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Anuradhapura is a major city located in the north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central Province and the capital of Anuradhapura District. The city lies 205 kilometers (127 mi) north of the current capital of Colombo in the North Central Province, on the banks of the historic Malwathu Oya. The city is now a World Heritage Site famous for its well-preserved ruins of the ancient Sinhalese civilisation.
Mahāvaṃsa is the meticulously kept historical chronicle of Sri Lanka until the period of Mahasena of Anuradhapura. It was written in the style of an epic poem written in the Pali language. It relates the history of Sri Lanka from its legendary beginnings up to the reign of Mahasena of Anuradhapura covering the period between the arrival of Prince Vijaya from India in 543 BCE to his reign and later updated by different writers. It was first composed by a Buddhist monk named Mahanama at the Mahavihara temple in Anuradhapura in the 5th or 6th-century CE.
Ellalan, also referred to as Elara the Pious, and by the honorific epithet Manu Needhi Cholan, was a member of the Tamil Chola dynasty in Southern India, who upon capturing the throne became king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom, in present-day Sri Lanka, from 205 BCE to 161 BCE.
Kalinga Magha or Gangaraja Kalinga Vijayabahu was an invader from the Kingdom of Kalinga who usurped the throne from Parakrama Pandyan II of Polonnaruwa in 1215. A massive migration followed of Sinhalese people to the south and west of Sri Lanka, and into the mountainous interior, as they attempted to escape his power. Magha was the last ruler to have his seat in the traditional northern seat of native power on the island, known as Rajarata; so comprehensive was his destruction of Sinhalese power in the north that all of the successor kingdoms to Rajarata existed primarily in the south of the island.
The Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was the Sinhalese kingdom that expanded across the island of Sri Lanka and several overseas territories, from 1070 until 1232. The kingdom started expanding its overseas authority during the reign of Parakramabahu the Great.
Suratissa was an early monarch of Sri Lanka in the Kingdom of Anuradhapura, based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura from 247 BC to 237 BC. He was a son of Mutasiva and a brother of Devanampiya Tissa, Uttiya, Mahasiva, Asela and Mahanaga. Suratissa was defeated and killed in battle by two South Indian Tamil invaders Sena and Guttika and usurped the Sinhalese throne and held power over Anuradhapura, which was the first historically reported account of Tamil rule in Sri Lanka. Sinhala rule was re-established in 215 BC by Suratissa's younger brother Asela.
Asela was an early monarch of Sri Lanka of the Kingdom of Anuradhapura, based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura from 215 BC to 205 BC. He was the youngest of the many sons of Mutasiva and brother of previous monarchs Devanampiya Tissa, Uttiya and Mahasiva. Asela fought Sena and Guttika in a battle to re-establish Vijaya rule in 215 BC, but in 205 BC the kingdom of Anuradhapura was again invaded by a Tamil, Tamil king from Chola Dynasty named Ellalan killing Asela and ruled Anuradhpura kingdom for 45 years.
Valagamba, also known as the Great Black Lion, 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 & Aluthepola Ganekanda Raja Maha Vihara.
Mahinda V was King of Anuradhapura in the 11th century. He was the last king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom as well as from the House of Lambakanna II. In 993, he fled to Ruhuna, the southern part of the country, following a large scale mutiny by his army. A Chola invasion led by Rajaraja Chola I captured Anuradhapura taking advantage of the 11 year civil war and subsequent turmoil that happened after Anuradhapura fell into anarchy. He was later taken prisoner and taken to India, where he died as a prisoner in 1029. The Mahavamsa records that the rule of Mahinda V was weak and he was unable to even organize the collecting of taxes. The country was in a state of extreme poverty and his army refused to follow orders due to lack of wages.
Vasabha was a monarch of the Anuradhapura period of Sri Lanka. He is considered to be the pioneer of the construction of large-scale irrigation works and underground waterways in Sri Lanka to support paddy cultivation. 11 reservoirs and 12 canals were constructed during his reign. He also constructed several Buddhist temples in addition to renovating already existing ones. Vasabha started a new dynasty in the history of Sri Lankan monarchs, having seized the throne after killing Subharaja, the then ruler of Anuradhapura.
The Anuradhapura period was a period in the history of Sri Lanka of the Anuradhapura Kingdom from 377 BCE to 1017 CE. The period begins when Pandukabhaya, King of Upatissa Nuwara moved the administration to Anuradhapura, becoming the kingdom's first monarch. Anuradhapura is heralded as an ancient cosmopolitan citadel with diverse populations.
Mahallaka Naga was the King of Anuradhapura from the House of Lambakanna I. He ruled from 135 till 141 AD. He was preceded by his son-in-law, Gajabahu I and succeeded by his son, Bhatika Tissa. During his succession to the throne, the king was very old, and thus he was popularly known as Mahallaka Naga or Mahalu Naga.
Ilanaga, also known as Elunna, was King of Anuradhapura in the 1st century, whose reign lasted from 38 to 44. He overthrew and succeeded his aunt Sivali as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his son Chandamukha.
Chattagahaka Jantu was king of Anuradhapura for about one year from 434 AD to 435 AD. He succeeded his wife's stepbrother Soththisena and was succeeded by Mittasena.
Mittasena was King of Anuradhapura in the 5th century, whose reign lasted from 435 to 436. He succeeded Chattagahaka Jantu as King of Anuradhapura. During his reign, the kingdom was invaded by Pandu of The Six Dravidians. He was the last king of the Lambakanna dynasty.
Manavamma, also known as Manavarman in Indian sources, was king of Anuradhapura from 684 AD to 718 AD. Considered an important monarch of the Anuradhapura kingdom, he is known for concluding almost half a century of anarchy and ushering an era of prosperity within the nation.
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 are claimed to have 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.
The Pre-Anuradhapura period of Sri Lankan history begins with the gradual onset of historical records in the final centuries of the prehistoric period and ending in 437 BC. According to the Mahavamsa, the original inhabitants of Sri Lanka are the Yakshas and northern Naga tribes. Sinhalese history traditionally starts in 543 BC at the arrival of Prince Vijaya, a semi-legendary king who was banished from the Indian subcontinent with his 700 followers and is recorded in the Mahavamsa chronicle. This period was succeeded by the Anuradhapura period.
The Polonnaruwa period was a period in the history of Sri Lanka from 1017, after the Chola conquest of Anuradhapura and when the center of administration was moved to Polonnaruwa, to the end of the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa in 1232.
References
- ↑ Nishantha Joseph, Sujeewa. Sinhalese Kings (in Sinhala). Jayasinghe Book Publishers. ISBN 978-955-0642-32-8.
