Kadugannawa Pass

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Kadugannawa Pass
Kadugannawa, Sri Lanka - panoramio (2).jpg
View of the road at Kadugannawa Pass
Elevation 475 m (1,558 ft)
Traversed byRoad
Location Kadugannawa, Sri Lanka
Coordinates 7°15′13″N80°31′39″E / 7.25361°N 80.52750°E / 7.25361; 80.52750 Coordinates: 7°15′13″N80°31′39″E / 7.25361°N 80.52750°E / 7.25361; 80.52750
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Location in Sri Lanka

Kadugannawa Pass is a mountain pass located near Kadugannawa town in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. It is located along the Colombo-Kandy A1 highway. It is a common roadside stop for tourists to enjoy the vistas to the Kegalle valley below and view the prominent inselberg known as the Bible Rock. [1]

Mountain pass Route through a mountain range or over a ridge

A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both human and animal migration throughout Earth's history. At lower elevations it may be called a hill pass. The highest vehicle-accessible pass in the world appears to be Mana Pass, located in the Himalayas on the border between India and Tibet, China.

Kadugannawa Place in Central Province, Sri Lanka

Kadugannawa is a town in Kandy District in the Central Province of Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is located along the A1 road west of Peradeniya. The town is served by Kadugannawa Railway Station and has the Kadugannawa Central College.

Central Province, Sri Lanka Province in Sri Lanka

The Central Province is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The Central Province is primarily in the central mountainous terrain of Sri Lanka. It is the 6th largest province by area and is home to 2.5 million people. It is bordered by North Central Province to the north, Uva Province to the east, North Western Province to the west and Sabaragamuwa Province to the south and west. The province's capital is Kandy.

Contents

Geography

A view from Kaduganna Pass Batalegala - Kadugannawa.jpg
A view from Kaduganna Pass

Kadugannawa Pass is situated at the boundaries of the Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces in Sri Lanka. The pass lies along the Alagalla mountain range and is surrounded by Ambuluwawa, Knuckles and Hanthana Mountain Ranges on its eastern side. To the west is a precipice with vistas over the Kegalle valley of the river Maha Oya with prominent inselbergs Bible Rock (Bathalegala) and Devanagala. [1]

Sabaragamuwa Province Province in Sri Lanka

The Sabaragamuwa Province, is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. The Sabaragamuwa Province contains two districts: Ratnapura and Kegalle. It is named after its former indigenous inhabitants, namely the Sabara, an indic term for hunter-gatherer tribes, a term seldom used in ancient Sri Lanka. Sabaragamuwa University is in Belihuloya.

Alagalla Mountain Range

AlagallaMountain Range is situated at the boundaries of the Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces in Sri Lanka. Along with the surrounding Bathalegala (බතලේගල) also known as Bible Rock, Uthuwankanda (උතුවන්කන්ද), Devanagala (දෙවනගල), Ambuluwawa (අම්බුළුවාව), Knuckles Mountain Range and Hanthana (හන්තාන) Mountain Range, Alagalla mountain has served as a natural defense location for nearly five centuries (1505–1948) against the Portuguese, Dutch and English invasions aimed at the Kandyan Kingdom.

Knuckles Mountain Range

The Knuckles Mountain Range lies in central Sri Lanka, in the Districts of Matale and Kandy. The range takes its name from a series of recumbent folds and peaks in the west of the massif which resemble the knuckles of clenched fist when viewed from certain locations in the Kandy District. Whilst this name was assigned by early British surveyors, the Sinhalese residents have traditionally referred to the area as Dumbara Kanduvetiya meaning Mist-laden Mountain Range.

Kadugannawa Pass incline begins at 290 feet above sea level passing the Higula near Mawanella by road or Rambukkana station by train. The road and rail tracks winds up through rugged terrain and reaches its peak near Kadugannawa Dawson Tower at 1690 feet above sea level. [2]

Mawanella Town in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka

Mawanella is a town which belongs to the Kegalle district in the Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. It lies between Kegalle and Kadugannawa along the Colombo-Kandy road. The area consists of four administrative areas, namely Mawanella, Aranayake, Rambukkana and Hemmathagama.

Rambukkana railway station

Rambukkana Railway Station is a railway station in the Kegalle District, Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. The station is served by Sri Lanka Railways, which is the state-run railway operator.

Dawson Tower

Dawson Tower, is located on Kadugannawa in the Kadugannawa Pass next to the Colombo - Kandy Road, the first modern highway in the island. Work began on the Colombo - Kandy Road in 1820 under the direction of Captain William Francis Dawson who died during the project. The Dawson Tower was erected in memory of Dawson.

History

The Kadugannawa Pass was a lookout point in the Kingdom of Kandy. The Balana fort which was the main fortress established to protect the Kandian Kingdom from foreign powers was situated near the Kadugannawa pass. [3] [4]

Kingdom of Kandy political entity

The Kingdom of Kandy was an independent monarchy of the island of Sri Lanka, located in the central and eastern portion of the island. It was founded in the late 15th century and endured until the early 19th century.

Balana fort

Balana fort was built by the Kingdom of Kandy near Alagalla Mountain Range, Sri Lanka. The fort was functioned as a strategic rock fortress and an outpost to Kandyan kingdom. When the English established themselves in Kandy, they started tea and coffee plantations in the area of the Colombo-Kandy railway line, which has cut through tunnels in the mountains.

Kadugannawa Tunnel rock piercing. Kadugannawa, Sri Lanka - panoramio (4).jpg
Kadugannawa Tunnel rock piercing.

The British were the first foreign power to occupy Kingdom of Kandy permanently. British Governor Edward Barnes wanted a new road built to Kandy as the old road was long and circuitous. The old road was along the Kelani river valley, via Ruwanwella to the Ma Oya valley, then up the incline to Gampola and on to Kandy. [5] The new road was built through Kadugannawa mountain pass in the 1820s led by Captain Dawson. [5]

British Empire States and dominions ruled by the United Kingdom

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It originated with the overseas possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height, it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, 23% of the world population at the time, and by 1920, it covered 35,500,000 km2 (13,700,000 sq mi), 24% of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its political, legal, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, the phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" was often used to describe the British Empire, because its expanse around the globe meant that the sun was always shining on at least one of its territories.

Kelani River river in Sri Lanka

The Kelani River is a 145-kilometre-long (90 mi) river in Sri Lanka. Ranking as the fourth-longest river in the country, it stretches from the Sri Pada Mountain Range to Colombo. It flows through or borders the Sri Lankan districts of Nuwara Eliya, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Gampaha and Colombo. The Kelani River also flows through the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo, and provides 80% of its drinking water.

Gampola Town in Sri Lanka

Gampola is a town located in Kandy District, Central Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. Gampola was made the capital of the island by King Buwanekabahu IV, who ruled for four years in the mid-fourteenth century. The last king of Gampola was King Buwanekabahu V, who ruled the island for 29 years. A separate city was built in Kotte during this time by a noble known as Alagakkonara. The longest sleeping Buddha statue in South Asia is located in the Saliyalapura Temple, Gampola.

When British built the new Colombo-Kandy road they decided to pierce a rock at the Kadugannawa Pass instead of blasting it away or simply bypassing it, as the new road does today. [1] This rock piercing is known as the Kadugannawa Tunnel and is still preserved though a bypass road was built around it when the Colombo-Kandy A1 highway was widened and upgraded in the late 1980s. [6]

The A 1 road is an A-Grade trunk road in Sri Lanka. It connects the capital city of Colombo with Kandy.

An explanation for piercing the rock is that the Kadugannawa tunnel was a symbol. The tunnel is said to have been created to fulfill an old Sinhalese prophecy that there is no way to foreigners to rule Kandy, unless they pierce the mountains. The British were the first foreign power to occupy Kandy permanently. Thus, the British went out of their way to include a tunnel on the road. Regrettably, this nice story is disputed, as the Kurunegala tunnel is claimed to have been constructed earlier (in 1823) to fulfill the prophetic saying. [1]

Kadugannawa Ambalama, the old wayside stop near the pass. Kadugannawa Ambalama.JPG
Kadugannawa Ambalama, the old wayside stop near the pass.

Kadugannawa Ambalama is a historic wayside rest built a few metres below the Kadugannawa tunnel. It was built in the early 18th century during British colonial rule. During the 19th century it served as a common stopover for horsemen and merchants passing through Kadugannawa pass. It is preserved as archaeological protected monument by the Department of Archeology of Sri Lanka

See also

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Kadugannawa Ambalama

Kadugannawa Ambalama is a historic wayside rest that is found – on the left, when traveling from Colombo to Kandy, a few metres before the Kadugannawa Hairpin turn aka Kadugannawa pass. Built during the early 18th century which is about 200 years old now. This ambalama was built during the English colonial rule of Ceylon About one and half centuries back this had been a popular stopover for horsemen, merchants etc. traveling from lowlands to the ancient hill capital Kandy.This structure resembles the Kandyan Era architecture and is of archaeological value. It was renovated by the Ministry of Tourism under the technical guidance of the Department of Archeology at a cost of Rs. 300,000.00 and now this structure is considered a national heritage item of Sri Lanka.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Kadugannawa Pass - with a highly symbolic tunnel". lanka-excursions-holidays.com. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  2. ↑ "Kadugannawa". dayabaran-nature.blogspot.com. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  3. ↑ "Kadugannawa the gateway to Kanda Uda Rata". ft.lk. 29 July 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  4. ↑ "Balana Fort". amazinglanka.com. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Dawson Tower at Kadugannawa". amazinglanka.com. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  6. ↑ ""Kadugannawa Old Tunnel" 19th century with new bay pass, Kadugannawa, Sri Lanka". geoview.info. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
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