Central Province, Sri Lanka Genealogy

Guide to Central Province family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

History
Three successive European powers invaded Sri Lanka during the 16th to the 19th century, but the Central Province maintained its independence until the early 19th century when the British conquered Kandy. The British then established a colonial headman ranking system in 1824, that came into effect in 1832. The Colonial headman Mudaliyar Office was abolished in 1924 and the last of the colonial headman retired from their positions and gave up the rule to the British officers in 1926. All headman positions were then passed down to the newly elected governor-general of Central Province and this was established in 1929 as a way for the British to directly rule the provinces.