The Matara Fort ( ''Mathara Balakotuwa''; ) was built in 1560 by the Portuguese and was substantially re-built by the Dutch in 1640, following the capture of Galle. The fort, which consists of a large stone

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department ** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...

, occupies the

promontory A promontory is a raised mass of land that projects into a lowland or a body of water (in which case it is a peninsula). Most promontories either are formed from a hard ridge of rock that has resisted the erosive forces that have removed the s ...

, which separates the Niwala Ganga (River) lagoon and the ocean.

History

The Portuguese constructed the first fortifications in 1595, with the assistance of Don Juan Dharmapala, the ruler of the

Kingdom of Kotte The Kingdom of Kotte (, ), named after its capital, Kotte, was a Sinhalese kingdom that flourished in Sri Lanka during the 15th century. Founded by Parakramabahu VI with the help of the Ming, the Kingdom managed to conquer the Jaffna ki ...

. In 1640 the Dutch captured Matara from the Portuguese, and in 1645 they were responsible for the construction of the current fortifications. The fort consists of a long, thick, high rampart and the gateway constructed from local limestone, granite and coral. The rampart originally had a ditch in front of it, two half

bastion A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fire from the ...

projections at each end and a larger projection in the centre close to the gate with a bridge across the ditch. It was built to protect the administrative buildings of VOC (

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 ...

), who were attracted by the deep and sheltered

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of the Nilwala Ganga, making Matara an important centre for

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

and

elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...

trading. During the 'Matara Rebellion' of 1761, the fort was captured by Kirti Sri Rajasinha's Kandyan army that bombarded the town with cannonballs that went over the wall. After spiking their own cannon and destroying their ammunition and provisions, the

garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

was evacuated by two ships that were waiting at sea. The Dutch recaptured the fort on 2 February 1762, finding eight cannon on the walls, including an English one. During the Dutch rule the District Secretary's house, the

areca nut The areca nut ( or ) or betel nut () is the fruit of the areca palm (''Areca catechu''). The palm is originally native to the Philippines, but was carried widely through the tropics by the Austronesian migrations and trade since at least 15 ...

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...

storage and an elephant

kraal Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an pen (enclosure), enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African Human settlement ...

(containing four elephant stables, which could house up to 80 elephants and a tank where the elephants were washed) were constructed within the fort. The oldest building within the fort is the Dutch Reformatory Church, which is situated near the entrance. It was built by the Dutch in 1706 the date however etched above the entrance, 1767, refers to the reconstruction of the church by the Dutch following the Matara Rebellion. The door and window panels are made of heavy wood while the walls now show signs of crumbling as the proper mixture to rebuild them could not be found within Sri Lanka. Inside are gravestones on the floor dating back to 1686, of significant community members and beneficiaries of their time. On 24 February 1796 the Fort was handed over to the British by the Dutch. The southern bastion facing the sea was subsequently removed by the British, in order to grant access to the town along the ocean foreshore. During the British occupation, the Courts Complex (including the Magistrate Court and the High Court), Rest House and the Matara Police Station were constructed within the fort area. The majority of walawwas or mansions that belonged to Sri Lankan aristocratic families within the fort area are now utilised for other purposes, such as commercial offices, guesthouses and temples, while others have been let to fall into ruin. In 1817 the British established a

mission school A mission school or missionary school is a religious school originally developed and run by Christian missionaries. The mission school was commonly used in the colonial era for the purposes of Westernization of local people. These may be day s ...

, today the President's College. In 1883 the British built a high clock tower atop the remaining rampart. The rampart was declared a protected monument under the Antiquities Ordinance No 9 of 1940 section 33. The gate and walls of the main fort were restored in 1985–86 by a Dutch firm, Ballast Nedam. Matara fort is currently the administration centre for the entire

Matara District Matara ( ''Mātara distrikkaya''; ''Māttaṛai māvaṭṭam'') is a district in Southern Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a Di ...

, with the offices of the

District 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 county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Secretariat, Divisional Secretariat, Courts of Law and numerous other state offices.

References

{{Forts and fortresses of the Portuguese empire, state=collapsed 1560 establishments in the Portuguese Empire British forts in Sri Lanka Buildings and structures in Matara, Sri Lanka Dutch forts in Sri Lanka Forts in Southern Province, Sri Lanka Buildings and structures completed in 1595 Portuguese forts in Sri Lanka Archaeological protected monuments in Matara District Buildings and structures associated with the Dutch East India Company

History

See also

References