Page 334 - Proceedings book
P. 334

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                       The analysis is conducted through focusing one of the marginalized historical female

                       icons in Sri Lankan history, ‘Ehelepola Kumārihāmi’ specifically considering the two
                       dimensions as followed.


                          •  The tragic massacre of Ehelepola Kumārihāmi

                          •  The sections of popular historical romance novelist’s historical imagination


                       3. Results and Discussion
                       3.1 The tragic massacre of Ehelepola Kumārihāmi

                       As per limitation of the present study, the life of Ehelepola Kumārihāmi has not been

                       portrayed in none of the historical records. The present researcher was only able to
                       refer the historical  facts that which are only  accessed through reading  life story of

                       Ehelepola Adikar and the tragic massacre of the Ehelepola Kumārihāmi.



                       3.1.1 Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe’s vendetta with the family of Ehelepola.

                       As  Kehelpannala  (1896)  mentioned  that  the  king,  Sri  Wickrama  Rajasinghe  had  a
                       prolonged vendetta with Ehelepola Adikar. The reason was that the king believed that

                       Ehelepola Adikar aspired the throne. The king hated the name of Ehelepola and even
                       asked  to  cut  the  Esela  tree  which  were  at  his  palace.  (P.54)  Ehelepola  Adikar

                       understood the fact that his life was not safe there in Kandy and he requested help
                       from  the  British  government.  The  king  had  destroyed  Ehelepola  Adikar  through

                       killing his family. Peiris (2002) referred one of the letters which have been written by

                       Ehelepola Adikar as follows, “In consequence of my becoming a friend to the English
                       Government, the lives of my wife, my children and relations were destroyed and all

                       my property taken by the King.” (p.175) The punishment that which was given by the
                       king sounded more a personal rather than professional. As Peiris (2002) mentioned

                       that the commonly accepted belief that by King’s orders only the heads of Ehelepola’s
                       children were put into the mortar and the mother was compelled to pound them with a

                       pestle. Specifically, he mentioned that no such similar incidents have been recorded in

                       the long history of Sinhalese kings and that punishment of Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe
                       was  not  recognised  by  any  of  the  Sinhalese  laws.  (p.177)  Manathunga  (2005)

                       explained that when Ehelepola Kumārihāmi requested the reason of executing herself

                       and her  children unfairly,  the response that which was  given by king  was the best
                       example to showcase his personal grudge with Ehelepola Adikar. The king’s response


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