Battle of Randeniwela

Battle of Randeniwela
Part of Sinhalese–Portuguese War
Date25 August 1630
LocationRandeniwela near Wellawaya[1]
Belligerents
Kingdom of Kandy Portuguese Empire
Commanders and leaders
Senarat
Prince Mahastana
Prince Vijayapala		 Constantino de Sá de Noronha
Strength
>35,000
Casualties and losses
most died with 200 POWs[2]

The Battle of Randeniwela was a battle fought on 25 August 1630 in the Sinhalese–Portuguese War. It was fought between Senarat and his sons Prince Mahastana, who would later become Rajasimha II king of Kandy, and his brother Prince Vijayapala against the Portuguese forces commanded by then Governor Constantino de Sá de Noronha.[3] It was fought at Randeniwela near Wellawaya, a place close the town of Badulla. The battle broke off when Constantino de Sá launched the invasion via Badulla. The scene was an important historical event, where the Portuguese army was routed subsequent to the entire Lascarins (local militia) contingent defected.[4][5][6]

Background

Campaign of Danture

Battle

At Randeniwela the entire Lascarin army joined the Kandyan forces.[4][5][6] This was followed by a rain of arrows and bullets, in the night, against which it was impossible for the Portuguese to erect any protection. Into the bargain the torrential rain that poured down drenched the Portuguese army for several hours rendering the gunpowder and matches useless.[3] Dom Cosmo was one of the four Lascarin captains who fought alongside the Portuguese. Don Cosmo supposedly killed the Portuguese governor who was fighting valiantly. After the war King Senarath provided Dom Cosmo with several nindagams and gave him Katugaha Walauwa to use as his residence.

He did not have any male offspring. His daughter married (Binna) from a famous family in the area and Keppetipola Dissawa is a direct descendant of his.

References

  1. ↑ "Impact | Sundayobserver.lk - Sri Lanka". sundayobserver.lk. Retrieved 2015-01-05.
  2. ↑ Goonewardena, K.W. (1958). The foundation of Dutch power in Ceylon, 1638-1658. Djambatan. Retrieved 2015-01-05.
  3. 1 2 Rasin Deviyo - Chandra Tilake Edirisuriya (Ceylon Today) Accessed 2015-12-13
  4. 1 2 The Portuguese in Ceylon: Before the war with the Dutch - Colonial Voyage Web. Accessed 2015-11-25
  5. 1 2 The Historic Tragedy of the Island of Ceilāo - J. Ribeiro (AES) ISBN 8120613341 p 20, 91-92
  6. 1 2 Wickramasinghe, Nira (2005). Sri Lanka in the Modern Age: A History of Contested Indentities. C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd. p. 13. ISBN 978-18-5065-807-8. Retrieved 18 February 2016.

External links

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