Keppetipola: A National Hero Etched In Memory- by Pradeep Withanage – Galnewa
Source:Ceylontoday
This country has completed 76 years since it gained its independence from its colonial rulers. In that journey the 1818 insurrection or in other words known as the ‘Wellasse Kerella’ occupies a significant place in its history.
In the wake of the failure of that insurrection, two of the insurgents known as Monerawila Keppetipola Disawe and Madugalle Disawe who sought refuge in places such as Anuradhapura and the central hills were subsequently apprehended by the British and though two centuries have since elapsed, that incident is yet etched in memory.
It is said that these insurgents had sought refuge at a village called ‘Parawahagama’ on the Southern border of the Anuradhapura District. This village had been known initially as ‘Wadigamangawa’ and then it had been known as ‘Parawesugama’ after which it had settled on its name ‘Parawahagama’. At the start of this sojourn, we came across one of the elders of this village known as DM Piyadasa who is aged 85.
As we ventured towards the village it dawned on us that the majority of the villagers here have the surname Dissanayake Mudiyansalage. Initially, this village had been called ‘Wadigamangawa’. Later, it has been given the name ‘Para Wahapu Gama’. It has since then been transformed into ‘Parawahagama’. It is said that after losing the 1818 insurrection Keppitipola Adikaram had sought refuge at this village along with a few other insurgents. There had been a relative of Adikaram who had lived in this village.
After Adikaram and his accomplices had arrived here the villagers had chopped trees and had blocked the access roads to it to prevent outsiders from entering the village. Due to this situation, the name of the village has been turned into ‘Para Wahapu Gama’. But, subsequently, as it is easier for pronunciation the name had been changed to ‘Parawahagama’. After the signing of the upcountry agreement at the Magul Maduwa in Kandy on 2 March 1815, the end of the country’s ruling class by its Kings was heralded and besides that, the people here were forced to lead their lives at the mercy of their imperialists.
During the rule of the British imperialists, the colonialists ruined as many natural reserves of this country as possible and led an imperious way of life while the country’s citizens were reduced to slaves. The British squeezed this country’s economy to their benefit and the self-sufficient economy which the people here had developed was thus lost and became history.
The colonialists intentionally ravaged the rivers, tanks and all natural resources including the irrigation systems and due to this situation Sri Lankans became desperate and despondent as they were being ruled by the iron will of their imperial masters The British also took away the religious freedom that had been enjoyed hitherto by the locals and purposely decided to denigrate the foremost place given to Buddhism.
The Sinhala culture thus vanished overnight from this land and amidst the Western culture the local customs and traditions became history to its people. Due to the signing of the upcountry accord consisting of 12 policies and the failure of the British to fulfil their part of the accord and due to the imposition of unjust taxes the masses became restless and desperate. Due to this situation, the locals began to initiate riots and insurrections as they opposed the style of governance by their colonial masters.
Thus, this paved the way for the emergence of the 1818 armed insurrection against the rule of the British. The imperialists for their part opted to employ ruthless tactics to crush this insurrection. In the face of these brutal reprisals, the locals started to retreat and they were forced to think twice before launching an all-out war against their rulers. In the end, the English killed many of the leaders and insurgents in Wellasse and amidst all these villagers here still recall the way Keppetipola was apprehended by the British after he had sought refuge at Parawahagama. One of the old timers here DM Wimalasena aired his views.
He is presently retired from his teaching profession and is engaged in cultivation in this village. “According to the historical texts, a Muslim trader had been known to bring down textiles for sale at this village. On one of the days he had been here, he had spent the night at this village. When Adikaram too had been staying at this village this Muslim trader had also sought refuge at the same time. But, the villagers had informed the trader that they were unable to provide him with accommodation as they were performing a night ritual and that they were not ready to put up with outsiders. Then he had said he would go elsewhere but he had noticed something suspicious about the behaviour of the villagers on that night.”
The Uva-Wellassa insurrection which had been kicked off against the English rulers on 16 October 1817 had ended on 26 November 1818. It is said that the insurrection had started after the insurgents had murdered Badulla District Agent Sylvester Douglas Wilson on 16 October 1817 at Eetanawatta village in the Badulla District. Monarawila Keppetipola who had given leadership to the insurrection throughout was beheaded on 26 November 1818 at Bogambara, Kandy and it marked the end of that bloody insurrection. Another sensitive and significant chapter of this insurrection was the arrest of Keppetipola on 28 October 1818 by Lt William O’Neil at the house of one of Keppetipola’s relatives Anula at Parawahagama near Kalawewa.
Seventy-six-year-old DM Somawathi who is another elder in this village recalled the historical incident to us thus “Due to suspicions, the Muslim trader has had though he had had promised to leave he had been on the lookout for information. It was then that he had noticed that a well-built person had been residing at Anula’s house which today is located near the statue. It may have dawned on the Muslim trader that this person sans any doubt could be Keppetipola. At the time the Army of the British had put out notices to arrest the Adikaram for having taken up arms against them and they were searching every nook and corner of this land for his whereabouts.
He had also been named as a traitor by them. They had also publicised that those who convey information regarding Adikaram’s presence would be handsomely rewarded.” Parawahagama is presently situated close to the Pallekele Forest Reservation at Kahalla. It is also close to the Southern border of the Anuradhapura District and the Palagala Divisional Secretariat. When one was to travel four kilometres to the South and beyond the Irudeniya village one could easily reach the Kurunegala District. Seven kilometres towards the East and beyond the Kalugala village one could reach the Matale District.
Presently, some 1,100 people from 200 families in this village are continuing to make a living through the agriculture industry. Somawathi again spoke of the present situation in her village. “At the time, there had been a British Army Camp near the Kalawewa. It had also been close to the Vijithapura Temple. It is said that the Muslim trader had gone to that army camp and had squealed to them about the presence of Keppetipola at this village. It is also said in the historical texts that due to this information given by the trader and for his betrayal the British had rewarded him with a deed to a land.
Even today, there is a large community of Muslims who are residing near Kalawewa and Vijithapura. They must be descendants of that trader.” There are a few access roads to this village. One is through the Thambuttegama town and via the Adiyagala junction. There is another through Galewela. It could also be reached through the road leading to the Upulvehera Temple and five kilometres on that road, one could enter the Parawahagama village. It is also not difficult to reach this village as a statue of Keppetipola had been erected at the Adiyagala junction with precise instructions on how to reach the village.
It is said that a distance of 60 km would have to be covered if one were to reach this village from Thambuttegama. It could also be reached from the Kekirawa and Eppawala towns having reached the Ihalagama junction. It is said that Monarawila Keppetipola had held the post of Maha Disawe under King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe and later under the administration of the British. He was also a soldier, deployed by the English, to crush the ‘Uva-Wellassa’ rebellion in 1818. But, lately having realised the folly in being with the British and seeing the struggles undergone by his countrymen he decided to take up arms against the imperialists and as it turned out to be he became one of the foremost instigators of the 1818 insurrection against the colonialists. It is also said that due to the extreme bravery and courage displayed by him at the moment of his execution, he has since then been hailed as one of this country’s national heroes.
The first school named in his honour which was then known as Akuramboda Vidyalaya has now been changed to Veera Keppetipola MV. This school is presently situated at Palleppola Divisional Secretariat area, close to the Monerawila village in the Matale District, where he was born. The place where the ‘Keppetipola Statue’ was located/erected 12 years ago. Some villagers also told this writer that the Parawahagama had also been referred to as ‘Malwattta’ due to flowers being offered for various traditional rituals that had been performed here in the past. Another significant incident in the Wellasse insurrection is the naming of 19 insurgents including Keppetipola as traitors by the British via a Special Gazette Notification released on 1 January 1818. However, it was rectified 200 years later by naming them all as patriots and this could be best described as an irony of fate.
