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Blessed Joseph Vaz: Part 11 – The Miracle of Rain in Kandy

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Myself . 

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Image source: roystonellis.com
Image source: roystonellis.com

Joseph Vaz began his apostolate in Kandy amidst great difficulties. He devoted himself to the spiritual needs of the Catholics of Kandy. He assembled them for regular Mass and catechism classes, and visited those who were unable to come to the Church due to old age and infirmity. Due to the dearth of priests for many years the once faithful had reverted back to their old customs and superstitions. Now, many of these came to his Church from remote villages as soon as they came to know that a priest was in the city.

In 1695, Nauclairs de Lanerolle, the French Huguenot unable to bear the progress of Joseph Vaz’s ministry, used all his influence to poison the King’s mind against the priest.

King Vimaladharma Surya II was, as mentioned before, a sovereign with a superior mind. He had high regard for Joseph Vaz. The King admired his virtue and his spirit of renunciation of worldly pleasures.

Lanerolle sought an audience of the King. He brought with him a few Bhikkhus (Buddhist monks). During his meeting with the King, the Huguenot focussed on the dangers which were threatening the Kingdom unless the King used drastic steps to stop the advance of the Catholic Religion. He once again asserted that Joseph Vaz was a Portuguese agent beyond doubt, who organized the Catholics and converted Buddhists to the Catholic faith to create a powerful group; then when he had enough number of adherents to his faith, he would raise a rebellion and call the Portuguese from Goa to help him. Lanerolle therefore entreated the King to save his Crown, before it was too late. He asked the King to raze to the ground the church built by Vaz and the Catholics, and expel the priest from the Kingdom of Kandy.

The King replied sternly to the Huguenot, that he was fully convinced that the priest was not a Portuguese spy, but had undertaken a perilous journey and had undergone many hardships only for the sake of bringing spiritual help and solace to the abandoned Catholics of his Kingdom; and it would, therefore, be unworthy of him to persecute a poor man who had sought refuge in his capital.

The rebuked Frenchman was quiet for some time. A few weeks later he came before the King surrounded by more Bhikkhus. He again insisted on the expulsion of Joseph Vaz from the Kingdom of Kandy. He told the King that the strength of his political power was founded on the religious conformity of the people of his Kingdom. He pointed out that at the time of the Portuguese rule, three Kings of Kandy on becoming Catholics, lost their throne because their Buddhist subjects rebelled against them. So, he warned that the same would certainly happen to him if the priest was allowed to convert his subjects to the Catholic Faith. He then went on to advise the King to never tolerate a foreign religion being preached in his Kingdom, least of all the religion of the Portuguese, the greatest enemies of the Kings of Kandy.

The King after listening to the long tirade of the Huguenot, answered him curtly that though it was true that he hated the Portuguese who had fought his father, he anyhow, had high regard for the Catholic Religion, which was anyhow much better than the creed of the Calvinists.

The Bhikkhus then complained that the church built by Joseph Vaz was now much more frequented than the Buddhist temples and wanted the King to stop the priest from preaching his faith.

The King told the Bhikkhus, that they should emulate the Catholic priest: preach and instruct the people about Buddhism, attend to the sick, teach people to give alms to the poor, gain the love of the people, and so on. If they did so, he said, their temples would not be deserted, and the people would flock to the temples, instead of going to the Church built by Joseph Vaz.

The Bhikkus then complained that the servants of the palace whose duty was to bring flowers to the Buddhist temples now refused to do so saying that they had become Catholics.

The king replied that if Catholics in his service were not willing to carry flowers to the temples, he could dispense them from it as there were so many Buddhists who will be too glad to render that service.

Humiliated by the manner of the King, who openly favoured the priest, Lanerolle conspired with some Buddhist chiefs, powerful enough to give orders in spite of the King. They threatened Joseph Vaz and ordered him not to admit the Catholics and others who came to his Church. Joseph Vaz answered them, saying:

“We have an obligation to search and invite the Christians and to see that others become Christians, and it would be a grave sin not to receive those who come in search”.

Instigated by Lanerolle and the few Buddhist chiefs,  rowdies ridiculed, vilified, harassed, the Catholics on their way to the Church. They even went to the extent of plucking away the rosaries from the necks of women and children. But the Catholics did not stop coming to the Church.

This kind of persecution increased day by day and Joseph Vaz became anxious. The King, it is true, was favourable to the Catholics and resisted the solicitations of their enemies, but Joseph Vaz doubted whether the King would protect the Catholics when threatened with an uprising by the Buddhist mob as planned by Lanerolle and of his Buddhist confederates.

When the situation became critical, a remarkable miracle came to the rescue of Joseph Vaz.

The Miracle of the Rain

The rainy season in Ceylon begins usually between the middle of May and the beginning of June, but in the year 1696, there was a severe drought in the central region of Ceylon. As rain is necessary for the cultivation of rice the harvest failed. All other crops suffered as well. The drought caused much hardship to the people in the Kingdom of Kandy.

King Vimaladharma Suriya II requested Buddhist monks to perform Pirith (spiritual chant) to invoke the gods to provide rain and the Hindu Brahmins to conduct special Pooja to invoke Lord Varuna, the Hindu god of rain. Even after a week of ceremonies by the Bhikkus and the Brahmins, not a single drop of rain fell anywhere in the kingdom.

Then the king requested Joseph Vaz to pray to his God for rain. Vaz replied that he “would pray with greater fervor in obedience to the royal command.” He then told the king to “remain firm in faith, and if it would serve divine glory the land would abound with water since all the elements obey His divine commands as the Creator of heaven and earth”.

With firm faith in God, Joseph Vaz erected an altar in the open at a central place. A large crowd surrounded him. After placing a cross on the altar, he knelt down and prayed to God for rain.

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Saint Joseph Vaz praying for rain during the drought of 1696 in Kandy (Source :en.radiovaticana.va)
Saint Joseph Vaz praying for rain during the drought of 1696 in Kandy (Source :en.radiovaticana.va)

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.While he prayed, the sky filled with heavy dark clouds, and an abundant rain poured down. In a short time the deluge inundated the famished Kingdom. Water seeped into the cracks of the parched paddy fields. All the irrigation tanks filled to the brim.

Amid such a torrent the people saw with amazement the altar, the cross, and the spot where Joseph Vaz was kneeling while praying, remained dry. Not a drop of water had fallen on them. The King and the people marvelled, at this phenomenon and called it a miracle.

St.Anthony's Cathedral, Kandy (Source: kandydiocese.net)
St.Anthony’s Cathedral, Kandy (Source: kandydiocese.net)

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Now, at the place where this miracle was wrought in Kandy stands St. Anthony’s Cathedral.

This miracle impressed the people, and many Buddhists and Hindus came to Joseph Vaz for baptism. Many apostates who had become Calvinists, after having performed penance reconciled with the Church.

King Vimaladharma Suriya II was so pleased he gave Joseph Vaz protection, and freedom to travel anywhere in the Kingdom of Kandy to preach the Catholic doctrines. Joseph Vaz also obtained the king’s permission to get more priests from Goa.

Joseph Vaz then built a proper church and dedicated it to Our Lady, the Mother of Christ. He used the missionary method of inculturation. He composed a para-liturgy in Sinhalese and Tamil.

Joseph Vaz used his newly acquired freedom to visit all the regions of the kingdom of Kandy. Now he was able to cross the Mahaweli Ganga without any hindrance. At times, he also sneaked into the territories possessed by the Dutch.

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 Next → Part 12 – The Apostle Visits Dutch Colombo

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Blessed Joseph Vaz: Part 10 – Beginning of the Apostolate in Kandy

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Myself . 

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com
Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com

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The First Church in Kandy

To keep John occupied, Joseph Vaz taught him enough Latin to recite the divine office intelligently with devotion. He also taught John all that was required to become a priest. He called his servant “my brother” and gave him his own surname “Vaz”.

Joseph Vaz wondered why he was still in prison. Was it because he was a priest or was it because there lurked in the mind of the King some suspicion of his being a Portuguese spy.

As the rigours of imprisonment waned, Joseph Vaz and John constructed a hut of cadjan, in a corner of the prison yard. They built an altar and Vaz put his crucifix on it. He without fear showed himself as a Catholic prostrated and venerated the Cross in public. Every evening he would pray the Rosary and sing the litanies of the Blessed Virgin Mary. No one interfered with his devotions.

On Christmas of 1692, he offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at this Altar. The Dissawe, his guards and other prisoners kept at a respectful distance. When he found no objection from the Dissawe, he continued to offer Mass every morning from the following day onwards.

The small cadjan hut was the first Church in Kandy.

People started noticing what was going on in the small straw hut Church. Almost all the Catholics in Kandy had not seen a priest for over forty years after the death of Father Vergonse, the Jesuit priest. But none of them dared to approach the priest for the memory of the arrest of Antonio Sottomayor was alive in their minds.

Eventually, a Catholic, who embroidered rich clothing for the Kandyan nobles, worked out a plan. He made with great perfection embroidered a silk cloth with gold and presented it as a gift to King Vimaladharma Surya II. The king much pleased with the workmanship asked the artisan to name his price. The artisan threw himself at the feet of the king and said that he wanted no money, but begged the king to allow him to speak with the confined priest on matters related to his soul. Since the king now regarded Joseph Vaz as a devout priest and not a Portuguese spy, he readily gave permission to visit Joseph Vaz.

When other Catholics saw that the King was in a good frame of mind, they too approached him and obtained permission to visit the priest. The King moved by the piety of these Catholics gave permission to all the Catholics to visit the priest in his prison, whenever they liked.

Many Catholics visited Joseph Vaz in his prison and participated in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass every morning. They also came for the Sacraments of Reconciliation and to baptize their children and grandchildren. Vaz also validated the marriages contracted without the presence of a priest. He instructed those who had no proper knowledge of the Christian faith.

Around September 1693, the king freed Joseph Vaz from the prison house. He was, however, prohibited from crossing the Mahaveli Ganga (river). The boatmen had orders not to carry him across the river.

Restricted freedom

Around September 1693, the king freed Joseph Vaz from the prison house. He was, however, prohibited from crossing the Mahaveli Ganga (river). The boatmen had orders not to carry him across the river.

Though forbidden, Joseph Vaz crossed the Mahaveli Ganga many times in secret to visit the scattered Catholics in remote regions.. On February 2, 1697 in a letter to the Prefect of his Oratory he wrote: “… Trusting in the help of the King of kings and His promises…”, he crossed the river eight times to administer the sacraments to the sick and dying Christians, living in remote places.

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Boatmen do not see Saint Joseph Vaz getting on to their boats to cross the Mahaveli Ganga (Source: blejosephvaz.wix.com)
Boatmen do not see Saint Joseph Vaz getting on to their boats to cross the Mahaveli Ganga (Source: blejosephvaz.wix.com)

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According to traditional legends the priest could do so because God made him invisible to the soldiers when he was passing through the gates, and also to the boatmen when he entered their boats.

In 1693, the Propaganda Fide asked Bishop Custodio Pinho, Vicar Apostolic of Bijapur to visit and report on the state of affairs of the Church in South India. Bishop Pinho described Joseph Vaz as a man “totally detached from the world”.

Using utmost prudence in his letter dated October 27, 1693, Joseph Vaz advised his Prefect of the Oratory in Goa, when writing letters, not to reveal to others his whereabouts. He also told the Prefect to send him the letters through the Jesuits of the Fishery Coast; to send them open to avoid suspicions and not to mention therein how he had received his letter, neither the place nor the date; not to write to him as to one whose permanent address was surely known, also not to give him any news of the Civil Government because “our work is only to be busy with the service of God and the salvation of souls”. So, to avoid all suspicions, he said, he was not writing to the Prelate nor to the Inquisitor in Goa.

After getting the restricted freedom to minister to the Catholics of the capital, people helped Joseph Vaz to build a simple thatch covered Church, which he dedicated to “Our Lady for the Conversion of the Faithful“. At the beginning, the Dissawe posted some of his men in the Church to keep an eye on the priest. Later, when the priest did not show the least disposition to escape from Kandy, he withdrew his men. However, the regular supply of King’s ration continued.

Joseph Vaz recommends John for Priesthood

On August 14, 1694, two years after leaving Puttalam, Joseph Vaz wrote to the Prefect of his Oratory. In a postscript to the letter, Vaz recommended John to the priesthood since he regarded all men as equal. He wrote:

“Although when he came here, Joao Vaz did not know to read and write, now that God has given him the ability, he reads and prays the divine office in my company”. Then he praises John for his knowledge of Latin, Portuguese (negredas), Tamil and Sinhalese languages. Naturally, John had picked them up in his seven years company of Blessed Joseph Vaz, especially in the prison. Then Blessed Vaz vouches for John thus: “Joao has the will to dedicate himself purely to the service of God as a priest to work for these Christians… he has no canonical impediment. Please ask one of the prelates vs.. the Archbishop of Goa (or any other) to ordain him. So that sent back to Sri Lanka he can work for the service of the missions… inform me if this is agreeable and I will send him to Goa. He has made the vow of poverty… his conduct is upright… and example for me… and as far as I know he will not commit a venial sin even though for this it be necessary
for him to die a thousand times.”

John Vaz thus became the first Gauda of Goa and the first Dalit tribal of India recommended to the priesthood.

Whenever Joseph Vaz faced any pastoral problem, he wrote them down and later sent letters to the Prefect of his Oratory and to Fr. Henry Dolu, a Jesuit in Pondicherry, asking them for guidelines.

When the Prefect of his Oratory asked him to come back to Goa, Vaz wrote that he would gladly obey his Superior as Christ, but with great prudence he made known to his Superior the risk involved if he should do so. He reminded his Superior that though he was free from prison, he was still prohibited from crossing the Mahaveli Ganga. So, he asked the Prefect for helpers from the Oratory.

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Blessed Joseph Vaz: Part 9 – The Apostle of Sri Lanka in Prison in Kandy

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Myself . 

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com
Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com

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Imprisonment in the Kingdom of Kandy

Espionage was loathed in Kandy and foreigners  were not allowed to Espionage was loathed in Kandy and foreigners  were not allowed to enter the city without permission. If any foreigners did happen to enter in a dubious manner, they were not allowed to get out of the kingdom. They were imprisoned in the “Maha Hiragé” (“Great prison”) and were held there for four to six years.

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Robert Knox (1642-1720) of the East India Company, by P. Trampon
Robert Knox (1642-1720) of the East India Company, by P. TramponTramponTramponTrampon

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Robert Knox was an English sailor. His father, also named Robert Knox was a sea captain. In 1657, Oliver Cromwell issued a charter granting the East India Company a monopoly of the Eastern trade. Father and son joined the service of the Company. On January 21, 1658, when the younger Knox was almost 17 years old, both he and his father boarded the ship “Anne” that left London on trade missions to the East Indies.

After sailing for about a  year and nine months, the ship encountered stormy weather in the Bay of Bengal. The ship lost its mast. With torn sails, they put ashore near Kottiar Bay, the estuary of Mahaweli Ganga, in Trincomalee, on November 19, 1659. There, the officials of King Rajasinghe II impounded the ship. The two Knoxes and 16 crew members were taken to the capital as captives.

After sailing for about a year and nine months, the ship encountered stormy weather in the Bay of Bengal. The ship lost its mast. With torn sails, they put ashore near Kottiar Bay, the estuary of Mahaweli Ganga, in Trincomalee, on November 19, 1659. There, the officials of King Rajasinghe II impounded the ship. The two Knoxes and 16 crew members were taken to the capital as captives. Although the crew was forbidden from leaving the kingdom, they were treated fairly leniently.

At that time, tension prevailed between King Rajasinghe II and some of the European powers.

When the king heard of their arrival in the capital, he sent for them. Sadly, the elder Knox had inadvertently angered the king by not observing the expected formalities in the presence of the king. Later, while the elder Knox was resting under a tamarind tree the king’s men took him captive.

Most of  the sailors engaged themselves in knitting garments.  Others took on animal husbandry, breeding poultry, growing paddy, and even distilling arrack. Young Robert Knox became a lender like the Afghans of old in Ceylon. He did not lend money, instead he gave paddy with 50% interest charged on it.

Some sailors became the favourite boys of the king and were mobilized into his armed forces. Among them, a Richard Varhan was appointed commander of the king’s 970 soldiers’ regiment.

A few married local women and settled down in the country.

In due course, the two Knoxes were separated from the rest of the crew and were kept for some time in a village called Bandara Koswatte close to Wariyapola in the North Central Province. There, both were afflicted with malaria. Eventually, the father died in February 1661 after a long illness.

In 1679, Robert Knox and his only companion, Stephen Ruthland made their final escape through Anuradhapura. They trekked along the banks of Malwatu Oya, then Dutch territory.

On October 16,1679, after being captive for almost 20 years, Robert Knox and his companion reached the Dutch Fort at Arippu, situated about 10 miles (16 km) away from Mannar Island. From there they went to Mannar. From Mannar, they set sail for Batavia. Robert Knox reached London in September, 1680, when he was 40 years old.

In his book “An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon, in the East-Indies: together with an account of the Detaining in Captivity the author and divers other Englishmen now Living there, and of the author’s miraculous escape,” Robert Knox wrote that from 1658 to 1681 not less than thirty-four Englishmen had been placed under custody like he was held, in the Kingdom of Kandy.

 Joseph Vaz under “House-arrest”.

Robert Knox was held captive by King Rajasinghe II. Now it was his son, King Vimaladharmasurya II, who held Joseph Vaz, John and Antonio Sottomayor as prisoners.

King Vimaladharmasurya II was an educated, and a superior man. He had broader views than the Indian princes of his time. He dreaded the return of the Portuguese to Ceylon. He was in no way hostile to Catholics. He allowed a certain amount of freedom to the Catholics in his dominions to follow their faith.

Joseph Vaz and Antonio Sottomayor found that there was no way to appeal because even a claim for justice against the king’s order was considered high treason.

The guards would not permit them to move even four steps. No food was provided and they spent five days in extreme hunger. Then, out of pity, the guards gave each of them a handful of Finger Millet (Sinhalese: Kurokkan; Tamil: Kel-varaku) once a day.

The three prisoners were kept under strict observation as ordered by the king. After observing them for five days, the guards reported to the king that they found the priest meek and modest, and they could not conclude whether he was a spy or not.

A few days later the King came to see the prisoners. He spoke a long time with Joseph Vaz and went away quite convinced that Nauclairs de Lanerolle’s denunciation was groundless.

So, the King let Antonio Sottomayor free. He then ordered to remove the priest and his servant from the “Maha Hirage” and transferred to the custody of an official called “Dissawe“. Joseph Vaz was provided a comfortable lodging and was well cared for with food provided at the King’s expense. However, he was forbidden to go out of his lodging. It was like the modern day “house-arrest”.

Gradually, the rigours of captivity relaxed. Since the Dissawe and his guards found the priest and his servant to be harmless, they left them alone, and allowed them to walk freely within the jail premises.

What he could not achieve by preaching, he compensated by resorting to the ministry of charity. From the daily ration allotted to him, Vaz reserved for John and himself the bare minimum required for one meal a day and distributed the rest among the poor.

Joseph Vaz Learns Sinhalese

During his travel on the Coromandel Coast and his stay in Tuticorin and Jaffna, he had studied Tamil. Now he took pains to study the Sinhalese language to help him in his apostolic work. Since he already knew Tamil, he translated the Catechism books into Tamil and Sinhalese. He wrote the Stations of the Cross in the two languages. He also prepared a vocabulary in Sinhalese for the use of future missionaries.

They remained under house arrest for more than two years. By his exemplary life, he won the heart of King Vimaladharna Surya II and the Buddhist monks. The rigors of the imprisonment went on diminishing as the months passed.

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Next → Part  10: Beginning of the Apostolate in Kandy

← Previous: Part  8: The Apostle of Sri Lanka Arrested at Weuda on the Way to Kandy

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Blessed Joseph Vaz: Part 8 – The Apostle of Sri Lanka Arrested at Weuda on the Way to Kandy

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Myself . 

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com
Image source: blejosephvaz.wix.com

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The Kingdom of Kandy

Located in the central and eastern part of the island, the Kingdom of Kandy known in Sinhalese as Mahanuwara Rajadhaniya, was an independent monarchy founded in the late 15th century. It was initially a dependent kingdom of the Kingdom of Kotte. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Kingdom of Kandy established itself as an independent monarchy. To ensure its survival the Kingdom at various times allied itself with the Jaffna Kingdom, the Madurai Nayak Dynasty of South India, Kingdom of Sitawaka, the Portuguese and finally the Dutch.

The capital of the Kingdom of Kandy has been known by various names. Some scholars suggest that the original name was Katubulu Nuwara. However, the more popular historical name officially is Senkadagala Siriwardhana Mahanuwara (meaning ‘the great city of Senkadagala of growing resplendence’).  This long name is generally shortened to ‘Mahanuwara‘ (meaning ‘Great City’ or ‘Capital’) or simply as “‘Nuwara‘.

The Sinhalese called the region “Kanda Uda Rata” (“the land on the mountain”) and “Kanda Uda Pas Rata” (“the five counties/countries on the mountain”). The Portuguese shortened this to ‘Candea‘ and used it as the name for both the kingdom and its capital. The English transformed the Portuguese word to ‘Kandy’.

The rugged terrain of the kingdom of Kandy.
The rugged terrain of the kingdom of Kandy.

Through the thick jungles and the many mountains only a few paths led to the capital of the Kingdom of Kandy. Due to the mountainous terrain was easy to defend the few roads. The subjects of the kingdom kept these routes secret, and they were aware that revealing any paths to a foreigner was an offense punishable by death.

The mountains and the thick forests hindered commerce with neighbouring kingdoms and movement of goods to and from ports and harbours. But this encumbrance proved to be an invaluable asset in guaranteeing the safety of the Kingdom of Kandy from attacks by its neighbours and by the marauding foreign colonialists.

The English East India Company
First flag of the Honourable East India Company (1600 - 1707).
First flag of the Honourable East India Company (1600 – 1707).

The English were first of the major European maritime powers of the 17th century to enter the East India trade. The English East India Company was founded in 1600 as The Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies. It gained a foothold in India in 1612 after the fourth Mughal Emperor Nur-ud-din Mohammad Salim, known by his imperial name Jahangir, granted it the rights to establish a factory or trading post, in the port of Surat on the western coast.

The Dutch East India Company
Flag of the Dutch East India Company (1602 - 1800)
Flag of the Dutch East India Company (1602 – 1800)

In 1602, the Dutch  established the Dutch East India Company or the United East India Company (Dutch: Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, VOC).   The States-General of the Netherlands granted the chartered company a 21-year monopoly to carry out trade activities in Asia.

Flag of the French East India Company's coat of arms. The motto reads FLOREBO QUOCUMQUE FERAR ('I will flourish wherever I will be brought')
Flag of the French East India Company’s coat of arms. The motto reads FLOREBO QUOCUMQUE FERAR (‘I will flourish wherever I will be brought’)

France was the last of the major European maritime powers of the 17th century to enter the East India trade. Six decades after founding the English and Dutch East India companies, and at a time when both companies were multiplying factories on the shores of India, the French still did not have a viable trading company or a single permanent establishment in the East.

In 1642, to revive commercial intercourse with the East, Cardinal Richelieu formed a new Company named “La Compagnie des Indes” for the sole purpose of trading in the Indies. Letters patent, dated June 24, 1642, accorded it privileges for 20 years. On December 4, 1642 Cardinal Richelieu died.

In 1664, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the Minister of Finances, restructured the Company and designated it as La Compagnie française des Indes Orientales (The French East India Company) to compete with the English (later British) and Dutch East India companies in the East Indies. He sent an expedition to Madagascar, discovered by Marco Polo in 1298, and then forgotten.

In 1667, the French East India Company sent out another expedition, under the command of François Caron. The French reached Surat in 1668 and established the first French factory in India. In 1673, the French acquired the area of Pondicherry from the Kiladar of Valikondapuram under the Sultan of Bijapur and thus laid the foundation of Pondichéry.

The French in Ceylon

François Caron had spent 30 years working for the Dutch East India Company, including more than 20 years in Japan. He suggested to Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the Minister of Finances that set a firm foot in India, it was necessary to capture some land and hold it in absolute possession. The captured place he said should be unassailable by the natives. Then they could use it as a stronghold for commercial operations with the inhabitants of the mainland. For this purpose, like Albuquerque, he favoured the occupation of the island of Ceylon, then partly occupied by the Dutch. He also pointed out the commercial advantages which France would gain by participating in the spice trade.

The war between King Louis XIV and Holland served as a pretext for the French to attack the Dutch in India and to make an attempt to get for themselves a slice of the wrecked Portuguese Empire.

When Colbert approved Caron’s project, a fleet under the command of Admiral de la Haye, a man with a bad reputation who had quit high civil employment to gratify his passion for warlike operations, was placed at the disposal of Caron to carry out his design.

French Capture Trincomalee

On March 21, 1672, Admiral de la Haye appeared before Batticaloa with a squadron of 14 ships. Seeing Batticaloa Fort well defended, he did not stop there. After saluting the Dutch flag, which salute was returned from the fort, he set sail for Trincomalee.

Having cast anchor in the Bay of Kottyar, Admiral de la Haye landed his troops there because he knew that Trincomalee belonged to the King of Kandy and not to the Dutch.

Overjoyed at the news of the landing of the French, King Rajasinghe II, conceived the plan of an alliance with them to drive out the Dutch.

On March 25, 1672, three days after the French landed in the Bay of Kottyar, King sent a high dignitary of his Court to Trincomalee to welcome Admiral de la Haye and enter into friendly relations with him.

Admiral de La Haye returned the compliment by sending to Kandy three officers, Dorgeret, de La Garde and Fontaine. King Rajasinghe II received them cordially. During the audience, he placed on the neck of each a rich chain of gold and presented them with swords and muskets of the finest Kandyan workmanship. Two of the officers remained in Kandy, the third returned to Trincomalee, accompanied by an ambassador who had full power of concluding with de la Haye a treaty to expel the Dutch from Ceylon.

The King’s ambassador was closely followed by a messenger bearing a Charter by which King Rajasinghe II gifted the Bay of Kottyar and of the surrounding territories to the French.

On May 17, 1672 they planted the French flag both at Kottyar and in Trincomalee taking possession of those places in the name of Louis XIV King of France and of Navarre.

Just when the French finished landing the guns necessary to defend the fortress, a Dutch fleet of 14 vessels under Commodore Rylackoffe van Goens, came in sight. The Dutch officer asked the French to evacuate Ceylon. Admiral de La Haye refused and prepared to defend Trincomalee and Kottyar, and he waited for  King Rajasinghe’s army to arrive to help him fight the Dutch. Thus, three weeks passed.

Meanwhile, the position of the French admiral was becoming more and more difficult. He did not have enough troops. Four hundred soldiers and sailors had become invalids. From some skirmishes with the Dutch, the admiral had already seen how little he could rely on the badly armed Kandyan troops.

The Dutch received reinforcements from Colombo. , Under these circumstances the French admiral deemed it more prudent to give up the contest, at least for the time being.

When the King requested Admiral de la Haye to remain in Ceylon, he replied that he would return soon with a larger army and in the meantime he was sending to Kandy, Monsieur de Laisne Nauclairs de Lanerolle who would stay at the King’s Court as ambassador of King Louis XIV, the King of France.

Admiral de la Haye weighed anchor on July 9, 1672, and the Dutch fleet positioned in battle order, saluted the French flag. Admiral de la Haye set sail for Mylapore, then known as St Thomé or San Thome, on the Coromandel coast. He left behind a few soldiers to guard the garrison at Trincomalee. The French soldiers who had been left behind, had no other alternative than to cede Trincomalee and the garrison to the Dutch fleet.

Monsieur de Laisne Nauclairs de Lanerolle

Nauclairs de Lanerolle was a worthless person. He was a Huguenot, a rabid protestantprotestant

Lanerolle’s conduct from the very beginning clearly showed that he had been ill-chosen to represent the interests of France in the Kingdom of Kandy. He made himself obnoxious to all by his stupid vanity.

It was the custom in Kandy that no one could pass in front of the royal palace except on foot. There was certainly nothing disparaging in it, a simple show of respect to the King. Lanerolle and his suite had to pass through that street to reach the quarters, which the King had allotted for him and his men. When asked, Lanerolle refused to dismount. Uttering profanity (words of contempt), he rode under the balcony of the King’s apartment. The rascal had forgotten that the French fleet was no longer in Trincomalee and that he was  at the absolute mercy of the King of Kandy. The King was much embittered by the Frenchman’s attitude, but pretended to ignore his bravado.

A few days later, Lanerolle and his men arrived at the palace. The Court dignitaries received them. It was the custom that every foreign envoy should await the royal audience for two hours.

Even though Lanerolle knew of this strange etiquette, yet after a few minutes expressed his surprise that the King did not appear. After having waited for about fifteen minutes, he exclaimed that it was an insult to leave him waiting so long, and left the hall. All the entreaties from the gentlemen of his suite had no effect. Some officials of the Court, wishing to avoid a scandal, tried to stop him. But when the vain Frenchman drew his sword, they let him go, and he returned to his quarters without having seen the King.

The King felt much offended, ordered Lanerolle to be seized and flogged until he fainted. After the flogging was over, Lanerolle and his men were put in chains and cast into prison.

The gentlemen of Lanerolle’s suite managed to explain that they did not approve the conduct of their Ambassador. They said that they had done all they could to prevent this stupid conduct of their Chief. When the Court officials corroborated to this fact, they were set free of the chains, but Lanerolle had to spend six months in prison in chains. After that, there was no more chance of their return to France, and they were kept prisoners in Kandy.

They were supposed to be maintained at the King’s expense, but in reality they were so neglected that in order not to starve, they distilled arrack and sold it to the natives. They bitterly reproached to Lanerolle to have been the cause of their distress, and scandalous quarrels arose among them.distilled arrack and sold it to the natives. They bitterly reproached to Lanerolle to have been the cause of their distress, and scandalous quarrels arose among them.

Such was the state of things when Robert Knox came to Kandy.

Nauclairs de Lanerolle, remained in Kandy. He married and settled there and later gained some influence at the King’s Court. He tried to influence some Catholics to embrace Calvinism, among them being the family of the relative of Antonio Sottomayor who had befriended Joseph Vaz.

Joseph Vaz arrested at Weuda

Joseph Vaz hoped to make Maha Nuwara, the capital of the Kingdom of Kandy, the centre of his future missionary activities.

In August 1692 after his apostolate of one year and nine months in the Puttalam area, Joseph Vaz along with his servant John and his new acquaintance Antonio Sottomayor left for Maha Nuwara, the capital of the Kingdom of Kandy, ruled by King Vimaladharmasurya II, who had succeeded his father, King Rajasinghe II.

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Puttalam to Kandy via Weuda
Puttalam to Kandy via Weuda

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The distance between Puttalam and Kandy is about 82 miles (132 km). On their way, they had to pass through the village named Weuda situated 18 miles from Kandy. Weuda was an important check-post before entering the capital. In this village, Antonio Sottomayor had a house and was staying there with his family. It took them about eight days to walk from Puttalam to Weuda.

Leaving Joseph Vaz and John with his family, Sottomayor went to Kandy to get the visa for the priest to enter the city. Meanwhile, Vaz started preaching to Sottomayor’s family and their neighbors.

Antonio Sottomayor was not aware that  Nauclairs de Lanerolle had converted his relative to Calvinism. As soon as the French Huguenot, learned that Sottomayor wanted to bring a Catholic priest into Kandy he went to the King’s court. He told the king that Antonio Sottomayor was trying to help a Portuguese spy to enter Kandy in the garb of a Priest.

The king directed his soldiers to arrest Sottomayor first and then go to Weuda and bring the priest and his servant staying in his house.

Joseph Vaz and John bound in chains were taken to the Capital by the king’s soldiers. Charged as Portuguese spies, they were incarcerated along with Sottomayor in the “Maha Hiragé” (“Great prison”).

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Next → Part  9:   The Apostle of Sri Lanka in Prison in Kandy

← Previous: Part  7 – The Apostle of Sri Lanka in Puttalam

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