CHAPTER IX

THE DUTCH OCCUPATION,

1656-1796

THE terms of the capitulation of Colombo led immediately to a breach between Rajasinha and the Dutch. The king contended that Hulft had promised that Colombo should be delivered to him to be demolished. The Dutch on the other hand had no intention of giving him so important a place, the more so as their expenses in the campaign had not been paid, and alleged that Hulft had understood that the king wished the existing wails to be pulled down and for a smaller part of the city fortified, as was actually carried out later. Rajasinha by this time was for the moment master of Lanka, with the exception of the north and of the fortresses with some villages on the coast, and proceeded to starve out the Dutch, plundering and well-high depopulating the low country. Coffisions occurred,. and at last in November, 1656, the Dutch, unable to tolerate longer the state of affairs, drove the king from the vicinity of Colombo. The low country had been so denuded of its inhabitants that the Company some years later resolved that the lands between Hanwella, Angaruwatota and the coast should be peopled and cultivated by Tanjore slaves and citizens of Colombo.

The year 1657 was spent in the blockade of Goa, and it was only in 1658 that Tuticorin and Mannar fell into the hands of the Dutch. These captures were completed by the surrender of Jaffna on June 24, 1658, after a siege of three months, and by the consequent total expulsion of the Portuguese from the Island. The conquest of Jaffna was marked by unnecessary brutality on the part of the Dutch in the treatment of their prisoners.

Van der Meyden was succeeded by Rykloff van Goens the Elder, who governed except for brisk intervals from 1660 to 1675. Relations with the Court of Kandy continued strained, but in 1664 a rebellion broke out against Rajasinha, who fled to Hanguranketa and wrote for help to thern Dutch. Their assistance took the form of annexing fifteen districts in 1665, by which the Company's frontier became practically conterminous with that held by the Portuguese in the Four Korales and Sabaragamuwa, the Seven Korales being left to the Sinhala: Trincomalee and Batticaloa also were occupied at the same time, Kalpitiya in 1667, and Kottiyar in 1668. Desultory hostilities on the part of Rajasinha continued, and the Dutch, unable to get satisfaction from the king, closed the ports of Kottiyar, Batticaloa and Kalpitiya, thus stopping the Kandyan trade. In 1671 the king again was in trouble with his own subjects.

About this time the French entered into negotiations with Rajasinha and occupied Trincomalee. They were expelled in 1672 by the Dutch, and their ambassador, who had offended the king, was kept a prisoner in the interior until his death. Peace continued until 1675, when a general insurrection took place, and at the same time an invasion by the Kandyans in force. In this year the Governor was succeeded by his son Rykloff van Goens the Younger (1675-1679), and in 1677 the Batavian authorities ordered the restoration to Rajasinha of the districts occupied twelve years previously. The king, however, made no effort to take them over, and intermittent hostilities continued until the government was assumed by Laurens Pyl (1679-1692), who made a good impression on the Court. But Rajasinha was still angry over the closing of the ports, and in 1684 surprised and secured a considerable amount of territory as well as the invaluable salt pans at Hambantota, all however included in the districts ordered to be returned to him. The efforts of the Company to obtain a permanent peace were still fruitless when the old king died on November 25, 1687.

Fig 9.1Galle's Lighthouse near the Fort

Rajasinha is well known to us from his correspondence with the Dutch edited by the late Mr. Donald Ferguson, and from the account of the Kandyan kingdom written by the Englishman Robert Knox, detained there with his fellows as a captive froth 1659 to 1679. He was a strong ruler and united his dominions, rectifying the disastrous division made by his father by poisoning one hall-brother and driving out the other. Despotic and tyrannical, suspicious yet farseeing, he kept his chiefs as hostages at Court, and had no remorse in ravaging and depopulating his subjects' lands when it seemed to his political advantage. He was a master in craft and double dealing, but met his equal in diplomacy in the Dutch, who found it impossible to act otherwise with so shifty an ally. He was acquainted with Portuguese, and probably had a somewhat wider outlook than his successors, who firmly believed that they were the greatest sovereigns on earth and their little kingdom the centre of the world. He had no consception of the law of nations, detaining and even im prisoning ambassadors, apparently regarding such lucks less Europeans as fell into his hands as curiosities, much in the same way as the lion and other animals sent him by the Dutch. In military matters he was in no wise the equal of his namesake of Sitawaka, whom he wished to emulate; his troops, excellent at guerilla warfare, were unfitted for fighting in the open or for siege work, and their presence at Colombo rather hindered the Dutch than otherwise. The Sinhala proverb, ` I gave pepper and got ginger,' illustrative of a bad bargain, was applied to his ousting the Portuguese by means of the faithful Hollanders,' and his invitation of a strong power only resulted in the isolation of his kingdom and its removal from all progressive influences.

The new king, Rajasinha's son, Vimala Dharma Surya II. (1687-1707), demanded in return for peace the freedom of the ports and the cession of the districts taken in 1665; these actually were given up in 1688, the Company's frontier thus becoming the existing inland boundaries of the Western and Southern Provinces. The position of the Dutch as protectors of the sea-coast for the king was anomalous, Rajasinha by 1658 having gone so far as to deny any contract, and they found it difficult to control the people of the districts held by them; moreover, as the cinnamon was largely gathered in the king's territory they were always under obligation to the Court. It was about this time that notice seems to have been taken of the Donation of Dharmapala, and the Company decided to base its claim to the Maritime Provinces as against Europeans on conquest rather than on treaty and hypothee pending the payment of expenses. The Dutch suggested terms to the Court, one article providing that their old territories and ports should be ceded to the Company in annulment of the king's indebtedness, but their proposals were refused. In spite of this the relations between the two parties remained more or less harmonious during the remainder of Pyl's government and during that of Van Rhee (1692-1697).

In 1701 under Gerrit de Heere (1697-1702) the Kandyans closed the frontiers with the object of stimulating their trade with Puttalam and Kottiyar, the only ports left to them. This step was so successful that Puttalam became the chief place for the areea-nut trade, which thus was lost to the Company, and the frontiers were reopened in 1703. The policy of the Company was to bring pressure to bear upon the king through trade; in 1703 instructions were sent to the Company's officials in Coromandel, Malabar and the Madura Coast to issue no passports except to Colombo, Galle and Jaffna, and in November 1707 the potts were definitely closed. This step led to considerable friction with the Court, which periodically retaliated by stopping the Dutch trade with the interior. Governor Simons (1702-1706) is responsible for the compilation of the Tesavalamai or Customary Laws of Jaffna.

Meanwhile in the interior the state of the Buddhist priesthood called for urgent reform; the temple lands had become hereditary, and in A.B. 2240 (A.D. 1697/8) the king sent an embassy to Aracan for the purpose of obtaining priests. He also built a three-storied temple for the Tooth Relic in Kandy. His death occurred on June 4, 1707, when he was succeeded by his son, Narendra Sinha (1707-1739), the last of the Sinhala dynasty. In his reign the Kandy Maha Dewale was founded in 1731.

In the time of Governor Rumpf {1716-1723} the Moors of the Coast made an attempt to create a port further to the north of Puttalam, egress from which was blocked by Kalpitiya held by the Dutch; the plan, however, was frustrated. In 1723 the cinnamon peelers rose in a body against their headmen, but were subdued and in punishment deprived of many privileges. Governor Vuyst (1726-1729) is notorious for his tyrannical rule. He resorted to torture and to inhuman punishments, and general terror prevailed. News, however, reached Batavia, and he was arrested, tried, and executed. Under Pielat (1732-1734), who was sent to investigate grievances, a rebellion occurred, and under Van Domburg (1734-1736) many districts as well as the cinnamon peelers broke into open revolt.

Fig 9.2 Dutch One Stuiver,1786 Copper Dump coin

The grievances of the people in general were many. Fines were imposed for failure of their children to attend school; the cultivation of chenas or low jungle periodically cleared and sown was wrongfully monopolized by the headmen, besides being hindered in the interests of cinnamon; the Company's share in gardens planted C with consent,' which share was sold at the appraised value to the planter, was raised from one-third to one-half; and, last of all, exception was taken to the Watubadda, a tax on certain gardens. The cinnamon peelers complained of unjust treatment by their headmen and of heavy taxation. The abolition of the Watubadda as well as of the extra burdens which had been imposed on the peelers, together with permission to clear chenas on direct application to and permit from the Disawa came too late, and the `revolt spread, fostered by the Court. At last the Kandyans joined in openly, annexing the Siyane, Hapitigam, and Alutkilru Korales, and formal war was declared in 1736. On the arrival of Van Imhoff (1736-1739) the Court found that it had to do with a strong man and the country grew quieter, but the trouble continued and internal peace was not restored until the end of 1737. The new Governor saw that the cause of the disquiet was the closing of the ports in 1707 and determined to reestablish friendly relations.

The king died on May 13, 1739, and was succeeded by his queen's brother, of the Nayakkar dynasty of Madura, who came to the throne under the name of Sri Vijaya Rajasinha (1739-1747). The hostility of the Court, and especially of the Dravidian element, continued. In 1740, in spite of the granting of the king's request for a yacht to carry emissaries to Siam. Pegu, Tennassenm and other places for the purpose of obtaining orthodox Buddhist priests, its obstruction was such that no cinnamon was shipped home that year, an attitude perhaps encouraged by the shipwreck of the embassy. Next year there took place several incursions into Dutch territory, the Kandyans going so far as to stop the erection of a church and school, the first symptom of the anti-Christian prejudices of the new dynasty which soon developed into open persecution in the Kandyan country. To all these provocations the Company tamely submitted on the explicit orders from Batavia to avoid a breach with the Court; but the greater the patience evinced by the Dutch the more outrageous became the Kandyans. A new embassy seems to have been dispatched to Siam at the end of 1741, and in 1742 the Company was required to forward letters by its own servants to Aracan and Siam and to bring back replies. The demand was partially complied with; yet in 1743 a fresh provocation was offered, the Court annexing nine villages in the Siyane Korale. Protests had a slight effect, but in 1745 the Kandyans again invaded the Dutch territory and had the assurance to ask for a ship to convey an embassy to Pegu. The Dutch at last determined not to yield further and refused the request, with the result that a new aggression took place, the Court claiming seven more villages in the Siyane Korale. These tactics meeting with no success, and depredations having been discontinued, a new request for a ship was granted by Governor Van Gollenesse (1743-1751), who built Wolvendaal Church. The embassy left for Siam in 1746 and succeeded in obtaining priests ; they were about to sail for Lanka when news was received of the king's death on August 11, 1747, New Style.

The late king was succeeded by his brother-in-law Kirti Sri (1747-1782). He was a zealous Buddhist, and in 1750 dispatched an embassy to Siam in confirmation of his predecessor's action. The priests arrived in Lanka in 1753, and re-established the succession, which has not since been lost; the Siamese sect,' thus founded, is in possession of the greater part of the old temples and of their temporalities. Weliwita Saranankara, who had played a leading part in the Buddhist revival since the time of Narendra Sinha, was made Sangharaja or head of the order; he died in 1778. This revival was accompanied by persecution. The Catholics, harried and proscribed by the Dutch, had found a refuge in the Kandyan country, where they had been protected or at least tolerated by the Sinhala kings, and Christianity had received a marked impetus from the labours of the Venerable Father Jose Vaz, a Brahman from the neighbourhood of Goa, who arrived in the Island in 1687 and died in 1711. But a new spirit characterized the kings of the Madura dynasty, and in 143 Sri Vijaya Rajasinha destroyed the churches and initiated a persecution, which was continued under Kirti Sri. It ceased only because the king considered that certain calamities which fell upon the country were due to his action. Kirti Sri built the existing inner temple of the Tooth Relic, and caused the Mahavansa chronicle to be continued from the time of Parakrama Bahu IV down to his own reign.

The Court was still, inclined to be quarrelsome, and in 1753 put forward a demand for participation in the elephant trade. The request was repeated more than once, but was always refused on the ground that the old privileges enjoyed by the Company should be `maintained.

In 1760 a violent and desperate insurrection broke out throughout the Sinhala provinces of the Company, the causes as before being largely agrarian, and the discontent being fanned by the Kandyan Court. The people were aggrieved by the methods employed by the renters in collecting the Government dues from the paddy fields, but the chief cause of the revolt was the policy adopted by Governor Schreuder (1757-1762) in resuming for the Company planted lands in the cinnamon-growing areas. For some time past felling of jungle and planting of coconut gardens had become common, and the Government, whose monopoly was affected, resolved in 1758 to expropriate the possessors. Compensation in land elsewhere was to be given to those who held the lots now required in virtue of grants from the Governor or who had paid for such as had been planted without the Company's consent; but persons who had not paid for lands planted whether with or without consent were to get nothing. Expropriation was not to take place immediately; after the expiry of four years, by which time the plantations on the newly given lands were expected to be in bearing, the old lots were to be resumed and such trees cut down as were found to be necessary. The cinnamon peelers, as usual, took the opportunity to cause trouble. The Dutch enjoyed a brief respite owing to a conspiracy against the king's life; the plot was unsuccessful, and in 1761 the Kandyans invaded the low country and had little difficulty in taking Matara and Hanwella forts, at the same time occupying all the frontier districts. The Dutch retaliated by entering Kandyan territory, but were forced to retire. But the king felt the need of help, and his negotiations with the English East India Company at Madras led to Pybus' fruitless mission in 1762. Later in this year Van Eck (1762-1765) arrived as Governor and at once infused energy into the Dutch. To him is due the Star Fort at Matara. Chilaw and Puttalam were captured, and in 1763 an expedition was sent into the interior; it was, however, unsuccessful owing to the guerilla tactics of the Kandyans. But early in 1765 a new attack was made on the king's country, one army under Van Eok in person advancing from Colombo through the Seven Korales and the Galagedara pass, and another marching from Puttalam. Katugastota was reached on February 16. The king now was prepared to make very considerable concessions, and offered the Company Sabaragamuwa, the Three, Four and Seven Korales, and the sovereignty of the coasts of the whole Island. Van Eck, however, was persuaded it is said by Van Angelbeek, afterwards the last Dutch Governor, to insist on the king taking his crown as the vassal of the Company. This Kirti Sri refused to do and abandoned the capital, which the Dutch occupied in February 19. Their energies were wasted in attacks on Hanguranketa and Kundasale, and in guerilla warfare. Van Eck left Kandy on March 4, and reaching Colombo six days later died on April 1. The garrison which had been left behind in Kandy was poorly provided; it fell a prey to sickness and was beleaguered by the exasperated Kandyans, but fought its way out without loss. In August Falck arrived as Van Eck's successor and began negotiations with the Court. The Kandyans, who had been unable to sow their fields, were on the verge of starvation, and the new Governor brought further pressure to bear on them by ravaging the Three, Four, and Seven Korales, and by expeditions into Bintenna and Matale. A little diplomacy on the part of Falck won the day, and peace was finally attained by the treaty of February 14, 1766, by which the king relinquished to the Company the full sovereignty not only of the territories already held by it but of the remaining districts bordering on the coast. The Kandyans were now completely cut oft from the outer world, and the king in 1772 began a new series of demands for a share in the pearl fishery, adding in 1776 another for the restoration of a part of the coast.

The war between Great Britain and the revolted American colonies ultimately involved Holland, and resulted in the fall of Negapatam in 1781. It was at this period that the Company's mint at Tuticorin was transferred to Colombo. Early in January 1782 Trincomalee was captured by the British Admiral Sir Edward Hughes, and Boyd sent as ambassador to Kandy. But Kirti Sri had died on January 2 of the injuries caused two months before by a fall from his horse, and his brother Rajadhirajasinha {1782-1798} refused to treat with the envoy on the ground that he was not authorized by King George III. Admiral Hughes, who had left a garrison at Trincomalee, fought an indecisive action with the French under Suffren at sea on February 17, and again off Trincomalee on April 12. Another battle was fought on July 4, after which both fleets refitted. On August 25 Suffren reappeared before Trincomalee, and the fort surrendered shortly afterwards, only a few days before the coming of Hughes. Trincomalee was restored to the Company by the French at the Peace of Paris in 1784.

On February 5, 1785, Falck died and was succeeded by Van de Graaff. The new Governor's relations with Kandy were strained. In 1791 the king sent his Disawas to mobilize the local levies in the border districts; the Dutch therefore reinforced their frontier garrisons. Their request for an explanation of the unusual activity was met by a demand for the restoration of the coast; this was refused and the king was requested to withdraw his troops, whereupon the Dutch withdrew theirs. Shortly afterwards the Government, on information supplied by the Adigar Pilama Talauwe, soon to become so well known to the British, intercepted a letter from the king to the French in which their aid was sought against the Dutch. The Court also, in violation of the Treaty of 1766, required the Company to apply for permission to peel cinnamon in the Kandyan territory; and, on this demand being refused, the Disawas placed themselves at the head of their levies. The Company's troops were now encamped at Sitawaka. In May the Governor went thither for the purpose of enforcing the collection of the cinnamon. This step was successful, and only in Sabaragamuwa was it found necessary to support the peelers with a detachment. Disappointed at the failure of the French and compelled by scarcity of salt the king reopened the frontier, and though hostifities were expected on his part on the receipt of two threatening letters in 1792, peace continued unbroken until the loss of Lanka by the Dutch.

Agriculture always was actively encouraged by the Company. The planting of coffee received attention in 1720 and of pepper in 1753. Cinnamon grew wild, and the Dutch depended for much of the supply on the king's country. Until the treaty of 1766 permission to collect was only obtained by a yearly embassy, accompanied by humiliating ceremonial, and contact with the Kandyans led to constant trouble on the part of the peelers, but it was only in 1769 that Falck made an attempt to cultivate the plant at Maradana. Though successful, it was not until 1793 that a serious effort was made to render the Company independent of the king for its supply. Paddy cultivation was not lost sight of; in 1767 the Government attempted to reclaim the old Muturajawela fields lying to the north of Colombo. These had been ruined by salt water introduced by a canal, which according to De Queyroz was constructed between Negombo and Kotte by a Sinhala king, apparently Parakrama Bahu VIII.; by the Dutch this canal was attributed to the Portuguese, and was said to have been cut only some way from the Negombo lagoon. The Dutch themselves followed their custom in the Netherlands, and the numerous canals intersecting the country between Negombo and Kalutara arc, with the Roman-Dutch law and the forts, the principal monument to their rule in Lanka. A census made in 1789 gave the inhabitants of the Company's territories as numbering 817,000. The Company's prosperity, however, was waning. The European wars necessitated a large military establishment and several mercenary regiments, such as those of Wurtemburg, Luxemburg and De Meuron, were maintained at considerable expense. At the same time the Company's finances were in a precarious state ; the local currency had long been confined to copper coin, which in the absence of gold and silver became the standard, and the American war was followed by the introduction of paper money. And, further, the of the Company had become lethargic and no longer displayed the energy of their predecessors in the seventeenth century.

Van de Graaff was succeeded by Van Angelbeek on January 10, 1794, and in December of that year the French revolutionaries entered the Netherlands and established the Batavian Republic. The Hereditary Stadtholder fled to England and found a refuge at Kew.

THE DUTCH COMPANY.

The United East India Company was incorporated in 1602. Its organization at one time was the admiration of other nations, who used it as their model.

The shareholders formed the Assembliee or Chambers' of Amsterdam, Zeeland, Deift, Rotterdam, Hoorn, and Enkhuizen, and appointed the C Seventeen' or Directors of the Company. These in their turn on behalf of the States General nominated the Governor-General and Council of India, and confirmed the appointments of the Company's servants provisionally made in the East. From 1748 until the establishment of the Batavian Republic the Stadtholder became the Chief Director and Governor-General-in-Chief of India, and in this capacity presided over the meetings of the Seventeen.

The administration of the Company's factories and possessions in the East was in the hands of the Governor General and his Council. The service was divided into the Political, the Military, and the Naval branches. The grades in the Political or, as we should style it, the Civil Service were Opperkoopman (Senior Merchant), Koopman (Merchant), Onderkoopman (Junior Merchant), Boekliouder (Book-keeper), Assistant Boekhouder, Junior Assistant Boekhouder, and Aanquikeling or Zoldaat by de pen (Writer). The Military ranks were those of Major, Captain, Captain-Lieutenant, Lieutenant, Ensign, Sergeant, Corporal and Private; and the Naval Capitan der Zee (Sea Captain), Lieutenant der Zee, and mattroos (sailor). The Equipagie Meester corresponded with our Master Attendant. There were also a considerable number of Ambachtslieden or artisans. The Ecclesiastical offices were those of Predikant and Krankbezoeker (visitor to the sick).

The Government of Lanka was entrusted to the Governor and Director ef the Island, always a member of the Council of India, and to the Political Council, consisting of the Hoofel Administrateur (Controller of Revenue), the Disawa of Colombo, the chief military officer, the Fiscal (Public Prosecutor), and five others, the heads of the principal departments at headquarters. These were the Secretariat under the Political Secretary, the Negotie Kantoor (Trade Office), the Zoldij Kantoor (Pay Office), and the Warehouses. The Visitateur or head of the Visitie Kantoor (Audit Office) had no seat on the Council.

The Dutch territories were divided between Colombo, Jaffna and Galle. The jurisdiction of Colombo extended from Kalpitiya on the north to the Bentota River on the south, and was under the Disawa, with Opperhoofds at Kalpitiya, Negombo and Kalutara. The Captain of the ilahabadda or Cinnamon Department was subordinate to the Disawa, who in later times held the office in addition to his own. Jaffna and Galle being at a distance from the seat of government were administered by Commandeurs, assisted by a Council. At Jaffna there was also a Disawa, and Opperhoofds at Mannar, Trincomalee and Batticaloa. At Galle the Disawa of Matara was the senior member of the local Council; the Galle Korale was governed by a Superintendent, who also was Captain of the Mahabadda. All these officers were Dutchmen.

The Dutch retained the old system of government inherited from the native kings by the Portuguese. The Mudaliyar assisted by Muhandirams and Arachchis commanded the Lascorins or native militia; the Korala was in charge of the remainder of the people. Governor Falck, however, modified this arrangement in view of the disputes between the two sets of headmen by amalgamating the offices of Mudaliyar and Korala. Most lands were held by service tenure, and the headmen were paid by grants of land enjoyed only while they held office. The number of offices and the extent of the land assigned to each was cut down by Van Gollenesse. The Moors and Chetties, being considered foreigners, were subject to Uliyam or forced labour, which however could be commuted for a cash payment. The Malays, imported by the Dutch from the Archipelago, were bound to military service.

At Colombo the chief court was (1) the Raad van Justitie, consisting of members chosen from the Political Council and presided over by the Hoofd Administrateur. It had exclusive criminal jurisdiction and original juris diction in civil cases between Europeans and natives in Colombo: it was also a court of appeal. (2) The Landraad dealt with litigation touching land among the natives: it was composed of the Disawa as President, a few members of the Political Service and native chiefs (3) The Civiel Raad or Court of Small Causes took cognizance of civil cases under 120 rixdollars in value, and had jurisdiction over Europeans and natives. A similar Raad van Justitie under the Commandeur existed at Jaffna and Galle as well as Landraads, which also were instituted at the smaller stations. Appeals lay from the Raads van Justitie of Jaffna and Galle and from all minor courts in civil and criminal matters to the Raad van Justitie at Colombo, and in certain eases to the Raad van Justitie at Batavia.

The Dutch Reformed Church followed the civil divisions and a Kerkraad or Consistory was established at Colombo, Jaffna and Galle. The staff consisted `of European ministers, Native Proponents or preachers usually qualified in the Colombo Seminary, European Krankbezoekers who visited the hospitals and taught orphans, and native Catechists and Schoolmasters. They were much exercised over the suppression of Buddhism and `Popery.' Edu cation almost entirely lay in their hands. The schools in the countryside mainly taught the Catechism and prayer, as well as reading and writing in the vernacular; each school had from two to four teachers and every ten a Catechist. They were supervised by the Scholarchal Commission, which in Colombo consisted of the Disawa, the clergy of the place, and three or four members of the' Political service, all nominated by the Governor. Similar bodies existed at Jaffna and Galle. These boards not only visited the schools yearly, but took cognizance of native maniages, issued marriage licences, and examined and appointed the schoolmasters and Tombo-holders or registrars. In 1788 the number of schools between Kalpitiya and Bentota was fifty-five.

Fig 9.3 The Kandy Disavanies

There were also elementary Dutch schools for Europeans, about seventeen in all. They were classified as Orphan, Parish, and Private: those of the first two categories were supported by the Government. Secondary education was confined to the Colombo Seminary, apparently not entirely under the control of the Scholarchal Commission ; it is first noticed in 1708. The higher course of instruction was given in Dutch. At a later date, Latin, Greek and Hebrew were added to the curriculum. The institution was mainly intended for the education of the clergy, schoolmasters and catchists. It was responsible for the translation of the whole of the New Testament and a great part of the Old into the vernacular. In 1747 a native school called the New Seminary was started in Colombo, but seems to have had no long existence. The Jaffna Seminary, begun in 1690, was discontinued in 1723.

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AUTHORITIES FOR CHAPTER IX

For general history see Beknopte Historie Baldaeus, Valentyn, Oud en Nieuw Oost Indien, vol. V . ; Report on the Dutch Archives, R. G. Anthonisz, Colombo, 1907; instructions from the Governor General and Council of India, 1656-1665, Sophia Pieters, Colombo, 1908; Memoirs of various Dutch Governors and Commandeurs, Government Press, Colombo; P. E. Pieris, Ceylon and the Hollanders, 1918, written from the Sinhalese point of view.

For the resolution to re-people part of the country see Instructions, pp. 17, 18. The date 1685 f or the Hendala Leper Asylum is given by Van Geer; Anthonisz attributes the completion of the building to Governor Becker, 1708.

The date of the foundation of Maha Dewale is given in a Sinhala verse.

For the grievances of Van Domburg's time see Van Imhoif's secret dispatches to Batavia dated August 7 and September 26, 1736 (Archives, 49 D); for the Watubadda, also Memoir of H. Becker, p. 25, and Memoir of Van Imhoff, p. 46, and for the question of chenas, Becker's Memoir, p. 42.

The yacht was granted by Resolution of Council, June 20, 1740. The embassy in Dhanus, Saka 1663 = November-December 1741 is mentioned in a Sinhala book of dates. For the death of Sri Vijaya and for the accession of Kirti Sri and his coronation see C.A. ii. p. 156. It is difficult to reconcile the authorities as to the dates of the various embassies for the purpose of obtaining priests; thus:

Dutch Sinhala.

June 1740 Grant of a yacht.

Nov.-Dec. 1741, embassy

starts for Siam.

A.B. 2288 (1745/6) embassy. 1745 refusal of a vessel.

1747 Vessel granted.

See also ` An Account of King Kirti Sri's Embassy to Siam,' J.R.A.S., C.B., xviii. No. 54.

For the persecution of the Catholics see Vida do Veneravel Padre Joseph Vaz, Lisbon, 1747.

For. Schreuder's policy see Resolution of Council of August 4, 1758 (Colombo Archives, vol. D 113).

For the conspiracy against the king's life see `The Moladande Rebellion,' C.A. ii. p. 272.

For Van Eck's expedition see J.R.A.S., C.B. xvi. No. 50; for the treaty, ib., and Report on the Dutch Records, p. 133; for the evacuation of the Kandy garrrison, letter of Majors Frankena and Duao, received September 10, 1765, referred to in Secret Resolution of Council of September 12 (Archives, D 248).

For the operations at Trincomalee in 1782 see Ceylon Literary Register, 1889, vol. iv. pp. 125 if. For Van de Graaif and the Court sec Colombo Archives, vole. D 259 (August 14, 1792), and 11261 passim.

For Parakrama Bahu's canal see De Q. p. 20; for the Dutch account, Resolution of Council of June 3, 1767 (1) 139

For the Company's organization sec Report on the Dutch Records, pp. 6 if. and 125 if. For the military, J.R.A.S., C.B. x. No. 37; for the Church and Schools, lb. i. (2). Bandanese assisted at the capture of Colombo and Mannar; Javanese were allotted land at Wolvendaal (Nossa Senhora de Guadalupe) by Ryklof van Goens the Elder for military service (Resolutions of Council, September 8, 1660). For the judicial arrangements see `Notes front Cleghorn's Minute;' Ceylon Literary Register, vi. 1891/2, pp. 43, 50. The Gospels were translated into Sinhala in 1739 and into Tamil in 1743; the New Testament into Sinhala in 1771-1780, and into Tamil in 1759; and the Pentateuch into the last-named tongue in 1790.

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The Lakdiva Books Etext prepared by Rhajiv Ratnatunga (rhajiv@lakdiva.net)