Galle: A European Colonial City

The Portuguese built this port and city for their spice trade. Portugal  ruled Sri Lanka from 1505 to 1655, followed by the Dutch until 1769, and the Britain until independence in 1948. The stained glass, from the museum of Anthropology and Geography in Lisbon, shows  four prominent Portuguese colonies. portugesecolonies.jpg (53768 bytes)

In the photo below, what features of the settlement are typically European? 
Why was the town fortified?

Answers:
European features: church with steeple, house types, baroque fortifications, peninsular site.
Fortification:  the local population knew that the European traders came for their own benefits at the cost of the local economy and well-being.

 

Created by Ingolf Vogeler on 1 February 1996; last revised on 07 March 2005.