The Corp of Sri Lanka Engineers (SLE) is a combat support arm of the

Sri Lanka Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; ...

which provides

military engineering Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics b ...

. It is made up of ten regular regiments and one volunteer regiment. Headquartered at

Panagoda Cantonment Panagoda Cantonment is a cantonment located in the Western Province of Sri Lanka. It serves as the regimental headquarters of many regiments of the Sri Lanka Army and is an arsenal. It also houses one of the main Military Hospitals operated by the ...

, it is headed by the Centre Commandant. The corps provides combat engineering, construction and other technical support to the

Sri Lankan Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; t ...

and civil authorities. The corps' key roles are mobility and counter mobility. That is providing mobility to friendly forces while denying movement to enemy forces. Engineers are able to conduct tasks including penetrating minefields, locating and disarming booby traps, purifying water and building roads and bridges to maintain lines of communications.

History

Formation and World Wars

The Ceylon Engineers was formed in 1911 as part of the

Ceylon Defence Force The Ceylon Defence Force (CDF) was established in 1910 by the Ceylonese legislation ''Ceylon Defence Force Ordinance'', which reformed the Ceylon Volunteer Force (CVF) that existed previously as the military reserve in the British Crown colony ...

, following the transfer of

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

units from Ceylon. Duties of this unit were to the coastal searchlight and signal works. The unit was made up only of Europeans at its inception, mostly volunteers who had transferred from the

Ceylon Planters Rifle Corps The Ceylon Planters Rifle Corps was a regiment of the Ceylon Defence Force, which existed between 1900 and 1949. It was a volunteer ( reserve) regiment based in Kandy, made up of only Europeans that were tea and rubber planters of the hills of ...

. Its first commanding officer was Captain T. H. Chapman who held the post of Director of Public Works in government service. The Ceylon Engineers were mobilized during World War I and demobilized at its conclusion. After the war, the Commander of the Ceylon Defence Force, in consultation with the GOC Ceylon, recommended that the members of the Burgher community who were enlisted to the

Colombo Town Guard Colombo Town Guard was a regiment attached to the Ceylon Defence Force which was the predecessor to the Sri Lanka Army prior to 1949 when the Ceylon Army was formed. It was a volunteer (Military reserve force, reserve) regiment was based in Colo ...

be invited to replace the Ceylon Engineers which was to be disbanded by 31 December 1926. This proposal was accepted and the reconstituted Ceylon Engineer Corps was raised on 1 January 1927. Personnel for the reconstituted unit were individually re-enlisted and a strength of 11 officers and 144 Other Ranks was recorded. This attracted the attention of two prominent members of the

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

, D. S. Senanayake and

E. W. Perera Edward Walter Perera (11 December 1875 – 15 February 1953) was a Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) barrister, politician and freedom fighter. He was known as the "Lion of Kotte" and was a prominent figure in the Sri Lankan independence movement, served ...

, who raised the question as to why there should be racial military units in the Island. In 1928 the Committee set up by the

Governor of Ceylon {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The governor of Ceylon can refer to historical vice-regal representatives of three colonial powers: Portuguese Ceylon * List of captains of Portuguese Ceylon (1518–1551) * List of captain-majors of Portugue ...

to inquire into this question, proposed in their report that the ''Ceylon Engineer Corps'' shall comprise British subjects of good character and respectability. From then onwards, the Ceylon Engineer Corps was open to all Ceylonese. The Corps was to comprise two Companies of Field Engineers (for combat engineering), two Companies of Fortress Engineers (to man defence lights and engines) and one Company of Signalers. In 1939 the Corps was mobilized for World War II and in 1943 a second signal company was raised. These formed Ceylon Signals Corps.

Post Independence

With the establishment of the

Ceylon Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; t ...

after independence, the 1st Field Squadron was formed in 1951 under the command of Major (later Brigadier) Douglas Ramanayake. This became the core of a new Ceylon Engineers which was formed in 1957, with the regimental headquarters permanently located at the

. A

unit was set up in May 1958 at Konduwattuan Camp in Ampara, this school was moved several times before been located at Thunkama in Embilipitiya where it is today. In 1959, the 1st Field Engineer Squadron became the 1st Field Engineer Regiment. The Volunteer counterpart of the ‘

Sappers A sapper, also called a combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing field defenses, ...

', the 4th Development and Construction Engineers Regiment was raised in 1964, replacing 2nd (V) Field/Plant Regiment, which was disbanded in 1962 after the attempted military coup that year which involved some of its officers. In the recent years, the Corps of Sri Lanka Engineers have been deployed in many parts of the country in support of military operations against terrorists. Since its conception in 1951 the corps has taken part in many development projects carried out in Sri Lanka by the government and has assisted during several natural disasters.

Units

Formations

* Engineering Division ** Field Engineer Brigade ** Plant Engineer Brigade ** General Engineering Brigade

Regular Army

*1st Field Engineer Regiment *5th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *6th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *7th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *8th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *9th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *10th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *11th Field Engineer Regiment SLE *12th Field Engineer Regiment SLE * 14 CBRN Regiment SLE *16 Workshop Regiment *

Sri Lanka School of Military Engineering Sri Lanka School of Military Engineering is located at Embilipitiya, Sri Lanka. Established as the Ceylon School of Military Engineering in 1958 by the Ceylon Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forc ...

*Explosive Ordnance Disposal Squadron

Volunteer Regiments

*4th(

Volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

) Field Engineer Regiment SLE (Formed on 1 September 1964) *15th(Volunteer) Field Engineer Regiment SLE (Converted from 33 Sri Lanka National Guard on 3 March 2009)

Recipients of the Weerodara Vibhushanaya

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

C. D. Wickramanayake

Notable members

*Lieutenant

Basil Arthur Horsfall Second Lieutenant Basil Arthur Horsfall, VC (4 October 1887 – 27 March 1918) was a British-Ceylonese recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to Bri ...

VC – Only Ceylonese recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

*Brigadier Douglas Ramanayake – founder of the Sri Lanka Engineers Brigadier Percy Douglas Ramanayake
/ref> *General

Denis Perera Joseph Everard Denis Perera (10 October 1930 – 11 August 2013) was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer who served as Commander of the Sri Lankan Army from 1977 to 1981. He was also the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia, Chairman of the S ...

VSV, ndc, psc, SLE – Former Commander of the Army (1977–1981). *General Nalin Seneviratne, VSV, ndc, SLE – Former Commander of the Army (1985–1988) *General Crishantha de Silva, RWP, USP, ndc, psc, SLE – Chief of the Defence Staff and Commander of the Army (2015–2017) *General

Mahesh Senanayake General N.U.M. Mahesh W. Senanayke, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP is a retired Sri Lankan Army senior officer who served as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army from 2017 to 2019. Senanayake had previously been the Commander, Security Forces Headquarte ...

, RWP, RSP, USP, psc – Commander of the Army *Lieutenant General

Nalin Angammana Lieutenant General Nalin K. B. Angammana () (1945 – 1995) was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer, who was the former General Officer Commanding, 3 Division. Early life and education Born in Kandy, Angammana was educated at Dharmaraja Colle ...

– Former GOC, 3rd Division. *Major General Mendaka Samarasinghe, RWP, RSP, USP, ndc, psc, SLE – former Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army (2009–2010) *Major General J. R. S. de Silva, RSP, VSV, USP, SLE –

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the Sri Lanka Army (1991–1992) *Major General K. J. C. Perera, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, rcds, psc, SLE – Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army (2000–2001) *Major General E. H. Samaratunga USP, SLE *Major General A. E. D. Wijendra RSP, USP, ndc, psc, SLE *Major General M. D. S. Chandrapala RWP, RSP, USP, psc, SLE *Major General D. S. K. Wijesooriya RWP, RSP, USP, psc, SLE *Major General J. K. N. Jayakody USP, ndc, SLE *Major Genera V N Wijegunawardena *Major General Janaka Walgama RSP VSV USP ndu psc *Lieutenant Colonel J.H.V. de Alwis – former Commanding Officer, 2nd Volunteer Engineers, Ceylon Engineers & accused conspirator in the 1962 coup d'état attempt *Lieutenant Colonel D. A. Priyantha Dissanayake RSP, USP *Brigadier S.A.R. Samarasinghe RSP USP – Centre Commandant (2008–2010), Brigade Commander 592 Brigade (2011–2013)

Alliances

* –

Corps of Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

* –

Indian Engineers The Indian Army Corps of Engineers is a combat support arm which provides combat engineering support, develops infrastructure for armed forces and other defence organisations and maintains connectivity along the borders, besides helping the civi ...

Order of precedence

References

External links and sources

Sri Lanka Army

Sri Lanka Engineers

{{Sri Lanka Army Regiments * Administrative corps of the Sri Lankan Army Military units and formations of Ceylon in World War II Military units and formations established in 1911