Matale rebellion facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Matale rebellion මාතලේ කැරැල්ල
Part of the Kandyan Wars
Date 1848 Location British Ceylon Result British victory
Belligerents
Kandyan rebels	United Kingdom  British Ceylon
Commanders and leaders
Veera Puran Appu Gongalegoda Banda	George Byng, 7th Viscount Torrington
Units involved
	Green Howards 19th Regiment of Foot Ceylon Rifle Regiment
Strength
4000	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

The Matale Rebellion, also known as the Rebellion of 1848, was a fight against the British government in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). It happened in 1848 in the city of Matale. This rebellion was important because it changed how people fought for independence. It moved from old-style revolts led by kings to modern struggles led by ordinary people. It was mainly a revolt by farmers.

Why the Rebellion Started

The Kandyan areas had been under British rule for 32 years. Life was hard for the local people.

Land and Coffee

In 1840, the British passed a law called the Crown Lands Ordinance. This law allowed European plantation owners to take over common land that farmers had used for generations. This made many local farmers very poor.

In the 1830s, coffee growing started in Ceylon. Coffee plants grow well in high places. The British used the land they took from the farmers to grow coffee. This happened because coffee production in the West Indies had gone down after slavery was ended there.

However, the local farmers who lost their land did not want to work on these new coffee farms. They preferred their traditional way of life. So, the British brought in hundreds of thousands of workers from southern India. These workers, often called 'coolies', faced terrible conditions. Many died during the journey or while working on the plantations.

New Taxes

Britain was going through a tough economic time. This affected the coffee and cinnamon industries in Ceylon. Plantation owners wanted lower taxes on their exports.

The British government decided to remove the export tax on coffee and lower it for cinnamon. This meant they would lose money. To make up for it, they decided to put new direct taxes on the people. A new Governor, Lord Torrington, was sent to Ceylon to put these new taxes in place.

On July 1, 1848, new fees were added for owning guns, dogs, carts, and shops. People also had to work on plantation roads for free, or pay a special tax to avoid it. These taxes were very unfair and went against the traditions of the Kandyan people.

A large movement against these unfair taxes began to grow. For the first time, ordinary people, not kings or chiefs, led the fight in the Kandyan areas. The native king had been removed in 1815, and many chiefs were either defeated or working with the British.

The Rebellion Begins

On July 26, 1848, the leaders and their supporters gathered at the historic Dambulla Vihara (a Buddhist temple). At 11:30 a.m., Gongalegoda Banda was made king by the head monk of Dambulla. He was given the name "Sri Wickrama Subha Sarva Siddhi Rajasinghe." He asked the people if they were with the Buddhists or the British.

On the same day, his brother Dines was named sub-king. Dingirala was named uncrowned king of the Sat Korale (Seven Counties). Veera Puran Appu became prime minister and sword bearer to Gongalegoda Banda. About 4,000 people attended this ceremony.

Fighting the British

After Gongalegoda Banda was declared king, he and his army left Dambulla. They marched through Matale to capture Kandy from the British. They attacked government buildings, including the Matale Kachcheri (a government office), and destroyed tax records.

At the same time, Dingirala led attacks in Kurunegala. Eight people were killed there by the British. Governor Lord Torrington quickly declared martial law (military rule) on July 29, 1848, in Kandy, and on July 31 in Kurunegala.

Puran Appu was captured by British troops and was executed on August 8. Gongalegoda Banda and his younger brother Dines escaped and went into hiding. Gongalegoda Banda hid in a cave near Elkaduwa, about 13 kilometers (8 miles) from Matale.

Lord Torrington offered a reward of £150 for information leading to Gongalegoda Banda's capture. On September 21, Malay soldiers arrested him. He fought back but was taken from Matale to Kandy and held prisoner.

Gongalegoda Banda's Trial

Gongalegoda Banda's trial began on November 27 in Kandy. He was accused of high treason for saying he was King of Kandy and fighting against the British. He admitted he was guilty of all charges. The court sentenced him to be hanged on January 1, 1849. However, his death sentence was later changed. Instead, he was whipped 100 times and sent away to Malacca (in present-day Malaysia).

Leaders of the Rebellion

The Matale Rebellion was led by several brave people. These leaders included Paranagama Nilame, Swarnapali Paranagama Kumarihami, Suriyabandara Nilame, Gongalegoda Banda, Dines, Dingi Rala, and Puran Appu. They had the support of the people and village headmen of Matale. These leaders were often workers with connections to other parts of the country. They had a broader view than the Kandyan farmers they led.

Gongalegoda Banda

Gongalegoda Banda was the main leader of the 1848 Rebellion and was declared King of Kandy. His real name was Wansapurna Dewage Sinchia Fernando. He had worked for the police and later lived in Gongalegoda. He became very popular among the Kandyans. He was seen at the Temple of the Tooth just before the rebellion started. On July 6, 1848, Gongalegoda Banda led a protest march against the unfair taxes near the Kandy Kachcheri.

Veera Puran Appu

Weerahennedige Francisco Fernando, also known as Veera Puran Appu, was a very famous person in Sri Lanka's history. He was born in November 1812 in the coastal town of Moratuwa. When he was 13, he left Moratuwa and stayed with his uncle in Ratnapura. His uncle was the first Sinhalese lawyer. Later, Puran Appu moved to the Uva Province. In early 1847, he met and married Bandaramenike in Kandy. She was the daughter of Gunnepana Arachchi.

Legacy of the Rebellion

Memorial of the Matale Rebellion in Matale

The Matale Rebellion was a big step in changing how people fought for freedom. It was a farmers' revolt, moving away from the old-fashioned way of kings leading rebellions. The people no longer had their native king (who was removed in 1815) or their chiefs (who were either defeated or working with the British).

For the first time in the Kandyan areas, ordinary people became the leaders. These leaders were often skilled workers and craftsmen. They were like the common people who led parts of England's revolution or figures like Paul Revere and Tom Paine in the American Revolution. The old powerful families were weak. A new group of leaders, strong enough to lead the fight, had not yet fully formed.

See also

• Fort MacDowall
• Great Rebellion of 1817–18
• Revolutions of 1848