Features
The cities of Sri Lanka – What’s behind a name?
by EVERYMAN
Trincomalee was so well known in ancient times that Ptolemy the Greek mathematician, astronomer and geographer in his map of the world which was published in the second century indicates Sri Lanka referring to this island as Taprobana and referring to Trincomalee as Ko-Kannam Bay. It is possible that the latter name was derived from certain Sanskrit manuscripts in which Trincomalee was called Go-Karna.
Here in Sri Lanka, the Portuguese who had arrived in the island in 1505 and were in possession of most of the coastal areas became a threat to the Kandyan Kingdom in which King Rajasinghe II reigned from 1635 to 1687. Fearing that the Portuguese would invade his kingdom through the port of Trincomalee, he built a fort on Ostenburg Hill. Proof that this fort was built was provided very recently when a research worker of the Archeological Department found a Sinhala verse, which is transcribed below.–
“Male, male, thembiliya venna pol male Rale, rale, muhudin damana diya rale Bale, bale, Rasing Diviyange bale Gale Kotuwa bendi Tirukanamale”.
There are also three other interesting but little known facts about Trincomalee which clearly indicate how significant this harbour was to the western world. Firstly, Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson who defeated the French fleet at the battle of Trafalgar on October 21, 1805 referred to Trincomalee as the “finest harbor in the world.” Secondly a British warship launched on October 12, 1817 was named HMS Trincomalee to commemorate the victory of the British fleet against the French fleet off the coast of Trincomalee on September 3, 1782. Thirdly, and this is something Sri Lankans living in the state of British Colombia in Canada would be proud of is that there is a 19th century old channel called Trincomali. It was so named after the previously mentioned warship was assigned to the Royal Navy’s Pacific station in Esquimalt, Vancouver, Canada. Trincomalee being the third largest natural, deep water harbour in the world has attracted nations initially from the west and much later from the east, namely Japan, of whom reference will be made later. These western nations realized that by bringing their fleets and capturing Trincomalee it would be the most tactical method of gaining a foothold in the island and subsequently penetrating further into the interior.
It is generally considered that other than the Portuguese, Dutch and British no other western power was able to capture Trincomalee. But contrary to such views long before any other western power arrived in Trincomalee it was the Danes who came. That was in 1620. Their fleet was equipped by the Danish East India Company on lines similar to that of the Dutch East India Company. Having captured Trincomalee they went ahead in fortifying their port. However by 1624 the Portuguese who as mentioned earlier, had control of most of the maritime provinces of the island, had built their own fort in Trincomalee naming it Fort Tirinkenemalee or Fort Fredrick. Thus they were able to overpower and oust the Danes.
The French arrived twice. Firstly on March 22, 1672 at the time when the Dutch were occupying Trincomalee. But they were unable to penetrate inland because of the well fortified Dutch fort. The second time the French arrived was in 1782.This time it was the British who were in possession of Trincomalee. The French not wanting to face a second failure went to battle with the British and in the decisive Battle of Trincomalee they defeated the British and handed over the port to the Dutch. However in 1795 it was handed over once more to the British in accordance with the ‘Treaty of Paris which was signed in 1763 whereby France ceded to Great Britain all territories which they conquered since 1749.
During World War II the Japanese who failed in their attempt to capture Colombo on Easter Sunday April 5, 1942 now targeted Trincomalee. They considered this to be a more strategic military base because of the several allied ships anchored in the harbour and the planes in the China Bay airport. Furthermore there were 101 oil storage tanks built by the British in China Bay between the years 1924 and 1930. According to a legend the original plan was to build 102 such tanks. However due to the superstition of the workers the spot of the 100th tank was kept vacant . Hence the next tank became the 101st.
At 6.30 am on Monday April 9, the air fleet led by Commander Mitsui Fuchida, who led the attack on the American fleet in Pearl Harbour on December 7, 1941, flew over Trincomalee with 91 bombers and 38 Zero fighters. Over 100 airmen in China Bay aerodrome were killed. It is estimated that around 700 people lost their lives. Dissatisfied by his attempts to destroy the military bases Mitsui Fuchida ordered a Kamikaze attack. It was a Japanese style suicide bombing where the pilot crashed his plane on a specified target. This was the first time that such an attack had been experienced in Sri Lanka.
Fortunately the Japanese were able to destroy only one oil tank, which due to its contents kept burning for nine days. It is reported that parts of this ill-fated plane can still be seen in the Air Force Museum in Colombo.
Trincomalee was still being used as a military base by the British even after our country was granted independence in February 1948. It was only at the insistence of Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike who did not want a foreign power to occupy Trincomalee as it transgressed our national sovereignty and violated our policy of Non- Alignment that on October 15, 1957, the British handed over Trincomalee to the Sri Lankan Government, at a ceremony attended by the Prime Minister and the Acting British High Commissioner T.L. Crosswaite.
Trincomalee in addition to its militarily strategic importance is also a popular tourist destination. One of the many attractions is that between the months of May to August from the top of Swamy Rock there can be seen approximately six to eight nautical miles in the ocean, groups of spouting blue whales and playful dolphins. However Swamy Rock is also associated with a tinge of tragedy. According to a legend a young lady who was betrothed to a Dutch officer and was rejected by him threw herself into the sea as the vessel in which he was sailing passed Swamy Rock. This is the reason why this spot is called Lovers Leap. However in order to prevent any suicides by lovelorn lovers the authorities have built a safety fence close to the edge of Swamy Rock.
But Trincomalee had another disaster coming and it came on the December 26, 2004 which was a Sunday and also a Poya day. An unsuspecting peaceful city was turned into one of destruction and devastation, chaos and calamity. Commencing near Banda Aceh in Sumatra at 6.28 am a mega under sea earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter scale, sent 100 ft high waves speeding across the Indian Ocean ferociously lashing Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, Myanmar and even Somalia –in that order. This was the Tsunami. In Trincomalee the mountain high sea waves reached 2 km inland. The Naval base was submerged and over 2,000 were confirmed dead.
As the incidence of Covid 19 is seemingly on the decline and tourists are permitted to arrive while adhering to important health restrictions it is hoped that Trincomalee will once more be one of the most visited places in the island.