The Decline Oe Polomarwa and the Rise Oe Dambadeniya
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___________________THE DECLINE OE POLOMARWAC-- :--------------------------------- AND THE RISE OE DAMBADENIYAi___ (circa 1180 - 1270 A.D.) Amaradasa Liyanagamage Thesis submitted for the Degree of .'{ Doctor of Philosophy •University of London ProQuest Number: 10804780 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10804780 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 a Abstract In this study an attempt is made to examine the developments in the history of Ceylon from the death of Parakramabahu I to the end of the reign of Parakramabahu II covering a period of roughly a century (c.1180 to 1270 A.D.)* The unity and general prosperity which the country enjoyed under Parakramabahu I gave way to dissension and disintegration soon after his death. The forces of disintegration moved on until about four decades after Parakramabahu1s death Dambadeniya emerged as a new centre of activity and of resistance to foreign invaders with the founda tion of a royal residence there. The difficult problems concerning the disintegration of the Poionnaruva Kingdom so soon after reaching its cul mination under Parakramabahu I, and the subsequent rise of Dambadeniya to importance under parakramabahu II form the subject of this study. In chapter I the introduction sets out some of these problems and then pro- cedes with the discussion of the sources. Apart from the Pali Chronicles, other literary works, written both in Sinhalese and PalLi, will be examined with a view to estim^ing their historical value. After this analysis of the sources, chapter II deals with the developments which followed the death of Parakramabahu I after giving a brief outline of his reign. Here the process of the disintegration of the Poionnaruva Kingdom has been examined with an attempt to determine the possible causes. Chapter III deals with the examination of the circumstances that led to the foundation of a royal residence in Dambadeniya. This chapter discusses the role of Vijayabahu III, the founder of Dambadeniya, together with that of other local rulers in parts of Rohana and Mayarattha, The next chapter 3 states some of the difficulties ‘which arise from the principal sources dealing with Parakramabahu II and examines his early life. A major part of this chapter is devoted to an examination of the policies of Magha, who had invaded and occupied Rajarattha. Among foreign invaders Magha is unique in some respects, and for that reason his rule has been exam ined in detail. The initial stages of Parakramabahu's struggle with Magha are also examined in the same chapter. Magha was not the only foreign invader with whom Parakramabahu had to deal. His kingdom was invaded twice by the Pa^yas - events not dealt with in the Pali Chronicle but brought to li&ht by South Indian inscriptions. Ceylon was also in vaded by Candrabhanu of the kingdom of Tambralinga in the Malay Peninsula. This is the first known instance of an invasion of Ceylon by a ruler from South East Asia. These events are important for the understanding of the course of tbe history of Ceylon in this period, and will therefore be con sidered in detail in chapter V. The last chapter is devoted to an examin ation of Parakramabahu’s restoration of the ancient cities of Rajarahtha and to a consideration of the extent of has rule and the importance of his reign in the history of Ceylon. The conclusion brings out the principal results of this study. 4 Acknowledgments It is my pleasant duty to thank all those who have assisted me in various ways during the preparation of this thesis. It is difficult adequately to express my deep sense of gratitude to Dr. J. G. de Casparis under whose guidance and care this study was undertaken. I have benefitted a great deal from his suggestions and criticisms which have contributed to improve the quality of this monograph. Dr. Casparis gave of his time generously, irrespective of whether it was term-time or vacation. And, above all, he evinced kindness and sympathy even in my personal difficulties. I remain deeply beholden to him. Similarly Professor A. L. Basham was very kind and helpful throughout this period of study and my most sincere thanks go to him. I owe a deep debt of gratitude to my teachers in Ceylon, too: Professor H. C. Ray, Head of the Department of History, Yidyalankara University, helped in arranging this course of studies and took a * keen personal interest in my work. In the initial stages Dr. K. ¥. Gunawardhana, Lecturer, University of Ceylon, encouraged me to pursue this course of studies at a time when I had some hesitation due to personal difficulties. I had several useful discussions with Dr. L. S. Perera, Lecturer, University of Ceylon, which helped me to ■•.clar ify some problems connected with this study. I would also like to thank some of my friends who have helped me: On several occasions I discussed certain points with Mr. 5 R.A.L.H.Gunawardhana, Assistant Lecturer, University of Ceylon, who read through a major part of the manuscript before it went to the typist; Mr. 1. Karunadasa, Assistant Lecturer, Yidyalankara University, was helpful in elucidating some difficulties arising from certain Pali texts; Mr. K.D.Svaminathan, Assistant Epigraphist, Archaeological Survey of India, was helpful in clarifying difficulties with the texts of some of the Tamil inscriptions utilized in this study; Mr. K.A.P.Kannangara’s reading of the manuscript helped to improve the quality of its English. My sincere thanks are due to them. I wish to thank the Administrative Staff of the School of Oriental and African Studies and also the staff of the Libraries of the School and the British Museum for their courtesy and helpful ser vice. Last but not least, my thanks go to the authorities of the Vidyalahkara University for granting me study-1eave which enabled me to pursue this course of studies. Table of Contents pages Abstract ....................................... 2 - 3 Acknowledgments .. 4 - 5 Abbreviations..................................... 7 - 9 Chapter I Introduction and Sources ........... 10-90 Chapter II ■ The Disintegration of the Polonnaruva Kingdom.......... .. 91-193 Chapter III The Foundation of the Dambadeniya Kingdom and the Reign of Yijayabahu III (1232-1236 A.D.) 194 - 247 Chapter IY The Treatment of the Reign of Parakrama bahu II and his Struggle with Magha.. 248 - 329 Chapter Y The Javaka and the Pandya Invasions.. 330 - 387 Chapter YI The Importance of the Reign of Parakra mabahu I I . .. 388 - 430 Conclusion.......... ......................... 431 _ 435 Bibliography 437 _ 454 7 Abbreviations A.X.G. Ancient Inscriptions of Ceylon, E.Muller. All. Ind. Or. C onf. f 0 Proceedings and transactions of the All India Oriental Conference. Arch. Survy. Ind. Archaeological Survey of India. A.R.E. Annual Report on South Indian Epigraphy, Calcutta. A.S.C.A.R. Archaeological Survey of Ceylon, Annual Report. A.S.C .Mem, Memoire of the Archaeological Survey of Ceylon.. B.E.E.E.O. Bulletin de l^cole Frampaise d*Extreme-Orient, Hanoi. B.K.I. Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land-en Yolkenkunde van Wederlandsch-Indi*e, uitgegeven door het Koninkli.jk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Yolkenkunde van Hederlandsch-Indi*e(' s Gravenhage). B.S.O.A.S. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. C .A.L.R. Ceylon Antiquary and Literary Register, Colombo, C.H.J. Ceylon Historical Journal, Colombo. C.J.S.G. Ceylon Journal of Science Section G~ Archaeology, Ethnology etc., Colombo. Cult.Cey.Med.Times. Culture of Ceylon in Mediaeval Times, Wilhelm Geiger. Cv. CElavamsa. Cv.Tr. Culavamsa (Translation) Dal. Pjv. Dalad& Pujavaliya. Dal.• S. Dalada* Sirita. Elu Av. Elu Attanagaluvamsaya. * 8 Ep. Inti. Epigraphia Indica, Delhi. Ep. Zeyl. ■Epigraphia Zeylanica, Colombo. ■ Hw. • Hat thavanagallaviharavamsa. Ind. Ant. ‘Indian Antiquary, Bombay. , Series, Bombay. H.C.-I.P. The History and Culture of the Indian People / I.H.Q. Indian Historical Quarterly, Calcutta. J.A, ' Journal Asiatique, Paris. J.A.S. Journal of Asian Studies.'Michigan. J.B.O.R.I. Journal of- the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona. ■> A Jkm. J inakalamall. J.R.A.S. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, London. J.R.A.S.Cey.Br. (ifS) Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society?(New Series), Colombo. " Etk.Sng. Katikavat Sangara, edited.by Sir D.B.Jayatilaka. Med.Kon.Akd. van Mededeelingen der Koninklijke Hederlandsche ¥etenschappen Afd. Akademie van Wetenschappen, Amsterdam. Letterkunde. Mv. Hahavamsa. ci Hks. Hikya Samgrahaya. Pali Lit.Cey. The Pali Literature of Ceylon, C.P.Malalasekara. Pjv. ,Pujavaliya 33-34 Pariccheda, ed. A.V.SuravIra. P.T.S. Pali Test Society, London. Rep.Kg.Dt. The Report on .the KSgalla District, H.C.P.Bell. Rjr. Raj aratnakaraya. Rjv. Rajavaliya. Rjv.Tr. Raj avaliya (Translation) & S.B.E. Saored Books of the East. Sdh.Rtn. Saddh&aama Ratnakaraya. S.H.C. A Short History of Ceylon, H.W.Codrington. S.Ind.Ins. South Indian Inscriptions. Madras. Sinh.Lit. Sinhalese Literature, G.E.Godakumbura. Sinh.Sa.Lipi Simhala Sahitya Lipi, Sir D.B.Jayatilaka. T.B.G. Ti.idschrift voor Indische Taal-, Land- en Yolkenkunde uitgegeven door het Koninkli.jk Bataviaasoh Genootschap van Kunsten en Weten- schappen, Batavia, 's Gravenhage.