Galle Harbour is a

natural harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

, located in

Galle Galle (, ; , ) (formerly ) is a major city on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka, south of Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and is the capital of Galle District. Galle was known as ''Gi ...

, on the south-western coast of Sri Lanka. Currently Galle port serves as one of the most active regional ports in the country. It is also the only Sri Lankan port that provides facilities for pleasure

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

s. International yacht societies have recognised Galle Harbour as one of the world's best attractions for yachting.

History

Galle Harbour was a major harbour in the country, which was in use even during the pre-Christian times, and gained importance after the 12th century. By the 14th century, Galle Harbour was the most important harbour in Sri Lanka, and retained its importance until 1873 when an artificial harbour was built in

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 ...

. After the construction of Galle Fort in the 17th century, Galle Port was a major port in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

for more than 200 years, which was an important anchorage for boats and ships traveling between

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. When the British colonial government constructed breakwaters in

Colombo Harbour The Port of Colombo , (known as Port of Kolomtota during the early 14th Century Kotte Kingdom) is the largest and busiest port in Sri Lanka and the Indian Ocean. Located in Colombo, on the southwestern shores on the Kelani River, it serves as ...

in the late 19th century, much international marine traffic shifted to Colombo from Galle. Thereafter, Galle Port became a secondary port of the country, though it still handles some ships and boats.

Development project

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority has planned to develop the existing Port of Galle to accommodate the increasing demand for freight handling for Sri Lanka as well as an international regional destination. This is planned with the construction of a deep water passenger vessel terminal and breakwaters, dredging of entrance channel and basin, and other facilities at the port of Galle to contribute to the economic development of the country. Some of the facilities provided at Galle Port were damaged during the

2004 Indian Ocean tsunami On 26 December 2004, at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+07:00, UTC+7), a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2–9.3 struck with an epicenter, epicentre off the west coast of Aceh in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The Submarine earthquake, undersea ...

. The proposed development also expects to provide a fully fledged yacht marina for the Galle Port to facilitate the calling yachts, as well as to attract more yachts. SLPA expects to provide berthing facilities to passenger vessels of in length and cargo vessels of in length which have a depth of and respectively with this project. This will be achieved by constructing breakwaters to cover the effects of waves in the Galle bay area.

Maritime archaeology

Galle Harbour is a popular site among the local and foreign maritime archeologists who are doing research about the ancient naval transportation. Many ship wrecks during the colonial rule of Portuguese, Dutch and English can be seen in the sites around the bay of Galle situated in close proximity to Galle Harbour. Notable ship wrecks in the area includes "The East Indiaman Avondster" (1659), the VOC shipwreck Hercules (1661), Dolfijn (1663), Barbesteijn (1735) and the Geinwens (1776). The marine archaeologists of the Maritime Archaeology Unit (MAU) of Central Cultural Fund (CCF) established in Galle has been conducting many archaeological explorations in the Galle harbour area. Sri Lanka's first underwater museum is also located at a depth of around in the Galle Harbour area providing a unique sightseeing experience for the marine archaeology enthusiasts. It was established by

Sri Lanka Navy The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) (; ) is the navy, naval arm of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is classed as the country's most vital defence force due to its island geography. It is responsible for the maritime defence of the Sri Lankan nation and its ...

in June, 2020. The sculptures in this museum is expected to form an artificial coral reef over time, which would enhance the marine life of the Galle harbour area.First under water museum
DailyFT

References

External links

Galle Port
{{DEFAULTSORT:Galle Harbour Ports and harbours of Sri Lanka Transport in Galle Buildings and structures in Galle

History

Development project

Maritime archaeology

See also

References

External links