Dutugamunu, was king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom who reigned from 161 BC to 137 BC. He is renowned for defeating and overthrowing Elara, the usurping Tamil prince from the Indian Chola Kingdom, who had invaded the kingdom in 205 BC. Dutugamunu also expanded and beautified the city of Anuradhapura and projected the power of his native Rajarata region across the island of Sri Lanka.
Prince Panduvasudeva, was King of Upatissa Nuwara from 504 BC to 474 BC. He was the first monarch of the Kingdom of Upatissa Nuwara succeeding Upatissa, who reigned as regent. Panduvasudeva had ten sons, including Abhaya, Tissa and his only daughter Unmada Chitra. He was a nephew of Prince Vijaya.
The Anuradhapura Kingdom, named for its capital city, was the first established kingdom in ancient Sri Lanka and Sinhalese people. Founded by King Pandukabhaya in 377 BC, the kingdom's authority extended throughout the country, although several independent areas emerged from time to time, which grew more numerous towards the end of the kingdom. Nonetheless, the king of Anuradhapura was seen as the supreme ruler of the country throughout the Anuradhapura period. Buddhism played a strong role in the Anuradhapura period, influencing its culture, laws, and methods of governance. Society and culture were revolutionized when the faith was introduced during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa; this cultural change was further strengthened by the arrival of the Tooth Relic of the Buddha in Sri Lanka and the patronage extended by her rulers.
Valagamba, also known as Wattagamani Abhaya and Valagambahu, was a king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom of Sri Lanka. Five months after becoming king, he was overthrown by a rebellion and an invasion from South India, but regained the throne by defeating the invaders fourteen years later. He is also known for the construction of the Abhayagiri Dagaba.
The Chola conquest and occupation of Anuradhapura Kingdom was a military invasion of the Anuradhapura Kingdom by the Chola Empire. It initially began with the invasion of the Anuradhapura Kingdom in 993 AD by Rajaraja I when he sent a large Chola army to conquer the kingdom and absorb it into the Chola Empire. Most of the island was subsequently conquered by 1017 and incorporated as a province of the vast Chola empire during the reign of his son Rajendra Chola I. The Chola occupation would be overthrown in 1070 through a campaign of Sinhalese Resistance led by Prince Kitti, a Sinhalese royal. The Cholas fought many subsequent wars and attempted to reconquer the Sinhalese kingdom as the Sinhalese were allies of their arch-enemies, the Pandyas. The period of Chola entrenchment in northern Sri Lanka lasted in total about three-quarters of a century, from roughly 993 to 1070, when Vijayabahu I recaptured the north and expelled the Chola forces restoring Sinhalese sovereignty.
Aggabodhi II was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, whose reign lasted from 608 to 618. He succeeded his uncle Aggabodhi I as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his brother Sangha Tissa II.
Sangha Tissa II was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, whose reign lasted the year 608. He succeeded his brother Aggabodhi II as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by Moggallana III.
Jettha Tissa III was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, whose reign lasted from 623 to 624. He succeeded Aggabodhi III by a successful rebellion. He had sent his general Datasiva to the western part of the country to lay waste. The general was defeated by King Aggabodhi's sub-king Mana. Prince Jetta Tissa however withstood the King's forces and defeated him.
Dathopa Tissa I was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, reigning from 640 to 652. He succeeded Aggabodhi III as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by Kassapa II.
Dathopa Tissa II was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, whose reign lasted from 664 to 673. He succeeded his brother Dappula I as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by Aggabodhi IV.
Aggabodhi IV was King of Anuradhapura in the 7th century, whose reign lasted from 673 to 689. He succeeded his brother Dathopa Tissa II as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by Unhanagara Hatthadatha.
Aggabodhi V was King of Anuradhapura in the 8th century, whose reign lasted from 726 to 732. He succeeded his father Manavanna as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his brother Kassapa III.
Kassapa III was King of Anuradhapura in the 8th century, whose reign lasted from 732 to 738. He succeeded his brother Aggabodhi V as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his younger brother Mahinda I.
Mahinda I was King of Anuradhapura in the 8th century, whose reign lasted from 738 to 741. He succeeded his brother Kassapa III as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his nephew Aggabodhi VI.
Aggabodhi VI was King of Anuradhapura in the 8th century, whose reign lasted from 741 to 781. He succeeded his uncle Mahinda I as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his cousin Aggabodhi VII.
Aggabodhi VII was King of Anuradhapura in the 8th century, whose reign lasted from 781 to 787. He succeeded his cousin Aggabodhi VI as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by Mahinda II.His father was King Mahinda I.
Mahinda II was King of Anuradhapura in the 9th century, whose reign lasted from 787 to 807. He succeeded Aggabodhi VII as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his son Dappula II. His father was King Aggabodhi VI.
Dappula II was King of Anuradhapura in the 9th century, whose reign lasted from 807 to 812. He succeeded his father Mahinda II as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his son Mahinda III.
The Sinhalese monarchy has its origins in the settlement of North Indian Indo-Aryan immigrants to the island of Sri Lanka. The Landing of Vijay as described in the traditional chronicles of the island, the Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa and Culavamsa, and later chronicles, recount the date of the establishment of the first Sinhala Kingdom in 543 BC when Prince Vijaya, an Indian Prince, and 700 of his followers landed on the island of Sri Lanka and established the Kingdom of Tambapanni. In Sinhalese mythology, Prince Vijaya and followers are told to be the progenitors of the Sinhalese people. However according to the story in the Divyavadana, the immigrants were probably not led by a scion of a royal house in India, as told in the romantic legend, but rather may have been groups of adventurous and pioneering merchants exploring new lands.
