Polonnaruwa
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How it came to be
Polonnaruwa began as a military post of the Sinhalese kingdom. After Anuradhapura was destroyed in 993 it became Sri Lanka's second capital. The Cholas of south India renamed the city Jananathamangalam, and Rajaraja I built the Shiva temple now called Siva Devale.
In 1070 Vijayabahu I took the city after a seven-month siege, ending Chola rule on the island. In the 12th century, under Parakramabahu I, trade and farming flourished and the city was laid out as a garden city. The great reservoir Parakrama Samudra is tied to the irrigation works of his reign.
After his successor Nissankamalla I, weaker kings followed and married into south Indian royal houses. In 1214 the warlord Kalinga Magha invaded and burned Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. The ancient city was inscribed in 1982.
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