Historic Colombo Fort | AmazingLanka.com

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Demolition of the Dutch Fort, Colombo c.1865
Source : www.imagesofceylon.com

The business district of Colombo, with its government buildings, banks, commercial ventures, five-star hotels, and department stores, is still called Fort—a reminder of what it once was. Like Jaffna and Galle, Colombo had been a fortified town, but its fortifications were demolished around 1870 to make way for urban development. The demolition was soon followed by the loss of most of the structures within its walls.

Today, the Fort itself has almost vanished. Its outline can still be seen in aerial photographs, revealed in the grid pattern of streets. A few remnants survive: sections of the walls, the hospital, the solitary Delft Gate now hidden among modern high-rises, faint traces of the Dutch Governor’s House, and odd fragments such as a forlorn warehouse in the harbor. These scattered pieces are all that remain of a once formidable stronghold.

Around 1870, the walls were brought down by workers with hammers and pickaxes. With defenses no longer necessary, they were seen as obstacles to progress. Economic growth spurred further restructuring, and most original Dutch buildings were replaced by 19th-century department stores and offices, giving Colombo Fort the British colonial character it still carries today.

The Portuguese Fort

A view of Colombo harbour in 1518 showing the fort of “Our Lady of Victories” located on the Hook of Colombo (Land Maps & Surveys Vol. II)
source: The Fortress of Colombo: from the Portuguese and Dutch to the British by Chryshane Mendis

The map of the Portuguese Colombo Fort titiled "Plantas das cidades, portos, e fortalezas da conquista da India Oriental" by Albernaz, João Teixeira published between 1600-1650 from the digital archives of the National Library of France. — The map of the Portuguese Colombo Fort titled “Plantas das cidades, portos, e fortalezas da conquista da India Oriental” by Albernaz, João Teixeira published between 1600-1650 from the digital archives of the National Library of France.

Portuguese fort of Colombo (Comprehensive Atlas of the Dutch United East India Company Vol. IV)(National Archives/Charles Blackwood) — Portuguese Fort of Colombo (Comprehensive Atlas of the Dutch United East India Company Vol. IV)(National Archives/Charles Blackwood)

It was the Portuguese who first built a fort in Colombo, on the land known as the Hook of Colombo—later called Point of St. Lawrence by the Dutch. This rocky headland marked the southern boundary of the ancient harbor. The initial fort, made of mud walls, was soon rebuilt with stone and mortar as a triangular stronghold with three bastions. Writers of the period referred to it as “Our Lady of Victories” and “St. Barbara.”

In 1524 the Portuguese dismantled the fort for strategic reasons, but a small settlement soon took shape on the site, complete with a church (St. Lawrence) and a Franciscan house. In 1554 they constructed a more substantial fort where Colombo Fort now stands. This was less a mere fortress and more a fortified town, complete with residences and two churches. Over the following century, it expanded into the country’s main administrative center.

By the 1630s, the fort boasted fourteen bastions: Santa Cruz, Customs House, Martriz, Courca of Francis Xavier, Sao Joao, Sao Estevao, Sao Sebastao, Mother of God, Conception, Sao Jeronimo, Sao Antonio, Sao Jago, Sao Augustine, and Sao Lawrence.

The Dutch Fort

Dutch Fort of Colombo drawn in 1681
Source : Dutch National Archives

Dutch Casteel of Colombo 1756 (Comprehensive Atlas of the Dutch United East India Company Vol. IV)
source : The Fortress of Colombo: from the Portuguese and Dutch to the British by Chryshane Mendis

Photograph illustrating the lower right section of a blueprint for the fortification of a fort at Colombo. Held in the Colombo Archives, inventory number COL55TL. # Made by: C.F. Reimer, June 1787. — Photograph illustrating the lower right section of a blueprint for the fortification of a fort at Colombo. Held in the Colombo Archives, inventory number COL55TL.
# Made by: C.F. Reimer, June 1787.

When the Dutch captured Colombo from the Portuguese in 1656, they partially demolished the old fort and rebuilt its western section, known as Casteel. The location’s natural defenses—bounded by a lake on one side and the sea on the other—were further strengthened. A wide moat connected to the lake, infested with crocodiles, provided additional protection. Beyond the moat lay the Pettah, or “old city,” where the Portuguese bastions and walls were torn down.

The Fort and Pettah were linked by Koningsstraat, now Main Street. Starting at Delft Gate, the road crossed the moat by a drawbridge, skirted between the sea and Pettah, and ended at Kayman’s Gate. From there it extended along the Kelani River to Hanwella.

The Dutch fortified the city with nine bastions: Leiden, Delft, and Hoorn on the landside; Den Briel and Amsterdam on the west; and Rotterdam, Middleburg, Kloppenburg, and Enkhuizen on the south. Two additional batteries, Battenberg and Waterpas, guarded the northern promontory and the harbor beyond. The harbor itself, little more than an open roadstead, was safe only between December and April due to the monsoons. During the rest of the year, ships were forced to anchor at Trincomalee or Galle.

The Dutch also constructed sluices to flood the land between the moat and Pettah, creating what is now Beira Lake—possibly derived from de Beer, the name of the original sluice.

Within the Fort stood administrative and military offices, cinnamon storehouses, mills, a parade ground, a church, residential buildings, and stalls for horses and elephants. The streets were lined with shade trees, and houses were adapted from Dutch prototypes to suit the tropical climate, with verandas, fanlights, high ceilings, and open courtyards. Most homes were single-story, with whitewashed walls and red-tiled roofs that suffered constant damage from crows and monkeys.

The British Takeover

The British captured Colombo in 1796. For several decades they made few changes, but beginning in 1879 they demolished the old ramparts to create space for commerce. By 1878, the walls had already been cleared as far as the Rotterdam bastion. This transformation gave the Fort area its modern commercial character.

Life in Colombo Under Colonial Rule

In 1694, about 400 families lived in Colombo, with an average of eight members per household. More than half of these were slaves. Of the remainder, Europeans made up 54 percent, and many men had married Sinhalese or women of mixed Portuguese descent. By the 18th century, this community had grown into several thousand, with families established on the island for up to five generations.

When the British took control, many descendants of these settlers remained, working as civil servants. Over time they abandoned Dutch in favor of English but continued to be known as Dutch Burghers. Distinguished by their European features and Dutch surnames, they occupied respected positions as lawyers, doctors, and academics. Their wealth and social exclusivity created resentment among the Sinhalese. Following independence, the Sinhala Only policies of the 1950s and 60s prompted many Burghers to emigrate to Australia, the United States, and Canada. Writers such as Michael Ondaatje, in Running in the Family (1983), and Carl Muller, in his Burgher Trilogy (1993–1994), captured the lives and struggles of this unique community.

A Cosmopolitan City

By the 18th and 19th centuries, Colombo had become a cultural crossroads. The Pettah spread eastward and southward, housing a variety of enterprises. In 1803, an English observer noted: “Colombo is, for its size, one of the most populous places in India. There is no part in the world where so many languages are spoken, or which contains such a mixture of nations, manners, and religions.”

Another account from 1859 described the city’s ethnic and occupational diversity: Sinhalese as artisans and servants, Parsees as merchants, Moors as retailers, Malays as soldiers and valets, Tamils as laborers, and Caffres as excavators and pioneers. Portuguese descendants were often poor artisans and domestics, while Dutch Burghers remained prominent in mercantile and administrative roles. British officials, meanwhile, settled in Cinnamon Gardens and Kolpetty, drawn by the seaside and shaded villas. For those who could endure the humidity and mosquitoes, Colombo was indeed a comfortable place to live.

What remains of Colombo Fort Today

Parts of the Colombo fort still remain today, found in different parts of Pettah. Some of the more prominent relics of the ancient fort are,

Kayman’s Gate Bell Tower – Kayman’s Gate was an entrance to the former Colombo Fort located at the foot of Wolvendaal Hill in the Pettah district of Colombo, Sri Lanka. This historic free-standing bell tower still stands at the site, now at the intersection of Main and 4th Cross Streets.
Delft Gateway – This was one of the main entrances to the Colombo Fort. This entrance now lies in the Commercial Bank premises down Bristol Street. This monument is protected by the Archaeological Department and is well maintained by the Commercial Bank. This monument is freely open to the public.
Fortified Warehouse – The fortified warehouse of the old Dutch fort functions today as the Maritime Museum of Colombo Ports Authority. In some articles, this is referred to as a Dutch prison. This is the only surviving Dutch-period building within the port premises, which was constructed in 1676.
Parts of the wall of Battenburg battery – A 50 meter long stretch is found inside the harbor. This section is also known to the Archaeological Department.
A section of the wall from Enkhuysen bastion to Dan Briel bastion– A large section of this wall is found behind the Junior Police Officers’ Mess down Chaitya Road.
Dan Briel Bastian – lies inside the Navy Headquarters. The bastions were initially built of Kabook, and only after 1751 were they built of proper lime and stone.
Slave port entrance: Also lies inside the Navy Headquarters. This is a small secondary entrance built in 1676 which led to the Kaffirs field, which was the land area between the fort and the sea on the western coast; this is where the company’s slaves were kept. Thus, this was the small entrance from which the slaves of the VOC entered the fort to work.

References

Mendis, C. (2017). The Fortress of Colombo: from the Portuguese and Dutch to the British. FORT, the International Journal of Fortifications and Military Architecture, 45, 56–69.
Mendis, C. (2022a, February 5). The Fortress of Colombo: What else remains? Sri Lanka Archaeology. Retrieved March 19, 2025, from https://www.archaeology.lk/the-fortress-of-colombo-what-else-remains/
Mendis, C. (2022b, February 6). The Fortress of Colombo: What lies beneath the Navy Head Quarters. Sri Lanka Archaeology. Retrieved March 20, 2025, from https://www.archaeology.lk/the-fortress-of-colombo-what-lies-beneath-the-navy-head-quarters/
Nationaal Archief. (n.d.). Nationaal Archief. Retrieved March 20, 2025, from https://www.nationaalarchief.nl/

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