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A concise book on the history of Ceylon that starts from the time it converted to Buddhism and ends with the firm establishment of the British power in 1833. The book has 12 chapters and each describes various epochs in the history of the Island. 36 illustrations decorate the book which also lists the names of the kings from BC 543 to the then Governor of Ceylon in 1927. ... Read more

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"Royalty in Ancient Ceylon: During the Period of the Great Dynasty". ... Read more

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The aim of this book is to acquaint the reader to the beautiful remains of the architecture and a civilization of 2000 years ago. The book starts with a historical description of the sites and the treats each sight through a topographical lens. The cities described are Sigiri, Dambulla, Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Kalavewa, Minneri and Polonaruwa. There are 6 illustrations and ends with miscellaneous information of post and telegraph, Rest house charges coach fare and a railway time table. The book was first published in 1905. Illustrated with photographs taken by the author in 1896. ... Read more

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This study of South Asia analyzes both the riches and struggles of the past and the problems and achievements of the present. It describes the painful struggles for independence, and today's political and economic realities. ... Read more

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The author had almost succeeded in his goal of getting a Tamil Eelam with most of his conditions agreed to by the Sri Lankan Government, with the tacit approval of the International community. On the brink of success, however, he made cardinal, irreversible blunders, linked with unbridled, overweening ambition and a total misreading of the Sri Lankan Government's resolve and capability, resulting in his inglorious death, along with most of his family members and key henchmen and supporters, and the total collapse of his movement. ... Read more

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Regional Powers and Small State Security recounts India's involvement in the affairs of its much smaller neighbour, Sri Lanka, over the question of Tamil separatists in the northern and eastern parts of the island. K. M. de Silva first examines Indian regional ambitions and Indian-Sri Lankan relations during the cold war. He explores the origins of ethnic strife in Sri Lanka and the interests of lndia, with its own large Tamil population, in that strife. He then tells the story of lndia's involvement in three stages. From about 1980, India provided covert support for Sri Lanka's Tamil separatists operating from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. From 1983 to 1987, India attempted to serve as mediator between the separatists and the Sri Lankan government. From 1987 to 1990, India was a combatant against the separatists in Sri Lanka. The author has had special access to confidential Sri Lankan official sources. On the basis of those documents, he further interviewed all politicians and senior officials involved in negotiations on both the Indian and the Sri Lankan side.This book significantly broadens the base of information available for students of South Asia and of ethnic conflict. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Solid History
This is a workmanlike history of India's intervention in Sri Lanka in 1987-90, when Indian troops were dispatched to Sri Lanka to enforce a peace deal between the government and the LTTE, a Tamil insurgent group.The deal was intended to end the Sri Lankan civil war by creating an autonomous Tamil region in the northeast of the island.Unfortunately, the LTTE backed out of the bargain (for reasons that are still obscure) and took up arms against the Indians.India pulled out its troops after three years of inconclusive fighting, but the bad blood led directly to the LTTE's assassination of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.The civil conflict has continued (with intermittent ceasefires) to this day, with thousands of deaths.

Most of de Silva's judgments are sensible and well-documented, and he writes calmly about issues that are fraught with emotion and ethnic baggage.Unfortunately, his book is based mainly on documents and interviews from the Sri Lankan side, giving it a one-sided feel.This wasn't de Silva's fault: the decision-makers in Colombo seem to have been a model of openness compared to their counterparts in New Delhi, Madras, and the LTTE, who were inhibited by official secrecy laws, ingrained secretiveness, embarassment over the policy fiasco, and the sensitivities surrounding Gandhi's assassination.Another negative:De Silva tends to downplay human rights abuses committed by the Sri Lanka Army, perhaps because of his Sinhalese background and pro-government sympathies.

But overall this is a good, scholarly work about a fascinating country.It is highly recommended for readers interested in modern Sri Lankan history.(I'm a foreign service officer who worked at the U.S. Embassy in Colombo in the mid-1990s.) ... Read more

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This study investigates the structural changes in western Sri Lanka's agrarian society under the administration of the Dutch United East India Company (VOC). In the areas where peasant agriculture was the predominant form of production, changes in the land tenure system paved the way for a modern system of private property relations. A new class differentiation emerged and the indigenous chiefs turned into powerful landowners. In addition to this new light is shed on the dynamics of caste formation as a result of the early colonial encounter. ... Read more

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The consequences of the internal wars of the Sudan and Sri Lanka have been devastating for human and livelihood security and for these two countries'overall development. Both countries have records of failed attempts to resolve their conflicts by political means; both have been going through internationally facilitated peace processes which have also been linked to post-conflict development. Each intra-state conflict has its distinct historical, political, economic and cultural characteristics. Yet there are parallels between two developing countries in which post-colonial state formation has become mired in prolonged anti-state armed conflict. This book addresses from different angles and different levels the issues of conflict resolution, peace preparation, people's perceptions of the impact of conflict on their lives, war-induced grievances, relief, vulnerability, poverty, livelihood revival and social mobility, and development. ... Read more

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The Tamils can be defined in terms of the people who speak Tamil as their mother tongue. The Tamil language is a member of the Dravidian/South Indian family of languages. The four southernmost states of India - Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andra Pradesh - are predominantly linguistically Dravidian, each state is carved out on the basis of predominance of the four major Dravidian languages. South India and Sri Lanka have been homelands of the Tamils from the beginning of recorded history. The region roughly covered by the modern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala is identified as ancient "tamizakam" up to about 10th century AD. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Tamils migrated to some British colonies in search of employment and thus there are substantial Tamil populations in Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, Fiji and South Africa. These volumes provide an extended introduction to the Tamils by discussing all the important facets that make them so vibrant a society. They are arranged thematically and provide a glimpse into Tamil history, culture, politics, language, literature and social progress. ... Read more

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A history of the evolution of the Plantation Tamil community of Ceylon, a heterogenous sub-category of what the colonial government called "Indian Tamils", up to independence in 1948, with an emphasis on the years 1910-41. This text argues that, to some extent, the plantation labourers were able to act effectively by conscious decisions to emigrate, to work on the plantations and to settle there, but that their weakness made them "patients" as much as "agents". The Plantation Tamil community as it existed at independence was constituted dialectically: both the colonial demands for a cheap, efficient, reliable labour force and the discourse about these demands shaped the community, but the actions of the workers also contributed to social change. ... Read more