Thammanna Nuwara
Upatissa Nuwara
Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura Chola
Ruhuna
Polonnaruwa
Dambadeniya
Yapahuwa
Kurunegala
Gampola
Kotte
Sitawaka
Kandy
Portuguese
Dutch
British
Monarch of Ceylon
173
King Parakramabahu VI
Kingdom of Kotte
1415 AC - 1467 AC

The last great era in the history of Sri Lanka began with the accession of King Parakramabahu VI to the throne of Kotte. It is recorded that before arriving in the Kingdom of Kotte in AD 1415, he ruled Raigama for three years.

The greatest challenge faced by King Parakramabahu VI was the northern region of the island, which had remained under independent rule for many years. The Arya Chakravarti rulers had firmly established their authority there. Having already brought the Vanni chieftains under his control, King Parakramabahu VI dispatched his adopted son, the valiant Prince Sapumal Kumara, together with an army to reclaim the north.

According to the Rajavaliya, the prince emerged victorious and killed Kanakasooriya Singai Ariyan, the ruler of Jaffna at that time. However, other sources state that the king escaped to India. The literary achievements during the reign of Parakramabahu VI surpassed those of any other period in Sri Lankan history. This can be inferred from the numerous Sandesha poems composed during his reign. As the last monarch to unite the entire island under a single rule, King Parakramabahu VI occupies a distinguished place in Sri Lankan history.

Author’s Note

A Sanskrit treatise on Chandas Shastra (the science of prosody), composed by the Bengali Brahmin Ramachandra Bharati, who came to Sri Lanka under the patronage of King Parakramabahu VI, identifies the king’s mother as Sunethra Devi, a princess of the royal lineage of Kalinga. His father is described as “Jayamala Mahipathi,” a descendant of the lineage of Dharmasoka.

The Parakumba Siritha describes the king’s ancestry as follows:

සසිරි මානාවුළු පුරෙහි ඉඳු පරපුරින් ආ පිවිතුරු
සවුළු විජබා නිරිඳු පුත් පැරකුම් රජුන් හට මුණුබුරු
ලැමැ‚ ජයමහලෑන හිමි සුරතුර වෙළ රන් ලිය යුරු
සුනෙත් මහ දෙවි බිසෝ හිමිලත් රජ රුවක් සොඳ බුදුකුරු

In this verse, King Parakramabahu VI is described as a grandson of Parakum Raja, the son of Savulu Vijayabahu. The names of his mother and father mentioned above also appear in the verse.

The “Savulu Vijayabahu” referred to here can be identified as King Vijayabahu V of the Kurunegala Kingdom, while his son can be identified as King Parakramabahu V, who ruled Dambadeniya/Dedigama. Furthermore, the Kavya Shekaraya describes Parakramabahu VI as the grandson of a person named Jayamahalana.

Based on these sources, the following conclusions may be drawn:

  1. His father was Jayamahalana.
  2. His mother was Sunethra Devi, who belonged to the Kalinga lineage.
  3. Either his maternal or paternal grandfather was King Parakramabahu V.
  4. Either his maternal or paternal grandfather was Jayamahalana.
  5. The great-grandfather of either his mother or father was King Savulu Vijayabahu.

The Rajaratnakaraya explains that the term “Savulu” referred to a lineage descended from princes who arrived in Sri Lanka during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa. Furthermore, R. A. Doncis Attygalle, in his work Some Ancient Families of Ceylon (p. 292), suggests that “Savulu” may be an extended form of the word “Javaka” and that they may have been of Kalinga origin.

If this interpretation is accepted, it may be inferred that the Kalinga-descended mother of Parakramabahu VI traced her ancestry to Savulu Vijayabahu. Consequently, Sunethra Devi may reasonably be identified as a daughter of Savulu Parakramabahu, namely King Parakramabahu V.

In addition, the Princess Siridevi mentioned in the inscription of Magul Maha Viharaya may have been either a sister of Princess Sunethra Devi or Sunethra Devi herself. Based on this hypothesis, the following conclusions may be reached:

  1. The king’s maternal grandfather was King Parakramabahu V.
  2. His paternal grandfather was Jayamahalana.
  3. His maternal great-grandfather was King Vijayabahu V.

According to these conclusions, the genealogical relationship chart of King Parakramabahu VI has been constructed.

Isura Wickramarachchi
Mahawansa Pradeepikawa

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