Negombo Fort (Sinhala: මීගමුව බලකොටුව; Tamil: நீர்கொழும்புக் கோட்டை) is an old fort situated in Negombo in Gampaha District, Sri Lanka.
History
The fort was built by the Portuguese to defend Colombo (Mandawala, 2012). It was captured and destroyed by the Dutch in 1640. It was rebuilt by them, not on the usual square plan, but on a pentagonal one, though it had only four bulwarks (Mandawala, 2012). However, with the advent of the British, the fort was lost to the Dutch in 1796 (Mandawala, 2012).
The site
The fort had been built near the Negombo Lagoon. At present, only part of the walls and an arched gateway of the fort remain at the site (Mandawala, 2012). Above the gateway, a slab of granite depicting the date 1678 can be seen. The site is used as a prison by the Department of Prisons.
A protected site
The approach gate and the ramparts of the Dutch Fort
situated in the Negombo Court approach road in the Grama
Niladhari Wasama No. 156A, Uturmunnakkaraya in the
Negombo Divisional Secretary’s Division
are archaeological protected monuments, declared by a
government gazette notification published on 22 July 2011.
Attribution
References
1) Mandawala, P.B., 2012. Sri Lanka: Defending the military heritage;
legal, administrative and financial challenges. Defending the military heritage; legal, financial, and administrative issues. Reports from the
Seminar 16 – 17 May, 2011, in Karlskrona, Sweden, organised by ICOMOS
International Scientific Committee for Legal, Financial and
Administrative Issues (ICLAFI) and the Swedish Fortifications Agency of
Sweden. p.101.
2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1716. 22 July 2011.p.512.
2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1716. 22 July 2011.p.512.
Location Map
This page was last updated on 30 April 2023