29/07/2026
Historical Evolution of the Colombo-Puttalam Waterway: The Military and Strategic Contribution of the Dutch
As stated in R. L. Brohier’s book ‘Discovering Ceylon’, there was no effective road connection between Colombo and Puttalam during the early days of the British occupation of Ceylon. This difficult distance of 84 miles had to be covered by carts or on horseback through dense forests, swamps and sandy terrain. During the battles fought by the Dutch and the English against the Kandyans, artillery and other military equipment, including cannons, were also dragged over the swamps with great difficulty by human labor. As recently as 1850, this road was described in government records as a road with stone bridges up to Negombo, a gravel road up to Chilaw, and beyond that a road that could only be passed during the dry season. This was also known as the "Northern Route" as it was the only route between Colombo and Jaffna.
Although the land routes were unsatisfactory, the Dutch (Dutch people), who ruled the country before the British, had left behind an excellent system of waterways spanning over 100 miles, connecting Colombo and Puttalam. The Dutch systematically developed and expanded this system of canals from the mid-17th century to the 18th century (especially after they acquired the coastal power of Sri Lanka in 1658).
Since the Netherlands was a country located between two and fifteen feet below sea level, they had an innate skill in managing waterways and navigating canals. The Dutch quickly realized the great advantage of establishing a system of waterways in the deltas of Sri Lankan rivers and connecting them with coastal lagoons.
The Dutch Canal was used as a main supply route to directly connect the Fort of Colombo, the main administrative and trading center of the Dutch, the strategically important Fort of Negombo, Chilaw and Kalpitiya/Puttalama forts. This enabled messages, officials and contacts to be maintained safely and quickly between the forts, avoiding attacks and difficulties that could be encountered while traveling by land.
The Dutch used this canal not only for trade, but also as a powerful military strategy to establish their dominance.
The transport of soldiers and artillery was the main one. Since it was extremely difficult to transport artillery, ammunition and military equipment through the swamps and dense forests of the land, the flat-bottomed "Padda boats" introduced by the Dutch were used to transport soldiers and heavy weapons between the forts.
It was also used as a defensive line against the Kandyan Kingdom. In the event of possible invasions or rebellions from the Kandyan Kingdom, this waterway was used to quickly send additional soldiers and military supplies to the Dutch forts on the coast.
In addition to military power, the Dutch were able to acquire a very cheap and convenient way to transport agricultural products and spices produced in the country to the port of Colombo.
Before the Dutch, the Portuguese had built a canal along the Kelani River to prevent the fertile rice fields from being submerged by periodic floods. This vast rice field, stretching for miles between the sand dunes that border the sea on one side and the Colombo-Negombo highlands on the other, was called "Muthurajawela". It is believed that it got this name because of the "Muthurajawela" rice that was produced annually from the kombu fields there.
However, as soon as the Portuguese cut and opened this canal, the fertility of Muthurajawela began to decline due to the inflow of salty seawater into the rice fields, as clearly stated in Dutch archival records.
The British rulers who came to power after the Dutch also quickly realized the military and strategic importance of this waterway. They decided to build a canal between the main fort of Colombo and the Negombo fort to facilitate boat traffic. Accordingly, the British, abandoning the old canal, which was started by the Portuguese and completed by the Dutch, cut a new canal starting from the mouth of the Kelani River to Negombo.
Seven years into their rule, in 1802, this was named "Hamilton Canal" after the Chief Revenue Officer in Colombo and completed the work. When the crisis with the King of Kandy broke out again in January 1803, Negombo was used as a military headquarters for launching battles, and this canal was also very useful for transporting war supplies.
However, over time, it became clear that the Hamilton Canal built by the British had completely destroyed the once extremely fertile Muthurajawela paddy fields and ecosystem.
