View from the Wales Park
Once a protected forest of the Hantane mountain range, later
a summer palace of Kandyan kings, then a military post of the British, today
Rajawasala Park or Wace Park as it is popularly known in Kandy has become a lovers'
paradise.
'Please observe strict discipline' reads a sign at the
entrance to the park . But the couples who seek refuge here pay little heed. So
acute is the problem that residents of the area, also known as Castle Hill
refuse to visit the park. One young lady of 28 who lives in the vicinity says
she is embarrassed to be even seen walking past.
The park has a colourful history which deserves mention.
Located next to Hillwood College, Kandy, the site was originally selected by
King Dharmasuriya I for his palace. Later Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe, the last
king of Kandy made it his summer palace. With the fall of the Kandyan kingdom,
the British took over the palace, using it as a military post. Its vantage
point overlooking the city was no doubt, a factor in this choice. The area
became known as Flagstaff Hill due to the barracks being situated there.
In 1887, the then Mayor of Kandy Herbert Wace decided to
restore the neglected site and built a park in remembrance.
Today only a Japanese gun placed at the entrance to the
park, gives a hint of its old associations. The gun captured in Burma by the
British was presented to the Supreme Allied Commander of South East Asia,
Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten by the soldiers in appreciation of his kindness.
That apart, the only other clues to its past are a few stone tiles and
carvings.
"This has been a focal point in our history where kings
as well as British commanders took decisions and fought while defending a place
of exotic history," says Dr. Nihal Karunaratne, researcher and resident of
the area. Dr. Karunaratne is also the author of many publications on Kandy
