The Mahâ Dissâvas was a Great Officer in the
Amātya Mandalaya, or Sinhalese Council of State, in the
Sinhalese Kingdoms of monarchical
Sri Lanka
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, ...
. Like many of the existing high offices at the time it had combined legislative and judicial powers and functioned primarily equivalent to that of a
Provincial governor
Provincial may refer to:
Government & Administration
* Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country
* Provincial city (disambiguation)
* Provincial minister (disambiguation)
* Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...
. The office of Dissava was retained under the successive European colonial powers, namely the
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire was a colonial empire that existed between 1415 and 1999. In conjunction with the Spanish Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It achieved a global scale, controlling vast portions of the Americas, Africa ...
, the
Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
and the
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
. A Dissava was the governor of a province known as a ''Disavanies''. Within his province, the Dissava held both executive and judicial authority.
History
Kandyan kingdom
Persons were appointed to the title and office by the
King
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
during the
Kingdom of Kandy
The Kingdom of Kandy was a monarchy on the Sri Lanka, island of Sri Lanka, located in the central and eastern portion of the island. It was founded in the late 15th century and endured until the early 19th century.
Initially a client kingdom ...
, these appointees headed the administration of a large province of the kingdom known as a ''Disavanies'' and was the king's personal representative, tax collector in that area. There were twenty one provinces of which twelve of the larger outlying provinces where Dissava. There was no time limit for the officer holder as he held the post at the pleasure of the King, which meant throughout his life, if not incurred the displeasure of the King. It was not hereditary, although members of the same family have been appointed.
As king's personal representative in a province they held much power, controlled the civil administration, taxation, judicial, law enforcement and military matters of the province. Many close relatives of the King being commonly appointed. They received a portion of the taxation as pay and also large land grants from the King, some being hereditary. Along with
Maha Adigars and a few others high officials of the kingdom they made up the
Radala
Radala refers to a small minority group in Sri Lanka in the former provinces of the Kingdom of Kandy, who are either descendants of chiefs and courtiers of the King of Kandy of Nayaks of Kandy or descendants of native headmen appointed by the ...
caste, who were referred to as the ''Chieftains of Kandy'' by the British. Many were instrumental in the surrender of the Kandyan Kingdom to the British and were signatories to the
Kandyan Convention
In the history of Sri Lanka, the Kandyan Convention () was a treaty signed on 2 March 1815 between the British governor of Ceylon, Sir Robert Brownrigg, and the chiefs of the Kandyan Kingdom, British Ceylon, whereas, according to the Sinhala ...
in 1815.
;Ten Dissavas of the Kandyan Kingdom
* Dissava of Wellassa & Bintenna
* Dissava of
Matale
* Dissava of Uda-Palatha
* Dissava of Nuwara Kalawiya
* Dissava of Sath Korles
* Dissava of Thun Korles
* Dissava of
Sabaragamuwa
The Sabaragamuwa Province (, , ) is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka. Ratnapura is the capital of the province.
History
The provinces of Sri Lanka were created by the British in the 19th century, but did not have any legal status until 198 ...
* Dissava of Hathra Korles
* Dissava of
Uva
* Dissava of Tamankaduwa
Colonial Sri Lanka
The Portuguese continued the administrative units of Disavanis, which existed in the territories the Portuguese gained from former Sinhalese kingdoms. During the Portuguese rule there were four such disavanis. The civil, military and judicial administration of these units were carried out by a Dissava appointed by the
Portuguese Captain General in keeping with the tradition of the land. The Dissava led the
Lascarins which was the local militia in time of war. Initially both Sinhalese and Portuguese were appointed to this post, thereafter Portuguese were preferred. He was assisted in military functions by
Mudaliyars,
Muhandirams and
Arachchi
Arachchi () was a native headmen of Ceylon, native headman in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during the colonial era. Appointed by the Government Agent (Sri Lanka), Government Agent of the Province, the holder had much control over the people of the area and ...
s. In judicial functions he was assisted by
Basnayakas and
Mohottalas. Each Disavanis was divided into sub units called Korales. These were presided by a Korale Vidana, who was a
magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...
and revenue collector.
The Dutch continued the system of administration of the Portuguese, but gradually reduced the power of the local headmen. The Dissavas were members of the Political Council of the Commendary the locality they belong to. Following the expansion of British rule into the provinces of the former Kandyan Kingdom in 1815, the British retained the office of Dissava reporting to a board consisting of the
British Resident in Kandy and two assistants.
Following the
Uva Rebellion
UVA most often refers to:
* Ultraviolet A, a wavelength of light
* University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, United States
Uva, UVA and UvA may also refer to:
Arts and media
* Uva, a fictional academy in the ''Pokémon Scarlet'' and '' ...
in 1818 and changers to the administrative divisions of the island with the creation of
Districts
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
, British
Government Agents
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...
took over the duties of the Dissava, with the remaining and newly appointed Dissavas being mere honorary titles appointing Kandyans loyal to the British Crown as
honors. After Ceylon suspended honours in 1956, these appointments were never made.
Notable appointees
*
Molligoda Maha Adigar – Signatory to the
Kandyan Convention
In the history of Sri Lanka, the Kandyan Convention () was a treaty signed on 2 March 1815 between the British governor of Ceylon, Sir Robert Brownrigg, and the chiefs of the Kandyan Kingdom, British Ceylon, whereas, according to the Sinhala ...
, 1st (Maha) Adikar & Dissawa of the Sath (Seven) Korles
*
Keppetipola Disawe
Rajapaksa Wickramasekera Mudiyanselage Bandaranayake Monarawila Keppetipola ( Sinhala:රාජපක්ෂ වික්රමසේකර මුදියන්සේලාගේ බණ්ඩාරනායක මොනරවිල කැප� ...
– Leader of the
Uva Rebellion
UVA most often refers to:
* Ultraviolet A, a wavelength of light
* University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, United States
Uva, UVA and UvA may also refer to:
Arts and media
* Uva, a fictional academy in the ''Pokémon Scarlet'' and '' ...
of 1818
*Lewke Disawa – Disawe of Sathara korale
*Galagoda Disawe
*
P.B. Bulankulame Dissava
Sri Lanka: The Untold Story
/ref> – Ceylonese Cabinet Minister
* Barnes Ratwatte Dissawe Successor of S.D.N.Mahawalatenne Disawe – Rate Mahatmaya of Balangoda
* Harris Leuke Ratwatte Dissawe – Politician
* T. B. Poholiyadde Dissawe – Politician
* Molagoda Dissawe
*Wattarantenne Nilame Dewamedde Maha Dissawe of the 7 Korales
*Wattarantenne Nilame Walapane Maha Dissawe 1819
*Wattarantenne Rajapaksa Mudiyanselage Kiri Banda Nugegoda – Dissawe Lekama Harispattu (1924) grand son of Wattarantenne Maha Dissawe
See also
* Radala
Radala refers to a small minority group in Sri Lanka in the former provinces of the Kingdom of Kandy, who are either descendants of chiefs and courtiers of the King of Kandy of Nayaks of Kandy or descendants of native headmen appointed by the ...
* Sri Lankan titles
In the Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, individuals are recognized for personal bravery, achievement, or service with the with national honours. The national honours consists of several types of awards:
* National Honours ...
* Provincial Governors of Sri Lanka
References
Citations
Bibliography
*
*
*
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{{Kandyan period topics
Officers of the Kingdom of Kandy
Titles in British Ceylon