Jaffna Fort
| Jaffna Fort | |
|---|---|
| Part of Jaffna | |
| Jaffna, Sri Lanka | |
| 300px
Entrance of Jaffna Fort that was originally built by the Portuguese and renovated by the Dutch on 1680.
|
|
| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
| Type | Defense fort |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Government of Sri Lanka |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Condition | Renovated |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1625 |
| Built by | Portuguese and Dutch |
| In use | 1625 - |
| Materials | Granite Stones |
| Battles/wars | Many |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Administration of Sri Lanka |
Jaffna Fort (Sinhalese: යාපනය බලකොටුව; Tamil: யாழ்ப்பாணக் கோட்டை) is a fort built by the Portuguese at Jaffna, Sri Lanka in 1618 under Philip De Olivera following the Portuguese invasion of Jaffna. Due to numerous miracles attributed to the statue of Virgin Mary in the church inside the fort, Jaffna Fort was named as Fortress of Our Lady of Miracles of Jafanapatão (Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora dos Milagres de Jafanapatão). It was captured by the Dutch under Rijcklof van Goens in 1658 who expanded it. In 1795, it was taken over by the British, and remained under the control of a British garrison till 1948. As the only large military fort in the country, due to the presence of only government and military buildings within its ramparts, it was garrisoned by a detachment of the Ceylon Army.
With the onset of the Sri Lankan Civil War it came under siege on several occasions and was the scene of pitched battles. From 1986 to 1995 it was under the control of the LTTE and was recaptured by the Sri Lanka Army in 1995 after a 50 day siege during Operation Riviresa. Today it remains garrisoned by a detachment of the Sri Lanka Army with limited access to visitors and is being renovated with Dutch funding.[1]
Buildings inside the fort include the Governor's residence, Queen's House, Jaffna, the Garrison Parade Ground, Police quarters and several buildings from the Portuguese era.
See also
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jaffna fort. |
- Dutch To Rebuild Jaffna Fort (Photos)
- http://ceylontoday.lk/64-97361-news-detail-lost-and-found-the-story-of-a-sacred-image.html
- Archaeology unearths skeletons in Jaffna fort
- Jaffna Fort to be renovated
- Army Renovates Historic Jaffna Fort
| Ancient Forts |
_fort.jpg)  |
|
|---|---|---|
| Colonial Forts | ||
|
Less or no contribution/renovation works of Dutch are marked by † symbol under "Portuguese Forts", and others are considered as Dutch forts too.
|
||
<templatestyles src="Asbox/styles.css"></templatestyles>
<templatestyles src="Asbox/styles.css"></templatestyles>
.PNG){kind=small} |
This South Asian history-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles containing Sinhalese-language text
- Articles containing Tamil-language text
- Commons category link is locally defined
- British forts in Sri Lanka
- Buildings and structures completed in 1618
- Buildings and structures in Jaffna
- Dutch forts in Sri Lanka
- Forts in Northern Province, Sri Lanka
- Military installations in Northern Province, Sri Lanka
- Portuguese forts in Sri Lanka
- Archaeological sites in Sri Lanka
- Sri Lankan building and structure stubs
- South Asian history stubs
