Government
Verified until 03 Apr 2027
The archival tradition in Sri Lanka dates back to the rule of local kings, but the state archives from that era did not survive. From the sixteenth century, parts of the island were conquered by the Portuguese, who later destroyed their records. The Dutch then captured the maritime provinces from the Portuguese between 1638 and 1658. When the British took over the coastal territories in 1796, they acquired the Dutch records.
