Wales Park Explained

Wales Park
Type:Garden
Location:Kandy, Sri Lanka
Coords:7.2903°N 80.6374°W
Created:1880
Status:Open all year

The Royal Palace Park, also known as Wales Park, Wace Park or Rajawasala Park, is a small park on top a small hill in the heart of the city of Kandy, that overlooks the Kandy Lake and most of the city. Established by King Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of Sri Lanka it was renamed as Wales Park in honor of the Prince of Wales by the British.

The hill, where the park is currently situated, was known as Castle Hill by the British, as it was the site of the palace of Konappu Bandara, who ruled as Vimaladharmasuriya I of Kandy from 1590 to 1604.[1]

Herbert Wace, CMG (1851 - 1906), the Government Agent of the Central Province and acting Colonial Secretary,[2] arranged for this neglected site to be restored,[3] and a park be built there in 1880.[4]

In the park is a Japanese Type 4 15 cm howitzer which was captured by the British 14th Army in Burma during World War II and presented to the City of Kandy by Lord Mountbatten, Supreme Allied CommanderSouth East Asia Theatre.[5]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Kandy, Past and Present, 1474-1998 A.D.. Karunaratna, Nihal. Aramudala, Madhyama Saṃskr̥Tika. Central Cultural Fund - Ministry of Religious and Cultural Affairs. 1999. 44. 9789556131215.
  2. Web site: Herbert Wace (1851-1906). GHGraham.org. 29 March 2014. 19 July 2016.
  3. Book: The Book of Ceylon. Cave, Henry W.. 1908. Cassell and Company Ltd. 320.
  4. Book: World Heritage City of Kandy, Sri Lanka: Conservation and Development Plan. Seneviratna, Anuradha. De Silva, Nimal. Aramudala, Madhyama Saṃskr̥Tika. 1999. Central Cultural Fund - Ministry of Religious and Cultural Affairs. 73. 9789556131260.
  5. News: Only lovers bloom in this historic park. Tillekeratne. Chamintha. 20 June 1999. The Sunday Times. 18 July 2016.