History of Sri Lanka
Most historians believe that the prince Vijaya came to Sri Lanka from Orissa, in north-eastern India, during the 6th century BC (some historians trace the origins back some 25,000 years) and started to rule the native people in Sri Lanka, who were known as the Veddas. A nearly continuous written history exists in the book "Mahavamsa" from this point on and it describes the Sinhalese kingdom started from king Vijaya and his followers. It also describes a minister of Vijaya, Anuradha, who establishes the village of Anuradhagamma which later becomes Anuradhapura and becomes the capital of Sri Lanka a few centuries later. Archeological evidence is somewhat contradictory to this account, showing continuous settlement in the Anuradhapura area from the 10th century BC onwards with people living in the area having knowledge of agriculture, metallurgy, and livestock breeding. Buddhism arrived from the Indian subcontinent in the 3rd century BC at the hands of Arahath Mahinda Thero, missionary of Indian Emperor Ashoka and spread rapidly. Buddhism and a sophisticated system of irrigation became the pillars of classical Sinhalese civilization (200 BC-1200 AD) that flourished in the north-central part of the island, with capitals at Anuradhapura (from c. 200 BC to c. 1000 AD) and Polonnaruwa (c. 1070 to 1200). After the Polonnaruwa era, the capital moved frequently, with the entire island being rarely unified. Parakramabahu IV, who ruled from Kotte, was the last Sri Lankan king to rule over the entire island.
The origins of Tamil presence on the island are unclear. Given the island's close proximity to South India, it is very likely that people have traveled back and forth throughout human history.
South Indian rulers attacked Sri Lanka on a number of occasions. Occasionally, such invasions resulted in Tamil rule of the island for extended periods. Several Sinhala kings are noted for driving back the Tamil invasions and retaking the capital.
When the Portuguese first arrived, the Island consisted of three independent kingdoms namely Yarlpanam (Tamil) kingdom, Kotte (Sinhala) kingdom and the Kandy (Sinhala) kingdom. In 1517, the Portuguese established the fort and trading post of Colombo. Portuguese successfully defeated both the coastal kingdoms (Yarlpanam and Kotte) in the 16th century. The Portuguese were followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. During both Portuguese and Dutch rule of the coastal areas, the interior, hilly region of the island remained independent, with its capital, the city of Kandy. Great Britain replaced the Dutch in 1796, and the coastal areas became a crown colony in 1802. After the fall of Kandy kingdom in 1815, the British decided to unify the three kingdoms under one rule for administrative purposes in 1818.
The struggle for independence started in the 1930s, when the Youth Leagues opposed the 'Ministers' Memorandum' which asked the colonial authorities to increase the powers of the board of ministers, rather than seeking independence. During World War II the pro-independence leaders were jailed. Japanese forces bombed Sri Lanka, but there were few casualties. Extensive damage was caused to shipping and the Royal Navy lost two cruisers, an aircraft carrier and an Australian destroyer. A month later, a Sri Lankan garrison on the Cocos Islands mutinied, but the rebellion was put down. The British used Sri Lanka as a base for operations in the Pacific.
As Ceylon, it became a dominion within the British Commonwealth in 1948. In 1972, its name was changed to Sri Lanka, and in 1982 the legislative and judicial capital was moved from Colombo to nearby Sri Jayewardanapura Kotte. The flag was also changed in 1948 as orange and green vertical bars were added, representing the Tamil and Muslim minority populations.
Post independence governments implemented a series of pro-Sinhalese measures in order to support the majority community who were disadvantaged compared to the minorities due to the policies of European colonialists. This was seen as discriminatory by the Tamils and led to tensions between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil politial/military groups, which erupted in violence in 1983 following the killing of 13 soldiers of the Sri Lankan Army in Jaffna. This led to a government-sponsored pogrom ('Black July') throughout the country and resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Tamils over a three-day period; many more became refugees. Sinhalese were driven away from the North by militants and many massacres of sinhala and muslim civilians were carried out in the northern and eastern provinces between 1983 and the ceasefire in 2001. Tens of thousands have died on both sides in the subsequent ethnic war that continues to fester.
After two decades of fighting, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the government began a ceasefire in December 2001. Norway is mediating the peace process. The international anti-terrorism focus may have influenced the main Tamil rebel group to seek the ceasefire, as the LTTE was declared a terrorist organization by the United States of America, the United Kingdom, India, and Sri Lanka.
On December 26, 2004, one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern history, the Indian Ocean earthquake, struck off the western coast of Sumatra. The earthquake and subsequent tsunamis reportedly killed over 280,000 people around the rim of the Indian Ocean. The impact on Sri Lanka was severe. The south and east coasts were devastated by the 10-metre high tsunami, and tens of thousands died.
On June 24, 2005, Post Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) - the aid sharing legal instrument, has been signed between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam with the backing of E.U, U.S.A, U.K and Norway. The agreement supposed to help administer the Tsunami relief efforts in the Tamil Tiger controlled area of North and East of Sri Lanka. The agreement has been challenged by the JVP and JHU in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka and the verdict is still pending.
Source: Wikipedia under GFDL.
