill in the forms in English language. They had to pay extra charges in addition to the time spent. Charges they had to pay for the guns sometimes exceeded the real value of the guns. There was a resistance for the tax on guns because of the above reasons. Every grown up male had to work in building roads for six days every year and if they failed to do so they had to pay three shillings as a tax on their body. There was opposition for this tax also. People had to pay taxes for dogs in 1848. This was - 38 - an unwise decision and there was an elevated resistance against this tax also. The government conducted a survey for the collection of statistics called the ‘Blue Book’ at the same time when new taxes were imposed. The people suspected this move too as a way of imposing more taxes.  Nature of the 1848 Struggle Fights began between the government and the people when people gathered to oppose the tax policy of the government. People gathered in major cities such as Colombo, Galle, Kandy and Badulla and they protested against the English civil servants in these rallies. Some farmers that gathered in Badulla smashed their guns on the ground in front of the government agents to show their displeasure. Around 4000 people gathered in front of the Kandy Kachcheri and protested against these taxes. Armed forces had to be summoned because the police could not control those crowds. The protests that began in Colombo and Kandy spread to areas like Matale, Dambulla, Wariyapola and Kurunegala. People in areas like Matale, Wariyapola and Kurunegala organized themselves with arms and attacked the government buildings like courts. As the people were under high pressure due to the tax policy of the government, leaders like Gongalegoda Banda, Puran Appu, Dingirala and Diyes emerged from people and led the battle. A group of rebels gathered in the Dambulla temple and coronated Gongalegoda Banda as the king with the help of the chief incumbent. Matale was the centre of the battle in 1848. In addition to this, fights spread to some parts of the Kandy and Kurunegala districts. But, the English using their experience of the 1818 battle overpowered the insurgency soon. The struggle soon broke down due to the suppression launched by the governor, Torrington employing the armed forces. As a result, the British were able to arrest many of the leaders within two months of the battle. Gongalegoda Banda, who was arrested so, was trialed, whipped and exiled from the country. Puran Appu was sentenced to death and he faced death bravely. Some other fighters were imprisoned. At the same time, there was a strong indignation against the government because the arrested Rev. Kadahapola Thero was shot and killed after a very short trial without taking proper legal actions.  Failure of the Battle The major reason for the failure of the struggle was its disorganized nature similar to the 1818 battle. The majority of the rebels were from the general public who did not have any armed training or proper weapons. The British had good knowledge about - 39 - the roads in the hill country by that time and the rebels could not fight against the military power, strategies and the weapons of the British. The British could retaliate the battle easily because it was limited to several areas of the upcountry. The English government appointed a special committee to probe into the situation of this country because the governor, Torrington’s conduct in 1848 battle was highly criticized. As a result he was summoned back to England. Taxes that generated public displeasure were given up. Accordingly, the trade shop tax and dog tax were abolished. The rest of the taxes were revised and reformed. More attention was paid on Buddhism because there was displeasure among the people about the way the British treated it. A special attention was paid to solving the problems of farmers though no proper steps were taken for that before 1850.  ACTIVITY 5 Complete the following table using information about the rebellions of 1818 and 1848. Year Reasons for the battle Leaders of the battle Results of the battle - 40 -