A double murder and its consequences, in Galle,over two hundred years ago

by Hugh Karunanayake

The fort of Galle was captured from the Portuguese by the Dutch in 1640 and Galle remained the Dutch capital city in Ceylon until the conquest of Colombo also from the Portuguese in 1656. From 1640 onwards the Dutch consolidated their presence in the coastal areas of Ceylon, the principal centres of Dutch settlement being Colombo. Galle, and to a lesser extent Matara. The main areas of settlement were within the forts, but in Galle some of the key officials built commodious villas in the village of Magalle outside the fort and about a kilometre away on the road to Matara.

Colonel James Welsh a man who served the British army for 58 years was a lieutenant in the 24th Infantry regiment when he participated in the siege and subsequent capture of Colombo by the British from the Dutch in 1796. He spent a few years in Ceylon before and after the change of maritime governments and continued his military life until his retirement. In his memoirs published in 1830 titled Military Reminiscnces, extracted from the journals he maintained during his military career in the East, he relates some of the noteworthy incidents that took place in the countries in which he served. One of these is the tragedy that took place in a villa in Magalla by the name Vliet-Zorg

A fairly large building named Vliet-Zorg at one time used as the Galle Kachcheri was the residence of the Dissawe of Matara during Dutch times. He was Pieter Willem Ferdinand Adriaan van Schuler who was born in Utrecht and marrieA double murder and its

consequences, in Galle, over two hundred years agod to Wilhelmina Catherina

daughter of Henricus Leembruggen who in 1744 was private secretary to Julius Valentyn Steyn van Gollenesse, the Governor. The year was 1796, the same year when the Dutch capitulated to the British. On the defeat of the Dutch, Von Schuler was relieved of his duties in Matara by an officer of the British army , and returned to his villa in Magalle “where he possessed a delightful garden house, and every comfort which riches could procure; and being a man of respectable family, and well connected, he had married a lady of considerable personal charm, who unlike himself, bore a most excellent character, and was much esteemed by both Europeans and natives”

Van Schuler, during his term as Dissawe of Matara was known for his uncompromising manner of administration, often treating people in his district with cruelty. Those were the days when slavery was permitted and he owned an old Malay slave among others, who was working for him for several years, and lived in his home in Magalle. For some apparently small misdemeanour on the part of the old man, he was ordered to be tied and flogged which resulted in the man’s death. Now Magalle was fairly close to a settlement of Malays known as “Jakotuwa”, and the death of the old man created a great deal of anger and anxiety among the Malays. In the words of Welsh” Whether the infliction was excessive, or whether he was at all aware of the probable result, I could never learn; but the plain fact that the poor old man perished under the lash was undisputed, leaving a son, a powerful man in the murderer’s services.” Welsh also commented on what he considered a point of honour among Malays, which he said was too little attended to or understood. This was, inflicting revenge for every injury or insult, imaginary or real, and always sought in a manner which leaves the object little or no chance of escape. It would appear therefore that if that observation by Welsh was correct, then the fate of Van Schuler had already been sealed in advance.

Lex talionis is the legal concept of retributive justice or revenge expressed more commonly in the phrase “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. Whether it was the extinction of Dutch power or an erroneous notion of British justice that induced it, the local Malays decided on their summary application of Lex talionis. The acknowledged leader of the Malay community in Galle was a man by the name Noor John, also known as the Prince of the Malays to whom the rest of the Malay community looked up and was much respected by the Dutch government. Noor got round van Schulen’s other Malay servants and slaves to execute his plan to be carried out by the son of the old man with the connivance of the other servants. The young man Gabong agreed and he was taken to the confidential slave of Van Schulen a man by the name Gaboo who surreptitiously allowed him into the bedroom of Van Schulen where he lay hidden under a bed, armed with a kris provided by Noor.

Van Schulen and his wife retired to bed as usual that fateful evening and being unusually tired he fell into sleep almost immediately. Mrs Van Schulen sat up reading and later went to bed. She was in her seventh month of pregnancy and was beset with anxiety over her pregnancy and worried over the possible prospect of not surviving the birth of the child. She laid down and just when she was falling to sleep heard a movement under the bed to which she tried to alert her husband but to no avail as he was in deep slumber and brushed aside her concerns in his somniferous state. Tired and fatigued she fell asleep but roused again when she heard a deep groan. She opened her eyes to see her husband steeped in blood and a man standing by the bed with a bloodied kris in his hand.

Intent on saving her husband the brave woman sprang from the bed regardless of any concern for her own safety, and caught the man by his long hair. She twisted the hair around her hands to prevent the man from getting away and called for help. The man said “let me go madam, I do not wish to hurt you” but she screamed and hung on to him when he turned round and stabbed her in the stomach. She collapsed there but was not dead and she and her husband were discovered slumped on the floor in the morning. Van Schulen was dead but his wife recovered and lingered for a few days. The brave woman passed away after a few days as did the unborn infant, but she was able to give her deposition regarding the incident. Police investigations began in earnest and Gaboo confessed to his role but Gabong absconded and was apprehended later. Meanwhile he had cut his hair and denied all knowledge of the crime. When Gabong was brought before her by the police, Mrs Van Schulen with a firm voice exclaimed “No Gabong, you cannot deceive me, although you have cut your hair off since. I am now on the brink of eternity, and I swear that this man is the murderer of my husband”. That statement sealed the fate of both Gabong and Noor John.

Gaboo gave evidence for the prosecution and Noor John and Gabong were tried in a case which was the most sensastional criminal trial since the British took over government in Ceylon. Both Gabong and Noor John were found guilty and were sentenced to death. Although most of the Dutch community in Galle wanted a public execution of the two offenders, some senior Dutch officials pleaded for the life of Noor. The British administration ordered the public execution which took place in the compound of Vliet Zorg where the murders took place. Two gibbets were erected on the compound of the villa and both offenders were hanged for the ghastly crime before a large crowd. Noor John refused final spiritual assistance and even kicked a Malay priest out of his cell. He complained that he did not kill anyone but that he is about to be killed!

Young and handsome in appearance his dying struggles lasted for a few minutes. Gabong on the other hand received the priest with acceptance and acknowledged his mistake and prayed for forgiveness and died without struggle. The two public executions were most likely the first and the last to be carried out in Galle under the British administration. The Malay community in Galle was restive and uneasy after the executions and to prevent any reaction all or most of the Malay families were relocated to Hambantota by the British and are the founding families of the Malay community in Hambantota. Jakotuwa thus remains a name only, but of some historical significance.