Culture
  The cultural heritage and traditions of the diverse people living in Sri Lanka are an active part of everday life. Buddhists, Christians, Hindus and Muslims each express their individual, religously governed ways of life. Many know that the majority community, the Buddhist-Singhalese, possess a written history of more than two thousand and three hundred years, chronicled in the Mahavansa and Chulavansa. The ruins from the ancient capital cities are astounding.  
 
While the first great cities were located in the rice-growing north- central region of the country, by the 18th century, the principal king held court in Kandy, a picturesque hill-bound valley, which fell to conquering British forces in 1815. By that time however, two other European nations had left their imprint- in culture, language and religion on the northern and western regions of Sri Lanka. The Portuguese came first, bringing with them the legacy of the Roman Catholic religion and its own culture, which was quickly adopted by the western coastal belt of the country.
Sri Wickrama rajasinghe, The last king of Sri Lanka
The Dutch followed, persecuting Catholics and building fortress bound centers on the coastal belt. Many Dutch period buildings still remain along the southwest coast.

Taking over the entire country in 1815, the British changed the course of history of Sri Lanka. The ambitious colonists set up large plantations, first coffee, then when it failed, tea, rubber and coconut. They built roads, railway, schools, hospitals and cities. By 1948, when the British finally granted Independence to Sri Lanka the country had a fully fledged import/ export economy and was tipped to be the fastest developing country in Asia.