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139-667: The Sea Tigers were led by Soosai , with their main base at Mullaitivu , on the north-eastern coast of Sri Lanka and their last base was taken when the Sri Lanka Army captured Chalai in Mullaitivu in February 2009. The LTTE was dominated by members of the Karaiyar cast , with its leader Velupillai Prabhakaran being a Melongi Karaiyar. This cast were traditional fishermen living in the northern and eastern coastal areas of

278-603: A clear example of asymmetric warfare . India regarded the Sea Tigers as a "nuisance" in South Asian waters and the Indian Armed Forces and State Government of Tamil Nadu had increased naval surveillance in the region. Though no clashes were reported between the Sea Tigers and Indian civil or military ships, Indian experts have suggested the government to "neutralize" it as the ongoing battle between

417-580: A drifted vessel named MV Farah III (in December 2006). In the year 1996, Lawrence Thilakar, a member of the LTTE central committee, said that the Tigers would target both Sri Lankan military inside and outside supply lines. A second development was the LTTE's declaration on 15 July 1997, that all merchant vessels taking supplies northward to Jaffna peninsula would be considered legitimate military targets. This

556-407: A hundred meters into the sea without the water reaching the chest. Whale watching is a common pastime in the seas off Trincomalee, and successful sightings are on the rise with the increase of tourism in the area. Marble Beach is located in 16 km (10 miles) from Trincomalee. There are the seven hot springs of Kanniya (Kan = stone; niya = land), on the road to Trincomalee. A high wall bounds

695-518: A key role in their operations, allowing for detailed and bold operations to be carried out in almost silent mode (highest EMCON ). The basis of Sea Tiger offensive operations could be described as sea control and keeping the SLN on their toes with their extensive sea denial tactics in the northern waters of Sri Lanka. Some analysts say the Sea Tigers have adopted the military theory of 'Versatile Maritime Force'. Sea Tiger operations could also be seen as

834-624: A mixture of weaponry: light and heavy machine guns mainly of 12.7mm , 14.5mm calibers and grenade launchers . While inferior to the patrol craft of the Sri Lankan Navy, the use of swarm tactics together with suicide boats negated the disadvantage. The LTTE were also said to possess radar evading stealth boats which are believed to be from North Korea . While their radar evading capabilities have been questioned their low profile makes them harder to spot. Light fibreglass boats were used for suicide bomber attacks. For every 20 Gunboats in

973-628: A port near Trincomalee. Indian Oil Corporation will work with the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to develop the Upper Tank Farm at the abandoned World War II port, known as China Bay. Trincomalee has some of the most picturesque and scenic beaches found in Sri Lanka, relatively unspoilt and clean. The area is famous for bathing and swimming, owing to the relative shallowness of the sea, allowing one to walk out over

1112-519: A statue of the goddess Mathumai Ambal and later Lord Ganesh were found by the Urban Council of Trincomalee buried 500 yards from the promontory's end while digging for a water well . They were taken in procession around the region before being reinstalled amid opening ceremonies in one of the newly restored shrines of the compound on 3 March 1963. The naval and air bases were taken over by Sri Lanka in 1957. Following independence from Britain,

1251-447: A swarm there were 3 or 4 suicide craft which attempt to destroy or at least immobilize the larger vessels while gunboats distract them. The LTTE also manufactured several Low Profile Vessels which are slower than other boats but stealthier. The Sea Tiger attack vessels are only at sea during operations and training; when idle they are loaded on large trailers and hidden in the dense jungle southwest of Mullaitivu or even transported to

1390-572: A twin temple called Kokarneswarar Temple, Thirukokarnam in Pudukkottai , Tamil Nadu. Following the conquest of Parantaka I in 950, Rajaraja Chola I and Rajendra Chola I oversaw the city's development when under their empire. A significant expansion of the Bhadrakali Amman Temple, Trincomalee by Rajendra Chola I increased pilgrimage to the city. Trincomalee was used by Chola king Ilankesvarar Tevar as his eastern port in

1529-496: Is Go-Karna , meaning "Cow's Ear" or Gokarna Pattana and the deity's name Gokarneswara or Go—Natha in Sanskrit. Pathmanathan offers the etymological link Thiru-Gokarna-Malai or Thiru-Gona-Malai based on this connection. The ethnographer Megasthenes writing in his Indica from 350 — 290 BCE, describes the island as being divided by a long river, productive of a large number of gold and pearls in one half and that

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1668-602: Is commonly called, has been a seaport since 400 BCE. The earliest epigraphical inscriptions found in Trincomalee city are in the Tamil language . The Tamil settlement at the port of Trincomalee was one of the oldest settlements on the island. One inscription from 900 to 1000 CE belonging to the Chola Dynasty excavated near where the promontory's first temple stood is from a sluice and also concerns Koneswaram, as do

1807-640: Is home to the famous Koneswaram temple from where it developed and earned its historic Tamil name Thirukonamalai . The town is home to other historical monuments such as the Bhadrakali Amman Temple, Trincomalee , the Trincomalee Hindu Cultural Hall and, opened in 1897, the Trincomalee Hindu College . Trincomalee is also the site of the Trincomalee railway station and an ancient ferry service to Jaffna and

1946-534: Is noted to have been the original worship of the island and the deity worshiped by Kuveni , the ancient Yakkha queen; Charles Pridham, Jonathan Forbes and George Turnour state that it is probable there is no more ancient form of worship existing than that of Eiswara upon his sacred promontory. In the earliest known literary reference to the Siva temple, Mahabharata , the Hindu epic written between 400 and 100 BCE,

2085-577: Is one of the six commonwealth war cemeteries in Sri Lanka. It is maintained by Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence on behalf of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission . The base is home to a naval museum called the Hoods Tower Museum . The name refers to a watchtower built on a hill commanding a 360-degree view of the harbor and the bay. In the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami , Trincomalee

2224-508: Is the terminus of Trincomalee-bound rail services, the majority of which originate from Colombo Fort . The station lies close to the northern coast and beaches of the city. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle operated a shortwave and mediumwave relay station in Trincomalee, which was handed over to the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation in 2013. It was not adversely affected by the tsunami of 2004 because of

2363-738: The Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya who themselves had been antagonized by Mahasen. He worked under the tutelage of Sangamitta, the Tamil Buddhist monk from the early Chola country, who had intervened to avenge the persecution of Vetullavada adherents during the Tamraparniyan Abhayagiri versus Maha Viharaya sectarianism in Anuradhapura. This explains some of the Buddhist archeological remains in

2502-594: The Dakshina Kailasa Manmiam  — three chapters of the Skanda Puranam of unknown antiquity — manuscripts of which have been discovered and dated from the 5th — 7th century. It was in the Puranas that the shrine first found reference as Koneiswara Parwatia , motivating Kullakottan Chola who learnt of its sanctity to sail to Trincomalee and develop the three Hindu temples of

2641-543: The Indian Ocean , crippling the LTTE's supply line. The LTTE built several crudely built submersibles and semi-submersibles based on Narco-sub designs. All designs were unarmed but some had long nose spars to ram vessels. Frogmen was a naval commando also served with the Sea Tigers and were used in sinking at least one freighter at the Sri Lankan Navy base at Kankesanturai - KKS, at the northern point of

2780-640: The Indian Ocean Raid of the war. However, the installation later served as an important launching point for British naval operations in 1944 and 1945. One of the places inhabited by the British was Fort Fredrick, now controlled by the Sri Lankan Army . Some of the old buildings in the fort were used as residences, including one previously occupied by the Duke of Wellington . In the early 1950s

2919-593: The Jaffna peninsula. They were also involved in the sinking of a SLN supply ship in Trincomalee harbor in May 2008. Overall, they were naval commandos who specialize in amphibious reconnaissance to prepare for amphibious warfare operations, commando style raids, hostage rescue, irregular warfare, maritime sabotage, naval boarding, providing security at naval base or shore stations, special operations, suicide attack, and underwater demolition (to some extent). On 17 June 2006 on

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3058-476: The Pada Yatra pilgrimage route from Nallur Kandaswamy temple to Katirkamam while stopping to pay homage to Koneswaram's Murukan shrine. By the late 16th century, Portuguese Ceylon was beginning to influence the operations of the now princely Trincomalee district. Despite it being one of the smaller states of the island, given as an appenage to younger sons of royal houses and still being dependent on

3197-642: The Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom saw all the territory of the kingdom of Jaffna, comprising both Trincomalee and Batticaloa , assigned to the "spiritual cures of the Franciscans". The Jesuits followed the Portuguese soldiers to Trincomalee and Batticaloa when they occupied the two localities. The buildings of Trincomalee were of masonry, thatched with leaves of bamboo and rattan, although

3336-873: The Second World War , the British built a large airfield to house their RAF base, called the RAF China Bay and fuel storage and support facilities for the British fleets there. After the fall of Singapore , Trincomalee became the home port of the Eastern Fleet of the Royal Navy , and submarines of the Dutch Navy . Trincomalee harbour and airfield were attacked by a carrier fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy in April 1942 in

3475-657: The Treaty of Amiens , and the last Vanniar, Pandara Vannian is executed by the British ;– a pension is paid to his widow, the Vannichi, until the late 19th century. The British officer Alexander Johnston discovered a stone epigraph, the oldest of the province of Trincomalee District , in ancient characters concerning the traditional founder of Trincomalee and the temple, Kullakottan Chola. The French admiral Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez , when with his fleet in

3614-563: The Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province , Sri Lanka . Located on the east coast of the island overlooking the Trincomalee Harbour , Trincomalee has been one of the main centres of Sri Lankan Tamil speaking culture on the island for nearly a millennium. With a population of 99,135, the city is built on a peninsula of the same name, which divides its inner and outer harbours. It

3753-638: The Trincomalee Garrison . The city also has the largest Dutch fort on the island. The Trincomalee Bay , bridged by the Mahavilli Ganga River to the south, the historical "Gokarna" in Sanskrit, means "Cow's Ear", akin to other sites of Siva worship across the Indian subcontinent. Uniquely, Trincomalee is a Pancha Ishwaram , a Paadal Petra Sthalam , a Maha Shakta pitha and Murugan Tiruppadai of Sri Lanka; its sacred status to

3892-612: The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs for the Centre for Strategic and International Studies reckons that they have destroyed 30 per cent of Sri Lanka's navy fiberglass small craft fleet. The Sea Tigers not relying on communications with their command on shore during ongoing operations, was one factor in their success. The Sri Lankan Navy on the other hand was required to act in accordance with commanders onshore. Sea Tiger intelligence also played

4031-547: The contributing factors of the civil war . The city and its district were severely affected by the 30-year civil war that followed. In the mid-1980s, India became concerned that the US Navy might gain access to Trincomalee. India was suspicious about goodwill visits by the US Navy to the port and Sri Lankan proposals to contract out the refurbishment of oil storage tanks and modernisation of port facilities at Trincomalee. On 3 March 2023, President Ranil Wickremesinghe instructed

4170-480: The "Agathiyar Thapanam", which alongside his other shrines at Sivan Oli Padam Malai , helped spread Tamraparniyan science across the continent during the pre-classical era. The Vayu Purana refers to the Siva temple on Trikuta hill on the eastern coast of Lanka once again in the 3rd century. Another mention is found in the 5th century CE Mahavamsa where King Vijaya brought his nephew Panduvasdeva to land at

4309-579: The 10th century Nilaveli inscriptions . Ancient texts, as well as an inscription unearthed by archeologists among its Hindu archaeological remains, call it Gokarna in Sanskrit. Over its long history, Trincomalee, and specifically the Swami Rock promontory, has housed several Kovil temples to deities of the Hindu pantheon, as well as a Buddhist vihara and a Christian Catholic church, both introduced following invasions. A descendant of Ellalan of Anuradhapura , Kulakkottan , directed renovations of

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4448-672: The 11th century and prospered under the Vannimai chieftaincies of the Jaffna kingdom . Two powerful merchant guilds of the time – the Manigramam and the Five Hundred Lords of Ayyavolu emerged in the region during Chola trade with the far east and the conquest of Srivijaya of the Malay Archipelago . The Koneswaram temple compounds, the city and its adjacent region, from Periyakulam and Manankerni in

4587-611: The 13th and 14th century. The Nicholson Cove Tombstone inscriptions at Trincomalee refer to the deceased as the daughter of the chief Badriddin Husain Bin Ali Al-Halabi, showing that her family hailed from Halab ( Aleppo ) in Syria . The Tamil Bell of New Zealand assigned to the Pandyan era belonged to sea traders that likely originated from Trincomalee. The city even attracted Arunagirinathar in 1468, who traversed

4726-603: The 6th century BCE — 2nd century CE. Trincomalee, the coastal peninsula town where Koneswaram is located is an anglicized form of the old Tamil word "Thiru-kona-malai" ( Tamil : திருக்கோணமலை ), meaning "Lord of the Sacred Hill", its earliest reference in this form found in the Tevaram of the 7th century by Sambandhar . Thiru is a generally used epithet denoting a "sacred" temple site while Malai means mountain or hill; Middle Tamil manuscripts and inscriptions mention

4865-649: The British Government built groups of bungalows within the fort specifically for their employees. These bungalows today provide accommodation for the Sri Lankan Army. There was a large Naval Hospital which catered for sick and injured British naval personnel from all over the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. With the turn of the modern era, English authors and poets used Trincomalee as inspiration for literature and poetry and became connected with

5004-814: The Fort of Trincomalee until 1782. The state of the region and the Tamils fears for the town and the Kantalai tank is described in considerable detail by the Dutch Governor of Trincomalee, J. F. Van Senden , in the diary of his visit in June 1786 with a view to revitalising agricultural production around the Trincomalee district. The population was a shadow of what it had been in times of prosperity. What he saw were people who had lost much of their traditional skill and often living close to subsistence level. Van Senden made

5143-454: The Hindu temples and oversaw settlement of Tamils for their upkeep. Sacrificial and other cult practices at the Trincomalee promontory have been documented since the Yakkha period, and were noted during the reigns of Pandukabhaya of Anuradhapura , Maha Naga of Anuradhapura and Manavanna of Anuradhapura until the publication of The Life of Alexander Alexander in 1830. The worship of Eiswara

5282-618: The Hindus has led to it being declared "Dakshina-Then Kailasam" or " Mount Kailash of the South" and the "Rome of the Pagans of the Orient". The harbour is renowned for its large size and security; unlike any other in the Indian Ocean , it is accessible in all weathers to all craft. It has been described as the "finest harbour in the world" and by the British, "the most valuable colonial possession on

5421-650: The Indian Research and Analysis Wing established training camps Tamil Nadu to train and arm Tamil insurgents in Sri Lanka. The rebels found it easy to travel back to Sri Lanka from training camps and smuggled in their supplies from India via small crafts cross the Palk Strait. With the Sri Lanka Navy intercepting these crafts, Prabhakaran ordered the formation of maritime wing within the LTTE in 1984 tasked with smuggling personnel and equipment between

5560-538: The Jaffna kingdom, the city had become one of the richest and the most visited place of Hindu worship in the world, declared the "Rome of the Pagans of the Orient" and "Rome of the Gentiles" by the Portuguese. It hosted the Hindu funeral of Bhuvanekabahu VII of Kotte . The death of one of its kings, Vanniana Raja of Trincomalee, left his young son, the Prince of Trincomalee under the guardianship of his uncle. Trincomalee

5699-527: The Kanniya suburb of Trincomalee city. The Siva-worshipping Siddhar Patanjali's birth at the city in 180 BCE and its connections to another Siddhar Agastya from at least the 5th–4th century BCE suggests that Yoga Sun Salutation originated on the promontory of Trincomalee. One of Trincomalee's suburbs, Kankuveli is home to ruins of the Tamil Siddhar medical university established by Agastya,

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5838-407: The Koneswaram compound. The compiler of the Yoga Sutras , Patañjali 's place of birth at the temple corroborates Tirumular 's Tirumandhiram , which describes him as hailing from Then Kailasam and his self description as a "Gonardiya" from Gonarda , "a country in the southern and eastern division" of the Indian continent. Both men were ardent disciples of Nandi. The Konesar Kalvettu uses

5977-488: The Koneswaram temple compiled as a chronicle in verse, titled Dakshina Kailasa Puranam , known today as the Sthala Puranam of Koneswaram Temple . Mariners were particularly excited when observing the massive shrine from afar in the sea. Building blocks from the city were used to expand the Kovil at Rameswaram under the patronage of king Gunaveera Cinkaiariyan . At this time, Trincomalee was trading pearls, precious stones, vessels, elephants, muslins, baqam and cinnamon, and

6116-683: The LTTE as it went missing in the waters of Sri Lanka, according to 'Anti-Shipping Activity Messages'. While some of these missions have been purely opportunist in nature, most have, in some manner, been executed to support the group's on-ground war effort. In relation to more concerted maritime combat, however, piracy has not featured prominently in the LTTE's operational activities, and should be considered an adjunct rather than an integral feature of its overall tactical agenda. Thillaiyampalam Sivanesan Thillaiyampalam Sivanesan ( Tamil : தில்லையம்பலம் சிவனேசன் ; 16 October 1963 – 18 May 2009), also known by his nom de guerre , Colonel Soosai ,

6255-404: The LTTE was investigating them and that settlement could be reached through negotiation. The VoT further reported the captain had requested the SLN not to take any military action until then, but the vessel was bombed regardless of his request. But the SLN said that they acted to prevent the delivery of "dangerous merchandise" to the Tigers, after their doubts were strengthened after the captain of

6394-407: The LTTE's bases in Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka, in particular Jaffna . A year later these crafts manned by LTTE cadres now known as Sea Tigers had been evading naval patrol crafts began mounting machine guns with which they began engaging the navy in gun battles at sea. In 1994, Colonel Soosai who had been a deputy district commander was appointed by Prabhakaran as the head of the Sea Tigers. In 1994,

6533-506: The North of the country the Sri Lanka Armed Forces first recaptured all of the western seaboard that was once controlled by the LTTE, thus depriving the Sea Tigers of the bases it had in the west. On the eastern seaboard the LTTE had also lost all of its Sea tigers bases and coast line it controlled including the headquarters of the Sea Tigers in the town of Mullaitivu . Although the Sea Tigers were initially able to put up stout resistance during several major sea engagements that occurred in

6672-450: The Northern Front following the sea battle. The attack also followed a dual Air Tiger air attack . After 2005 the Sri Lankan Navy had undergone several major reforms and unlike in the past the navy received more political support. Thus with the beginning of the Fourth Eelam War the Sea Tigers faced a more organised enemy adapted to asymmetric warfare . Development of the navy's intelligence wing and centralizing intelligence agencies allowed

6811-466: The Pagodas and the Palace of the King were covered with copper, silver and gold. The metropolis had grown with well-built houses and streets that were cleaned regularly and were well adorned. The Danish arrived in Trincomalee at the end of 1619 with a first ship, called "Øresund" under the command of Roelant Crape. This small expedition was the vanguard of another Danish fleet, composed of four vessels and 300 soldiers, commanded by Ove Giedde , that reached

6950-422: The Pandyan empire of Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I and remnants of Pandyan art and architecture still stand in Trincomalee. Magha 's reign ousted Parakrama Pandyan II and re-consolidated Tamil sovereign power in the island's north, north west and north east in Trincomalee by 1215; during Magha's reign, the temple and city underwent rich development in the name of a Chodaganga Deva on Puthandu , 1223. After

7089-400: The Salli Muthumariamman Kovil of Uppuveli beach in the Trincomalee suburb of Sambalativu. The Koneswaram temple, with a recorded history from the 3rd century BCE and legends attesting to classical antiquity attracted pilgrims from all parts of India. The shrine itself was demolished in 1622 by the Portuguese (who called it the Temple of a Thousand Columns), and who fortified the heights with

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7228-403: The Sea Tigers attacked a cargo vessel MV Princess Wave while it was loading Ilmenite from Pulmoddai, a traditional Tamil homeland. 9 local workers were wounded in the underwater bomb blast. That year, Sea Tigers took part in the Battle of Mullaitivu landing troops along the coast as part of the main attack and then preventing the navy from landing a releif force, sinking the SLNS Ranaviru in

7367-449: The Sea Tigers but was very fond of his children. The family were big cricket fans and were supporters of Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. On 14 May 2009 Sathyadevi and her two children fled the warzone, boarding a boat in an attempt to escape to Tamil Nadu . Soosai refused to escape with his family, wanting to die fighting for the LTTE. The family's boat was intercepted at sea by the Sri Lankan Navy as they attempted to flee. Satyadevi

7506-499: The Sea Tigers landed troops to engage and distract Sri Lankan Army units; the latest was when the LTTE attacked the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal faction in the east in 2004. The most significant use of combined operations was at the Second Battle of Elephant Pass in the Spring of 2000, when some 1,200 cadres were landed behind enemy lines. Sea Tigers' fast patrol boats and smaller suicide boats had engaged and sunk around 29 Sri Lanka Navy fast patrol boats. They also attacked

7645-427: The Sea Tigers were able to score notable victories when it sank the offshore patrol vessel of the navy SLNS Sagarawardena and captured its captain and sank the surveillance and command ship A 516 at Kankesanthurai . They broke the short lived ceasefire by the bombing of SLNS Sooraya and SLNS Ranasuru using frogmen and later sank the surveillance and command ship SLNS Edithara Kankesanthurai. In August 1996,

7784-401: The Sea Tigers. It was then revealed by the Sea Tigers to the ship captain that for the last two days only Sea Tigers had been interacting with them, and not with the navy and it was Sea Tigers who asked them to stop the ship in Mullaitivu waters. Later, the ship was bombed at 4:15pm by Sri Lankan Airforce Kfir bombers. Prior to the ship's bombing, the captain, V. N. Capro, told the Sri Lankan Navy

7923-410: The Sri Lankan Airforce In an interview with Rediff reporter, ships' captain said, "I think the navy bombed the ship because they did not want any proof left behind about their communication failure. They did not even realise that so many people's lives depended on that ship. My certificates and clothes, everything had been destroyed. I was left only with the clothes I was wearing." On 23 December 2006,

8062-457: The Tamil Tigers of forcing the crew to abandon the vessel and risking their lives. According to it, the skipper of the vessel said; "First they tried to set up a bomb and explode the anchor cable and when it failed they ordered us to weigh anchor. Then, they opened fire four times to scare my crew and force us into smaller boats. We were travelling at high speed. When the boat hit waves we were tossed about. I injured my back." He also alleged that

8201-403: The Tamil nation. Trincomalee's fort was occupied by the Dutch for most of the 18th century, and subsequently by the French who fought and won the Battle of Trincomalee as part of the American Revolutionary War in 1782 at the city. On 8 January 1782, the British captured Trincomalee's forts from the Dutch, the first place on the island they captured. The French recaptured it on 29 August of

8340-491: The Tigers and Sri Lankan Navy has affected Indian fishing areas and shipping lanes . The LTTE once controlled parts of the northern coastline of Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan forces stationed in the Jaffna peninsula were mainly supplied through naval convoys from Trincomalee in the east. The Sea Tigers bases were well located for attacks on these shipments, and forces the SLN to keep a significant force of fast attack patrol-boats on alert. Sea Tigers have also captured and seized

8479-435: The Tigers dismantled and removed all radio communication equipment and radar from the vessel. On May 1, 2007 Sayed Sulaiman, the chairman of the ship's owners, Salam International Trading Company gave an interview to the BBC Tamil service, saying, "We hear from the parties who are concerned with the ship, the insurance company etc., that ... everything that could be taken – like the rice, lights, generators – has been taken from

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8618-405: The Vannimai, Trincomalee and Batticaloa ; the Vanniar chiefs of Trincomalee and the rest of the Vanni became subordinates and were put back under the commandment of Jaffna with a large degree of autonomy , but forced to pay forty elephants a year to the Dutch company. As tributaries, they recovered from Portuguese rule slowly under Dutch rule, and the Batticaloa district served as a dependency of

8757-401: The army's Vadamarachchi Operation and played a crucial role in countering it. Trincomalee Trincomalee ( English: / ˌ t r ɪ ŋ k oʊ m ə ˈ l iː / ; Tamil : திருக்கோணமலை , romanized:  Tirukkōṇamalai ; Sinhala : ත්‍රිකුණාමළය , romanized:  Trikuṇāmaḷaya ), historically known as Gokanna and Gokarna , is the administrative headquarters of

8896-426: The bay in the 4th century BC. The Yalpana Vaipava Malai asserts that Vijaya restored the Koneswaram temple and the other four Eswarams upon arrival. Mahasena of Anuradhapura , according to the Mahavamsa and the later Culavamsa , destroyed the devalaya temple compound in Trincomalee housing Siva lingas in it, and built a Mahayana Buddhist edifice in its stead. He destroyed the Hindu temple to appease monks of

9035-399: The best examples of interaction between native and European styles. Attacked by the Japanese as part of the Indian Ocean raid during World War II in 1942, the city and district were affected after Sri Lanka gained independence in 1948, when the political relationship between Tamil and Sinhalese people deteriorated , erupting into civil war. It is home to major naval and air force bases at

9174-588: The cargo of at least two Sri Lankan freighters. In many ways the Sea Tigers had adapted and challenged a larger and more modern Navy, due to their tactics being based on the understanding of SLN operations cycles, doctrine and reaction time. The Sea Tigers have been accused of hijacking 4 Sri Lankan supply vessels in the waters of Sri Lanka namely Irish Mona (in August 1995), Misen (in July 1997) Morong Bong (in July 1997) and Princess Kash (in August 1998) but it destroyed by Sri Lankan Navy's Airforce along with cargo in it. They have also dismantled equipment from

9313-465: The city in 1781 had sent a copy of the inscription to Abraham Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron of France for translation. The ship HMS  Trincomalee was built during the early 19th century by Indian workers to aid them in the Napoleonic Wars , and named after the city. The importance of Fort Fredrick was due to Trincomalee's natural harbour. Through Trincomalee, it was believed a strong naval force could secure control of India's Coromandel Coast and

9452-406: The city, including in A Scandal in Bohemia and A Singular Affair at Trincomalee . Jane Austen 's younger brother, Charles , of the British Royal Navy is buried in Trincomalee. In 1950, one of the original shrine's gold and copper alloy bronze statues from the 10th century CE of a seated figure of Shiva (in the form of Somaskanda ), Shiva as Chandrasekhar , his consort goddess Parvati ,

9591-504: The city. During the reign of Mahendravarman I in 600, as one Aggabodhi II of Anuradhapura took steps to attack the Vanniar chiefs between Trincomalee and Mannar, Tevaram hymns were composed on the two holy cities, one of which, written by Sambandar , lauded the deity of the temples in each and lamented the schemes of other heretical faiths encroaching on Trincomalee. Mahendravarman I gave much assistance and military aid to his friend Manavanna of Anuradhapura, and he proceeded to build

9730-427: The city. Arthur C. Clarke , who discovered the temple's underwater ruins with photographer Mike Wilson, described the city and the ruins in Reefs of Taprobane and would go on to write 2001: A Space Odyssey based on his experiences in the city. Trincomalee's Bhadrakali Amman temple provides a setting in Wilbur Smith 's novel Birds of Prey . Arthur Conan Doyle 's Sherlock Holmes stories feature multiple settings in

9869-434: The city. Koneswaram is described by Jesuit priests at this time as being a "... massive structure, a singular work of art. It is of great height, constructed with wonderful skill in blackish granite, on a rock projecting into the sea, and occupies a large space on the summit". The Trincomalee and Batticaloa chiefdoms starting paying direct tributes to the Portuguese commander in Mannar from 1582 as Portuguese influence over

10008-627: The coast near Colombo , two frogmen belonging to the Sea Tigers were captured by Sri Lanka's army while trying to bomb ships in Colombo Port . News images showed that the frogmen were using rebreathers , probably a type with one oxygen cylinder across the belly. On capture, both tried to commit suicide using cyanide . The LTTE developed several types of improvised naval mines including moored, floating and limpet mines . The LTTE used smuggled torpedoes to construct mines as their boats were unable to use torpedoes. The total personnel strength

10147-457: The coastal city of Mullaitivu. The ferry was run by the government of Sri Lanka with the help of a paramilitary group known as EPDP , transporting people from the Jaffna islands to the mainland. The ship's passengers were brought to the coast safely by the Sea Tigers. When the SLN sent its two Dvora boats to investigate the incident both were sunk. The rebels lured the first boat in range of the firing line by posing as passengers waving for help on

10286-510: The crew of 25 members of a Jordanian ship which was carrying 14,000 tons of rice from India to South Africa, MV Farah III , that was drifting towards Mullaitivu coast due to engine failure were rescued and safely brought to the coast. On 23 decem., the Sea Tiger officials said that the captain of the Ship is trying to bring the ship to operation before getting aground. The ship then agrounded on

10425-487: The early months of 2009 with the Sea tigers trying to penetrate the naval blockade maintained by the Sri Lanka Navy in the eastern seaboard, they have now been virtually eliminated as an organized naval force. On land the Sri Lanka Army has been able to capture several Sea Tiger boats and a boat yard including several partially completed submersibles . In early February 2009, the military reported once again that it captured

10564-557: The entire North east gained momentum. An annual sum of 1280 fanams was levied from the Koneswaram temple, and they collected a duty on areca nuts exported through the Trincomalee and Batticaloa ports. Jaffna had given minimal logistical access to its Trincomalee and Batticaloa seaports to the Kandyan kingdom to secure military advantages against its enemies; this was used by their influential European overlords to consolidate power in

10703-589: The entrance to Swami Rock. Heralded as "Dakshina Kailasam"/"Then Kailasam" (Kailaas of the South) because it lies on exactly the same longitude as the Tibetan mountain Mount Kailash (the primary abode of Shiva), Trincomalee's traditional history and legends were compiled into the Sanskrit treatises Dakshina Kailasa Puranam — Sthala Puranam of Koneswaram , written in 1380 by Jeyaveera Cinkaiariyan , and

10842-586: The fall of the Pandyans of Tamilakam due to invasions by Muhammad bin Tughluq of the Delhi Sultanate , Trincomalee rose in status in the Jaffna kingdom, often visited by King Singai Pararasasegaram and his successor King Cankili I in the following centuries. Trincomalee served a similar purpose to its west coast sister city, Mannar . King Jeyaveera Cinkaiariyan had the traditional history of

10981-476: The ferry's deck, and fired with tank which was hidden in the ground, according to Colombo officials. It was then came to light that the ship was turned into a deadly trap, aimed at the Sri Lankan Navy gunboats. A short time later, the passengers (Tamils) and the ferry and its crew (Sinhalese) were released, although two of them were detained and released later on 25 October 1998. On 1 July 1997, Sea Tigers captured another Sri Lankan supply ship named MV Misen off

11120-667: The first record of the Kankuveli Tamil inscription dealing with a large field dedicated to Koneswaram temple. He was struck by the contrast between the prosperity signified by the inscription and what he then saw in the village. Trincomalee town remained under Vanni administration. Jacob Burnand, a Swiss soldier in the service of the Dutch and the Governor of Batticaloa, composed a memoir on his administration there in 1794, noting Trincomalee to be an important fortified town in

11259-529: The globe, as giving to our Indian Empire a security which it had not enjoyed from elsewhere". The city has developed from a village settlement on the promontory dedicated to the Hindu shrine . The origin of the term Ko , Kone and Konatha lies in the Old Tamil word for the terms "Lord", "King" or "Chief", which allude to the deity that presides here; this term appears in several Tamil Brahmi inscriptions of

11398-481: The government to track LTTE smuggling ships and instead of attempting to stop convoys bringing weapons ashore the navy attacked smuggling ships. Initially stopping at 200 nautical miles to unload cargo to smaller boats, the LTTE was forced to carry out operations further away due to loss of ships and in 2007 SLN followed and sank them near Australian territory. During naval engagements the Sea tigers who relied on swarming and suicide boats found themselves outnumbered due to

11537-480: The harbour. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the French, and the British, each held it in turn, and there have been many sea battles nearby. The harbour, the fifth largest natural harbour in the world, is overlooked by terraced highlands, its entrance is guarded by two headlands, and there is a carriage road along its northern and eastern edges. In 2015, India and Sri Lanka agreed to develop South Asia's largest oil depot at

11676-587: The hillock. On each side there is a sandy and rocky bay and it is like a peninsula". Rajasinghe finally formed an alliance with the Dutch , who captured the Fort of Triquinimale in 1639 and handed it to the Kandyans for destruction in 1643. In 1660, the Dutch built the present Fort Fredrick at the foot of the promontory which they called Pagoda Hill, and another fort at the mouth of the harbour home to Dutch officers, Fort Ostenburg . An English sea captain and his son,

11815-413: The holy Hindu site a protected area. A committee appointed by a Federal Party Minister to study the viability of declaring the site protected was disbanded without consultation by the prime minister at the time, Dudley Senanayake . The Federal Party withdrew its support to the government following that action. According to journalists like T. Sabaratnam, this incident had severe repercussions alongside

11954-614: The hovercraft, the Lankan navy was forced to withdraw, and had to tow a water jet propelled naval craft that was severely damaged to the Kankesanturai (KKS) naval base. The battle followed reports that the Sri Lanka's air force had claimed to have bombed a base of the Sea Tiger chief, Soosai and captured a Sea Tiger base at Nachchikuda , along the north-western seaboard. The Sri Lanka Army launched heavy artillery barrages across

12093-457: The inhabitants of this country are called Paleogoni , meaning Old Goni in Tamil and Greek , who Pliny adds worshipped Hercules and Dionysus (Bacchus) like the Pandyans of Tamilakam. The Vayu Purana , written in 300 CE specifically mentions the tallest mountain peak of the great gold and silver rich mountain range Malaya on the island, and that "to the east of this island at the shore of

12232-423: The initial attack at about 05:45 seven Black Sea Tigers died, while four LTTE attack craft were destroyed, 14 Tamil Tigers were killed and about as many others were reported injured. The Sea Tigers then intercepted a twenty-vessel strong Sri Lankan Navy flotilla escorting a hovercraft that resulted in a heavy sea fight. According to pro-rebel sources, at about 7:00 After losing a Dvora Fast Attack Craft (FAC) and

12371-506: The introduction of the Arrow-class which was of higher quality. When the LTTE used the standard tactic of swarming larger patrol vessels the SLN would fall back while the confused Sea Tiger units were swarmed by arrow boats and outnumbered 10 to 40. The use of sonar alongside simpler methods such as booms as well as increased patrols around ports countered frogmen actions. As a result of the military offensive that ended in May 2009, in

12510-659: The island in May 1620. They wanted to try their fortune in the Asian seas; the Danish expedition occupied Koneswaram temple. It was here that the Danes began the works for the fortification of the peninsula. Following the destruction of the Koneswaram compound and the Fort of Triquinimale built from its ruins, Trincomalee had a Portuguese force during the reign of Rajasinghe II of Kandy . Constantino de Sá de Noronha who destroyed one of

12649-456: The island's northeast were prospering, particularly following Srimara Srivallabha 's intervention against Sena I of Anuradhapura . The Pallava kings, including Simhavishnu and Narasimhavarman I were important in the early history of Trincomalee because of the increased significance of the city to Hinduism and trade in the early centuries of the common era, making sure to contribute elements of their unique style of Dravidian architecture to

12788-491: The island, with a strong traditional knowledge on seafaring and the waterways of the Palk Strait . Over the years members of this community had developed strong relations with other communities in the coastal regions of Tamil Nadu , engaging in the lucrative trade of smuggling contraband during the periods of import restrictions during poor economic period following Ceylon's independence from British rule in 1948. In 1983,

12927-669: The last major Sea Tiger base killing three senior commanders in the process thus limiting Sea Tiger operational capabilities. As of 16 May 2009, the entire Sri Lankan coastline was captured by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces . Currently, the Sea Tigers are presumed to have been effectively and completely destroyed. Boats used by the LTTE are divided into Gunboats , Explosive Boats and Low Profile Vessels. Boats designs ranged from those based on leisure to fishing craft . These boats could be up to 15 meters long, and were usually equipped with four to six 250 Hp outboard engines and

13066-467: The main SLN naval base in a suicide bomber vessel mission at Trincomalee and damaged one of the two SLN catamarans used as troop transports. On October 20, 2006, the Sri Lankan Navy reported that it had sunk 2 boats, and damaged several others in a major skirmish which reportedly left at least 20 rebels killed in the naval battle but not confirmed by the Sea Tigers. On November 1, 2008, a sea battle occurred between Sri Lankan navy and Sea Tigers. During

13205-487: The materials derived from its destruction. Some of the artifacts from the demolished temple were kept in the Lisbon Museum including the stone inscription by Kulakottan (Kunakottan). The site's ruins include an emblem including two fish and is engraved with a prophecy stating that, after the 16th century, westerners with different eye colours will rule the country for 500 years and, at the end of it, rule will revert to

13344-539: The monumental compound shrine as the Thirukonamalai Konesar Kovil . Kona ( Tamil : கோண ) has other meanings in Old Tamil such as peak , while another origin for the term Koneswaram could come from the Tamil term Kuna (East). Therefore, other translators suggest definitions of Trincomalee such as "sacred angular/peaked hill", "sacred eastern hill" or "three peaked hill". The temple

13483-460: The north, Kantalai and Pothankadu in the west, and Verugal in the south, formed a great Saiva Tamil principality of the island's state Mummudi Chola Mandalam. Residents in this collective community were allotted services, which they had to perform at the Koneswaram temple. A Jain sect in Nilaveli had even complained to Gajabahu II about the priests of Koneswaram. Following some benefaction of

13622-499: The north-western coast of Pesalai. The Tigers' claimed that the ship was transporting Sri Lankan troops to the Jaffna peninsula. After taking the crew of 9 members off the ship, the Sri Lankan government claims the Tigers burned it down. Later on except one all of them were released The last 1 crew member (Sinhalese) were released on 25 October 1998 and handed over to ICRC. On 8 July 1997, a Sri Lankan supply ship named Morong Bong

13761-562: The northerners ( Vadukkus . The Hindu temple was also documented in several medieval texts such as the Konesar Kalvettu and the Dakshina Kailasa Puranam . The entrance to the roadway leading to Koneswaram is actually the entrance to what used to be Fort Fredrick . The fort was built in 1623 by the Portuguese and captured in 1639 by the Dutch. It then went through a phase of dismantling and reconstruction and

13900-472: The open seas. However, this was ultimately unsuccessful. The SLN units were spread out, and frequently found themselves outnumbered by LTTE convoys, with 10-15 vessels in each caravan pitted against SLN vessels operating in pairs. The sea tigers also benefitted from weak intelligence gathering by the navy and the poor communications between the navy and the air force. During several of the LTTE offensive campaigns

14039-477: The petroleum minister and officials to promptly implement a strategy to revitalize the Trincomalee oil tank farm and integrate it into the nation's economy. Today SLNS Tissa and SLN Dockyard are used by the Sri Lankan Navy , while the Sri Lanka Air Force is based at China Bay Airport . The Sri Lanka Army has its Security Forces Headquarters - East in Trincomalee. The Trincomalee War Cemetery

14178-410: The political relationship between Tamils and Sinhalese deteriorated across the island. Interest surrounding Trincomalee was increased due to its geostrategic position and the discovery of its underwater and land Hindu ruins. In 1968, the unity government of majority Sinhalese dominated United National Party and the minority Tamil dominated ITAK Federal Party collapsed over disagreements about declaring

14317-577: The process. In May 1997, Sea Tigers badly damaged another cargo vessel by placing two to five kilograms of explosives on the hull (starboard or right side), below the water, just near the propeller. The vessel was a cargo vessel named Athena loaded with 42,000 metric tons of Argentinian wheat worth over Rs 570 million (ten million US dollars). In 2001, the Sri Lankan Navy launched the Operation "Varuna Kirana", to stop LTTE sea tiger convoys from retrieving weapons and equipment from LTTE smuggling ships in

14456-537: The promontory by the 6th century following the rise of the Pallava dynasty. The Mattakallappu Manmiyam of Batticaloa confirms Trincomalee's sacred status for all Hindus. Early Tamil dynasties continued to employ the city as the prefectural capital of the Trincomalee District , allowing administrative duties to be handled by elected Vanniar chiefs. Inscriptions of Kassapa IV , Udaya III and Mahinda IV of Anuradhapura , reveal that lands and villages of Tamils in

14595-624: The rectangular enclosure which includes all seven springs. Each is in turn enclosed by a dwarf wall to form a well. Trincomalee features a tropical wet and dry climate ( As ) under the Köppen climate classification . The city features a dry season from April through August and a wet season for the remainder of the year. The city sees on average roughly 1,570 millimetres (62 in) of precipitation annually. Average temperatures in Trincomalee range from around 26 °C (79 °F) in December and January to approximately 30 °C (86 °F) during

14734-474: The region. By the reign of Silakala Ambosamanera of Anuradhapura , Trincomalee bay again is mentioned as the furthest spot down the river Mahavalli Ganga which must be protected from "the enemy in Rohana"; and Trincomalee is noted as a theatre of magic, where Naga snakes were manifested to foretell the consecration of Maha Naga of Anuradhapura. It was not long before the Siva temple's concurrent re-establishment on

14873-483: The region. In 1603, the first Dutch fleet arrives at Trincomalee and Batticaloa ports. In 1612, D. Hieronymo de Azevedo, after great difficulties due to torrential rains, arrived at Trincomalee with a Portuguese contingent from Kandy. Here de Azevedo "was keen on building a fort" to the scope; he called in aid from King Ethirimana Cinkam of Jaffna but not seeing him, he abandoned the enterprise and he marched towards Jaffna. The early death of Cankili I brought upon by

15012-567: The rest of the Indian Ocean . The British admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson called Trincomalee "the finest harbour in the world", while the British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger called the city "the most valuable colonial possession on the globe, as giving to our Indian Empire a security which it had not enjoyed from its establishment" and the harbour "the finest and most advantageous Bay in

15151-517: The same day. On 24 December, when the captain of the crew was contacted by TamilNet and when asked whether the Sri Lanka Navy and the Sea Tigers have engaged in a military standoff, the ship captain told that, "this, I guess is all political. We are all safe and we have good cooperation here. We were offered a good place to sleep." They were handed over to ICRC on 25 December at 10 am. On 26 December, an Indian newspaper, The Hindu , accused

15290-522: The same year after the Battle of Trincomalee. In 1783 the French ceded it to the British and subsequently, Britain ceded Trincomalee back to the Dutch Republic under the 1783 Peace of Paris . In 1795 the British recaptured the city and held it until Sri Lanka's independence in 1948, with a claimed aim of "preventing Napoleon invading the colony" if left under the Dutch. Their rule is sealed with

15429-470: The santamarutham, eight (8) kodumudigal (parts) fell from kailasam into 8 different places: are Thirugonamalai (Trincomalee), Thirukalahasti , Thiruchiramalai , Thiruenkoimalai , Rajathagiri , Neerthagiri , Ratnagiri , and Suwethagiri Thirupangeeli . Trincomalee which is a natural deep-water harbour has attracted seafarers, trader and pilgrims from Europe , Middle East , Africa , China , East Asia and Australasia since ancient times. Trinco, as it

15568-628: The sea lies a great Siva temple in a holy place called Gokarna ." The bay is also referred to as Gokaranna according to a Sanskrit inscription in Grantha script excavated on a doorjamb at the Hindu temple dated to Tamil New Years Day 1223 CE. Gokarna is also a place name in Karnataka, India , Kalinga , Tamil Nadu and Nepal all associated with ancient Shiva temples. The associated Bhadrakali Amman Temple of Trincomalee , significantly expanded by Rajendra Chola I , stands on Konesar Road before

15707-683: The sea terrain around Trincomalee. Deutsche Welle started broadcasting from Trincomalee Relay Station in 1984. Its transmitter were mostly used by the Adventist World Radio . The Naval and Maritime Academy of the Sri Lanka Navy and the Air Force Academy of the Sri Lanka Air Force is situated in Trincomalee. It was first established in 1967, and gained university status in 2001. The Eastern University of Sri Lanka , which has its main campus in Batticaloa , also has

15846-404: The ship sympathized with the rebels and called the Sri Lankan government 'merciless'. On 14 August 1998, LTTE cleverly hijacked Sri Lankan supply ship MV Princess Kash loaded with 60tons of cargo (worth of 500 million rupees) at the Mullaitivu sea and escorted towards the coast of Mullaitivu by the Sea Tigers gunboats. The 21 member crew was captured including 17 Indians and taken to the coast by

15985-399: The ship was alleged to be "acting in connivance with the LTTE" . The crew were later handed over to ICRC on 16 August. Around 600 Jaffna traders, protested against the bombing of the ship. They accused the government as they are starving the Tamil people in Jaffna and reducing the supplies. They also demanded the Sri Lankan government to provide compensation for the cargo which was destroyed by

16124-472: The ship. The ship is now bare." The MV Sik Yang , a 2,818-ton Malaysian-flag cargo ship which sailed from Tuticorin , India on May 25, 1999 was reported missing in waters near Sri Lanka. The ship with a cargo of bagged salt was due at the Malaysian port of Malacca on May 31. The fate of the ship's crew of 15 is unknown. A report published on June 30, 1999 states that the vessel "may have been" captured by

16263-553: The shrine by Gajabahu II, his successor King Parakramabahu I used Trincomalee as his eastern port, to launch a successful invasion of Burma in the 12th century. Kalinga Magha used the city as a garrison point during his rule. The city was governed by Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan I and Jatavarman Veera Pandyan I of the Pandyans in the 13th century, despite invasions from and the eventual subduing of Chandrabhanu and Savakanmaindan of Tambralinga of Thailand ; it then remained in

16402-477: The shrine, when the former wanted to remove the temple of Koneswaram when his mother was in ailing health around 2000 BCE. This literature continues that as the king was heaving the rock, Lord Siva made him drop his sword . As a result of this a cleft was created on the rock, today called Ravana Vettu – meaning Ravana's Cleft . Upon her death, her last rites were performed at the Kanniya Hot water springs in

16541-700: The south side of the harbour at Muttur . Trincomalee was made into a fortified port town following the Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom , changing hands between the Danish in 1620, the Dutch , the French following a battle of the American Revolutionary War and the British in 1795 , being absorbed into the British Ceylon state in 1815. The city's architecture shows some of

16680-465: The status of Ganapatya . By staying there for twelve nights, one's soul is cleansed of all sins. Mahabharata continues that the shrine is the next pilgrimage spot for Hindus en route south following Kanyakumari of the early Pandyan kingdom and Tamraparni island ( Kudiramalai ). In the same time period, the Ramayana in written form describes how King Ravana and his mother had worshipped Siva at

16819-453: The temple of Gokarna bay is in the middle of the ocean and is the island shrine of Uma 's consort, known in the three worlds and worshiped by all natives of the island including the Nagas, Yakkhas, Siddhars and Devas, peoples from the subcontinent, the rivers, ocean and mountains. Fasting there for three nights in worship of Siva as Ishana , one acquireth the merit of the horse-sacrifice, and

16958-537: The temples had a copy of the oldest inscription in Tamil Brahmi sent to Portugal for the purpose of identification. The Tamil inscription contains a prophecy on the city and its temple, a copy of which was sent and is retained in The Hague . In a 1638 letter to Dutch Colonial Governor Anthony van Diemen , an officer mentions that Trincomalee is a "fort built rather strongly of hard stones from an old pagoda round

17097-477: The term Tiri Kayilai , meaning "three Kailasams", Tiri Kutam and Tiri Konam for Trincomalee, in a number of places, referring to the three pagodas on the promontory of Trincomalee. As per another legend, Vayu Bhaghvan and Adiseshan had a dispute to find out who is superior, to prove the superiority adiseshan encircled the Kailasam, Vayu tried to remove this encircle by creating santamarutham (Twister). Due to

17236-674: The war. Soosai joined the LTTE in 1981 after the Burning of the Jaffna Public Library . He was one of the LTTE's original 30 members. When the war broke out following the Black July pogrom, Soosai was among the first batch of Tiger recruits who received training in North India. He was then appointed area commander for Vadamarachchi under Jaffna District commander Colonel Kittu . He served in this position during

17375-497: The warmest months of the year from April through September. Extreme temperatures in the city range from 16.5 °C (61.7 °F) on 9 December 2022 to 39.8 °C (103.6 °F) on 13 May 1890. Trincomalee is on the eastern end of the A6 and A12 highways in Sri Lanka, as well as the northern end of the A15 . The city is also served by Sri Lanka Railways . Trincomalee Railway Station

17514-406: The west coast if needed. The Sea Tigers also manned a number of larger merchant vessels (sailing under various flags) used for smuggling equipment from neighboring countries. As there were no large ports under LTTE control, the supplies were loaded onto smaller vessels that could land directly on the beaches. From March 2003 to October 2007, the Sri Lankan Navy destroyed ten of these vessels in

17653-693: The whole of India". In the 19th century, the Trincomali Channel of British Columbia , Canada was built and named after the city's name. A Tamil press is established in Jaffna in 1820; a report on Trincomalee laments its sorry, poverty-stricken state and recommends 'colonization with intelligent settlers'. By 1827, The Return of the Population 1824 is published, giving the total population figures for Trincomalee as 19,158 – Tamils and among them 317 Sinhalese. The Vanni, counted under Mannar, has 22,536 inhabitants, among them 517 Sinhalese. Before

17792-544: The writer named Robert Knox , came ashore by chance near Trincomalee and were captured and held in captivity by the Kandyan king in 1659. The Kandyans then pursued a scorched earth policy to try and oust the Dutch and take Trincomalee and Batticaloa on the east coast. The French set up base in Trincomalee in the Spring of 1672, and tried to make overtures to the Kandyans, but an alliance was not sealed; by July 1672, Trincomalee

17931-400: Was a focal point for relief efforts on the eastern coast of Sri Lanka. Trincomalee is sacred to Sri Lankan Tamils and Hindus around the world. The city has many Hindu sites of historical importance. These sites are sacred to the Hindus and some Buddhists also worship at these Hindu sites. Prominent sites include the Koneswaram temple compound, its Bhadrakali temple on Konesar Road, and

18070-496: Was aimed to cutoff the Sri Lanka's supply line to Jaffna as result of the Sri Lankans' ability to supply themselves by air was drastically reduced due to continues shot down of SLAF's supply planes. The LTTE accused Sri Lanka of "shipping war materials to Jaffna under the pretext of supplying food and necessities for the people" . On 28 August 1995, Tigers intercepted and taken control of the passenger ferry Irish Mona near

18209-406: Was annexed by Cankili I to bring it back under Jaffna control, forcing the boy king into exile. He was eventually baptised as Raja Alphonsus of Trincomalee and taken under the wing of the missionary Francis Xavier . The rise of Francis Xavier and the migration of Portuguese soldiers to Trincomalee, conversions to Christianity by some residents and royals in the 1500s saw the erection of churches in

18348-657: Was attacked and captured by the British in 1782, during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War . The French then took it from the British, and handed it back to the Dutch for a large sum of money. In 1795, when the French had occupied the Dutch Republic during the War of the First Coalition , it was again taken over by the British, who named it Fort Frederick. Trincomalee's strategic importance has shaped its recent history. The great European powers vied for mastery of

18487-460: Was between 2,000-3,000 women and men. Women operated the boats on an equal footing as their male compatriots. However the number of personnel may vary depending on operational needs. Local arms caches were hidden in the jungle close to villages. Jane's International Defence Review , in a report on Sri Lanka, published a few years ago, pointed out that the Sea Tigers "have taken on the Sri Lankan navy with unprecedented success." A recent publication of

18626-416: Was constructed atop Swami Rock, also called Swami Malai or Kona-ma-malai, a cliff on the peninsula that drops 400 feet (120 metres) directly into the sea. The Trincomalee Harbour , a circular natural harbour which the temple crowns towards the north, is referred to as Ko-Kannam or "Lord's Cheek", alluding to the cheek shape of Shiva's bull Nandi . The Sanskrit equivalent of the port town's harbour bay

18765-411: Was detained by Tamil Tigers off the Jaffna peninsula and had taken it to Alampil in Mullaitivu with the Sea Tigers escorts where it was anchored. According to the Tigers, one of the 38 crewmen on the ship was killed when the ship took off for open waters after the Tigers demanded it stop. Later, the crew of 37 were detained. On 13 July 1997, the entire crew was released. According to reports, the captain of

18904-577: Was identified as Soosai’s wife by a Sea Tiger who surrendered to the Navy. She was detained separately with her children and interrogated. Thereafter the family was detained within the Navy camp premises in Trincomalee. They were subsequently released. They currently live in Trincomalee under certain government restrictions. Sathyadevi later gave an interview for “The Nation” English Weekly, published in Colombo, where she recounted some of her experiences during

19043-595: Was passed by Chinese voyager Ma Huan by ship, eight days from the Nicobar islands , on his way to Tenavaram temple . The Tamil country had established a strong alliance with Yemen and the Delhi Sultinate under Martanda Cinkaiariyan which attracted seafaring merchants from East Africa and the Middle East to its ports. An inlet of Trincomalee, Nicholson Cove became the site of a small Arab settlement by

19182-497: Was retaken by the Dutch fleet. The city had rejoined the Coylot Vanni Country by the start of the 18th century, with much of the city's population having moved across the district following the temple's destruction. It was about three centuries after Norochcho and Knox that serious attempts at translating the temple's ancient writings were made. The Dutch ruled the Tamil country with increased focus on districts like

19321-532: Was the head of the Sea Tigers , the naval wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam . Thillaiyampalam Sivanesan was married to Sathyadevi, the younger sister of Lieutenant Shankar. They had three children named Sindhu, Madhi and Shankar. Shankar, their youngest child, was killed in a boating accident on July 18, 2007. Soosai did not spend much time with his family due to his duties as head of

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