Sri Lanka Timeline

During this time, the Portugese took control of Ceylon's coast and eventually Ceylon. The Dutch took over from them over a century later.

The Dutch controlled Ceylon for this period of time.

The British took control of Ceylon from the Dutch, who didn't put up much of a fight. By 1802, Ceylon became a crown colony. The British helped unite the island. They brought in poor Tamils from south India and gave them jobs at coffee and tea plantations. This earned them the nickname "plantation Tamils."

Ceylon gained complete independence at this point. They became a parliamentary country, with their first prime minister being D.S. Senanayake of the UNP.

S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike became the prime minister. He passed a law that made Sinhala the official language of Ceylon, The Tamils were angry about this, and they clashed against the Sinhalese. An attempt for an agreement was shot down by a Buddhist clergy, the UNP, and Sinhalese nationalists.

S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was assasinated by Sinhalese nationalists. His widow, Sirimavo, became the world's first female prime minister, as a result.

Dudley Senanayake, the son of the first prime minister, became prime minister for the second time. He tried to make Tamil an official language in the north and east parts of Ceylon, but was blocked by Sinhalese nationalists.

Tensions between the Sinhalese and Tamils continued to escalate. The Tamils felt that they were being treated unfairly by the Sinhalese government. Some wanted a separate state for themselves, while others acted on it with force. This is how the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were formed.

Ceylon's name officially changed to Sri Lanka, as we know it today. It means "resplendent land."

In that fateful year, violence broke out between Tamil militants and government troops in the north, sparking a civil war. Thousands of Tamils fled to India, their homes and businesses in ruins, their neighbours dead or injured.