The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in 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; ...

and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of sixteen regular battalions and nine volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the

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 ...

, Panagoda.

History

The origins of the regiment go back to the formation of the Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers (CLIV) which was formed on 1 April 1881 by a proclamation issued by the Governor of Ceylon; it was a reserve unit. The first commanding officer of the force was Lt. Col. John Scott Armitage and the Colonel of the Regiment was HRH Albert Edward,

the Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. It is said that the Regimental March "I am Ninety Five" and the Regimental Bugle Call, in use up to now, was adopted soon after raising of the force. In the same year, the Unit had the distinction in that HRH the Prince of Wales accepted the Honorary Colonelcy of The Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers, by virtue of which fact the Unit adopted his Crest and motto as Its badge. In 1892, a

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. Unlike cavalry, mounted infantry dismounted to fight on foot. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Editio ...

company was formed and later it became a regiment of its own by the name of the Ceylon Mounted Rifles. The Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteer force troops were sent to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

in 1900, for the

Boer war The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...

and after the distinguish service in South Africa the force obtained the

Banner A banner can be a flag or another piece of cloth bearing a symbol, logo, slogan or another message. A flag whose design is the same as the shield in a coat of arms (but usually in a square or rectangular shape) is called a banner of arms. Also, ...

from HRH The

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of List of English monarchs, English (later List of British monarchs, British) monarchs ...

.In 1902, King Edward VII became the

Colonel-in-Chief Colonel-in-Chief is a ceremonial position in an army regiment. It is in common use in several Commonwealth armies, where it is held by the regiment's patron, usually a member of the royal family. Some armed forces take a light-hearted approach to ...

. In 1910 with formation of the Ceylon Defence Force CLIV became a part of it and was renamed as the Ceylon Light Infantry. The regiment saw action during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

along with allied troops. Soon after the war a regular element of the regiment was formed to take up garrison duties in

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. This unit was named the Mobilised Detachment of

Ceylon Light Infantry Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian peninsula by ...

(Mob. Det., CLI). The regiment was again mobilized during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and was deployed in the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

and the

Cocos Islands The Cocos (Keeling) Islands (), officially the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands (; ), are an Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean, comprising a small archipelago approximately midway between Australia and Sri Lanka and rel ...

. The third battalion was raised in 1941, a fourth battalion in late 1942, and a fifth battalion in April 1943. One battalion each was deployed at

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

Kandy Kandy (, ; , ) is a major city located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka, Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of ...

and

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; , ; , ), historically known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. Located on the east coast o ...

, with the fourth battalion under training and one battalion reserved for special duties. Soon after the war a regular element of the regiment was formed to take up garrison duties in

. This unit was named the Mobilised Detachment of

(Mob. Det., CLI). PM visits the 1st Bn CLI

After Ceylon gained its independence from

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

in 1948 and with the Army Act of 1949 the CLI became the Ceylon Infantry Regiment and came under the newly formed

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 ...

. But in 1950 the regiment once again became the 1st Battalion, The Ceylon Light Infantry becoming the regular unit and the Volunteer Battalion was re-designated as the 2nd (Volunteer) Battalion, Ceylon Light Infantry. The regiment was deployed for counter insurgency operations in during the 1971 Insurrection and in 1972, when Sri Lanka became a

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

, the regiment changed its name to Sri Lanka Light Infantry. In the early 1980s units of the regiment has been deployed in the northern parts of the island. In the ambush of the Four Four Bravo patrol from the C Company of the 1st Battalion marked the beginning of the Sri Lanka civil war. Since then the SLLI has been deployed combat operations thought out the island and has expanded to its present size of 15 Battalions. The regiment took part in the

United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti The United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (), also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of its French name, was a UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti from 2004 to 2017. It was composed of 2,366 military personnel and 2,533 police, supported by int ...

in 2003.

Cadet Battalion

In 1881 a cadet platoon was formed at

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo also known as; Royal Colombo, Colombo Royal College or Colombo Royal) is a Single-sex education, boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started by Joseph Marsh (priest), Joseph Mar ...

attached to the CLI. This eventually expanded to became the Cadet Battalion, Ceylon Light Infantry under the Ceylon Defence Force. Later this unit became the Ceylon Cadet Corps, now known as the National Cadet Corps.

Regimental Colours

The regimental colours were awarded to the regiment in 1921 and on 22 March 1922

was awarded with the King's and the

Regimental Colours In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours, standards, flags, or guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some 5,000 year ...

. The Queen's and Regimentals Colours were presented to the 1st battalion on 21 April 1954 by HM Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. With the declaration of the Republic of Sri Lanka were land to rest within the regimental museum on 29 June 1974. On 10 October 1978 H.E. President J.R. Jayawardena awarded the President's and Regimental Colours to the 1st Bn SLLI and 2nd Vol Bn SLLI.

Regimental Insignia

In early stage, from March 1881 to 28 November 1881 volunteer corps used an elephant and a coconut tree as their emblem.REGIMENTAL INSIGNIA, INTRODUCTION OF THE REGIMENTAL INSIGNIA, www.army.lk/lightinfan.php
/ref> With the declaration of republic of Sri Lanka 1st and 2nd battalions of CLI decided to retain as much with the configuration and pattern of the existing badge. As result of these suggestions, a new insignia was introduced with following details; *To retain the silver bugle horn bound with brass, which is on the existing badge. This was retained because the bugle traditionally represents the infantry arm and by doing so, the Regiment could perpetuate in no small measure some of the high ideals associated with the previous insignia. *It in corporate with three sheaves of paddy arranged in a manner of up to the three plumps on the existing crest. These were in corporate to signify prosperity and the heritage of the people as an agrarian nation. It retains the motto of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

"ICH DIEN" which has been adopted as the motto of the regiment in its translation form "I SERVE".

Units

Regular battalions

*1st Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 1950) *3rd Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 16 December 1985 at Thissawewa camp

Anuradhapura Anuradhapura (, ; , ) is a major city located in the north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central Province, Sri Lanka, North Central Province and the capital of Anuradhapura District. The city lies north of the cur ...

, later re-designated as the 1st Mechanized Infantry Regiment) *4th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 5 May 1987 at Monkey Bridge camp

. First commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel U.A. Gunawardana) *6th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 8 June 1990 at

. First commanding officer was Major D. Ratnasabapathy) *7th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 20 November 1992 at Mandative. First commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel G.M. Rockwood) *8th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 16 January 1993 and first commanding office was Major J.S. Masakkara) *10th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 23 January 1994 at Mathagal and disbanded 1999. reformed 5 May 2001) *11th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 25 June 2007) *12th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 3 December 2007) *15th Sri Lanka Light Infantry *19th Sri Lanka Light Infantry *20th Sri Lanka Light Infantry *23rd Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 23 July 2009) *24th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 25 September 2009) *25th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 20 September 2010) *26th Sri Lanka Light Infantry (formed on 20 September 2010) *RHQ Battalion Sri Lanka Light Infantry (RFT) (Formed on 23 October 1989 at

)

Volunteer battalions

*2nd (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 1 April 1881) *5th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 15 August 1987 from disbanded 7 (V) SLAC and at Pallekele,

. First commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel M.J. De Alwis) *9th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 1 November 1993 at Milady South and first commanding officer was Major T.B. Galgamuwa) *14th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 31 December 1996 at Kayts) *16th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 1 December 2007) *17th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 30 March 2008) *18th (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 1 January 2009 at Kelanimulla Camp and disbanded on 29 July 2018) *21st (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 16 March 2009 and disbanded on 29 July 2018) *22nd (V) Sri Lanka Light Infantry (Formed on 14 January 2009 and disbanded on 30 March 2012)

Deployments

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

**Home defence **Western front *

**Home defence **Seychelles **Cocos Islands * 1971 Insurrection * Insurrection 1987-89 * Sri Lankan Civil War ** Eelam War I ** Eelam War II ** Eelam War III ** Eelam War IV *

Recipients of the Parama Weera Vibhushanaya

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

A. M. N. P. Abesinghe *

Lance Corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many English-speaking armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal. Etymology The presumed origin of the rank of lance corp ...

W. I. M. Seneviratne *

T. G. D. R. Dayananda *

R. M. D. M. Rathnayake

Recipients of the Weera Wickrama Vibhushanaya

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Shantha Kottegoda * Major General R. A. Nugera * Major General H. M. J. K. Gunaratne *

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

M. M. M. Raj Fernando *

C. T. C. Serasinghe *

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

P. D. G. R. Nanayakkara *

A. W. W. N. M. Silva * Second lieutenant K. M. U. B. Konarasinghe (6 ^th Sri Lanka Light Infantry) *

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

U. M. Ekanayake (7th Sri Lanka Light Infantry) *

R. U. S. Dissanayeke (4th Sri Lanka Light Infantry) *

H. M. Nawarathne *

G. J. Silva (3rd Sri Lanka Light Infantry)

Honorary Colonels

* Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) * Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales (later

King Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

) *

Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (Henry William Frederick Albert; 31 March 1900 – 10 June 1974) was a member of the British royal family. He was the third son of King George V and Mary of Teck, Queen Mary, and was a younger brother of kings E ...

(1937–1972)

Commanders

* Major General Anton Muttukumaru, OBE, ED – 3rd Commander of the Ceylon Army (First Ceylonese) * Major General H. W. G. Wijeyekoon - 4th Commander of the Ceylon Army * Major General A.R. Udugama, MBE – 5th Commander of the Ceylon Army * Major General B.R. Heyn – 6th Commander of the Ceylon Army *

D. S. Attygalle, MVO – 7th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army *

T. I. Weerathunga, VSV, ndc – 9th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army and 1st Chief of the Defence Staff *

Shantha Kottegoda, WWV, RWP, RSP, VSP, ndc -17th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army *

Daya Ratnayake, WWV, RWP, RSP, USP - 20th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army

Chiefs of Staff

Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

M. A. Jayaweera - 8th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

E. T. De Z Abeysekera - 9th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

C. T. Caldera - 10th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

T. S. B. Sally - 12th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

Cyril Ranatunga General S. Cyril Ranatunga, VSV (19 February 1930 – 16 June 2021) was a Sri Lanka Army officer. He served as Secretary of Defence, General Officer Commanding, Joint Operations Command and Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army during the 198 ...

- 14th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

E. G. Thevanayagam - 16th Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. *

Deputy Chiefs of Staff

* Major General A. M. U. Seneviratne – 3 ^rd Deputy Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army. * Major General Asoka Jayawardena – 7 ^th Deputy Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army.

Notable members

Sir John Lionel Kotelawala, CH, KBE – Former Prime Minister of Ceylon * Major General Lakshman 'Lucky' Wijayaratne RWP, RSP – Former brigade commander, 22 BrigadeMajor General Lakshman 'Lucky' Wijayaratne
/ref> * Major General Piyal Abeysekera USP, MSc - former Deputy Chief of Staff of

* Major General T.T. Ranjith de Silva, RWP, RSP, USP, PSC – Former Security Forces Commander – Eastern Province and Government Agent, Trincomalee District *

Christopher Allan Hector Perera Jayawardena - Conservator of Forests *

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 ...

Waldo Sansoni, OBE, VD, JP, UM – Colonel commanding, Ceylon Light Infantry (1935–1939) *

T G Jayewardene – First Ceylonese commanding officer and former member of the

State Council of Ceylon The State Council of Ceylon was the unicameral legislature for Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), established in 1931 by the Donoughmore Constitution. The State Council gave universal adult franchise to the people of the colony for the first time. It ...

* Lieutenant Colonel Sir Hector van Cuylenburg, VD - first elected

unofficial member Unofficial Member is the name given to individuals who are members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong and Legislative Council of Hong Kong but who are not members of the Hong Kong Government. The terms "Unofficial" (or "non-official") and ...

representing the Burghers in the

Legislative Council of Ceylon The Legislative Council of Ceylon was the legislative body of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1833, along with the Executive Council of Ceylon, on the recommendations of the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission. It was the first form of represe ...

* Lieutenant Colonel Angelo Peiris, RWP, RSP – Leader of the first wave of the seaborne landing during Operation Balavegaya * Lieutenant Colonel Dhananjaya Weerabahu Wijesinghe, RSP – 2nd Commander – 7th Sri Lanka Light Infantry during the Third Eelam War *

E. A. Nugawela - first Cabinet

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

of Ceylon, later Cabinet Minister of Health, a Member of Parliament and State Council. *

Montague Jayawickrama Major (rank), Major Deshamanya Walter Geoffrey Montague "Monti" Jayawickrama (January 15, 1911 – November 16, 2001) was a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the Minister of Communications and Works (Ceylon), Minister of Transport and Publ ...

- Government Ministers and Provincial Governor *

Bevis Bawa, ADC,

CLI CLI may refer to: Computing * Call Level Interface, an SQL database management API * Command-line interface, of a computer program * Command-line interpreter or command language interpreter; see List of command-line interpreters * CLI (x86 instruc ...

- former Aide-de-camp to the Governor of Ceylon *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Ravi Jayewardene,

- former National Security Adviser *

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

Eugene Wilfred Jayewardene – Judge of the Supreme Court of Ceylon * Herbert Sri Nissanka, QC - Member of Parliament from Kurunegala

Order of precedence

References

External links and sources

Sri Lanka Army

Sri Lanka Light Infantry

{{Sri Lanka Army Regiments Sri Lanka Light Infantry Military units and formations established in 1881 1881 establishments in Ceylon Military units and formations of Ceylon in World War II