Sri Lankan Sinhalese Family
Genealogy
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D.A.W. Jayewardene Mudaliar Pitigal
Corle/Korale b.170? [info:
0 Bulathge Don
Adrian Senior Jayewardene b.1730-1792+ Dona Ascencia Sinhala book Madampe
Withthie (affairs) by Victor Munasinha.
1
Don Johannes
1 Don Hendrick
1 Don Simon
1 Dona
Magdelena
{ accuracy verified by
phoning the Jayewardene Centre Museum: about Don Adrian
(Tombi Mudaliyar’s brothers and sister, father and mother,
daughter and son, and son’s wives and children) by
Anne-Marie Samarasinghe Info
verified by phone on Wed. Sept. 28/2011 from
1. Don Adrian
Wijesinghe/Wijeyesinghe Jayewardene/Jayawardena (Tombi
Mudaliyar) 1768-1830 + Suraweera Aarachchige Don Simange
Dona Dinesia at Kelanimulla in the Hewagam Korale ( b:1776?)
b:1768 in the
village of Welgama
near Hanwella in the Hina Korale. Descended from a
family of the Colombo Chetty Community [‘of [part] Persian extraction’??] who trace
their origins to the
2 Dona
Johanna Jayewardene + Don Herath Seneviratne’s son p. 26
It is written that Don
Adrian’s daughter, Johanna married the Mudaliyar of Chilaw,
Don Herath Seneviratne’s son.
In the J.R. Jayewardene
book…p.23-36 The British confiscated land belonging to
Chilaw Mudaliyar Don Herath Seneviratne and gave them to Don
Adrian W. Jayewardene. and that subsequently, Johanna had
married the said Mudaliyar’s son. Eventually there was
a court case between the two families about this land.
The book ‘The
Golden book of
SENEWIRATNA, Don James
Caulfield Herat, Shroff Mudaliydr ;
b. Belongs to one of the oldest families in the
Chilaw district, whose members were for several
generations in succession Mudaliyars of Madampe
under the Singhalese Monarchs and under the Dutch.
Descended from Tanivella Bahu Raja, Sub-King of
Madampe. The family held all the lands at Madampe, but
they were confiscated by the British Government in
1804, when the then Mudaliyar and his
retainers were outlawed because they had
sided against the British in the war with
Need to verify this 3 Henrietta
Seneviratne + Charles
Edward (Bandaranaike) Corea
Proctor
of the Supreme Court (Chilaw?) d.1872 [Son of Simon
Corea-Vikramasinha Mudaliyar Alutkuru Korale, also
Justice of the Peace +
Cornelia Dias Bandaranaike] See
Corea Family # 3166
(Victor Corea a
descendant of Don Adrian won a seat to the Legislative
council 1924 - ran against E.W. Jayewardene and won. From
book by De Silva). (Family #3070)
2
Don Abraham Wijesinghe Jayewardene (Mudaliyar) 1801-1866 bp:11-Dec-1808 Interpreter Mudaliyar,
Puttalam Kachcheri. Resigned his post in protest re. some
remarks cast by Justice Carr. Appointed Maha Mudaliyar.
Associated with Dr. Christopher Elliot of the Colombo
Observer in criticisizing Governor Torrington. Arrested by
the British Government along with Subraylu Raja, descendant
of the Nayakkars, Sep 1848. Produced before Colepepper, JP.
Openly criticized the Governor and the Colonial Secretary.
Exonerated. Requested Elliott to publish his interrogation
by Colepepper. Mudeliyar Chilaw Kachcheri Died:8-May-1866.
(buried in
Chilaw? Madampe? Or
Inherited Don Adrian’s
Walauwa (Mansion) in
+ wife Catherina Corea (had 6 children) See
Corea Family # 3166
+ 2nd
wife: Sarah
daughter of Malalasinghe
Jayasundara
Bandara
& Weerasinghe/Wirasinha Mudiyanselage Subadra Menike
of Ratnapura and later of Madampe. (had 2 children) (as
per Kingsley Jayewardene and also the
{But
Published record (Asiatic Journal) says that Don Abraham
Wijesinghe Jayewardene + wife
Miss Rose
Maria Perera married: June
28.1827 At Malwane, In the Hina
Corle, [Book:
The Asiatic Journal and monthly miscellany by East India
Company Vol. 23 1827]
http://books.google.ca/books?pg=PA94&dq=Abraham+Jayewardene&ei=ZLDGTKzyEIOksQOK8vTpDQ&ct=result&id=QBMoAAAAYAAJ#v=onepage&q=Abraham%20Jayewardene&f=false }
According to book by K.M.de
Silva and Howard Riggins,
Don Abraham disinherited 7 of his children : Cornelis.
Adrian Philip, Francis Alexander,
1.
J. R. Jayewardene,
the President of the Republic of Sri Lanka: ...
|
No
cover image |
books.google.ca1978 - 104 pages - Snippet view
|
|
|
books.google.caĒman
Kāriyakaravana, Neil Sri
Wijesinghe - 1981 - 151 pages -
Snippet view
|
3 Adrian Phillip
Wijesinghe Jayewardene
(by
1st wife) was a
lawyer, Judge? [Book JR
authors: Bulathsinhalage
Cyril
Perera, Piyasena
Senaratne http://books.google.ca/books?ei=rcHGTLeSG5LEsAOJldGVDQ&ct=result&id=nIkdAAAAIAAJ&dq=Cornelius+Jayewardene+and+Anuradhapura&q=+Anuradhapura
] + Eliza Caroline
Gooneratne/Goonaratna/Gunaratne of Kalutara Wilegoda Waluwa (info from
Kingsley Jayewardene of Madampe). [Amongst her
family members one DDS Gooneratne (Dr.?) that was
instrumental in Baptist Missionaries coming to Madampe from
4 Philip Leechman Wijesinghe Jayewardene
Eldest
Proctor,
Chilaw and landed proprietor + Agnes Beatrice Jayewardene Youngest Daughter of James Alfred
W.Jayewardene (see below for descendants etc.).
5 Hector
Adrian Wijesinghe Jayewardene, (Did law….and
passed away before his final exams); + Pearly? Perline?
6
Hector Jr. Wijesinghe Jayewardene in
5
Alfred Wijesinghe Jayewardene
never married.
5
Fitzroy Philip Wijesinghe Jayewardene (eldest son) + Justicia Udunuwara
Uralawatte Perera (3128) Justicia worked for Red
Cross, even in 2nd World War. She died young in
1946 or 1947, saving another woman from being
electrocuted. [ Justicia saw a woman with a pole trying to
pick fruit. That pole hit a light pole or wire. Justicia
went to save her, but got killed herself. ] Justicia and
Fitzroy Philip were relatives (not sure if it is through
the Corea family…ie. both families seem to have Corea
grandmothers).
6 Beatrice
Blossom Chandrakanthi Jayewardene (only child)+
Anthony William Perera Samarasinghe
(Family # 3129)
7
Anne Marie Samarasinghe
eldest. (St. Bridget’s,
7
Shani
(St. Bridget’s,.. Accomplished
) + Roy
P. (Canadian)
+ 2nd hus:
C. D.
7
Sonali (School:
St. Bridget’s, ……) + Lendon C.
(Canadian heritage)
7.
Thushara + (of
Canadian heritage)
8.
Sierra
7
Tamara (Degree
and part Masters from
4
5 Stanley Wijesinghe
Jayewardene +
Miss
Thilekeratne from Ratnapura
6 Thillekesiri Jayewardene + Kingsley Jayewardene (see below for
descendants etc.).
4 Adolphus Wijesinghe
Jayewardene landed
proprietor (Not married ?)
4 Abraham Wijesinghe Jayewardene + Jane Matilda Jayewardene
Daughter of James Alfred W.Jayewardene (see
below for descendants etc.).
4 Elsie Wijesinghe Jayewardene + Gabriel
Jayewardene Mudaliyar Tamankade ‘The Golden
book of
b. April 14,
1856. Is a descendant of Mudaliydr Don Adrien
Wijeyesinghe Jayewardene, Is Revenue Officer,
etc., of Tamankaduwa. Residence : Dambool. Her Cousin. see
below for descendants)
4
Lizzie Wijesinghe Jayewardene +
5
Zelda Dassanaike + Wlfred Dias Bandaranaike Gampaha
6 Hope never married
5 Luis Dassanaike + Janet
Jayewardene (Daughter of Daniel
Jayewardene and Louisa Jayewardene below)
5. Aileen
Dassanaike + Felix Jayawardene Lawyer Aileen and Felix are
1st cousins.
6.Ivy
Jayewardene
+ Frederick (Jayewardene) de Saram (see below for children and
grandchildren)
6. EDW (Archa)
Jayewardene (family trait: over 6 ft. tall) Represented
Sri Lanka in rugby and swimming +
Doreen Samaraweera (family from
7.
Jayantha
Jayewardene +
7
Prasanna
Jayewardene (Author, Hotelier,
Environmentalist ?) +
8
8
Danielle (In
6
Dr. Lester (Leicester ?) Jayewardene + Indrani William
7 Shantha
+ Panitha Gunewardene ?
7 Sunil
in USA +
7 Indrakumar
+
*7 Nelum + Gunesekera
5
Rene May
Dassanaike (bellana waluwa kalutara) + Harry Dias
Bandaranaike
6 Leonard Bandaranaike + Etienne Bandaranaike (grand daughter of Walter
Dias Bandaranaike) (Family #1001) d:14 Feb 2004 [She married Hugh
Rupasinghe …her 2st huband? and had a son, Harsha Rupasinghe..from Family #1001]
7 Rev Suresh Dias Bandaranaike Anglican Pastor +
Daphne Hope Ratnaike Kandy
(no Children)
7
Roshanara Dias Bandaranaike
+ Sunil Bandaranaike
8 Rosanthi +
Roshan Ranasuriya
6
Ruby Dias Bandaranaike + Danton Obeysekera (son of Donald
Obeysekera and Ethel Perera, Grandson of James Peter
Obeysekera + Corneliya Henrietta Dias Bandaranaike ) See Family # 1006,
7 Arjuna Obeysekera
Not married
7 Shireen Obeysekera + Pria Ameresinghe
8 Shehan
8 Rajive
7 Indra Obeysekera +
Anoma Illangakone
8 Gemunu
7 Ajith Obeysekera + Sharmala Dassanaike
6 Alick Dias
Bandaranaike d:Aug 1 2007, (see obit
below) + Delicia
(Dela) Goonetileke
6
Arun Dias
Bandaranaike, (Radio & TV presenter, Sports
Commentator,
2nd
spouse of Alick Dias Bandaranaike + Name Not Known
3
Francis Alexander Wijesinghe Jayewardene
+
4 Louisa Jayewardene +
Daniel (cousin) 1st cousin below Son
of Don Cornelius Wijesinghe Jayewardene. See under Don Cornelius Wijesinghe
Jayewardene for Descendants.
4 Maud Jayewardene not
married
4 Olga Jayewardene + Adolpus Jayewardene ?
4 Francis Jayewardene unmarried
4 Abraham Jayewardene +
5
6 Perline Jayewardene b. 1936-
? + Hector Jayewardene (son of Agnes Jayewardene + Philip
Leechman Jayewardene below
)
7
Hector + [Kalansuriya div]
8
Asanka Jayewardene (singer)
6 Evelyn Jayewardene
+ Asoka Ameresekere
(near Kegalle, Marline
Abeywardene
+ Danny Ameresekere. Danny’s father superintendant of Mail
in Kegalle)
7 Nelum doing PhD in Computer at
8 Faith
8 Juliu
7
Olu + Vasanthe Kalansuriya
engineer
8 Vishva Thilanke
7 Manel + Ajith
Benjamin
8 Kiara
8 Aaron
8
Kiandra
8 Kendrik
6 Oscar Jayewardene +
3 Cornelia Wijesinghe
Jayewardene born 1859 (by
2nd wife?) – part owner of
Grandpass and heir (according
to book J R Jayewardene of Sri Lanka by De Silva) + Gooneratne? Gunaratne? Madampe
Gooneratne Walauwe?
4 Effie Gooneratne
unmarried
4 David Gooneratne
+
4 Hannah
Gooneratne + Daniel
Ameresekere Family # 3068
5
Edna Ameresekere not married
5
4 See below for
descendants
5 Alwin Ameresekere
+ Lukshmi Kalutara and
6 Anil Lakshman +
6 Aylanee +
5 Ruth (Girley) Ameresekere
5 Daniel Ameresekere
not married
5 Justus W. Ameresekere + Frances May Jayewardene See below
6 Anne b. 1925? +
Earl Abayasekara
7
See below for descendants.
6 Daniel Justus
(Ira)
5 Victor Ameresekere + Clarice (Dottie) Adelade Leelavathi Urelawatte Wijesundera
Perera Family # 3128 No
Children.
4 Sara Gooneratne
+
5 Manel
Abeyratne b. 1923 + Hector
P. Abeysekera
6 Harindra
Abesekera
5 Carl
Abeyratne (deceased) + Vino Goonetillake (Elsie Gooneratne +
Donald Goonetillake’s daughter)
6 Sriva
Abeyratne + Navaratnam
6 Asoka Abeyratne (deceased)
6 Thilak Abeyratne (deceased)
6 Surangani (deceased)
5 Grace
Abeyratne (deceased) + Wijemanne of Kalutara
5 Sita Abeyratne +
Ranasinghe (Sir Arthur Ranasinghe;s only son)
6 Nilani
Ranasinghe
6 Rushika Ranasinghe
4 Elsie
Gooneratne + Donald Goonetilleke Kalutara House: Mandarins
5
Sepala deceased
+ Oosha Saravanamuttu
5 Sena +
5 Vino Goonetillake + Carl Abeyratne (cousin. See
below for children)
4 Connie
Gooneratne + Abeywardene superintendent of mail (Postal). 3rd
wife
5 Perl + Dhanapala
5 Mertle +
5 Victor + Thilaka
5 Ben Abeywardene
4 Natty
(Nathaniel?) Gooneratne + Flora Jayewardene
5 Marlene Gooneratne + Sam Perera ( from the
Udunuwara Urulawatte Wijesundera Perera family. Family # 3128 ).
6 Faith Perera + Nihal Dissanayake Anuradhapura
(Related to Augustus Dissanayake ….husband of Queenie
Paranavitane from
the Udunuwara Urulawatte Wijesundera Perera clan).
5 Norman Gooneratne, a Postmaster+ Ruth Muriel
Wanigatunga [See below
…Jayewardene Descendant]
5
Son
4 Sonny Gooneratne +
3
Matilda (Jane Matilda) Wijesinghe Jayewardene (by 2nd wife)
– part
owner of Grandpass and heir
+ William Wijeyekoon [brother of Cornelia
Matilda Wijeyekoon married to James Alfred W. Jayewardene. William is a Son
of ‘Bismark’ Don Johannes Wijeyekoon from Vilegoda Waluwe
Kalutara North. (Was there a daughter of ‘Bismark’ by the
name of
4 AA Reginald Wijeyekoon + one daughter of
4 Charles Edgar Wijeyekoon + another daugher of
4 William Vincent Wijeyekoon Laywer Kurunegala +
Daphne Jayewardene
4 James Alan Wijeyekoon, Lawyer b.1885 + Cecilia
Siriwardene
5
Allan Wijeyekoon, Lawyer, registra of companies b. 1928 [age
83 in 2011] + Naomi De Alwis
6 daughter +
6 daughter +
4 Artie Wijeyekoon unmarried Died
in
4 Hilda Wijeyekoon + Arthur P. Gooneratne [Family living
at Vilegoda Walauwe]
5
3
Don Cornelius Wijesinghe
Jayewardene was
Mudaliyar
of Anuradhapura [instrumental, with 2 other
people, in Baptist missionaries coming to Madampe from
4 Gabriel Wijesinghe
Jayewardene + Elsie Wijesinghe Jayewardene (1st
cousin above)
5
4 Alexander Wijesinghe
Jayewardene +
4 Agnes Jayewardene +
Jayewardene
4 Annie
Jayewardene + Henry
Udunuwara Urulawatte Wijesundera Perera Family
# (Brother of
Justicia U Urelawatte W Perera who married Fitzroy Philip
Jayewardene, and
Clarice U Urelawatte W Perera who married
Victor Ameresekere See below)
5
Rosalind
Perera not
married
5
Edith Perera + Senaratne
5 Lidia Perera + Aikele Walauwe [near Jaela/Seeduwa]
Seneviratne
6 Duran Seneviratne + Violet Seneviratne
7
Vijitha Seneviratne lawyer
5
Letitia Perera not
married
5
Deborah Perera + Paranavitane
5 Henry Bernard Perera + Charlotte
Ambuldeniya Bambalapitya
6 Chitra +
Kingsley Senaratna
[his mother de Alwis?]
6 Doin Bernard Perera + Stella
Rodrigo [Navala] 2nd
cousins to Anthony Samarasinghe Descendant of
Goonetilleke Family #3129 [Mother
and father: Dhanapala Mudianselage Freeda Havers + Peter
Rodrigo Navala ]
7
sharnali + Nanayakkara
7
Rushika +
Wiswajith Wickremesinghe
7 Sanjeeve Alexis
Udunuwara (Uruladeniya Koralage) Senior Planter at tea
estate, State Plantation Corporation Matar
6 George Perera no children
5
Herbert Perera +
Abayasekare from
5
Ebenezer Perera not married
5
Sam Perera + Marlene Gooneratne ( Marlene’s mother
Flora Jayewardene + Gooneratne ) See
Jayewardene family #3002
6 Faith + Nihal Dissanayeke from
4 Phillipa Wijesinghe
Jayewardene + Mohandiram David Navaratne from Putulam
(Mallewagara waluwe ). He died @ age 28.
Had gold box (one of 7) that Don Adrian brought from
5
Rachel Cornelia Navaratne + Walter Perera Wanigatunga (from
Kandy. originally from Matara) His sister was Anne
Adelaide Perera Wanigatunge who married Samuel James
Abayasekara of Galle
[Note: Anne-Marie was
told that Wanigatunga family have the same Ge name as Family # 3128 Are they related???]
6 Ruth Muriel Perera Wanigatunga + Norman Gooneratne
(See above.
Jayewardene Descendant)
6 Gabriel
Herbert Cornelius Perera Wanigatunga d. 1972, lawyer +
Dorothy Estelle Lavinia Abayasekara, School Principal (
daughter of Samuel James Abayasekara, and sister of
Journalist Anne Abayasekara’s husband See below )
*
7 Sunil Eric Perera Wanigatunga, Lawyer unmarried [have J.
letters from early 1900’s, DAWJ Seal, other J. memorabilia).
7 Ranjith Corneille Perera Wanigatunga +
8 son –
in
8 daughter – in
7 Herbert Perera Wanigatunga +
7 Priyantha Perera Wanigatunga +
6 Timothy Lloyd Perera Wanigatunga (died young)
4 Daniel Wijesinghe
Jayewardene + Louisa Jayewardene
5 Felix Jayewardene Lawyer
+ Aileen Jayewardene
1st cousin. See above
for children
etc.
5
Francis Jayewardene lawyer + Deloraine (Delorine?)
Leelawathie Elitra Corea [daughter of Percival Alan and
Cicely Augusta Corea] (1901-1961). See
Corea Family #3070
6 Prof CHS (Cleobis Hector Sirinaga) Jayewardene (1927-2004).
(in
6 Briarius (1935-2007). ???
6 Venitia Jayewardene + Leslie de Alwis in
7 Ingrid
7 Ionie + Algama
7 Devika + Perera
6 Damaris Jayewardene +
Sena (last name?)
7 Priyangani (in
7 Son in
7
Son in
6 DHS Jayewardene (newspaper editor) + Maheswari
7 Aianthi
in
7 Romayne + Mr Sonnadara
7 Tamara in
5
6 Joy Jayewardene +Leela
Perera (both deceased) wife
7
Mallika + Dicky Buhari
8 Gehan +
8 Shehan +
8 Jennifer
7 Dayadeva +
7 Priyanthi +
7 Lilanthi (Never Married)
7 Anoma +
7 Ione (died at 7 years)
7 Shantha +
6 Denia Jayewardene + Lloyd Wijewardene
7 Lalith + Shiranthi (1st marriage)(Lalith lives in
8 Shanil + (lives in the States)
7 Hiran + Jacintha Perera
8 Dharshan + Akila (Lives in the States)
8 Dilukshan +
8 Dilshan +
6 Christobel Jayewardene + Chandra Gunesekera
b.1920 (Matara)
7 Dr P C (Prasanna
Chandrakantha)
Gunesekera
(Obstetrics and Gynaecology} Senior Advisor in Reproductive
Health, UN (WHO in
8 Kanchana
Vejayanth Gunasekera , BSc Mech. Eng.
6
6 Amy Jayewardene + Albert Nanayakkara (
*
6 Zena Jayewardene Personnel Manager+ Taruprabha
(Tassie) Seneviratne Senior Superintendent Police [Grand-father,
Alexander
De Alwis-Seneviratne was from Welipenne. (Kalutara
District)]. Wrote book: ‘Human Rights and
Policing - Reminiscences of my Police days’.
7 Prabhashini Seneviratne + Chaminda Thirimanna (
Lives in
8 Chandev
8 Celia
8 Chiara
5
6 Daniel
Justus Ameresekera Newspaper
Editor deceased + Genevra Daulagala deceased
7 Priyani Ameresekera deceased not married
7 Amitha Ameresekera not married worked at UNDP in
7 Dhakshina Ameresekera + Viraj Senewiratne
Manages Music Section of a major book shop No Children
7 Dhammika Ameresekera Unmarried Ceylon Tobacco
factory 20 years
7
Tishan Ameresekera + Natalie Kalpage
8 Thishantha Ameresekera + wife
8
Natasha Ameresekera works
in a Mercantile firm
7 Paneetha Ameresekera Journalist + Renuka
Samarasinghe [grandmother a Gunaratne, mother Grace
Gunasekera from Kotte
Samarasinghe home in
8 daughter
7 geethani Ameresekera Lawyer for Julius and Cresy + Aravindha
Athurupana
*
6 Anne Ameresekera (Journalist) + Earl Abayasekara [7 children, 11
grandchildren]
7 Sarala
Anne Abayasekara teaches Eng
+ Chandran Williams
Director for Youth for Christ Sri Lanka YGro social serv
arm of )
8 Chandrishan Williams IT Field
8 Shenali Williams Science Teacher + Prakash Rajkumar
Son in Law [IT
Work for Youth for Christ
7
Dr Ranmali Abayasekara in US. + Dr Ajit Ponnambalam
8 Indrajit Ponnambalam VP of AOL + Sybil
9 Katherin Anne Ponnambalam
8 Dhiren Ponnambalam in
7 Rohan
Abayasekara + Suvendrini Nicholas (tamil)
8 Dilshara Abayasekara Math at Macquarry University+
Colin Hill in Australia
Math in High school
No children yet
8 Ambrith Abayasekara + Sue Phoo in
9
Son
7 Ranjan Abayasekara in
S. Australia Mechanical
eng. + Niranjala De Alwis (grandmother Corea) No Children
7
Dilip Abayasekara (Pensylvania) Speakers Unlimited + Sharon
(American)
8 Allison Anne Abayasekara Masters in Eng Lit
8 Alexander Abayasekara Sports Management Deg
7 Ranil Abayasekara Head of Economics at
8 Ashani Abayasekara Honors in Economics,
8 Shalini Abayasekara Greek and Roman Civilization
and Engineering at Peradeniya
7 Anusha Abayasekara IT Diploma, Systems Analyst and
Programmer+ Dr. Shantilal Atukorala PhD from
8 Asela
Atukorala, Degree in Mass Communication
5 Janet Jayewardene + Luis Dassanayake (Aileen’s
brother)
6
7 Inoka Lilani Dassanayake +
Shermith Sanjeewa Fernando
7 Enok
7 Eban
6 Angela Shamalie
Dassanayake + Franco Daberera
7 Joel
6
Michael Ruckshan Dassanayake (not married yet)
5 Ursula Jayewardene unmarried [gifted
her estate in Dummalasuriya (off Madampe) to Youth for Christ]
5 Lionel Jayewardene + May Wickremetilleke
6
Gemunu Jayewardene (not married)
6 Lakdasa Jayewardene + Srimathi
7 Srimathi (England/Bahamas) +
8 Ruwan (
8 Laknath (
7 Veronica +
8
7 Devasrini +
8
5 Alick Jayewardene + Euginie Seneratne
6
Neena + Pastor Abeyratne Dissanayake, 7th day
Adventist Pastor
7
7
7
5
Winfield Jayewardene Lawyer + Zenobia Jayesekera; 2nd wife: Shirley
Holsinger (Burger)
6
Jennifer Jayewardene (lived in
7 Shaheed Mohideen
(in
3 Eliza Wijesinghe
Jayewardene (by 1st
wife) …
heir + William
Goonetileke, scholar and lawyer p.361 A History of Sri
Lanka Vol. 2 by KM De Silva [husband bought Jayawadene
Walauwa ]
Kingsley
Jayewardene and Zena Jayewardene Seneviratne recall their
parents talking about a Mabole Aachie that the family used
to visit. Goonetilleke
Waluwa in Mabole was also mentioned. It sounds like
he is a descendant of the Mabole Goonetilleke
family. Family #3129
3 Charlotte Wijesinghe
Jayewardene (by 1st wife)
+ Cornelis Wijesinghe
4
Henrietta Merriah Wijesinghe +
?? Does
this fit here? 4 Violet Rosalind
Wijesinghe, (d/o Cornelis Wijesinghe interpreter
Mudaliyar Matara Courts) + Simon Hendricus Barthalomew
Kuruppu (b:1863 at Panadura) (M1898) Kuruppu Family
#3151
3 James Alfred
Wijesinghe Jayewardene (son by
1st wife) Proctor, (Equivalent to Solicitor),
Deputy Coroner of Colombo b. 1845? d:1888
at age 43 + Ms. Cornelia Matilda Wijekoon from Kalutara (d/o Muhandiram,
‘Bismarck’ Brother
William Lawyer see above Vilegoda/Vileygoda
Wauwe), later Mudaliyar Wijekoon?– Twentieth Centiry
Impressions of Ceylon, see http://books.google.ca/books?id=eUF_rS8FEoIC&pg=PA862&lpg=PA862&dq=cornelia+matilda+wijekoon&source=bl&ots=IhjLmNeWnd&sig=r5xC9TkPD_atSvsO1fbmtBvuaxU&hl=en&ei=xcQ0TNCyH8qonQeG6M3ZAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBQQ6AEwAA&safe=active#v=onepage&q=cornelia%20matilda%20wijekoon&f=false [Did
Cornelia Matilda marry a 2nd time - after James
Alfred died? ]
4
Hector Alfred Wijesinghe Jayewardene, b:22-Jul-1870,
d:16-Oct-1913 (Eldest) Bought back properties in Chilaw and
Grandpass belonging to Don Adrian, b:22-Jul-1870. Educated
at
4 Colonel Theodore Godfrey Wijesinghe Jayewardene, b:17-Jun-1872,
d:1945,
Engineer, Educated at
5
T.F. (Freddy) Jayewardene
Major T.F. Jayewardene –Parliamentary
Secretary to the Minister of ……
(not sure what Minister). p.291. Rural Sociologist
and also an expert in business and agriculture. p. 1671
There are 23 pages mentioning his name. Book: Parliamentary
Debates Vol. 12 Issue 1-20
http://books.google.ca/books?id=XJ4dAAAAIAAJ&q=T.F.+Jayewardene&dq=T.F.+Jayewardene&hl=en&ei=fFvPTOCaGYXEsAObwsj0AQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAg
+ 1st wife Philis Gunesekera (a
descendant of Udunuwara Urulawatte Wijesundera Perera Family # 3128 relative of
Queenie Violet Paranavitane and same Paranavitana family as
related to Muthulakshmi/Lakshmi Jayasundera, wife of Felix
R.Dias Bandaranaike Family # and
her sister Malkanthi married to Gamini Wikremenayake)
+ 2nd wife:
6. Dharshini +
5 Effie
Jayewardene +
6 Nirmal Asoka Corea (Engineer) + Elfie (Austrian)
7 Gihan
Asoka Corea
7 Anusha Corea
6 Lakshma
Corea not
married math teacher, tutored
Prince Charles.
Deceased
6. Damayanthi Corea +
Harindra Corea former MP
(div)
7 daughter
5 Margie + Wijemanne (
They had a few children)
5 Celia +
5 Sheri +
(She had children)
4
Justice
5 Junius
Richard
Jayewardene 1906-1996, b:Sep-17-1906 at Park
House on
JAYEWARDENA - MRS. ELINA
V. Beloved wife of late
President J.R. Jayewardena and mother of
6
7
Pradip Jayewardene + Shan Corea , d/o Nihal
Corea & Gilian Ondaatchi
7
Rukshan Jayewardene
7
Amrik Jayewardene
6 2nd spouse
of
5
Corbert
Edward Jayewardene, b:13-Mar-1908, d:23-Mar-1981
Proctor (later
SEDEWATTE DHARMARUCHI THERA) [Previously
He was married and had daughter Amitha]
5 E.W. Jayewardene (Wilmot), b:1921 + Miss Gooneratne
6
Prasanna Wijesinghe
Jayewardene, (Author, Hotelier,
Environmentalist ?)
6
6
5 Dulcie Jayewardene 1913-1986 (President
Colombo Ladies League for 16 years, member Soroptimist
International Organization,
6.
5
Harry
Wilfred Jayewardene, QC., Dr., b:3-Nov-1916,
d:20-Apr-1990
b:3-Nov-1916. Educated at
6. Hiran + Miss Pandithe goonewardene 6.
Daughter 6.
Daughter
6. Daughter
6. Daughter
5 Dr. Rolly P. Jayewardene, b:1918, d:11 Nov
1999, MD, MRCP and FRCP, Senior
Physician of the
6.
6.
5 M.M. (MB?) Jayewardene
(Monty), b:1920 + Lashmi Silva
6. Lalith + Preethi Fernando
6 Lalendra +
5 Girlie (Eugenie) Jayewardene + S C
(Shirley) Corea Lawyer and
Parlimentarian [Son of C E Corea, politician. P. 64 and
134 of K.M. De Silva’s book re JR.]
2nd spoude of Girlie (Eugenie) Jayewardene + Danny
Weeratunga, Lawyer from Matara
6 Anil Weeratunga +
Ayanthi Jayewardene.
5
Rohini
Jayewardene 1925 – 1932
5 Ione Jayewardene b.1932 + N W Athukorale
5
Winstone
Jayewardene 1915 – 1980 died
in England
4 John Adrian St. Valentine W. Jayewardene, b:14-Feb-1877.
Educated
at
5 Clodagh (she was a
politician)
+ (1st
husband a Perera -div.)
2nd Mr. Jayesuriya?
(book:
Women in our legislature by Chitra Wijesekera).
6
Sepala
6 Nisanka
6 Nalini
6 Kamini
4
Justus
Sextus Wijesinghe Jayewardene, b:28-Jan-1881, d:1928
Educated at
@ 4 Agnes Beatrice Jayewardene (youngest daughter) + Philip Leechman ?
Wijesinghe Jayewardene Proctor Chilaw and landed
Proprietor. (also lived in Marawila) See above for his parents. His
father was Philip Wijesinghe Jayewardene. His mother was
Eliza Caroline Gooneratne. Brother of
Abraham Wijesinghe Jayewardene (see below).
[Proctor, Chilaw? from
Book: "The Life of Colonel T.G. Jayewardene by
O.E. Martinus published in 1941]
5 Hector
Adrian Wijesinghe Jayewardene, (Did law….and
passed away before his final exams); + Pearly
6
Hector Jr. Wijesinghe Jayewardene in
5
Alfred Wijesinghe Jayewardene
never married.
5
Fitzroy Philip Wijesinghe Jayewardene (eldest son) + Justicia Udunuwara
Uralawatte Perera (3128) Justicia worked for Red
Cross, even in 2nd World War. She died young in
1946 or 1947, saving another woman from being
electrocuted. [ Justicia saw a woman with a pole trying to
pick fruit. That pole hit a light pole or wire. Justicia
went to save her, but got killed herself. ] Justicia and
Fitzroy Philip were relatives (not sure if it is through
the Corea family…ie. both families seem to have Corea
wives).
6 Beatrice
Blossom Chandrakanthi Jayewardene + Anthony William
Perera Samarasinghe
( see Family # 3128)
7
Anne Marie (St.
Bridget’s,
Degree from
7
Shani (St.
Bridget’s,.. Accomplished
) + Roy
P. (Canadian)
+ 2nd hus:
C. D.
7
Sonali
(School: St.
Bridget’s, ……) + Lendon C.
(Canadian heritage)
7.
Thushara + (of
Canadian heritage)
8. Sierra
7
Tamara (Degree
and part Masters from
4 Cornelia Laetitia Jayewardene (or Dorothy?) + Villiers
Augustus Hay
De
Saram Police
Inspector. He
was born 1884 married on 19 Jun 1913 in Holy
Trinity Church, Colombo.
(Villiers A. Hay De Saram’s father: Richard
Francis De Saram born about 1858 in
5
Frederick (Jayewardene) de Saram (Police Inspector? )
+ Ivy Jayewardene (daughter of Felix Jayewardene
& Aileen
(Zelda?)) Jayewardene, 1st cousins who married)
6
Sirimani de Saram, MP, Minister Sri Lanka
Government (died) + Lalith
Athulathmudali, [Lalith William
Samarasekera Athulathmudali]MP, Minister Sri Lanka
Government (assassinated) http://www.dailynews.lk/2002/11/27/fea03.html
7 Serala
Athulathmudali
6 Sriyani de Saram
+ Nimal Amerasekera Family #
3128 Perera
descendant.
7
Niroshini Amerasekera + Todd Zaharako (
7
Shayami Amerasekera + Ronald Ristaino (
8 Dominic Ristaino
7 Chevonni Amerasekera + Gehan De Alwis
6. Siromi de Saram + Ray Leonard (USA)
7. Ray Leonard + Stacey
8 Katelyn Leonard
8 Joshua Leonard
8
Amber Leonard
8 Olivia Leonard
7 Leona Leonard
8 Sydney Leonard
7 Ramona Leonard
6. Hareen
de Saram*
(Deceased)
4 Jane Matilda
Jayewardene (Eldest in the family)+ Abraham Wijesinghe
Jayewardene Notary,
landed Proprietor See above for
his parents. Brother of Philip Jayewardene who was
husband of Agnes Jayewardene. House Maligawe in Madape
5 Concy Jayewardene single
5 H.H.A
.Jayewardene Lawyer in Chilaw + Greta Obeysekera
6
Hemamali Jayewardene
+ Armyne (Armine?) Weerasinghe
7 Anushka Weerasinghe
5 May Jayewardene ( in Madampe) +
6
Carmini [a fashion designer] died 2011? Not married. **
6 Anula not
married
6 Kingsley Jayewardene + Thillekesiri Jayewardene (2nd
cousin) daughter of Stanley
Wijesinghe Jayewardene, his father
7
Hemantha Senake
+ Miss
Karunanayake Silva from Ragama
8 Dharmantha Tharusi
8
8 Edgar Ishan
7 Usha
Swarnapali +
Pushpakumara Silva from Panadura
8 Thilothma
8 Thiagi Amaya
8 Thiloththama
7 Manori Sharmaine + Chaminda Thilekeratne Bandara
6 Swarna died
1960’s not
married
@ 4 Junius
Quintus Jayawardena, d:21 Apr 1906 after
suffering a heart attack at Polonnaruwa, Not married
1 2nd
spouse of Don Adrian Wijesinghe Jayewardene (Tombi
Mudaliyar) aka "Nanale
Militie
Muidyanse'
of Wolvendaal 1768-1830: +
Dona
Christina Corea of Grandpass (d/o Colombage
Neseyge Christoffel Corea Padikaare Muhandiramge), m:22-Nov-1807, See Twentieth Century
Impressions of
*
”J.R. Jayewardene of
Need to find
out where these
people fit…
From
0. Don Simon
Jayewardene b. circa 1725?
+ Dona Ursula
1 Don Salomon baptized 24/8/1749
0. Louis
Jayewardenege + Babitja Hamie
1 Samuel baptized
1/12/1805
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Need to find
out if this is a relative or not:
GOONARATNA
- DONA LEELAWATHI
Beloved wife of late Post Master Aurthur Vernon Perera
Abayasekara Goonaratna of Wilegoda Walauwa Kalutara North.
Beloved mother of Chandrika Piyadasa (formerly Sujatha
Vidyalaya, Kalutara North), late Ashoka Goonaratna (formerly
Grama Niladhari), Dananjaya Goonaratna (formerly Tractor
Corporation), Keerthi Goonaratna (Nugegoda Post Office),
Ajith Goonaratna (Ministry of Defence), Udeni Goonaratna
(Sri Lanka Army), beloved mother-in-law of Luxman Piyadasa,
Donagreta Weerasinghe, Chandrika Amarasinghe, Gothami
Goonaratna, Dumithi Shamali Abewardena. The funeral will
take place on Monday the 25th May 2009. For further details:
0342235034, 0602302759
____________________________________
Need to find
out where in the Jayewardene tree these people fit…
From: de Alwis Family #
3137 and Bandaranayake family # 1001
7
Alexandra Dias Bandaranaike + Leo de Alwis. (lived at
Samudragiri Walauwwa Mt Lavinia)
8
Shirlene.de Alwis + Earl Jayawardena/
Jayewardene
9
Amal Jayawardena
___________________________
LAURA
FOENANDERS
ROOTSWEB PAGES ON THE JAYAWARDENE FAMILY
___________________________
obituary: DN Wed Aug 8
2007
DIAS BANDARANAIKE - ALICK Brother of late Leonard,
expired August first. Burial took place on August 2nd. He is
survived by his wife Delicia (Dela) and son Arun and sister
Ruby Obeyesekere. Friends and relatives, please accept this
intimation. 49, Kelanimulla, Angoda
______________________________________________________________________
|
|
Chitra
Wijesekera - 1995 - 283 pages -
Snippet
view
books.google.ca
-
More
editions -
|
In My Library: 1.
The
INTERNATIONAL
who's who: 1990-91
|
|
Europa
Publications Limited - 1990 - 1772 pages -
Snippet
view
books.google.ca
-
More
editions - Add to My
Library▼ |
1. S.D.
and
the family roots in Sri Lankan politics
|
|
Somasiri
Wickramasinghe,
Nilmal
Wickramasinghe - 2005 - 405 pages -
Snippet
view
books.google.ca -
|
[Son of or brother of Danny Weeratunga?] : General
Tissa Indraka (Bull) Weeratunga, born on August
29, 1930 and was educated at Royal College Colombo, d:Nov
2003, Colombo, joined SL Army
on Oct 11, 1949, commissioned in the rank of Second
Lieutenant on August 2, 1951 and posted to Ceylon Light
Infantry, was promoted to the rank of Brigadier on December
1, 1977 and appointed Inspector of Training of the Army,
appointed Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army on March 1979
and while holding this appointment he functioned as
Commander Security Forces, Jaffna from 13 July 1979 to
December 31, 1979, Commander of Sri Lanka Army from Oct 14,
1981-Nov 2, 1985, appointed the General Officer Command of
the Joint Operation Command on February 11, 1985, promoted
to the rank of General on August 29, 1989, appointed by
President J R Jayewardene, his uncle, as Sri Lanka High
Commissioner to Canada in 1986. + Sonia Paul
obit:
WEERATUNGA -
GENERAL TISSA INDRAKA (Bull) VSV, ndc. Dearly beloved
husband of Sonia, precious father of Rohan and Samanthi,
Ajith and Sumudu, Annouchka and Terrence, darling seeya of
Shanaya, Kiyara, Hashan, Arvindh and Amrita, brother-in-law
of Kumar and Gloria Paul, Maurice and Pamela Rode, expired.
Cortege leaves residence at 2.00 p.m. on Sunday 9th November
for Cremation with full Military Honours at General Cemetery
Kanatte at 4 p.m. 25/23 A, Jayapura Mawatha, Beddegana
Road South, Pita Kotte No flowers by request. All
donations to Lt. Gen. Denzil Kobbekaduwa Trust. Nov 9 2003
7 Rohan Weeratunga + Samanthi
7
Ajith Weeratunga + Sumudu
7
Annouchika Weeratunga + Terrence
7
Anil +
RESEARCH done by: Anne-Marie
Samarasinghe
________________________________________________________________________
JAYEWARDENE Seal (thanks to Sunil
Wanigatunga
for submitting this photo)
________________________________________________________________________
JAYEWARDENE Seal
*Devoted son
and friend of all
Hareen
de Saram
When my
son's e-mail to me in Manila last Tuesday, started with
"Some very sad news…" I knew that Hareen, my youngest
cousin, was gone forever ending our long association, which
started from our childhood. He was more a friend than a
relative.
Hareen's
death was not totally unexpected but when the stark reality
that I would not see him again hit me, it moved me to tears.
The only solace was that he enjoyed life as long as he lived
and death was to him a relief from the extreme pain and
suffering that many of his malfunctioning organs gave him.
Hareen had
some sterling qualities. The finest example of which was his
devoted caring for his mother who, like him, suffered a
painful illness for a long time. Throughout this period,
Hareen cared for Aunty Ivy as I have not seen any son do.
Hareen was fortunate that he had a close family with three
sisters who loved him dearly. His sisters, in these last few
months, took great pains to try and pull him through.
However, as he told an aunt on the phone from a
Singapore hospital earlier this month, "God wants me up there."
I am sure that this was God's plan.
Hareen, a
bachelor, considered all his close relatives his own family
and was interested in the welfare of everyone. All his
nephews and nieces were extremely fond of him especially
because he could relate to them easily. Hareen was a good
friend and likewise he had some good friends who are going
to miss him dearly. Rarely do people like Hareen pass
through this world. We who knew him were lucky to have been
there when he did.
From far off
Manila, I can only say, "Farewell Hareen. I loved you. May
you find that peace in Heaven which only God can give."
- Jayantha J.
DN
30.11.2005
Appreciation -
Srimani Athulathmudali
One year has passed, the spirit of Srimani floats
through our lives, but the realisation that she is physically
no more upon this earth in the form we knew still very hard to
come to terms with.
Srimani was so many things
to different people, but not a contradiction. Frederick
and Ivy
De Saram's
daughter, sister of Sriyani, Siromi and later little brother
Hareen, was her first role, De Saram
by name but more Jayewardene
by blood for three of her grandparents were Jayewardenes.
Born with the commanding
gene of the De Saram
and Jayewardene
Mudaliyar ancestors, the gentle loving, caring heart was
entirely her own. The title 'the most
practically caring person' earned by her over the years with
so many acts big and small were linked directly to
the heart.
Very beautiful like her
mother, grandmother and greatbgrandmother before her, she
never allowed this to be a handicap either positively or
negatively. She was her own person and marriage to Laith and
the birth of Serala must be the two greatest gifts she
received from the God she was so familiar with and whom she
believed in absolutely, with no reservation.
She became comfortable with
her husband's faith and politics. Her beautiful world opened
out as she walked on centre stage with the brilliant yet quite
simple and gentle private person Lalith, with Serala always in
tow.
Tragedy which stalked the
land and was a curse to take our best,
left her widowed after only just over a decade of marriage. A
high spirited loving child was all that was left even though a
resounding victory at the polls and a Cabinet portfolio became
hers.
Well before her sixtieth
year illness took her away and those of us with still some
distance to go in this world will be left with moist eyes for
a long time at the memory of the free and happy spirit called
Srimani who injected sunshine into our lives, who now by her
faith and actions must be in green pastures with so many whom
she loved and who loved her.
Prasanna Wijesinghe Jayewardene, Rosmead Place, Colombo 7
Two novels and
ten hotels in the offing
By Chitra Weerasinghe
He has just finished writing
his second novel - `The King who keeps his crown' - based on a
fictitious island in the Indian Ocean; one which has an ideal
social structure and peace as its only priority.
He is Prasanna
Wijesinghe
Jayewardene
the author, hotelier, environmentalist - a man of many
convictions who professes a great love for this, his
motherland and within which island's framework, he says, he
has been able to do what he has always wished - no matter how
far he has succeeded.
Since leaving Trinity
College, Kandy after completing his schooling, he obtained a
diploma in hotel management and tourism from Salzburg's
Klessheim Hotel School in Austria; lived and worked in ten
countries among them France, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, Austria,
Malaysia, Maldives, Seychelles and in Karachi when it was
Pakistan's capital and completely different to what it
presently is as Islamabad.
Now, basking in the glory of
his experiences and, probably achievements; and having put his
thoughts on paper, he is dreaming of the time when what he
visualises for Sri Lanka will become a reality.
What made him focus on peace
as being a country's sole priority in this, his second novel
(not about Sri Lanka) - the first titled `A journey forward'
was based on the Sri Lanka of a couple of decades ago seen
through the eyes of a foreigner visiting this country for the
first time to attend the funeral of his father?
That peace is what his heart
aches for I was able to gather as I sat talking with him one
poya afternoon at the Hilton Colombo's Thorana Lounge. I
enjoyed listening to him philosophise, fantasise, and convey
useful messages of wisdom preached and practised by sages and
men whom he admired.
The Dalai Lama maintains
that a human being is essentially a good person; that violence
is only a surface emotion and that deep down in a person's
heart he yearns for goodness and a sense of value; and also
that if you look at a person from a positive angle as the
Dalai Lama constantly reminds us, then the vast majority of
people will also react positively towards you, he said.
That then is the theme on
which he bases his story and weaves subtly into it the threads
of his thinking on the environment and its biodiversity.
A society can, taking into
consideration the inherent good in a person, engage him in
helping preserve the environment and its biodiversity and so
to be one with nature as human beings are expected to live,
says Jayewardene
a keen and committed environmentalist who boasts of having
held a leopard in his hands when it was a cub and which cub he
nurtured till full grown at the time he was General Manager at
Negombo's Brown Beach Hotel.
``It slept in bed with me
and my wife. But today keeping most forms of wildlife in
domestication is banned," he said.
Jayewardene's love for the
environment and for wildlife stems from that great concern his
ancestors spanning three generations (as far as he could
remember) had for plants and animals.
His father, E.D.W. Jayewardene
was an officer in the British Army and a man who had captained
the University Rugby team; represented the CR & FC and
Ceylon at Rugby; was also the author of two books `Water
Gardening in Ceylon' and `Sinhalese Masks. More importantly he was a
great believer in the peaceful co-existence of people, plants
and animals in the environment. He lived in some of the
jungles in Sri Lanka besides the towns. And he created the
right environment in the home for his family to imbibe and
take to his great love and interest in nature.
Is it not natural then, for
Jayewardene
to seize every opportunity he possibly could to express his
concern for the environment?
And how could you forget
those days when he was General Manager of the Mount Lavinia
Hotel, the time he spent ensuring the cleanliness of the
hotel's vicinity, the nearby railway station and roads? He
even roped in the residents of the area to join him in his
shramadana campaigns of the beach and the streets where they
lived.
How many hours does he spend
writing and how did he find the time to do so with all his
work, interests and social service activities?
I never take myself too
seriously and think I am so busy that I cannot think of
anything else. Everyone is busy in his/her own way and you
must not think of yourself as being busier than the other
person. That is what I learned from former President J.R.Jayewardene.
He says he socialises but
not too much; that he shifts his priorities as the need arises
and that he does fulfil his social and family obligations and
spends profitabily whatever time he has - focusing, of course,
on his happiness - a priority in any person's life. But all in
all he devotes two to three hours a day to his writing.
And that is not all. He has
lots more things to do and lots more things happening.
Having had considerable
experience in running skiing hotels, city hotels, resort
hotels and jungle hotels, he is now in the throes of planning
and building yet another type- lifestyle
hotels. He has planned ten such hotels in areas like
Hambantota, Maskeliya, Wilpattu, Trincomalee, Maduru Oya
Jaffna and a few other locations which he was averse to
disclose until all the customary procedures have been complied
with and completed.
But `Elephant Corridor' a
lifestyle designer 24- all suite Boutique Hotel - the first of
this series of ten and a unique blend of art and architecture
located in the wilds of Sigiriya is almost ready and
he is awaiting that most opportune time in tourism this year -
that is when tourists will once again begin to trickle in
greater numbers, to open its doors to them. It is an
exclusive, upmarket, luxurious boutique hotel for the
discerning visitor and affords him the opportunity of being
with nature and studying and watching the flora and fauna
there, he says.
What I can do for Sri Lanka
from my side is to pioneer a new generation of hotels and
project Sri Lanka which when looked at objectively is a great
destination - a very attractive girl on the beach as it were;
but we must remember and he quotes Dr Anandatissa de Alwisd as
saying ``we are not the only girl on the beach. We must make
our girl attractive and scintillating.'
Jayewardene talks of the location for a
hotel as being of paramount importance. It is priority number
one. priority number two and
priority number three - a view, he says, expressed by a famous
international hotelier and it is the specific features of each
location that he wishes to bring out and capitalise on in his
boutique hotels.
You design a hotel within a
particular location - primarily to enhance that area and
improve the living standards of its people - but without
damaging or destroying that area and also bearing in mind that
a hotel has a shelf life unlike that of land - the shelf life
depending on the eventual demand of the market.
Three other hotels besides
the `Elephant Corridor' are in the process of being developed.
They are the `Leopard Mountain' in the tea estates of
Maskeliya and `Flamingo Plain' amidst the sea and paddy fields
of Hambantota.
Jayewardene has met the Dabane Veddas
in Mahiyangana to ensure whether he could integrate his hotel
with the vedda population and to
see how he may introduce their dances and rituals for the
benefit of tourists.
I want to give the tourists
the opportunity of getting married, if they wish, in
traditional veddha style. And he has managed to pick up a few
words of andarademala (the gypsy language) as disclosed to him
by Lalith Athulathmudali.
Having been to Jaffna as a
schoolboy and still remembering his father drawing his
attention to the architecture and other attractive features -
culture and people of Yalapalam; having seen the varying
terrain from palm trees to beaches, visited islands like Delft
with its ponies and Nagadipa, he has already embarked on plans
for achieving his desire for a hotel there. He has named it
the `Peninsular Beach Hotel' and it will be located in
Casurina Beach. It will serve as a city hotel and an airport
hotel and all that stems from his optimism that peace is at
hand.
|
Pradeep
Jayewardene's
House - http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=7324 |
Until their home was totally
destroyed by fire at the end of the 1980s, the Jayewardene
family enjoyed the use of an old cocohut estate bungalow
perched high on the red cliffs that frame the eastern side of
Weligama Bay on the south coast of Sri Lanka. In 1997 Bawa was
asked by J. R. Jayewardene's grandson, Pradeep, to design a
replacement. The site lies at the end of a steep track off the
main Galle-to-Matara road. After a short climb, the noise of
the traffic is left far behind and a final twist in the track
reveals a breathtaking view westwards across the bay and a
grove of coconut palms, silhouetted against the sky. On closer
inspection a platoon of black columns can be discerned among
the coconut trunks, a thin horizontal roof floating amongst
their fronds: a simple pleasure pavilion stands on a stepped
plinth. The roof is a galvanized steel deck sloping gently
southwards and supported on three rows of six concrete-encased
columns: there are no walls, no doors, no windows, no shutters. Part of the plinth is
raised to accommodate a lower bedroom level and this raised
area creates a place for sitting, while the lower floor is
dominated by a huge dining table that rests on an old
electricity generator, a remnant from the original bungalow.
An enclosed stairway leads down to a half-buried space
containing service areas and bedrooms that open onto a lower
courtyard.
The house is separated in
time from the A. S. H. de Silva House by almost forty years,
but they are two points on the same journey. Both consist in
essence of a roof inserted into a landscape to exclude sun and
rain while admitting cooling currents of air. It may be that
one house is simply a distillation of the other or that it
takes forty years to gain the confidence to strip things down
to their bare essentials.
Soon after the house was
completed, the following poem was written by Michael Ondaatje,
the uncle of Pradeep Jayewardene's wife:
House on a Red Cliff, 26
January 1998 There is no mirror in Mirissa the sea is in the
leaves the waves are in the palms old language in the arms of
the casurina pine parampara, parampara from generation to
generation The flamboyant a grandfather planted having lived
through fire lifts itself over the roof unframed
the house an open net where night concentrates on a breath on
a step
a thing or gesture we cannot be attached to just the long, the
short, the difficult minutes of night's phenomena where even
in darkness there is no horizon without a tree just a boat's
light in the leaves A last footstep before formlessness
(Ondaatje 1998)
Source: Robson, David. 2002.
Geoffrey Bawa: The Complete Works. London: Thames and Hudson
Dr. Rolly dies
Sunday Times
Nov 7 1999:
Dr. R. (Rolly)
P. Jayewardene, one of Sri Lanka's most eminent and respected
medical personalities died on Friday night and was cremated
yesterday at the Colombo General Cemetery.
Dr. Jayewardene who was 81, was an MD, MRCP
and FRCP. Having had a brilliant academic career at the
Faculty of Medicine, he retired from public service as Senior
Physician of the General Hospital, Colombo. In later years he
was also a Director-General at NARESA (Natural Resources
Energy and Science Authority) which has been replaced by the
NSF (Natural Science Foundation). He was a younger brother of
the late President J.R. Jayewardene. His wife, Gladys who was
Chairperson of the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation
predeceased him.
POORNA
HEALTHCARE TRUST REPORT
JR
Jayewardene
JRL with President Ronald Reagan of USA JRJ
Pictures
sent in by:
Manjula de
Livera
email - manjuladelivera@yahoo.com.au
3 Jul 2008
Husband
of
Beatrice
Blossom
Chandrakanthi
Jayewardene (son in law of Fitzroy Philip Wijeysinghe
Jayewardene &
Justicia Udunuwara Uralawatte Perera, father of Anne
Marie Samarasinghe)
Beatrice
Blossom Chandrakanthi Jayewardene (daughter of Fitzroy
Philip Wijeysinghe Jayewardene & Justicia Udunuwara
Uralawatte Perera, mother of Anne Marie)
Sat 8 Nov
2003
Gen. Tissa
Weeratunga dies
General T.I. Weeratunga who
served as the Commander of Sri Lanka Army from 1981 to 1985
and General Officer Commanding - Joint Operation Command
passed away at his residence in Kotte yesterday.
Tissa Indika Weeratunga was
born on August 29, 1930 and was educated at Royal College,
Colombo.
General Weeratunga was among
the first batch of Officer Cadets to join the Regular Force of
the Army on October 11, 1949 after the formation of the Sri
Lanka Army in independent Sri Lanka. After his initial
training in the United Kingdom he was commissioned in the rank
of Second Lieutenant on August 2, 1951 and posted to Ceylon
Light Infantry.
Weeratunga was promoted to
the rank of Brigadier on December 1, 1977 and appointed
Inspector of Training of the Army.
He was appointed Chief of
Staff of the Sri Lanka Army on March 1979 and while holding
this appointment he functioned as Commander Security Forces,
Jaffna from 13 July 1979 to December 31, 1979.
He became the Commander of
the Sri Lanka Army on October 14, 1981 and served until
November 2, 1985. Then he was appointed the General Officer
Command of the Joint Operation Command on February 11, 1985.
He was promoted to the rank
of General on August 29, 1989.
After his career in the Sri
Lanka Army he has also served as Sri Lanka's High Commissioner
in Canada.
The body of Gen. Weeratunga
now lies at his residence 25/23, Jayapura Mawatha, Beddagana
South, Pitakotte.
The cortege
will leave for General Cemetery, Kanatta, from residence at 3
p.m. tomorrow.
JAYEWARDENE,
ADRIAN ST. VALENTINE
The Law of Partition in
Ceylon. Ordinances: Nos. 10 of 1863 and...
[Ceylon]. Jayewardene, Adrian St. Valentine. The Law of Partition in Ceylon.
Ordinances: Nos. 10 of 1863 and 10 of 1897. Galle: Printed by
the Albion Press Office, 1904. xiii,
108, xix pp. Octavo (6" x 8-1/2"). Original
cloth, black-stamped titles to front board and spine.
Some shelfwear and soiling, internally clean. Ex-library. Location
label to spine, annotation in ink to front pastedown, small
stamp to title page. A nice copy
of a rare title. $450. *
First edition. Partition law was unusually complicated in
colonial Ceylon due to the peasant and tribal traditions that
governed the transmission of agricultural land. "It is
impossible to speak too highly of the exactitude and industry
with which the scheme of the work has been carried out, and
the author is to be congratulated, not only on having
contributed a work of permanent value to the jurisprudence of
the country, but also on having presented the experience of
his country in a form which, it is to be hoped, will prove
useful in other parts of the world.": Anton Bertram, Journal
of Comparative Legislation and International Law (Third
Series) 8 (1926) 156. (Review of the second edition.) OCLC
locates 1 copy. Sweet & Maxwell, A
Legal Bibliography of the British Commonwealth 7:218.
USD 450.00
Offered by: Lawbook
Exchange - Book number: 51175
J R
Jayewardene Center:
The Mural in the
Auditorium
The Mural adorning the walls
of the auditorium depicts the saga of a country whose
sovereignty and independence were lost and subsequently
regained. It tells the story of a few Kandyan Chiefs who
conspired with the British to dethrone their King who was a
Nayakkar of Indian origin and thereby retain power among themselves. By the time they realised
their folly it was too late, for they had signed the Kandyan
Convention and ceded the Kingdom over to the British. The
aftermath of the cession was an angry resurgence and revolt by
some national minded courageous men who ultimately paid with
their lives.
After over a hundred years
the revolt never really ended, this time not by arms and
impulsive men, but by intelectual prowess of great patriotic
men who pushed forward with a resolute determination and
finally succeeded in regarding the lost sovereignty and
independence and handed Sri Lanka over to their successors who
fashioned the country to be equal among other intelectual
nations of the world.
The mural begins, on the
left wall, with the meeting of Gen. Macdowall by Pilimatalawe
Dissawa on 12th March 1810. The second frame illustrates a
discussion Sir John D' Oyly had with the Chief Ehelepola,
Chief Molligoda and Adigar of Kapuwatte. The third frame
depicts an instance inflamed by emotions of nationalism. 2nd
March 1815 was the date fixed to sign the Kandyan Convention
at the Magul Maduwa - the King's Court. Before even reading
out the convention an English soldier hoisted the English flag
- the Union Jack. This was an illegal gesture since the
convention had not been signed at the moment. Enraged by this
insolence Ven. Wariyapola Sumangala leapt to the flag staff,
pulled the flag down and trampled it demanding "Who ordered
you to do this. You have no right to hoist this flag yet!" The
soldier with his sword drawn was about to strike the Thera
when Sir John D' Oyly intervened, restrained the soldier and
apologised to the monk.
The next frame illustrates,
having dethroned the Nayakkar King, Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe,
and ceding the Kandyan Kingdom to King George III of Great
Britain, the signing (with conditions) of the Kandyan
Convention on 2nd of March 1815 by
Robert Brownrigg as the
Commander-in-Chief of the King of England
and on behalf of the Kandyan People :-
Chief Ehelepola
Chief Adigar Molligoda
Second Adigar Pilimatalawwe
Dissawe of Four Korales, Pilimatalawwe Junior
Dissawe of Uva, Monerawila
Dissawe of Matale, Ratwatta
Molligoda Junior the Dissawe of Three Korales
Dullewa, Dissawa of Walapane
Dissawa of Wellassa and Bintenna and Galagama
Dissawa of Tamankaduwa
Galagoda, Dissawa of Nuwara Kalawiya
The Sinhala Chiefs sought
the help of the British with the intention of crowning a
Sinhala Buddhist as King. But their plans collapsed amidst the
crafty machinations of Governor Brownrigg designed to firmly
establish the British reign in Sri Lanka. Thus by signing the
Convention the Sinhalese finally had to cede the Kandyan
Kingdom which had been an independent, sovereign state for two
thousand three hundred and fifty seven years.
The first
struggle for liberation known as the 1817 Kandyan revolt led
by Sinhalese hero Keppetipola is depicted in the next frame. The struggle failed and
Keppetipola who was convicted as the man who initiated and
organized the revolt was sentenced to death by decapitation.
He was accordingly executed near the Bogambara tank.
In 1848 when the people of
Matale and Seven Korales rose up against the rule of the
British empire it was Gongalegoda
Banda who led them. The British who suppressed the uprising
took into custody Gongalegoda Banda the Leader and Kudapola
Thero who assisted him and sentenced them to death. The first
phase ends here, which was the armed struggle for liberation.
The mural on the right-side
begins with the images of the Leaders who guided an anarchial,
divided and helpless nation to raise its head again. When the
foreigners were leading the country, nation and religion to
ruination it was Anagarika Dharmapala who generated in minds
of the Sinhalese the love for the nation and the religion. In
1886 Colonel Olcott and Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Thera helped
him to spread Buddhism. It was the cultural struggle launched
by Dharmapala and other Buddhist leaders which laid the
foundation for the background to gain independence in 1948.
This mural consists of 18 frames and leads to the independent
Sri Lanka of today.
Colonel Olcott and his wife,
who came to Sri Lanka founded the
Parama Vignana Buddhist Society. Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala,
Migettuwatte Gunananda Theras supported Colonel Olcott in
founding Buddhist schools for Buddhist Children. He was the
pioneer who designed the Buddhist flag with its shades
acceptable to everybody. Gunananda Thera had delivered more
than 5000 sermons including Liyanagemulla, Gampola and
Panadura demolishing Christian arguments and thereby
enlivening the Buddhist sentiments in the people.
The second frame depicts one
of the most tragical events in recent history. William Henry
Pedris was arrested on the false allegation of leading the
1915 revolt against the government and shot dead in public on
7th July 1915. This incident gave birth to the political
reformation activities of Ceylon Reform League by Ponnambalam
Arunachalam joining hands with F. R. Senanayake's Lanka
Mahajana Sabhawa.
Frame 3
gives the portraits of the Pioneers of Ceylon National
Congress
namely,
W.A. de Silva, Sir D. B. Jayatillake
Sir James Peiris, Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam
E.W. Perera, E. W. Jayewardene
D. R. Wijewardene, F. R. Senanayake
S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, T. B. Jayah
Walisinghe Harischandra, John de Silva
Frame 4
depicts a symbol of Appreciation by a grateful Nation
On a tour of England Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan made several
speeches, seminars etc requesting a Westminster type
government to Sri Lanka. He explained the correct position of
the 1915 revolt to the Secretaries and Members of Parliament
and the representatives of the Queen of England. On his return
to the island on 17th February 1916 he was given a warm
welcome by the leaders of Sri Lanka. As a mark of recognition
of the service to the country the people of Sri Lanka led by
Sinhalese Leaders placed him on a cart and pulled the cart
along the streets of Colombo. The leaders so gathered included
F.R. Senanayake, A. E. Gunasinghe, A.W.P. Jayatillaka, E.W.
Perera and P. N. Jayanethi.
Frame 5
Universal Franchise in 1931
The most significant feature
of the Donoughmore Constitution in 1931 was the grant of
Universal Franchise to the Sri Lankans. As a result every
person over the age of 21 was entitled to vote. Prior to 1931
only a few selected males had this right. Since it was an era
where the intellectual prowess was still premature the voter
indicated his option by marking a cross against the symbol of
the candidate of his preference.
Frame 6
shows the First State Council Building
.
In 1912, Sir Henry Mc cullum
having pointed out the necessity for a State Council Building,
a site was selected at Galle Face, Colombo and plans were
approved in June 1920. The new State Council Building was
ceremonially declared open by Sir Herbert Stanley, Governor of
the Legislative Council. In this building met the State
Council from 1931-1941, the House of Representatives from
1947-1972 and the National State Assembly from 1971-1978. In
September 1978 after the new constitution coming into force it
became the House of Parliament.
Frame 7
shows the The First State
Council
established under the Donoughmore Constitution. The council
had 50 elected members, 8 appointed members and a cabinet of
Ministers.
Frame 8
portrays:
Sir D B Jayatillake who was the Leader of the House of the
State Council
The Sooriyamal Movement
J. R. Jayewardene in discussion with Sri Javaharlal Nehru
Frame 9 With the introduction of
the Soulbury Constitution the first House of Representatives
was elected in August/September 1947. The frame shows the
first cabinet of Ministers.
Frame 10 Portrays the first Governor
of Ceylon Lord Soulbury and the first Prime Minister D.S.
Senanayake.
Frame 11 signifies the dawn of
independence in 1948, the peasant colonisation movement and
the origin of the Colombo Plan.
Frame 12 Portrays Dudly Senanayake,
Sir John Kotelawala and C.W.W. Kannangara
Frame 13 signifies the Bandaranaike
era,
: S.W.R.D. Banradanaike, Prime Minister
: Mrs. Sirima Bandaranaike, World's first Lady Prime Minister
: The Non Aligned Summit Conference at the Bandaranaike
Memorial
International Conference Hall
: The new State Emblem of the Democratic Socialist Republic of
Sri Lanka
Frame 14 Portrays the first
Executive President of Sri Lanka,
His Excellency J. R. Jayewardene
Frame 15 shows the new Parliament
Building in Jayewardenepura Kotte and the Mahaweli Project
Frame 16 Portrays President
Jayewardene and Gamini Dissanayake Minister of Mahaweli
Development
Frame 17 Portrays President
Ranasinghe Premadasa and his Udagam Movement
Frame 18 Portrays the first Lady
Executive President of Sri Lanka Chandrika Banaranaike
Kumarathunge and the Sudu Nelum Movement
The Pushcannon
Foursome
In 1929, Junius Richard
Jayewardene (Dick), joined three
others in forming a private 'club' which was called "The
Honorable Society of Pushcannons" (reference to billiards).
The object of the society was "to eat together at least once a
month". The members comprised of cousin T F Jayewardene (son
of T G Jayewardene), Percy Pieris, and Samson Gunasekera,
brother in law of A E de Silva (father of Sir Ernest de
Silva).
A E de Silva was one of the
wealthiest businessmen and landowners of his time. His elegant
mansion "Sirimetpaya" down Flower Road (renamed to Sir Ernest
de Silva Mawatha presently) is now the office of the Prime
Minister.
The Pushcannon quartet met
on at least 50 occasions between July 1929 and early 1935.
They solemnly kept minutes of their meetings. The book of
minutes which has survived would, at first, seem an unlikely
source of information on his life, and the manner in which he
was growing into manhood, but interspersed with the notes and
social activity are snippets of information of a personal and
political nature which any biographer would find invaluable.
Often these items supplement material from other sources; on
other occasions they provide clues to the development of
Dick's personality which would be difficult to obtain from any
other source. Most of the details in the minutes refer to
social occasions, but every now and then the real world breaks
through into their discussions, and, wherever it does it is
clearly Dick who is responsible.
The
minutes reveal that sometime in the early 1930's Dick had
successfully completed his second examination as an Advocate
student.
Also the Pushcannon Quartet had helped an amateur dramatic
society in staging a play, Temple Thurston's, "The Wandering
Jew".
The members dined at the
best hotels and restaurants in town. On one occasion it is
mentioned that "dinner was eaten at the Sinhagiri Hotel run by
a Singhalese (sic) as just then we were intensely national".
That particular hotel was as "undistinguished" as its location
was unfashionable. At this meeting they decided "not without
Percy's usual opposition" to "don white sarongs to visit [the]
Maligakande Temple".
Here, if one needed it, was
a definite clue to Dick's religious convictions. Under the
tutelage of his uncle WalterWijewardene and the guidance of
the Bhikku's of the Vajiraramaya Temple, he was now a Buddhist
in all but name. He had long since absconded the Anglicanism
in which he had grown up as a child and a young gentleman.
This was one battle that his father, E W, had lost. One by
one, his children, especially the older ones, had succumbed to
the attractions of the religion of their mother and her
family, the Wijewardene's.
The members, later, chose to
use Sinhala to sign their names on the minute book and also
chose a Sinhalese name, "Priya Sangamaya", for the Pushcannon
Club. By the time the club celebrated its first anniversary on
3-4 August 1930, Dick was calling himself "Ravindra" and
signing the minutes book by that
name. He also substituted "Jeevaka" for Junius although he
didnt use it in any of the documents of the society. It should
be noted here that Dick chose to nsame his son Ravindra who
was called "Ravi" by almost everyone. To this anniversary
meeting of the group Dick had invited two guests, Richard
Gothabaya Senanayake (son of F R) and Justin Kotalawela
(younger brother of John Lionel), who were both children of
the Attygalle inheritance. RG, in time, became Dick's
bitterest political opponent.
One interesting episode
recorded in the minutes was the support Dick created for the
unveiling of a portrait of Ghandi at the Law College which was
not much in the favor of the British Colonial Administration
who considered Ghandi, who was fighting for freedom and
languishing in jail, an enemy at that time. With the support
of his father, EW, he somehw managed to make it happen even
though the Brits were not very happy. The unveiling ceremony
was performed by a prominent politician and a leading figure
in the Ceylon National Congress, Francis (Later Sir Francis)
de Soyza, KC. The main speaker at
the occasion was also a leading politician, C E Corea, father
of S C Corea who was at that time the Hony Secretary of the
Law Students Union. The portrait of Gandhi still hangs at the
Law College. The vote of thanks was delivered by Dick who had
by this time relinquished his job as his fathers
private secretary. The job was taken over by Corbett
Jayewardene, who was a law student himself.
Sunday
Times No 10 1996
When JR
made the Indians Cry....
By Lakshmi Pieris
His former Press Secretary
On November 4 at sunset we
cremated a great man this land ever produced. He was a
colossus. A man amongst men and a leader
amongst leaders. A man for all
seasons, who changed Lanka's history. He changed the
horizons, created new vistas. Paved the
way for all of us to have a better life. He was a
king without a crown.
Last time I saw him alive
was on his 90th birthday. He looked very frail although he
tried to appear cheerful. His beloved wife was in the hospital
recovering from surgery. He was missing her very much. He told
me that was the first time he spent his birthday alone after
marriage. I was seeing him after 18 months. I am glad I made
that long journey from Texas to be there in time for his
birthday.
Some thing in the back of my
mind told me that I would not witness his next birthday. So I
made my travel plans accordingly.
It was heart breaking to see
him lying in a hospital bed. So I never sighted the hospital.
Instead I prayed and held a Bodhi Pooja. I remembered he had
told us that he never spent a night in a hospital. Anyway news
that filtered down the grapevine was very disheartening about
his deteriorating health.
I never intended to write
this so soon. But the saddest news next to my parent's deaths
reached me on Friday noon. I did not know how to start this. I
had a duty to write this note.
President JR and Madam
Jayewardene were like parents to me. I made it a point to see
them every now and then ever after their retirement, until I
left the country due to vicious politics.
My first encounter with JR,
the prime minister was in 1977 when I was assigned to work in
the ministry of defence and foreign affairs - subject of
defence came under the prime minister and foreign affairs
under Mr. A.C.S. Hameed. As years went by I kept moving from
ministry to ministry and in 1979 ended up in the ministry of
finance and planning as it's
information officer.
One fine morning I received
a call from Dr. Sarath Amunugama who was the secretary to the
ministry of information and broadcasting to see him in the
office. Dr. Amunugama, himself a very popular man amongst the
mediamen at that time, was the very same person who recruited
me to the department of information as its first woman press
officer ten years before.
He said, "I am going to give
you a chance of a lifetime. I have decided to nominate you to
be the press officer in the president's office. When you get a
letter of appointment from the president's office go and assume duties."
I could not believe my ears.
But the offer was real. I waited for that letter for weeks and
months. But it never came my way. I felt there would have been
an invisible hand at work to prevent me from going there.
But again at the end of 1983
I received a call from Mr. Milton Weerasena who worked in the
president's office. He wished to know whether I would like to
join the president's office to handle the media desk. At that
time the press secretary's post was vacant. I was never
ambitious. But I liked the excitement of working for the
highest in the land.
One week later I was before
Mr. Menikdiwela, secretary to the president facing an
interview. Few weeks later I was appointed to the president's
office. Working in the president's office was like walking on
a tight rope. One could witness many facets of human behaviour
there. I was not sure whether I'll be able to survive amongst
the tale carriers.
Few months later all of a
sudden I got a call from Ward Place. All these days my work
was confined to the president's office. Caller said president
wants to see me at 8.30 am at Ward Place. I was a bit
terrified. I wondered why he summoned me there. I was a bit
uneasy. But when I appeared before this calm, well mannered
charismatic gentleman I regained my composure.
Can you write and read
Sinhala well? He posed a question. "Fairly well Sir, I
replied." From tomorrow could you please come here around 8.30
am and attend to Mrs. Jayewardene's correspondence, he asked.
I agreed, and the president said: "We will pay you a salary
from our private resources, since there are no funds allocated
for a secretary for Mrs. Jayewardene.
I told him I did not wish to
draw another salary since I am doing madam's work during my
normal eight hours for which I am paid by the government.
President looked surprised at my reply who
would refuse an extra salary. Until the president retired I
stuck to my word and never accepted a payment for being Madam
JR's secretary.
Most of the mail that
reached Madam contained vicious petitions. My duty was to read
all the letters addressed to her and take the necessary action
after consulting her. She was very sympathetic. Sometimes
reading those petitions aloud was very unpleasant to me. I
would tell her that we cannot take the anonymous petitions
seriously since most of them are written by jealous people.
Sometimes she listened to
me. Most people knew that if they addressed a letter or a
grievance to Madam it would reach the President. If she
noticed any justifiable grievance in her mail she would take
it and rush to President's room, to draw his attenion to it.
The most bizzare experience
I had while I was working there was that I had to read to her
a petition written against myself. Although there was nothing
in it except slander, I was very upset and sad realizing the
wickedness of many around me. She took it from my hand, tore
it and threw it into the waste paper basket. In the meantime
she did not forget to console me. I felt very safe, while
working for her.
President JR always
consulted Madam Elena when he was making decisions. Most of
the important discussions were held at the breakfast table at
Braemar. There were close associates who dropped by regularly
for those informal breakfast meetings.
His lifestyle was simple and
frugal. Both of them enjoyed simple foods. Breakfast consisted
of strings made of kurakkan flour, bran bread, fresh fruits,
fish curry and the like. At 6.00 o'clock in the morning he
must have the day's papers on his table. After breakfast he
would discuss the headlines and the day's programme. He did
not take alcohol. But occasionally took a sip of brandy for
medicinal purposes. Once in a way he would smoke half of a
Cuban cigar after lunch.
Cuban cigars arrived in the
Ward Place as a gift from Cuban leader Fidel Castro. There was
an undying friendship built between Castro and JR who was
branded as a capitalist. Cigars were very popular among some
of his ministers and friends. He generously gave the cigars
away.
A glorious day in President
JR's life was when he made hundreds of Indians cry during his
address at the SAARC summit at Bangalore, India in 1986. We
reached there three days in advance to prepare the ground for
his arrival. At that time LTTE propaganda machine was very
active in India.
President's media desk went
to Bangalore well armed with counter propaganda material and
quietly released them to journalists. Next day Indian
newspapers went to town. K. N. Arun of the "Express News
Service" wrote: "The SAARC conference here has provided the
Sri Lanka government with a chance for a media offensive
against the militants and other Tamil groups. Four documents
in the docket released by the president's desk stand out..."
Best part of the Bangalore
summit took place at "Vidhana Soudha" conference Hall soon
after President JR finished reading from his prepared speech.
So much had been said and written about his world famous San
Francisco speech on the peace treaty. This speech at "Vidhana
Soudha" may be his second best because that day he changed the
Indian hearts and made them shed tears.
I would like to quote below
his speech made extempore that day for future reference.
Addressing Prime Minister Rajiv, he began...
....You quoted a poem from
Rabindranath Tagore which is close to my heart. Tagore wrote:
"If life's journey be endless, where is the goal". I think the
goal and the road are one. Every step must be as pure as the
goal itself. There can be no impure steps to attain a pure
goal.
"I say this because I know
that violence brings hatred. Hatred cannot be conquered by
violence, but by non-violence and love. When I spoke at the
1957 San Francisco conference on the Japanese Peace Treaty
soon after the war, I cited the Buddha's words. I said, "Hold
out the hand of friendship to the Japanese people. Hatred
ceases not by hatred but by love."
"Zafrulla Khan of Pakistan
spoke after me. He said that Prophet Mohammed also had a
similar view. Certain enemies were defeated by arms and they
were brought before the Prophet with all the goods that were
captured. He said, "Release them, release
everything you have taken from them, except their arms.
Forgive them," he said.
"Hindu Vedas and the Bhagwat
Gita asks us to do right without
fear of consequence. Christ forgave his enemies on the Cross.
"I am reminded of all this
because every time a bullet, whether it be a terrorist bullet
or a bullet from the security services in my country, kills a
citizen it goes deep into my heart. I do not know how to stop
it. Violence achieves nothing, except distress and hatred.
"I am reminded of a story of
Gautama the Buddha. He was meditating in a jungle near a
village. A young mother lost her only child. She could not
believe that he was dead. She carried the body round the
village trying to find some medicine. She could not find it.
She was told, "Why don't you go and see that holy man. He may
help you."
"She went to him. He told
her, "Sister, can you bring a mustard seed? But it, must be from a house where there
has been no death." She went back to the village carrying this
dead child. She visited house after house; but there was no
house where there was no death. In every house somebody had
died. She came back and told the Buddha, "Lord, I could not
find such a house to bring a mustard seed."
"So he said, "Sister, thou
hast found, looking for what none finds, the bitter balm I had
to give thee. He thou lovest,
slept dead on thy boosm yesterday. Today, thou knowest the
whole wide world weeps with thy woe. The grief that all hearts
bear grows less by one. Go, bury thou thy child."
"Whenever I hear of death it
grieves me more than I can explain. One of your leaders, the
great Mahatma Gandhi personified in his life the non-violence
that I mentioned. He showed the world that non- violence can
be employed to attain political and democratic objectives.
"Whether it be freedom from foreign rule, or the
elimination of Capitalism and the formation of a Communist
State or whether it is Separatism or Federalism, this is the
only way that can be supported by civilised people. That is
the way of non-violence or "ahimsa."
"I was privileged, Mr.
Chairman, as a young man just entering politics in the 1930s
to witness a great movement which began to stir India. Mr.
Chairman, I knew your mother and grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru.
I stayed with him in his house. I was his guest at the
Congress Ramgarh Sessions - the last sessions before freedom.
I was his guest in Bombay when the "Quit India" Resolution was
passed.
"That was the first occasion
on which Mahatma Gandhi, in his long service to India, tried
the non- violent way to attain freedom for his country. He was
training his people in non-violence. He walked to the Dandi
beach to break the "salt laws." He broke the laws of the
British Government after the Amrithsar massacre. He broke the
habit regarding the wearing of foreign cloth and encouraged
the Swadeshi Movement. He said you are in a movement not only
to attain freedom.
"At the Bombay session when
he spoke on the "Quit India" Resolution, I was sitting behind
him when he ended his speech with KARANGE YA MARANGE "DO OR
DIE".
"Mr. Chairman, I was
returning back to Sri Lanka when I was told that your
grandfather was arrested. Throughout his long life, Gandhiji
never stressed any means other than non-violence. I remember
when there was an agitation in Bihar and the police station
was set on fire in Chauri Choura. Some policemen were killed
during the non-cooperation campaign
"Jawaharlal Nehru and other
leaders were in jail. Mahatma Gandhi called off the agitation
because violence had broken out. Jawaharlal Nehru from jail
asked why did he do so, when they were about to attain their
objective. Mahatma Gandhi said, "No! I do not want to attain
freedom through violence."
"That was the man that
inspired me. Those are the men who brought freedom to all our
countries. Not only in Asia, but also
throughout the world. And I say again violence means
hatred. Hatred cannot be conquered by violence, but by
non-violence and by love. That is the way I would like to
follow.
"Mr. Chairman, as I said
before and I say now, "I am a lover of India, I am a friend of
its people and you its leader, Mr. Chairman. I am a follower
of its greatest son, Gautama the Buddha."
While he was speaking many
elderly Indians listened to him with rapt attention and their
eyes filled with tears. Ladies were reaching out quietly for
their handkerchieves. Some of the senior journalists too were
wiping their tears secretly. We were simply elated and so
proud of Junius Richard Jayewardene.
During his state visit to US
in 1995, American Senators and some Congressmen did not take
much notice for unheard Sri Lanka. Ronald Reagan was the
President and there was a grand banquet in honour of President
JR and Madam Jayewardene. Frank Sinatra who was also invited
for the dinner made a rendition of "I did it my way", JR's
favourite song. At the end of his prepared banquet speech JR
again spoke extempore, surprising his audience. At the end of
everything American journalists walked up to our mediamen and
told them, "In his speech your man outdid our man."
Sunday
Times No 10 1996
JR: the man I knew
by Susil Moonesinghe
It is said that when a great
man dies even the heavens weep. So it was yesterevening. After thousands thronged in grief to pay their
last respects to J.R. Jayewardene, the rain came down in
sheets.
I will speak of him as a
man, since his politics and political life has been spoken of
and written in hundreds of pages and thousands of words. I saw
in him a humanity born out of the study of a human being and
experience of long years. It was that ability which made him
mould those who followed him. He had the capacity to judge
people shrewdly and assess their
potentiality. So it was that he chose men such as Premadasa,
Gamini Dissanaike, Lalith Athulathmudali, Ranjan Wijeratne,
Ranil Wickremesinghe and many others. He built them through
guidance and advice and imbibed in them that sense of
discipline and leadership which was to become the hallmark of
the times.
I personally would not have
come into the front line of politics, had he not persuaded me
and offered his hand of guidance. When I took his hand in
mine, I felt in me all that strength and assurance necessary
to make me want what I had thought was not in me. In that
proffered hand, the strong grip was borne out of years of
sacrifice, patience and humility. All these qualities I
learned to respect as I went on my political journey. Today
more than ever, I realise that value of self-reliance, truth
and strength of character, to differentiate between right and
wrong. To fiercely defend what is right and equally resist
with all our strength what is wrong. Not to give into
injustice and iniquity. To speak the
truth even if it hurts you, knowing that ultimately truth
must triumph. All of these have I come to know,
practice and realise through guru, J R Jayewardene.
After he had achieved the
pinnacle of success in politics, J. R. Jayewardene knew when
to call it a day and cut himself off from that world in which
he had lived for five decades. He had in him not only the deep
knowledge of history, but also the sense of history. In this
retirement he availed himself of the opportunity to study in
greater depth the philosophy of the Buddha Dhamma. Often as we
sat together in the evenings engaged in long conversations and
arguments, the basis of it all would be the word of the
Buddha. His was a very practical approach to the Dhamma in the
context of present day reality and not the indulgence in the
blind acceptance of ritual gathered over the centuries. His
was not a display of Shraddha influenced by ritual and opulent
and meaningless display, but the practice of cultivating those
perceptions based on the understanding of the Dhamma. It was
that profoundness that captivated me.
It is that profoundness that
made him utter that one sentence - "Nahi verena verani" -
hatred begets hatred, which won the everlasting affection of
the Japanese people. To a nation which was shattered by the
authorship of aggression, a giant of a man from a small,
almost insignificant nation offered hope based on
forgivenesss. To those powerful nations besieged by a sense of
revenge, this message of forgiveness and love was indeed a
revelation. In that one sentence was conveyed to all those
nations at the San Francisco Conference, a fundamental of
Buddhist philosophy. Perhaps no one ever contributed in modern
times to the propagation of the Dhamma as he did in that one
effort.
Often have I heard J R being
described as an "iron man" or a "cold man".
In the event, it has been my experience that he is a
warm-hearted man and full of humour. He had that inordinate
capacity to laugh at himself and accept criticism. He was a
great raconteur and many are the instances in those nostalgic
recountings that led to the personal insight of his character.
When JR.'s wish as to how
his remains should be taken care of was read out from the
pages of a diary noted in 1991, it showed how far he was
looking. It was typical of his devotion to detail. It also
showed his sense of history. In a life dedicated to the
service of people, he never forgot that Kelaniya was as much
his first love as his responsibility. To him it was as much a
part of his life as it was of Buddhist history. So he wrote
that his remains be cremated in that hallowed spot where the
Buddha visited, in full view of the Vihara and that his ashes
be immersed in the Kelani River at a place recorded to be
where the enlightened one bathed.
Most leaders traditionally
would have wanted to leave on record an epitaph befitting
them, but no epitaph can be written on the waters of a river
and yet if JR's achievements had to be recorded, it is
necessary only to look at those places where his vision was
translated into the creator of vast reservoirs, hydroelectric
power houses, multi-storeyed buildings, fuse trade zones with
numerous factories, housing projects, universities, hospitals
and the Parliament in a new satellite city.
As the ashes of his body
mingles and flows with the waters of the Kelani River, it must
surely symbolise not only impermanence of life, but also the
sansonic dimension which he believed in. To that extent this
lfie of JR has ended and yet a new
journey has begun, and in that long journey let us wish
that all the good deeds done in this athma will help him
shorten that journey to the final and external tranquility
Nirvana.
Sunday
Times No 10 1996
Where
the Kelani flows
By Jeannette Cabraal
And so, the elder statesman,
that colossus who bestrode the world of Sri Lankan politics, a
beacon in Asian politics and a man of stature internationally,
who in the last decade and a half or so became a controversial
figure, was cremated in the historic sacred city of Kelaniya
in the shadow of the Raja Maha Vihare.
As shades of evening fell on
the valley silhouetting the pinnacle, the flames licked around
the Chitakaya and consumed his mortal remains. And soon his
ashes will merge with the waters and the murky deeps of the
Kelani which quietly meanders through the verdant countryside.
The fact that "J.R." as he
was familiarly know in Kelaniya wished to have his final
obsequies in Kelaniya roused my interest. Hence these random
jottings as I wander back reminiscently to what I can
personally recall of his overtures in Kelaniya.
In those good old days the
elections held something of intrigue, providing us children
with much amusement and entertainment as slogans and cries
sometimes downright insulting, sometimes ingenious,
nevertheless accepted genially, were raised along the streets,
where vehicles with loads of supporters roamed.
Vehicles also sporting flags
of various hues and later symbols came up to doorsteps to
transport the voters to polling booths. I remember the
whisperings of the adults as they tried their best both to
evade and please; torn between loyalty
to the person they professed yet anxious not to displease or
hurt the others. People at that time were so scrupulous about
maintaining amity, political or otherwise. And we young ones
enjoyed the thrill of the opposing factor at our doorstep
surreptitiously conveying the news to the adults and thrilled
to bits over our spying.
Once the results were
released the winning party took over the streets in
jubilation, revelling in the victory often entertaining the
people around.
On such occasions when
"J.R." won as he always did, save once, he went along the
streets standing in an open vehicle which moved at a snail's
pace, hands clasped in grateful, thankful greeting, smiling at
his voters who stood at the edge of the road, pausing at the
homes of his regular voters, acknowledging the cheers, his
faithful life's companion beside him.
I recall one instance when
he contested against Mrs. Wimala Wijewardene and won. He was
doing his normal round and a lorry load, brimful, making
scathing comments on the opponent preceded.
Those who were by the edge of the road heard Mrs. Elena
Jayawardena going on in an audible whisper:
"Nanda gana mukuth kiyanna
epa kiyanna"
"Tell them not to tell
anything about Nanda"
Here was the reaction of the
gracious lady beside him, in his moment of triumph.
Another incident that
remains etched in my memory is the eve of another election day
when we, a batch of students from the then St. Paul's Girls'
English School, Kelaniya were returning, having recorded a
programme at Radio Ceylon. We, in our green school ties, were
at the Pettah bus stand looking out for a bus. We were asked
by some bus crews which bus we wished to take. The moment we
said Kelaniya we were ushered in to a bus with an
obeisance.....
"J.R.ge kandeta ida denna"
( Allow J.R.'s people to get in)
Thus he was acclaimed in
times past.
If I remember right J.R.
always contested Kelaniya and won until he met his Waterloo in
1956 in R.G. Senanayake when most of the greens turned blue
except for the die-hard loyalists with whom voting for J.R.was
a tradition. Came the next election and having given over to
A.W. Abeygoonesekera (Ossie Abeygoonesekera's father) J.R.
opted for Colombo.
Was it a decision prompted
by hurt feelings that he was rejected in his own realm? I
remember the earlier cry:
"J.R. Kelaniyatai
Keleniya J.R.tai"
(J.R. is for Kelaniya and
Kelaniya is for J.R.)
And now the saga of J.R. has
ended. Politics is neither my field nor my concern. But in
recent years controversy has ranged loud and long over the
Peace Accord; the I.P.K.F; and the Executive Presidency. Be
that as it may, there is something gnawing in me where this
admirable statesman is concerned. I could not fathom why this
grand gentleman of politics deprived Sirimavo of her civic
rights. Call it my feminist mentality if you will but to me it
is strangely inconceivable.
And so finally J.R. has come
back to Kelaniya. Has come home where his
heart always had been. By the banks of the Kelani in
the vicinity of the sacred temple he bade his adieu and the
people of Kelaniya appreciate this magnanimous gesture of
gratitude and farewell.
sland Mon Nov 19 2007
Madam Elina
Jayewardene
by Prematilaka Mapitigama
Gilbert Leonard Rupasinghe,
Notary Public, prominent planter and entrepreneur and his
young wife Nancy Margaret Suriyabandara, who was expecting her
first baby, whilst sight seeing in Italy had visited a
picturesque and charming hamlet called Eline. They were so
enthralled by its serenity and its scenic beauty they decided
then and there to name their baby to be born after this
hamlet. On 15th December, 1913 a baby girl was born and she
was named Elina. She was the only child in the family.
As was the custom in the
Kandyan region in those days to add the name ‘Bandara’ to male
children besides their other names, in the low country, too,
among elite groups it was customary to assign 'Bandara' even
to females. Mrs. Rupasinghe, too, was accordingly known as
Nancy Margaret Suriya Bandara before her marriage to Mr.
Rupasinghe and their daughter also came to be known as Elina
Bandara Rupasinghe.
Elina, the only child in
this aristocratic family, did not attend school, but was
tutored at home as was the custom of families of the elite of
the day. She was tutored in English, Sinhalese and Pali and
also in Accountancy, Stenography and Music. By 193, she was an
accomplished young lady with all necessary attributes in
education, caste, creed and social status.
She was also heiress to
enormous family wealth. As the most eligible debutante at the
time, she was also the most sought-after by prospective
mothers-in-law, who longed to welcome her to their hearth. But
Leonard Rupasinghe had laid down certain stipulations in
selecting a bridegroom for his daughter. Among the many
suitors, the the young up and coming barrister son of Mrs.
Agnes Jayewardene, Junius Richard Jayewardene, better known as
J. R., was accepted to be her partner in life.
They were married on 28th
February, 1935 and settled down at 'Vyjantha' in Dharmapala
Mawatha, Colombo 7, the
'Mahagedera' of the bridegroom, which now houses the
Jayewardene Centre. Their only child, Ravindra Wimal, was born
here on 22nd April, 1936. After three years at 'Vyjayantha',
they shifted to Ward Place building their own house after
demolishing the old house 'Braemar', which belonged to Elina's
father. The new house, designed by an architect, was to be
their home ever since, and the name 'Braemar' from the old
structure remained. J. R. preferred to live in 'Braemar'
rather than at his official residences, as Prime Minister and
Executive President, which he used only for formal functions
and official duties.
Elina never took an active
role in her husband's political affairs, but was always the
driving force and strength in behind his illustrious career.
She was his loving and faithful companion throughout their
long married life. It is said that after a tiresome day,
studded with many problems of public office, he always loved
to come back home, where he found solace, comfort and
affection.
President Jayewardene,
recalling his married life, admitted that Elina's co-operation
and affection have always been the driving force behind his
life. Before breathing his last, he summoned his Secretary and
stated that after his death, everything at Braemar should be
done according to her wishes. It was indeed a fair indication
of the depth of his devotion and love he had nurtured
throughout his married life for a woman who meant so much to
him.
The major portion of the
properties of the Jayewardene family was what Elina inherited
from her parents, and she encountered no obstacle in disposing
of them according to her own wishes. Manelwatta in Bollagala,
Kelaniya, a prime coconut estate of over forty acres, was
donated by her to the Malwatta Maha Vihare. Dharmaloka
Vidyalaya, which caters to a vast student population in the
area, is established on a land donated by her father. Numerous
blocks of land in Dehiwala, Attidiya and Bellanwila, which
belonged to her, have been transferred to those who reside in
those lands.
Elina had over one hundred
widows on her pay roll, who visit her regularly on an
appointed day to receive their donations, which no doubt went
a long way to keep their home fires burning. She makes this an
occasion to have tea with them and have a chit chat with the
old ladies.
Once she received a letter
from a schoolgirl in Gampola, who had written to say that she
was the daughter of an estate labourer, and had only one
school uniform, which was discoloured and worn out, and that
her father could not afford her a new dress.
Elina promptly made
arrangements to dispatch material for five school uniforms
through the then Government Agent, Kandy,
. S. M. Tenakoon. Having delivered the material, the
Government Agent, enclosing a letter of thanks from the girl,
wrote back to say that the girl thoroughly deserved help as
correctly perceived by the First Lady.
Elina could move with the
elite, both local and foreign, and at the same time mix with
the poor.
Notwithstanding her position
as the First Lady of the country, she had neither critic nor
competitor. Her generosity, decorum and true appreciation of
humanity endeared her to the young and the old, the rich and
the poor alike.
We salute her as a worthy
daughter of Mother Lanka.
Sierra, Grand daughter of Beatrice Blossom
Chandrakanthi Jayewardene
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/22384440
C
Senarathne, on May 15, 2009, said:
Madampe: St. Sebastian’s Church
This was a kingdom coming down from the time of King
Weera Parakrama Bahu (1484- 1509), king of Kotte. (One of the
4 kingdoms of Sri Lanka at that time) One of his sons Thaniya
Wallabha reigned this area
residing in this city. (Today the area where his palace stood
is called Maliga Kanda (=Palace Hillock), Mahawewa. He
committed suicide at the tank of Thinipiti Oya, 2 kilometers
north to his palace. There is a very popular shrine built in
his memory called Thanivella Devalaya. He is regarded as a god
of the area by Buddhists and Hindus.
During the Portuguese occupation, Jesuits came to
serve the people in this area. They put up a church dedicated
to Our Lady of Assumption in 1602 in close proximity to the
Palace. That was the first church of Madampe
. It had two other outstation churches, one at
Marawila dedicated to St Xavier and the other at Katuneriya
dedicated to St Ambrose. Fr. Emmanuel Barandos was the first
quasi Parish Priest under Chilaw. The spot where that church
stood is now known as Mattakotuwa, Mahawewa
. During the Dutch persecution Bl. Joseph Vaz from
Goa secretly came to Ceylon and served the Catholics of the
area from 1690 giving masses at the churches belonging to
Madampe parish.
During the reign of King Sri Vijaya Rajasingha (1745)
there was a persecution of Christians led by a Buddhist monk
called Welivita Saranankara. Madampe Church (at Mattakotuwa)
was razed to the ground and Catholics fled to places of
safety.
When the British conquered Ceylon in 1796 they gave
religious freedom to all and encouraged the English education.
Since the Oratorians of Bl. Joseph Vaz found it too difficult
to switch over to English, European priests and Religious had
to be invited to serve our educational institutions and
churches. Thus in 1845, Madampe Parish was served by Fr.
Froliano Orugna, a Spaniard Cistercian .
In 1894 Madampe was separated from Chilaw. By this time
Mattakotuwa had their own church
closer to the sea.
In the meantime Madampe had shifted to the North of
the Dutch canal and there was a very prominent Mudlier of
Chilaw, Mr. A. Don Adrian Jayawardana ,
( ancestor of Mr. J.R. Jayawardana, the late President) a big
land owner residing there from 1808. He has donated a piece of
land to the Madampe Parish. So they put upa new church on that
bloc of land and dedicated it to St Sebastian on the 04th of
February, 1883.
This church celebrated its 125th jubilee last year on
a very grand way under the guidance of Rev. Fr. Kennedy
Fernando the incumbent Parish Priest. Incidentally, he hails
from Mattakotuwa, known as Madampe in good old days . I think it is a nice
coincidence.
Fr.D.F.Medagoda, The
Diocesan Archivist, Chilaw. 12.04.2009
Photo’s by Chamara Senarathne