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The Principality of Ruhuna, also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri Lanka. Magama,
Tissamaharama Tissamaharama ( si, තිස්සමහාරාමය , ta, திஸ்ஸமஹாராம) is a town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka. History It was the capital of the Sinhalese Kingdom of Ruhuna as early as the 3r ...
and Mahanagakula (now called as
Ambalantota Ambalantota is a coastal town in southern Sri Lanka. It is located in Southern Province in Hambantota District between Matara and Hambantota. The Valave River meets the sea near Ambalantota. The Ambalantota is famous for its ancient ruins of ...
) were established here. The kingdom of Ruhuna was an important state in Sinhalese history as it was known for several rebellions against the superior states in Rajarata. The principality was defeated with its last de-facto Queen
Sugala Queen Sugala of Ruhuna also referred to as Sugala Devi (12th century A.D), was the last monarch of the Kingdom of Ruhuna, a state which was located in the Southern and Eastern regions of Sri Lanka. Life The Kingdom of Ruhuna was a Sub kingdom lo ...
been captured and executed by the invading army of
Parakramabahu I Parākramabāhu I ( Sinhala: මහා පරාක්‍රමබාහු, 1123–1186), or Parakramabahu the Great, was the king of Polonnaruwa from 1153 to 1186. He oversaw the expansion and beautification of his capital, constructed extensiv ...
. Following its annexing by Parakramabahu, the rebellions that arose were suppressed.


History


Founding

Ruhuna was founded around 200 BC by Prince
Mahanaga Mahanaga was an early monarch of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Demo ...
, brother to
Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura Tissa, later Devanampiya Tissa, was one of the earliest kings of Sri Lanka based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura from 247 BC to 207 BC. His reign was notable for the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka under the aegis of the Mauryan ...
, after a personal dispute. This region played a vital role in building the nation as well in the establishment of
Buddhist culture Buddhist culture is exemplified through Buddhist art, Buddhist architecture, Buddhist music and Buddhist cuisine. As Buddhism expanded from the Indian subcontinent it adopted artistic and cultural elements of host countries in other parts of Asi ...
.


Significance

The kings of Anuradhapura and the Chola kingdom during the reign over a majority of the country, generally fought against the forces of Ruhuna. Notable Ruhunan militants include:
Vijayabahu I Vijayabahu I (born ''Prince Keerthi'') (ruled 1055–1110), also known as Vijayabahu the Great, was a medieval king of Sri Lanka. Born to a royal bloodline, Vijayabahu grew up under Chola occupation. He assumed rulership of the Ruhuna principali ...
, whose armies defeated several Chola generals; and Manabharana II, whose army once conquered Polonnaruwa. The resistances that arose from Ruhuna were generally victorious against the Rajarata kingdom.


Conquest

After Parakramabahu I conquered the kingdom of
Rajarata Rajarata ā dja ra tə(Meaning: King's country) ( Sinhala: රජරට) ( Tamil: ரஜரட) was one of three historical regions of the island of Sri Lanka for about 1,700 years from the 6th century BCE to the early 13th century CE. Several a ...
, defeating its king Gajabahu II, he dispatched a force to Ruhuna. The people and army of Ruhuna generally opposed this and established a force against the invaders. While the Ruhunans were able to defeat a prominent general of Parakramabahu's army named Rakkha, they were defeated and their queen was executed.


Area

The area identified with Ruhuna in ancient times is mainly the Southern Province, a large part of the
Uva Province Uva Province ( si, ඌව පළාත, Uva Paḷāta, ta, ஊவா மாகாணம், Uvā Mākāṇam) is Sri Lanka's second least populated province, with 1,259,880 people, created in 1896. It consists of two districts: Badulla and Mon ...
and small parts of
Sabaragamuwa The Sabaragamuwa Province ( si, සබරගමුව පළාත ''Sabaragamuwa Paḷāta'', ta, சபரகமுவ மாகாணம் ''Sabaragamuwa Mākāṇam'') is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrati ...
and Eastern Provinces.


Princes of Ruhuna


See also

*
Provinces of Sri Lanka In Sri Lanka, provinces ( si, පළාත, translit=Paḷāta; ta, மாகாணம், translit=Mākāṇam) are the first level administrative division. They were first established by the British rulers of Ceylon in 1833. Over the next ce ...
*
History of Sri Lanka The history of Sri Lanka is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia, Southeast Asia and Indian Ocean. The early human remains found on the geography of Sri ...
*
University of Ruhuna The University of Ruhuna ( si, රුහුණ විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, රෝහණ සරසවිය (Ruhuṇa Viśvavidyālaya, Rohana sarasaviya),; ta, ருகுண பல்கலைக் கழகம்) is a pub ...


References

{{Coord missing, Sri Lanka History of Southern Province, Sri Lanka History of Uva Province History of Sabaragamuwa Province History of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka Sinhalese royalty Anuradhapura period Polonnaruwa period Former countries in South Asia