Polonnaruwa
Polonnaruwa was an ancient
kingdom in Sri Lanka.
The second most ancient of Sri Lanka's
kingdoms, Polonnaruwa was first declared the capital city by King Vijayabahu I,
who defeated the Chola invaders in 1070 AD to reunite the country once more
under a local leader.
History
While Vijayabahu's victory and shifting
of Kingdoms to the more strategic Polonnaruwa is considered significant, the
real Polonnaruwa Hero of the history books is actually his grandson,
Parakramabahu I. It was his reign that is considered the Golden Age of
Polonnaruwa, when trade and agriculture flourished under the patronage of the
king, who was so adamant that no drop of water falling from the heavens was to
be wasted, and each was to be used toward the development of the land; hence,
irrigation systems that are far superior to those of the Anuradhapura Age were
constructed during Parakramabahu's reign, systems which to this day supply the
water necessary for paddy cultivation during the scorching dry season in the
east of the country. The greatest of these systems, is the Parakrama Samudraya
or the Sea of Parakrama. It is of such a width that it is impossible to stand
upon one shore and view the other side, and it encircles the main city like a
ribbon, being both a moat against intruders and the lifeline of the people in
times of peace. The Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was completely self-sufficient
during King Parakramabahu's reign.
However, with the exception of his immediate successor, Nissankamalla I, all other monarchs of Polonnaruwa were slightly weak-willed and rather prone to picking fights within their own court.[citation needed] They also went on to form more intimate matrimonial alliances with stronger South Indian kingdoms, until these matrimonial links superseded the local royal lineage and gave rise to the Kalinga invasion by King Kalinga Magha in 1214 and the eventual passing of power into the hands of a Pandyan King following the Arya Chakrawarthi invasion of Sri Lanka in 1284. The capital was then moved to Dambadeniya.
The city of Polonnaruwa was also called
Jananathamangalam during the short Chola reign.
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