
Panduwasnuwara is an ancient capital, situated in
Kurunegala District
Kurunegala is a district in North Western Province, Sri Lanka. The district is . It consists of thirty divisional secretariats, 1,610 grama niladari divisions and 4,476 villages. It has fourteen electoral divisions, two municipal councils, nin ...
,
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, ...
. It is said to be the controlling centre known as Parakramapura of
Dakkhinadesa (South Country) in the 12th century, when it was ruled by
Parakramabahu.
The remaining ruins of the ancient kingdom still can be seen at Kotampitiya area which lies along
Wariyapola-
Chilaw
Chilaw (, ) is a city in Puttalam District, North Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is governed by an urban council, whereas the outskirts are governed by a pradeshiya sabha of the same name. The town is located 80 kilometers away from Colombo via ...
main road about away from Wariyapola town. Panduvasnuwara is located at a distance of 3 km from Hettipola and 18 km from
Kuliyapitiya
Kuliyapitiya is the second largest town in Kurunegala District, North Western Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is located north-east of Colombo and from Kurunegala. Kuliyapitiya is home to the Wayamba University of Sri La ...
.
Name

The current site has been identified as Parakramapura, the city of Dakkhinadesa, founded by King Parakramabahu the Great when he was the sub-king of the territory and called Panduwasnuwara presently. It is believed that the name Panduwasnuwara came to the usage during the recent
Kurunegala
Kurunegala (, ; , ) is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of the North Western Province, Sri Lanka, North Western Province and the Kurunegala District. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, from the end of the 13th ...
period.
Due to its name this site is erroneously identified by the locals as the ancient capital of king
Panduwasadeva who ruled the country in 504 BC to 474 BC.
They believe that the structure known as ''Chakrawalaya'' which is situated in the site as the ''Ektemge'' (a circular tower) where princess Unmada Chitra was confined by her brothers and also a nearby village called Dorabawa to be the Doramadalawa village where prince
Pandukabhaya
Pandukabhaya was a king of Upatissa Nuwara and the first monarch of the Anuradhapura Kingdom and 6th over all of the island of Sri Lanka since the arrival of the Vijaya; he reigned from 437 BC to 367 BC. According to many historians and philo ...
spent his childhood. But still, there is no archaeological evidence to prove such stories.
According to another belief, the name Panduwasnuwara was formed due to an ancient tank called Panda Wewa which is situated in the nearby area.
History

As the Successor of his uncle king
Kirti Sri Megha, Prince Parakramabahu became the ruler of Dakkhinadesa in 1140 A.D.
It was the first capital of Parakramabahu and one of the three discrete kingdoms into which the Island was divided. Historical evidence proves that King Parakramabahu had made steps to develop the infrastructure and other common facilities in the ruling territory. During this period he had constructed a separate tooth temple at
Panduwasnuwara Raja Maha Vihara premises for
tooth relic of Buddha to keep it safe. After a series of successful battles with his enemies, Parakramabahu managed to conquer the control of the entire nation and moved to
Polonnaruwa
Poḷonnaruwa, (; ) also referred as Pulathisipura and Vijayarajapura in History of Sri Lanka, ancient times, is the main town of Polonnaruwa District in North Central Province, Sri Lanka. The modern town of Polonnaruwa is also known as New Town, ...
where his new capital was built. The tooth relic of Buddha was also brought with him as the reputed symbol of principality.
Ruins

The ruins scattered over about 20 hectares in Panduwasnuwara belong to the 12th century A.D. Among the ruins a palace, monasteries, image houses, dagobas and monks' living quarters, carved pillars, guard stones, and other ancient constructions can be seen. The remains of the palace are bounded by a moat and a brick rampart and the ground plan of the palace is similar to the palace of King Parakramabahu of Polonnaruwa.
According to Stone seat inscription, a slab inscription established in the palace premises records that king
Kirti Sri Nissankamalla (1187-1196 A.D.) visited this palace once on the way of his one of tours.
From the south and north areas of the palace are remains of several monasteries belonging to the Panchayathana architectural style.
Stupa
In Buddhism, a stupa (, ) is a domed hemispherical structure containing several types of sacred relics, including images, statues, metals, and '' śarīra''—the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns. It is used as a place of pilgrimage and m ...
, image houses, Bodhighara and dwelling houses are available in each monastery. Besides the
Sinhalese inscriptions there is a
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
People, culture and language
* Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka
** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
inscription belonging to the reign of Nissankamalla, in one monastery premises.
Middle of the ruin site a modern temple, Panduwas Nuwara Raja Maha Vihara is situated and where small Tempita Vihara (Temple on pillars) and several pillar inscriptions belonging to 9-10th century A.D can be seen.
References
External links
Panduwasnuwara-Hettipola Divisional Secretariat
{{Use dmy dates, date=January 2018
Buildings and structures in North Western Province, Sri Lanka
Tourist attractions in North Western Province, Sri Lanka
Polonnaruwa period
Former populated places in Sri Lanka
Archaeological protected monuments in Kurunegala District
Maya Rata