It is said that King Solomon, the ruler of Jerusalem, supplied elephants and peacocks as well as pearls from the port of Tarshish in Asia. Not only the ancient Arab, Persian and Chinese merchants but also the Europeans who invaded the East in search of wealth believed that the city of Tarshish described as such was Galle. Even James Enerson Tennant says that this prosperous city is the port of Galle. In the past, Galle was a big trading city. Before the arrival of the Europeans, we find the earliest information about Galle in the records of the Greek cosmos Indicaplius. In 545 AD he kept records of the port of Galle and its associated city. According to his notes, there were two rulers in this country at that time. He has noted that the port is located in all parts of the country and foreign ships have come to them. He also explained that a trading town in the south was ruled by a separate king. In the year 1000 AD, a Greek named Ala Masudi also wrote about Galle.
After that the written evidence about Galle comes from the Mahavamsa. During the reign of King Parakramabahu the Great in the Polonnaruwa period. The Mahavamsa gives information about the river Gin and the villages around Galle. Ibn Battuta arrived in Sri Lanka in 1344 and landed in Galle as a foreign traveler. He gives a wonderful account of the port of Galle and the trading city, and even notes on the treatment received at the house of a Muslim merchant named Ibrahim in Galle. The discovery of an inscription in Chinese, Persian and Tamil in 1911 by General Qing Ha Cheng Ho, a Chinese general who arrived in Galle with a large army in or around 1421, provided clear evidence of the Galle Port's past links. Mayura, Kokila and Pigeon Sandeshayas written in the 14th and 15th centuries also praised the trading city of Galle. Chronicles state that during the reign of Seethawaka, there was a fort in Galle where King Mayadunne's troops were stationed and they controlled the port and the city. It is said that when the Portuguese captured the coastal areas of the country, King Seethawaka's troops in Galle were chased away and the nearby port and their fort were captured. The Galle Fort that we see today was built after that.
Galle Fort was not the only fort used by soldiers for military purposes. It is a metropolis. The Portuguese and Dutch who ruled the coastal areas of the country and the British who conquered the whole country made Galle a metropolis and ruled the country in the first place. They built the city of Galle in a more organized manner, which was built in connection with the trade of the Galle Port, which is one of the most important and important ports in the country. They made Galle a port city of the country. Its ruins can still be seen in Galle today. The old fortified wall built by the Portuguese in the vicinity of the Galle Natural Harbor is still preserved and the ancient splendor of the port city can still be seen today when the Dutch enlisted a wall around the tip of the Galle Sea to enlarge the fort.
The history of this port is still unknown. But there is no doubt that the Port of Galle was a wonderful stop for sailors who sailed to the West in the early days of the world's voyages. Elephants, pearls, cinnamon and other spices, arecanuts as well as artifacts brought for sale by the king and other local merchants were shipped to foreign countries in Galle. The huge warehouse built by the Dutch on one side wall of the Galle fort to store them is a good testament to how large the trade in Galle is today. Not only such warehouses but also private residences of Galle Port City residents, official residences of government officials including the Governor's official residence, churches, administrative buildings, rest houses, hospitals, ammunition depots, ammunition depots, prisons and security forces lodges to accommodate visitors entering the country through the port. The city consisted of prisons, stables, churches, and cemeteries. In Galle Fort, houses and buildings were erected on both sides of the street running parallel and horizontally, each street was reserved for people belonging to various industries and professions, creating a more organized city.
The importance of the Galle Port and the Port City during European rule is evidenced by the establishment of the Galle Fort, the printing press that printed the first Gazette in Sri Lanka. A pigeon postal service was initially operated in Galle to transport messages from ships coming from Europe to Colombo, but was later discontinued with the development of mailboxes. The Orient Hotel, the first large hotel built by Europeans in Sri Lanka, has been built in Galle to cater to all the needs of a port city. This huge multi-storey hotel is now known as Aman Galle. There were many businesses associated with the Galle Port City. This is evidenced by the fact that a large number of well-known old businesses in the country started in Galle. The first lighthouse in Ceylon was built by the British in 1848 at Galle Fort. The lighthouse, made of metal, had a lamp illuminated with gas and coal. The construction of the first lighthouse in Galle, which was essential for navigating ships, shows how important the port city of Galle was to the Europeans.
According to their old records, most of the ships that arrived in Sri Lanka during the Dutch and British rule arrived at the port of Galle. Although the Port of Galle has suffered a setback due to the decline in the cinnamon trade, Galle has once again become a busy port with the opening of the Mediterranean Seaway. At that time, Galle was an important hub for cruise ships sailing between England, Bombay, Japan and Australia. In 1868 34 ships had arrived at the port of Galle, and in 1869 that number had risen to 58, in 1870 to 82 and in 1871 to 110. Due to the increase in the number of ships and the increase in the number of ships being produced in the world, the British rulers had a need to expand the port of Galle. But the enlargement of the reef-rich port of Galle was no small feat. Therefore, they decided to build a breakwater in the Colombo harbor and expand it further. Accordingly, the Port of Colombo was expanded to replace the Galle Port. Later, due to the construction and widening of the breakwater in the Port of Colombo, the Galle Port in the past lost its importance. However, the port city of Galle, which developed with the port, was used by the Europeans as a major city until their departure from the port city of Galle Fort.
The port city of Galle, which was the administrative center of the country during the European era, is still the oldest port city in the country that can still be seen as a port city. There are historical stories that cities were built and developed in the past in the vicinity of the ports such as Godawaya Port, Mannar Mathota Ports, but none of them can be seen today. It was all covered by the sands of time. But the port city of Galle is still alive today. The former government offices in the port city of Galle, which was built as a fortress that seems to be militarily important, are now being phased out. The old port city of Galle is now a tourist city. There are a number of tourist attractions run by local and foreign businessmen. The port city being built in Colombo today will be a state of modern technology. However, the port city of Galle in the past may have been one of the most developed port cities in the world at that time. Now it is all in the past, but the port city of Galle is still a living World Heritage Site.
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