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The Sinhalese–Portuguese War was a series of conflicts waged from 1527 to 1658 between the indigenous Sinhalese kingdoms of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and their allies against the Portuguese Empire. The Portuguese were seeking to expand from their trading post at Colombo to incorporate Ceylon into their growing empire. The Portuguese expanded their influence on the island by exploiting the political rivalries of the native kingdoms, placing client rulers on the thrones of several kingdoms and directly ruling other areas as Portuguese Ceylon. These machinations allowed them to control the Kingdom of Kotte, but the main beneficiary was the Kingdom of Sitawaka, which from 1521-87 was able to expand – through conquest of other native kingdoms – to cover most of Ceylon. Most of the newly-conquered territories then rebelled against Sitawaka. The divided and disorganised rival kingdoms became easy targets for Portuguese expansion. In a series of military conflicts and political manoeuvres the Portuguese extended their control over the kingdoms of Kotte (1551), Jaffna (1591), Raigama (1593) and Sitawaka (1593). In 1592 they placed a client ruler on the throne of the Kingdom of Kandy, but he died soon after in suspicious circumstances and the Portuguese were forced to withdraw. Seeking to subdue the last remaining resistance on Ceylon, the Portuguese launched a full military invasion of Kandy in the Campaign of Danture of 1594. The invasion was a disaster for the Portuguese, with their entire army wiped out by Kandyan guerilla warfare. The war became a stalemate, with further Portuguese attempts to conquer Kandy repeatedly repulsed, whilst the Kandyans were unable to oust the Portuguese from the rest of the island. However the Portuguese were able to conquer the Vanni chieftains in 1621. This stalemate was eventually broken by the intervention of the Dutch East India Company in 1638, who sought to exploit the war to take over Portuguese colonial possessions. The Dutch initially entered the war as allies of Kandy, and together they won several battles against the Portuguese. However the alliance did not last and the three remaining powers fought each other in triangular warfare for a time. The Dutch and Kandyans re-made their alliance in 1649 to drive the Portuguese from the island. The Portuguese capital Colombo was conquered in 1656, but once this was done the Dutch immediately betrayed their allies, keeping the Portuguese possessions for themselves. By the end of the war in 1658 all Portuguese forces had been expelled from the island, ending Portuguese Ceylon. The Kingdom of Kandy was the only surviving indigenous state on Ceylon, ruling almost half of the territory. The Dutch were left in control of the major population centres, forming Dutch Ceylon. ==Origin== The Portuguese arrived in Sri Lanka in 1505〔S.G. Perera p 8.〕 and established trade relations with the Kotte kingdom.〔S.G. Perera p 11.〕 During the early 16th century their intentions were directed towards defending their trading interests.〔Gaston Perera p 144.〕 However, with time this policy gradually changed to territorial ambitions with the objective of outright conquest.〔Gaston Perera p 145.〕 Island resources, Sri Lanka's strategic location for both trade and naval security and rise of the Mughal empire in India were influencing this change.〔Gaston Perera p 145 - 146.〕 In 1521, the three sons of the Kotte king Vijayabahu VII rebelled against their father. After killing Vijayabahu his sons (Bhuvanekabahu, Pararajasingha and Mayadunne) divided the kingdom among themselves in the 'Spoiling of Vijayabahu'. Mayadunne received the Kingdom of Sitawaka, Pararajasingha was given the Principality of Raigama (taking the name Raigama Bandara), and Bhuvanekabahu ruled over the remaining part of Kotte (as Bhuvanekabahu VII). The subsequent rivalries between these three new realms gave the Portuguese an opportunity to expand their influence on the island, by becoming involved in its internal politics.〔Rajavaliya p 77.〕〔S.G. Perera p 20.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sinhalese–Portuguese War」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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