Ceylon Defence Force (CDF) was established in 1910 by the Ceylonese legislation Ceylon Defence Force Ordinance, which reformed the Ceylon Volunteer Force (CVF) that existed previously as the military reserve in the British Crown colony of Ceylon. At the time of forming it was only a reserve force but soon developed into a regular force responsible for the defence of Ceylon. The CDF was under the command of the General Officer Commanding, Ceylon of the British Army in Ceylon if mobilised. However mobilisation could be carried out only under orders from the Governor.
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. Established as the Ceylon Army in 1948, it was renamed when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972. In 2010, the Army had approximately 200,000 regular personnel, between 20,000 and 40,000 reserve personnel and 18,000 National Guardsmen and comprises 13 operational divisions, one air-mobile brigade, one commando brigade, one special forces brigade, one independent armored brigade, three mechanized infantry brigades and over 40 infantry brigades. From the 1980s to 2009 the army was engaged in the Sri Lankan Civil War.
The Sri Lanka Armoured Corps (SLAC) provides the armour capability of the Sri Lanka Army, with vehicles such as the VT1A, T-55AM2, and ZTZ88 main battle tanks, the BMP infantry fighting vehicle and the BTR-80, and WZ551 armoured personnel carriers. It comprises six regular armoured regiments and a volunteer (reserve) regiment. It has an independent Armoured Brigade and is headquartered at Rock House Army Camp, Colombo.
The Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA) is the artillery arm of the Sri Lanka Army. It is made up of 09 Regular regiments and 2 Volunteer (reserve) Regiments. The SLA is headquartered at Panagoda Cantonment, Panagoda.
The Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force (SLAVF) is the principal and volunteer reserve force component of the Sri Lanka Army. It is a collective name for the reserve units and the Sri Lanka National Guard. The SLAVF is made up of part-time officers and soldiers. They are paid at a similar rate, while engaged on military activities, as their regular equivalents. This is in contrast to the Regular Army Reserve, which comprises people who have a mobilization obligation following their service in the regular army. Administration and recruitment of reserve personal is carried out by the Volunteer Force Headquarters in Shalawa, Kosgama. The head of the SLAVF is the Commandant of the Volunteer Force.
Minneriya is a small town in Sri Lanka that is famous for two things — the great Minneriya lake built by King Mahasen and Minneriya National Park which is a hot spot for safari lovers because of its abundance of elephants. Furthermore, it is near the tourist-friendly Habarana and the world heritage sites Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya.
Panagoda Cantonment is a cantonment located in the western Western Province of Sri Lanka. It serves as the regimental headquarters of many regiments of the Sri Lanka Army and is an arsenal. It also houses one of the main Military Hospitals operated by the Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps. It is one of the largest military bases in Sri Lanka.
Jagath Jayasuriya, VSV, USP, ndc, psc is a retired Sri Lanka Army general, and a former Chief of Defence Staff of the Sri Lankan military and Commander of the Sri Lankan Army. During the closing stages of the Sri Lankan Civil War, he served as the Commander Security Forces Headquarters - Wanni with overall command of SLA offensives in the Wanni region during the 2008 - 2009 period. He was also the Sri Lankan Ambassador to Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Suriname from June 2014 to August 2017.
The Infantry Training Centre (ITC) is a unit of the Sri Lanka Army responsible for both basic and advanced training of Soldiers and Officers joining the infantry. It is based in Minneriya it was established in 1984.
A School of Infantry provides training in weapons and infantry tactics to infantrymen of a nation's military forces.
Major General T. N. De Silva, USP, psc, SLAC is a Sri Lankan general, who was the former General Officer Commanding, 21 Division;, Commandant, Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force, Brigade Commander Armoured Brigade and Director, National Cadet Corps.
General Lionel P. Balagalle RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, VSP was Sri Lankan general. He served as Commander of the Sri Lanka Army and Chief of the Defence Staff.
Major General Chulabhaya Lakshman 'Lucky' Wijayaratne RWP, RSP, M.Sc, LI was a Sri Lankan army officer, who was one of the most distinguished Generals in the Sri Lanka army. Major General Wijayaratne died on 18 December 1990 at the 10th milepost along Trincomalee-Anuradhapura road due to a landmine explosion. He was the commander of 22 brigade based in Trincomalee at the time of his death and played a pivotal role in the government’s counter terrorism offensive in the district. Major General Wijayaratne was the senior most Sri Lankan military officer to die from a terrorist attack up to that time.
Sri Lankan military bands refer to the joint-service musical units of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces representing the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy, and the Sri Lanka Air Force. The three bands mentioned, which were established in 1949, 1952 and 1970 respectively and are the seniormost in the armed forces. They are composed of many ceremonial marching bands as well as concert bands which are base for the band's success. The band participates in main social and cultural events, including formal state visits and military parades. All army regiments also contain a regimental band for ceremonial duties.
Major General Galwaduge Janaka Laksiri Waduge, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, ndu is a Sri Lankan general. He is the 10th Commander Security Forces Headquarters – Central and the former Colonel commandant of Military Intelligence Corps. He retired from active service in 2020 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 55 for Sri Lankan Armed Forces Personnel.
Major General T.T. Ranjith de Silva, RWP, RSP, USP, psc is a Sri Lankan army officer. He served as Security Forces Commander – Eastern Province and District Secretary, Trincomalee District. He is known for leading the defence of the Sri Lanka Army garrison in Pooneryn during the Battle of Pooneryn.
Brigadier Leonard Merlyn Wickremasooriya was a Sri Lankan military leader, he served as the Commandant, Army Training Centre, Diyatalawa.
Major General Duleep Justin De Sliva Wickramanayake was a Sri Lankan military leader, he served as the Director Operations and Training of the Sri Lanka Army.
14 CBRN Regiment, Sri Lanka Engineers is a regiment of the Sri Lanka Army that focuses on countering chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) hazards in the country. The Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Air Force also maintain CBRN units in addition to the Army's CBRN regiment. The regiment evolved from the first CBRN squadron that Major General Jagath Gunawardena, the current colonel-commandant of Sri Lanka Engineers, established.
