Historical Organization
Kingdom of Kandy
Kingdom of Kandy
Details
Organization Timeline
VOC forces capture Batticaloa
📅 18 May 1638VOC forces seized Batticaloa from the Portuguese with support from the Kingdom of Kandy. The alliance reflected Kandy’s own strategy against Portuguese power; Dutch expansion then used the foothold to...
Kandy and the VOC sign a military agreement
đź“… 23 May 1638The Kingdom of Kandy and the VOC agreed to cooperate against Portuguese rule. Kandy was an active diplomatic and military partner pursuing its own goals. Dutch assistance later enabled a new...
VOC forces capture Trincomalee fort
📅 2 May 1639The VOC took Trincomalee’s Portuguese fort, gaining a strategically important harbor. The conquest formed part of an alliance with Kandy but also expanded Dutch military and commercial power along the...
VOC forces take Negombo
📅 4 February 1640The VOC captured Negombo from the Portuguese during its campaign to control Sri Lanka’s coastal forts and cinnamon trade. The Dutch advance depended on Kandy’s alliance, but the resulting company...
VOC forces retake Negombo
đź“… 4 January 1644Dutch forces recaptured Negombo from Portuguese control. The shifting possession of the fort reflects a wider war in which local communities and Kandy were not passive spectators, while the Dutch...
VOC forces take Colombo
📅 12 May 1656The VOC captured Colombo from the Portuguese after a long siege, extending Dutch control over Sri Lanka’s coast. The Dutch had allied with Kandy against Portugal, but the company’s takeover imposed...
The Treaty of Colombo strengthens Dutch control over the coast
đź“… 14 February 1766Dutch governor Wilhelm Falk and representatives of the Kingdom of Kandy concluded a treaty after war. The treaty recognized Dutch coastal claims and expanded company control over cinnamon...
Dutch authorities surrender Colombo to British forces
đź“… 16 February 1796After a British campaign and negotiations, Colombo capitulated. The surrender ended VOC rule in coastal Sri Lanka. The British takeover was another European transfer of colonial power; it did not...