This study of Dutch and British colonial intervention on Sri Lanka in the period 1780 - 1815 provides a new over-all characterisation of the functioning and growth of the colonial state in a period of transition.
The peoples of Sri Lanka have participated in far-flung trading networks, religious formations, and Asian and European empires for millennia. This interdisciplinary volume sets out to draw Sri Lanka into the field of Asian and Global History by showing how the latest wave of scholarship has explored the island as a ‘crossroads’, a place defined by its openness to movement across the Indian Ocean.Experts in the history, archaeology, literature and art of the island from c.500 BCE to c.1850 CE use Lankan material to explore a number of pressing scholarly debates. They address these matters from their varied disciplinary perspectives and diverse array of sources, critically assessing concepts such as ethnicity, cosmopolitanism and localisation, and elucidating the subtle ways in which the foreign may be resisted and embraced at the same time. The individual chapters, and the volume as a whole, are a welcome addition to the history and historiography of Sri Lanka, as well as studies of the Indian Ocean region, kingship, colonialism, imperialism, and early modernity.
From humble beginnings, in the course of three centuries the Portuguese built the world's first truly global empire, stretching from modern Brazil to sub-Saharan Africa and from India to the East Indies (Indonesia). Portugal had established its present-day borders by 1300 and the following century saw extensive warfare that confirmed Portugal's independence and allowed it to aspire to maritime expansion, sponsored by monarchs such as Prince Henry the Navigator. During this nearly 300-year period, the Portuguese fought alongside other Iberian forces against the Moors of Andalusia; with English help successfully repelled a Castilian invasion (1385); fought the Moors in Morocco, and Africans, the Ottoman Turks, and the Spanish in colonial competition. The colourful and exotic Portuguese forces that prevailed in these battles on land and sea are the subject of this book.
World-wide in scope, this volume brings together the work of twenty historians, anthropologists, and literary scholars who have tried to examine the nature of the encounter between Europeans and the other peoples of the world from roughly 1450 to 1800, the Early Modern era.
First published in 1997, this is the first of two volumes. It looks at the process of European expansion which brought into contact societies and cultures across the world which had been initially alien to one another. Conflict, and violent conflict, was one aspect of this interaction, but accommodation, mutual adaptation, and institutional and behavioural synthesis were also present though often biased in favour of European norms. The intent of this book is to avoid treating ’colonization’, ’dominance’ and exploitation’ as the only focuses of attention. In the first volume Robert Forster explores issues of formative influences, the impact of Eurocentrism on historiography and the reaction against it, and the differing approaches and perceptions of the Europeans, notably the Spanish, French and English. In this period he distinguishes three modes of interaction: that of the trading empires, generally in Africa and Asia, where the European control of the encounter was slighter; and those of the regions of settlement, as in North America, and of exploitation, typified by the Caribbean, where the European impact was profound. The second volume focuses on the Americas, and uses the topics of religion, class, gender, and race as its points of entry.
For centuries, cultural imperialism has been practiced by Western colonizing nations seeking to extend their hegemony around the globe. In this insightful study, Hewa sheds new light on the often ignored role that Western medicine has played in this expansionist project. At the center of his analysis, the author cites colonial economic policies both as the facilitator of the spread of epidemic diseases in the tropics and as a vehicle for promoting the superiority of Western medicine that sought their cure. Sri Lanka is the geographical focus of the study, providing the first comprehensive analysis of the impact of European colonial policies on the health and disease of that population. Hewa concentrates primarily on the British and American cultural imperialism and how against this backdrop the intervention of Rockefeller philanthropy in Sri Lanka is examined.
The History Of Sri Lanka From The Earliest Times To The Present Sri Lanka Is An Ancient Civilization, Shaped And Thrust Into The Modern Globalizing World By Its Colonial Experience. With Its Own Unique Problems, Many Of Them Historical Legacies, It Is A Nation Trying To Maintain A Democratic, Pluralistic State Structure While Struggling To Come To Terms With Separatist Aspirations. This Is A Complex Story, And There Is Perhaps No Better Person To Present It In Reasoned, Scholarly Terms Than K.M. De Silva, Sri Lanka S Most Distinguished And Prolific Historian. A History Of Sri Lanka, First Published In 1981, Has Established Itself As The Standard Work On The Subject. This Fully Revised Edition, In Light Of The Most Recent Research, Brings The Story Right Up To The Early Years Of The Twenty-First Century. The Book Provides Comprehensive Coverage Of All Aspects Of Sri Lanka S Development From A Classical Buddhist Society And Irrigation Economy, To Its Emergence As A Tropical Colony Producing Some Of The World S Most Important Cash Crops, Such As Cinnamon, Tea, Rubber And Coconut, And Finally As An Asian Democracy. It Is A Study Of The Political Vicissitudes Of Sri Lanka S Ancient Civilization And The Successive Phases Of Portuguese, Dutch And British Colonial Rule. The Unfortunate Consequences Of Becoming A Centre Of Ethnic Tension And Sri Lanka S Long-Standing Relationship With India Are Also Discussed. Exhaustively Researched And Analytical, This Book Is An Invaluable Reference Source For Students Of Ancient, Colonial And Post-Colonial Societies, Ethnic Conflict And Democratic Transitions, As Well As For All Those Who Simply Want To Get A Feel Of The Rich And Varied Texture Of Sri Lanka S Long History.
This book is the first to critically analyze Buddhist-Muslim relations in Theravada Buddhist majority states in South and Southeast Asia. Asia is home to the largest population of Buddhists and Muslims. In recent years, this interfaith communal living has incurred conflicts, such as the ethnic-religious conflicts in Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Experts from around the world collaborate to provide a comprehensive look into religious pluralism and religious violence. The book is divided into two sections. The first section provides historical background to the three countries with the largest Buddhist-Muslim relations. The second section has chapters that focus on specific encounters between Buddhists and Muslims, which includes anti-Buddhist sentiments in Bangladesh, the role of gender in Muslim-Buddhist relations and the rise of anti-Muslim and anti-Rohingya sentiments in Myanmar. By exploring historical fluctuations over time—paying particular attention to how state-formations condition Muslim-Buddhist entanglements—the book shows the processual and relational aspects of religious identity constructions and Buddhist-Muslim interactions in Theravada Buddhist majority states.
This book examines how the early modern Portuguese state used convicts and orphans to populate its global empire. In addition, it addresses the issue of gender in the state's use of two distinct groups of single women as colonizers, orphan girls and reformed prostitutes, each given state-awarded dowries if they agreed to relocate overseas.
An introduction to Sri Lanka's geography, people, early history, foreign rule, independence, and modern history is followed by a dictionary covering the people, places, and events that have shaped the country. Includes a detailed chronology, statistical tables, graphs, appendices, and a detailed bibliography. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR