Everything about Galle totally explained
Galle (ගාල්ල in
Sinhala; காலி in
Tamil) (pronounced as one syllable in English,, the same as "Gaul", and in
Sinhalese, ) is a town situated on the southwestern tip of
Sri Lanka, 119
km from
Colombo. Galle was known as
Gimhathiththa (although
Ibn Batuta in the
14th century refers to it as
Qali) before the arrival of the
Portuguese in the
16th century, when it was the main port on the island. Galle reached the height of its development in the
18th century, before the arrival of the
British, who developed the harbor at Colombo.
Galle lies in
Galle District.
On
26 December,
2004 the city was devastated by the massive
Boxing Day Tsunami caused by the
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake that occurred a thousand miles away, off the coast of
Indonesia. Thousands were killed in the city alone.
Galle is the best example of a fortified city built by
Europeans in south and southeast
Asia, showing the interaction between European
architectural styles and south Asian traditions.
Galle fort is a world heritage site and the largest remaining
fortress in Asia built by European occupiers. Other prominent
landmarks in Galle include
St. Mary's Cathedral founded by
Jesuit priests and one of the main
Shiva temples on the island.
Galle is the main town in the most southerly part of the island, with a population of around 100,000, and is connected by rail to Colombo and
Matara. It is home to a
cricket ground, the
Galle International Stadium, rebuilt after the 2004 tsunami. Test matches resumed there on December 18, 2007.
Rumassala Kanda is a large mound-like hill, which forms the eastern protective barrier to the Galle harbour. Local tradition associates this hill with some events of the
Ramayana.
History
James Emerson Tennent, Galle was the ancient seaport of
Tarshish, from which
King Solomon drew
ivory,
peacocks and other valuables. Certainly,
cinnamon was exported from Sri Lanka as early as
1400 BC and the root of the word itself is
Hebrew, so Galle may have been the main
entrepot for the spice.
Galle had been a prominent seaport long before western rule in the country.
Persians,
Arabs,
Greeks,
Romans,
Malays and
Indians were doing business through Galle port. The "modern" history of Galle starts in
1505, when the first
Portuguese ship, under
Lourenço de Almeida was driven there by a storm. However, the people of the city refused to let the Portuguese enter it, so the Portuguese took it by force.
In
1640, the Portuguese had to surrender to the
Dutch East India Company. The Dutch built the present
Fort in the year
1663. They built a fortified wall, using solid granite, and built three bastions, known as "sun", "moon" and "star".
After the
British took over the country from the Dutch in the year
1796, they preserved the Fort unchanged, and used it as the administrative centre of Galle.
Demographics
Galle is sizeable town, by Sri Lankan standards, and has a population of 90,934, the majority of whom are of
Sinhalese ethnicity; there's a large
Sri Lankan Moor minority who are the descendants of the
Arab traders that established the ancient port of Galle.
Source:
2001 Census
Universities
Two main faculties of
University of Ruhuna are located in Galle.
Faculty of Engineering is located at Hapugala about 5 km from the city center. The faculty of Medicine is located at Karapitiya near the
Karapitiya Hospital.
- Faculty Of Engineering visit
- Faculty of Medicine visit
Schools
Richmond College (established in 1876) Richmond College Website
Mahinda College (established in 1892) Mahinda College Website
Siri Dhamma College (established in 1995)
St.Aloysius College (established in 1895)
Southlands College (established in 1885)
Sacred Heart Convent
Sangamitta Girls'College
Vidayaloka College
Rippon Girls' College
Nagoda Jathika Pasala.
All Saints College (established in 1867)
Christ Church Girls' College(established in 1888)
Olcot Mix College
G/Battemulla Maha Vidyalaya,Imaduwa
Malharus Sulhiya National School
Muslim Ladies College
Twin cities
The City of Galle is twinned with:
Although not an official twin city, Melbourne, Australia 'adopted' Galle after the 2004 tsunami disaster, funding the reconstruction of its cricket ground and providing financial and other support, including a mobile library.
Maps
Detailed map of Galle and Sri LankaFurther Information
Get more info on 'Galle'.
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