Calls by locals to preserve Balana Fortress in Kandy

History has it recorded that the Balana Pass had been used as a strategic security nerve centreThe Balana Pass, located in Amunupura Village, in close proximity to Kadugannawa, today forms a part of the Yatinuwara electorateSituated in a lovely and attractive countryside rich in natural beauty and a delightful climate, Balana could be considered a tourist attraction

Balana, on entry to the Kadugannawa Pass, had been a nerve centre of security and spying and communication was done from here during the Kandyan kingdom

The enemy forces were not able to pass this natural fortress which was a death door with steep hills, impassable waterfalls, thick jungles teeming with wild animals and venomous snakes

The kings who ruled in Kandy had made maximum use of the geographical features of the land when working out security measures.   And history has shown us that they had planned their stragegy in case of there being a security threat from enemies, and this was based on a relief map. 

This is evident in the failed of excursions of the Dutch and the British to invade the Kandyan kingdom; although the British ultimately succeeded by bringing it under their sway. 

Balana, on entry to the Kadugannawa Pass, had been a nerve centre of security and spying and communication was done from here during the Kandyan kingdom. It had been a fortress overlooking the surrounding area as far as the eye could see. Today a traveler by night train to Kandy, on reaching Balana, would see the dales thousands of feet below glistening with electric lights as if the sky had fallen down with twinkling stars.

The enemy forces were not able to pass this natural fortress which was a death door with steep hills, impassable waterfalls and canals, thick jungles teeming with wild animals and venomous snakes. The surroundings were lovely and attractive, but were treacherous for those who trespassed into the Kandyan kingdom. 

Balana, 2000 feet above the sea level, was used as a natural fortress during the Kandyan kingdom, and is a marvelous creation of nature.

The Balana Pass had been the boundary of the Sathara Korala and the Galboda Korala. The gravets linking Upcountry and the Low Country during the Kandyan kingdom had been in close proximity.

History has it recorded that the Balana Pass had been used as a strategic security nerve centre, first during the reign of King Wimaladharmasuriya 1, who ruled Kandy. According to tradition, the Balana pass had been modified as a security  nerve centre by a court official Amunupura Mudali during the reign of King  Wimaladharmasuriya. He had stationed Sinhala soldiers to monitor invasions. He had constructed three mini-fortresses on Buddhagoda, Aluthnuwara and Ganethenna hills within the sight of the Balana fortress.

The Balana Pass, located in Amunupura Village, in close proximity to Kadugannawa, today forms a part of the Yatinuwara electorate.  Today it is not hard to reach. It is accessible after a journey about six kilometres along Pottapitiiya Road from Kadugannawa town and through Balana Road.

The fortress- in the shape of a rectangle- is 102ft long and 116ft wide. Today there exist only the ruins of its foundation and those of the watch huts.  The centre of the fortress is a bare ground.

According to tradition the fortress had been called Balana, of which the literary meaning is “watching” since it had been used as a centre of spying. 

Amunupura is the closest to Balana and in its environs are areas in the likes of Ambalathenna, Ihala Kotte, Mawela, Deninda, Godigamuwa, Ketakumura and Maligathenna. 

Alagalla, Batalegoda, Urakanda and Utuwankanda- the hideout of Sura Saradiel, who had been considered as a hardcore criminal by the British, and Mawanella towns are in the overlooking area.

Situated in a lovely and attractive countryside rich in natural beauty and a delightful climate, Balana could be a tourist attraction. It is believed that there exist here secret tunnels and armories used in the past. The Portuguese and the Dutch  made several futile attempts to invade the Kandyan kingdom. In 1594 the Portuguese troops attempted to invade the Kandyan kingdom, but faced a serious debacle. That entire regiment had been destroyed at Balana

In 1602 the Portuguese rulers dispatched a regiment of 25,000 soldiers to invade the Kandyan kingdom. They captured Attapitiya, Buddhasgoda, Ganethenna and the Aluthnuwara fortresses, but faced a similar debacle at Balana and encountered intense fighting during which the nearby canal had become a pool of blood

The Balana fortress is today an archaeological site within the purview of the Department of Archaeology. Residents of the area point out that the historic Balana Fortress and its environs should be developed as tourist attraction and a monument of the  Kandyan Kingdom.

(Translated by J.K D.U Thillakarathne)