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JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [VOL. XV. 



the Kandyan Provinces, and built several forts and castles to guard 

 his kingdom. (2) 



[1594.] Despatched by Philip III., King of Spain and Portugal, 

 with orders to re-conquer the kingdom of Kandy, Don Jeronimo de 

 Azevedo arrived in Ceylon in 1594 with the title of General of the 

 Conquest in Ceylon, and accompanied by a large force, including many 

 cavaliers and fidalgoes (nobles) from Goa and other places. After 

 various designs and fruitless attempts to regain Kandy he marched as 

 far as Balana in 1601 and encountered the forces of Wimala Dharma I. 

 Long and fiercely did the battle rage, but at last Don Jeronimo was 

 surrounded with his men and was defeated like the General Lopez. 

 However, he succeeded in keeping his men together in order and in 

 retreating to Colombo. Here he was regarded with great honour in 

 that he had brought most of his men in safety after fighting for five 

 days. (1) 



[1602.] After this defeat the Portuguese no longer fought with 

 troops against the King of Kandy, but daily they made their defences 

 with trenches and earthworks. The trenches of the king and of the 

 Portuguese were about a mile, and some about half a mile* from one 

 another. Frequently were sallies made and plans tried by the one to 

 dislodge the other. About eight months after this, on Easter day in 

 1602, there came over to Colombo Emmanuel Dias, who when a young 

 man had been taken prisoner by the king in the time of General 

 Lopez, and had remained serving in Kandy as a great Mudaliyar. He 

 again escaped to Colombo and revealed to Don Jeronimo de Azevedo 

 many designs to murder the King of Kandy. He was very welcome 

 and received great credit. His ears had also been bored in the manner 

 of the Sinhalese. This Emmanuel Dias had planned to carry out a 

 double game. He made an agreement with Don Jeronimo and swore 

 upon a silver cross brought before him that he would go with five 

 other Portuguese, viz., the three captains (Christian Jacomo, Albert 

 Primero, and Jan Pererro f ) and two other soldiers, to Kandy and 

 deliver them over to the king to serve him, but that on a favourable 

 opportunity they would murder the king. The promise was made 

 that after Don Jan's death Emmanuel Dias should, for the performance 

 of his work, come into possession of the whole Island. Thereupon 

 Emmanuel Dias received a large sum of money in order the more 

 easily to bring over the people to his side, and solemn promises were 

 made upon oath a second time upon a silver cross before he departed 

 to Balana, saying he would feign he had again escaped from Colombo 

 because of the ill treatment of the Portuguese. (1) 



But he went to Kandy and made known to the king everything which 

 had transpired with the General Don Jeronimo, viz., that the General 

 would conceal a troop of Portuguese soldiers near the fortress of Balana, 



* A Dutch mile is equal to about four English miles, 

 f Casper Perere. — Baldcew. 



