The Vellore fort, in which our last king was held captive for 17 years, spreads over an area of 133 acres. It was built around 1566 by Chinna Bommi Nayak and Thimma Reddy Nayak, chieftains of the Vijayanagar Empire. Ironically, King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe belonged to the same Nayak clan which built the fort.
Standing west of Natha Devale, Kandy’s historic Pattini Devale honors the goddess of chastity and healing. This four-century-old shrine, featured in ancient epics and royal processions, boasts elegant Kandyan architecture. Devotees visit this sacred rectangular structure to seek protection from disease, famine, and drought through divine blessings.
Gampola Niyamgampaya Rajamaha Viharaya is situated at Mariyawattha on the road from Gampola to Nawalapitiya. The origin of the temple is not very clear but according to historical documents it can be assumed that this temple has been in existence since the early Christian Era.
Niththawela Raja Maha Viharaya which accommodated venerable Velivita Sri Sarankara in his educational activities during the reign of King Narendrasinghe (1707 – 1739) must have been existed from much earlier times.
The Natha Devalaya is Kandy’s oldest surviving structure, a 14th-century gedige shrine dedicated to Natha, a form of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. Standing opposite the Temple of the Tooth, it served as the sacred site for royal coronations and naming ceremonies of the Kandyan Kingdom.
Just above the Malwatu Maha Viharaya in Kandy and near the present Wales Park on the hills is found a small but beautiful old viharaya called Naga Vimanaya. This is a supposed to be a place where Velivita Sri Saranankara Thero lived for some time.
The superstructure of the Minimarupitiya Tampita Viharaya is composed of wattle and daub and is square in shape. The height of the doorway is about four feet and its dimensions are 10 feet by 15 feet, standing on six stone dwarf pillars.
Sri Lanka should have celebrated the 309th birth anniversary of Sangharaja Weliwita Sri Saranankara Thera as much as the introduction of Upasampada to Sri Lanka in 1753. If not for Sangharaja Weliwita, Sri Lanka would not have been a Buddhist country.
A wealth of historical detail awaits those who venture through long, winding corridors of the Malwatta temple in Kandy to the museum that lies within. The ‘Weliwita Saranankara Sangaraja Museum’ houses artefacts of the last ‘Sangaraja’ or the king of the monks, a title bestowed by King Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe.
Across the lake from the temple of the Tooth Relic, is situated one of the great centres of the Sangha, belonging to the Siam Nikaya, known as “Malwatu Maha Viharaya”. This great monastery consists of two sections.
The Magul Maduwa, or Audience Hall, in Kandy is a historic wooden pavilion where the last kings of Sri Lanka conducted administrative and judicial duties. Started in 1783, this architectural masterpiece witnessed the 1815 handover of sovereignty to the British and the tragic sentencing of national patriots like Keppatipola Disave.
The Kataragama Devalaya at Kandy is run by Hindu priests unlike the other 3 devales in Kandy. The entrance to the main shrine faces the main street through a colorfully ornamented vahalkada.
Kandy Lake or the Nuwara Wewa was built by the last king of Kandy (and of Sri Lanka), Sri Wikrama Rajasinhe to beatify the Temple of the Tooth Relic (Dalada Maligawa) by excavating paddy fields in 1807. He called this artificial lake the :Kiri Muhuda” or the Milky Ocean.
Kadugannawa Ambalama is said to have build during the reign of King Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe and must have been a popular stopover for the merchants traveling on the arduous route between ancient hill capital and the lowlands
Local traditions say that this Hendeniya Rajamaha Viharaya was built at the the request of Henekanda Biso Bandara (consort of King Wickremabahu III) of the Gampola period (1357-1374)
Lewis called this Garrison Cemetery, the ‘European graveyard of Kandy’, in his book on the ‘List of Inscriptions on Tombstones and Monuments in Ceylon’ published in 1913.
Renowned for its murals of the Kandyan Sittara art, “Gangarama Raja Maha Viharaya” is attributed to King Kirti Sri Rajasinhe (1747 – 1781). The paintings in this temple depict scenes of Buddha of his birth and Jataka Stories. Even today they are valued as excellent examples of Kandyan Sittara Art.
A short turn off from the Kundasala Road just outside of Kandy and you will come upon a strange sight: the unfinished Galmaduwa Viharaya.
Passing Suriyagoda Viharaya in Yati Nuwara you come across two more historical locations, Dodanwela Devalaya and Danthre Viharaya. These can also be reached by the main road from Alakolange.
The Kandyan king, Kirti Sri Rajasinghe (1747-1780) was a great patron of the arts. It was during his time that some of the best paintings in upcountry temples were created. Among them, the Degaldoruwa Raja Maha Vihara paintings stand out.
