No. 60.— 1908.] couto : history of ceylon. 



161 



wife, the king's mother (who, as we have said s affronted at 

 the imprisonment of her husband, had gone off to the town 

 of Reigao), as she was a prudent and courageous woman, 

 being informed of the ill-treatment meted to her husband, 

 took steps to release him thence by stratagem, since it could 

 not be done by force ; and putting herself in communication 

 with some persons that she trusted, Portuguese, who 

 had also been disgusted by these excessive measures, she 

 bribed so much, and gave so much, that they made a mine 

 in the garden of the fathers, upon which the prison looked, 

 which led into the place where Tribuly was, and by this 

 they got him out one night, and he was hurried away from 

 the fortress 1 . Next day, when the alarm was given to the 

 captain of that business, he lost no time in holding an 

 inquiry, and arrested several persons, against whom nothing 

 was proved, and at once dispatched a message to the viceroy 

 of what had occurred. 



As soon as Tribuly found himself free from prison, as he 

 bore in his heart bitter resentment for the ill-treatment that 

 had been accorded to him, collecting a large number of men, 

 whom his wife had sent to him, he betook himself in the direc- 

 tion of Gale, and all the churches and Christians that he came 

 across he put to the fire and sword, not sparing anything 2 ; and 

 on reaching Gale he did the same, and burnt a fine ship that 

 was there already finished and on the stocks, which belonged 

 to one Miguel Fernandez ; and proceeding to Reigao, he took 

 his wife and went to the town of Pelande 3 . which would be 



1 The Rdjdvaliya (81) says : — " The queen of king Vidiye contrived 

 to have the jail broken into by pallaru, and the king removed and 

 brought by night from Colombo to Rayigam Korale, and thence to 

 Awwagama (or Atulugama)." Valentyn (Ceylon 78) has it that the 

 two wives of " Videa Rajoe " procured his escape. The date of Vidiye 

 Bandara's release is nowhere stated, but it must have been after Febru- 

 ary 1553, when, as we have seen in VI. x. vii., he was visited in prison 

 by the two Portuguese captains. 



2 In VII. ii. iv. (p. 170) Couto records another raid by Vidiye Bandara 

 in the same region, which shows that the loss of life and property on this 

 occasion could not have been as great as is here stated : unless, indeed, two 

 raids have been evolved out of one. TheRdjdvaliya is silent on the subject. 



3 The Rdjdvaliya (81) says: — "There [Awwagama], however, he 

 co aid not maintain his ground, because the Sinhalese and Portuguese 

 army marched against him from Kotte. He therefore crossed over the 

 Kalu-gaiiga and lived in the heart of Pasyodun Korale. Here he 

 founded the city of Pelenda and erected a fort. He assumed the 

 honorary title Tuttardyakanda Anganvira, spread his fa^me in the four 

 directions ; and, while residing in Pel&ida, cherished a desire to 

 attack Kotte and Sitavaka." 



m 36-08 



