{"id":68790,"date":"2021-07-10T10:56:44","date_gmt":"2021-07-10T10:56:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/?p=68790"},"modified":"2021-07-10T10:56:44","modified_gmt":"2021-07-10T10:56:44","slug":"the-conquista-a-book-on-sri-lankas-portuguese-period-by-avishka-mario-senewiratne","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/the-conquista-a-book-on-sri-lankas-portuguese-period-by-avishka-mario-senewiratne\/","title":{"rendered":"The Conquista: A Book on Sri Lanka\u2019s Portuguese Period-by Avishka Mario Senewiratne"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Conquista: A Book on Sri Lanka\u2019s Portuguese Period-by Avishka Mario Senewiratne<\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

\"Fr<\/p>\n

Fr SG Perera who translated the work of Queiros<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Source:<\/span><\/strong>Thuppahis<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

In an island nation which has more than two thousand five hundred years of written history, no book has provided a more detailed account of any period of Sri Lanka\u2019s history than the\u00a0Temporal and Spiritual Conquest of Ceylon<\/strong><\/em>[1]<\/a>\u00a0authored by the Jesuit Father Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz.<\/strong>[2]<\/a>\u00a0This work covered the 150 years of Portuguese involvement in Ceylon. Ironically, this 17th<\/sup>\u00a0century Jesuit Priest, had never visited the island of which he was researching and writing in the final two decades of life. This brief essay gives an overview of Queyroz the Historian, his cause and objective, the long and eventful delay of his work in reaching its readers, the controversy around it in the early 20th<\/sup>\u00a0Century and its splendid translation by Fr. Simon Gregory Perera of the same Society.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0Paul E. Pieris<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

According to Sir Paul E. Pieris,<\/strong>\u00a0it is \u201cno exaggeration to say that to the student of the history of Ceylon the \u2018Conquista\u2019 is surpassed in value only by the great Sinhalese chronicle, the Mah\u0101wa\u1e43sa.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0The general public came to know of this document more than two centuries after it was written when questions arose with the publication of the highly popular, Ceylon, The Portuguese Era\u00a0<\/em>by Sir Paul E. Pieris in 1913-14.<\/span><\/p>\n

The allegation of failing to give due recognition to a lesser-known ancient source on the part of scholars like Fr. S.G. Perera brought to light the existence of the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>. Previously in May 1907, the renowned historian, Donald Ferguson, read his research article, titled\u00a0\u201cThe Discovery of Ceylon by the Portuguese in 1506<\/em>\u201d[4]<\/a>\u00a0to the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. This was to prove that the discovery took place in 1506 and not 1505.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

However, Paul Pieris responded to this by saying that the greatest Portuguese historian, Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz, would contest Ferguson\u2019s contention.[5]<\/a>\u00a0Ferguson replied that this work was inaccessible to him and pointed out that Pieris did neither quote that author nor supply proper information about the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>.[6]<\/a>\u00a0Ferguson concluded his reply by inviting Pieris to print this work with a full translation. Pieris who seemed to have no intention of printing or translating it was rather engaged in compiling his book on the Portuguese Era by summarising the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0with a free hand.[7]<\/a>\u00a0 Scholars who came to know about Pieris\u2019 possession of a\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0manuscript were anxious to know more about it, but Pieris would not reveal its content.<\/span><\/p>\n

A series of articles Pieris wrote to the\u00a0Royal Asiatic Journal<\/em>\u00a0in subsequent years[8]<\/a>, created much controversy when he was accused of somewhat plagiarising Queyroz, by freely translating the Portuguese manuscript that he owned. The young Jesuit brother S.G. Perera played a major role in exposing these faults, causing much hostility in Peiris. Even though the Royal Asiatic Society continued asking Pieris to either publish the work or let the Society do so, he failed to respond to these requests. However, after Pieris finally published his book in 1913-14, the necessity to publish\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0became evident as scholars and the\u00a0readers wanted to know how fairly Pieris perused the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>, which he claimed in his introduction to be his primary source<\/strong>.<\/strong>[9]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The Ceylon Government, after being pressurised by Armond de Souza of the\u00a0Morning Leader<\/em>, purchased the manuscript from Pieris and requested him to publish it himself. Thus, in 1916, the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0was published for the first time in Ceylon. However, it was in its original language, in Portuguese, which was of less help to history students and scholars who did not read Portuguese. However, the fact that a work of a bygone historian was being published in the same language, 229 years after being written is the greatest tribute a historian can be accorded.<\/span><\/p>\n

Queyroz, the Author of the\u00a0Conquista<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

One might wonder about the reason for this book to be written by some elderly priest who had never visited the island nation in question.<\/strong>\u00a0Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz was born in 1617 in Northern Portugal. He joined the Society of Jesus in 1631, at the young age of 13. After leaving Lisbon in April 1635, he arrived in Cochin, India in November the same year.[10]<\/a>\u00a0This was the time the Portuguese were slowly losing their dominance in the East due to the superior sea power of the Dutch. Queyroz was well read in Greek-Roman history and at one time, taught in the College in Cochin, while still going through his Jesuit training. However, unlike his folks at home, he didn\u2019t experience the renewal of humanities and philosophy through the Renaissance, which reached Portugal only after he arrived in India. After his arrival in Goa, he served as Rector in several institutions, a Superior in the professed house of\u00a0Bom Jesus<\/em>, Goa and a Parish Priest for a brief period in a Brahmin community of Salsette. He would then serve as the Provincial of Goa, which was the highest Jesuit Authority in India. During his years of administration, he acquired a wealth of knowledge and had a reputation of being a very talented writer and an eloquent preacher. However, he was a humble presbyter, who once rejected his nomination to be the Patriarch of Ethiopia,[11]<\/a>\u00a0in accordance with the special vow that the Jesuits take.\u00a0Among the many works he compiled as a reputable writer, only a few letters and the biography of Pedro de Basto have survived today apart from the\u00a0Conquista<\/em><\/strong>.[12]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Pedro de Basto (<\/strong>died 1645) was a Jesuit Lay brother, who had lived in Cochin displaying saintly qualities and was known for his visions and prophesies. After his demise his admirers clamoured for a biography.\u00a0To satisfy this request, the Jesuits in Cochin, gathered all letters, diaries and writings of Basto together with notes of his visions and testimonies.\u00a0However, before the work began, Cochin was captured by the Dutch and all these sources were sent to Goa and were placed into\u00a0the hands of Fr. Queyroz.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0While undertaking the task to document the biography, Queyroz noticed the brothers\u2019 repeated mention of the island of Ceylon. He curiously studied these references and noticed that some of the defeats the Portuguese faced were mentioned by Basto even before they occurred. What surprised him most was the end of Portuguese occupation in Ceylon being announced even before it occurred.[13]<\/a>\u00a0Basto attributed the fall of Portuguese Ceylon to the Dutch to the many evils the Portuguese had committed. Queyroz too was deeply upset by the menacing behavior of his fellow Portuguese, lamented it and would say it was the wrath of God that caused this fall.[14]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Sources used by Queyroz<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Queyroz who was urged to investigate further on Ceylon, came across a host of sources. Soon, by the early 1670s he\u00a0 \u00a0had fully embarked on a serious study of the Portuguese period in Ceylon. Queiroz starts his work by saying,\u00a0\u201cOf all the great and lamentable losses and ruins of the Portuguese State in the East Indies, the greatest and the most painful in the opinion of all well qualified to judge was the loss of the island of\u00a0Ceylon.\u201d[15]\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>While lamenting the loss of Ceylon, Queyroz hoped that the Portuguese would one day recapture it from the Dutch (Brother Basto had prophesised this as well, though such an occurrence never took place) and put an end to the Dutch \u00a0persecution of Catholics. Thus, the main motive that led Queyroz to write the Conquista was propagation of the faith. He wished to strengthen the minds of his fellow countrymen and recount to them the triumphs and brutal practices attributed to them during their stay in Ceylon, so that they would one day recapture Ceylon and strive by all means to prevent a recurrence of their former evils and govern for the welfare and happiness of both Ceylonese and Portuguese.<\/span><\/p>\n

During this time, only the early years of Portuguese rule had been documented and printed by contemporary historians. Those were the works of Joa\u00f3 de Barros, Diego do Couto and Faria de Souza. Queyroz was not satisfied with these publications and extended his research to unpublished manuscripts and testimonies of first-hand witnesses. As this was a little more than a decade after the Portuguese defeat in Ceylon, there were plenty of people still alive who had been part of this history. The Franciscan friars in Ceylon were the most significant group of sources for this endeavour. As Fr. S.G. Perera says, \u201cThese friars had penetrated into every nook and corner of island: they had lived in the courts of the Sinhalese kings of Kotte and Kandy, and they had been present as chaplains at almost every battle\u201d.[16]<\/a>Among his findings, the most prominent one was the two-volume history of Portuguese in Ceylon by Fr. Francisco Negrao[17]<\/a>, who lived in Ceylon for many years as a missionary. However, one major shortcoming\u00a0 \u00a0in Queyroz was that all his sources were from the Portuguese side and did not include written Sinhala or Tamil sources. One can easily assert that the way Queyroz had written on the Sinhala social customs, the myths and castes were based on oral sources. According to Prof. Tikiri Abeysinghe, \u201c\u2026no other seventeenth-century work on Sri Lanka, except Robert Knox\u2019s\u00a0Historical Relation<\/em>, contains as much anthropological material as Queyroz\u2019s\u00a0History<\/em>\u201d.[18]<\/a>\u00a0He researched well enough to access eyewitness accounts of Portuguese soldier and magistrate, Bento da Silva, who had documented events upto the death of King Wimaladharmas\u016briya I. Queyroz also managed to interview a Dutchman who gave him much information of Dutch garrisons in the east of Ceylon.<\/span><\/p>\n

When writing the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>,\u00a0the influences [on] Queyroz were two-fold.\u00a0The first was the Portuguese historiographical tradition. This gave rise to the epic style of the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0and missionary imperialism of the Portuguese. The second was the Catholic historiographical tradition, which was established in the 4th<\/sup>\u00a0Century by Eusebius.\u00a0This prompted Queyroz to think that all historical occurrences were the unbidding will of God being manifested on Earth<\/strong>.[19]<\/a>\u00a0Though a Portuguese, Queyroz never hid the misdoings of his countrymen in Ceylon. His style of being independent and not yielding to personal prejudices must be appreciated. This is a quality of a good historian.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Siege of Galle Fort depicted in Baldeaus, 1672<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Some Deficiencies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Fr. S.G. Perera gives a comprehensive list of sources Queyroz used and these sources were plentiful. This made him squeeze in all the facts and figures found in his sources into the compilation. On some occasions Queyroz did this without proper analysis and assessment. This caused\u00a0repetitions of facts that contradicted each other<\/strong>. One such example was the two dates given for Yamasingha Bandara\u2019s ascension to the throne.[20]<\/a>\u00a0Which had a five-year difference! Another was that at one place it mentions that King R\u0101jasinghe of Sit\u0101waka died aged 59 after a 16-year reign. In another place it states that he died at 63 after reigning for 40 years.[21]<\/a>\u00a0A major flaw of Queyroz is his lack of statistical analysis.<\/strong>\u00a0On many occasions he records the number of troops rounded off to hundreds and also gives contradictory numbers. Scholars have claimed that they were \u201cguesstimates\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1687, Queyroz finally completed his manuscript which consisted of six books<\/strong>. The first book gives details on the geography, demographics, social life and practices, the faiths of Ceylon. The second book begins with the landing of Don Louren\u04abo de Almeida and the subsequent years of the Portuguese penetrating Ceylon. The next three books give a continuous story of the Portuguese and Ceylon connections, conflicts and affairs. The details of Governors with the Sinhala Kings and Tamil Kings along with major rebellions and battles have been well dealt with in these books.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a0<\/a>Azavedo<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Queyroz has focused this segment by highlighting three Portuguese officials. They are, Dom Jer\u00f3nimo de Azevedo (Captain-General,1594-1612), Constantino da S\u00e1 de Noronha (Captain General, 1618-21,1623-30) and Phillipe de Oliveiro (Captain-Major of Jaffna 1619-27).<\/strong>\u00a0Book five begins with the Dutch attempts to conquer Ceylon and the 25 years of Portuguese-Dutch battles, until the fall of the Portuguese occupation.<\/span><\/p>\n

The final book,<\/strong>\u00a0is a departure from the other five as it gives instead of a narration of history,\u00a0a sermon like assessment of the Portuguese in Ceylon.<\/strong>\u00a0Hardly six months after the manuscript was completed, Queyroz passed away in Goa, aged 71 in 1688, after serving 53 years in the East.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Roaming Manuscript\u2019s Arrival in Ceylon<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Though this comprehensive work was completed, it never was printed for two hundred years. After the death of Queyroz, the manuscript was ready for printing by 1692, but instead, went from hand to hand without any success. Finally, it ended up in the collection of the Portuguese King\u2019s library. When Napol\u00e9on invaded Portugal in 1807, Prince John of Portugal, the regent, fled to the richest Portuguese colony, Brazil along with his collection of books. When King John VI returned back to Portugal, he donated his collection, including the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0to the National Library of Rio de Janeiro. In 1844, the Historical and Geographical Society of Rio formally copied the manuscript to their library catalogues. In 1885, a Jesuit priest in Belgium started to compile a bibliography index of Jesuits and quite appropriately included the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>. During this time the Jesuit Provincial of Belgium was Fr. Joseph Van Reeth SJ. In 1895, Fr. Van Reeth was made Bishop of the newly form Diocese of Galle and arrived in Ceylon with Fr. Joseph Cooreman SJ, the first Vicar General of Galle[22]<\/a>. Fr. Cooreman, who had a copy of this index, quite fortunately spotted the reference to Ceylon, \u2018the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u2019. He wasted no time and met Msgr. Ladislaus Zaleski, the Papal Nuncio, who resided in Ampitiya, Kandy[23]<\/a>and disclosed this valuable information. Msgr. Zaleski, a lover of Ceylon and its history had a vast collection of Ceylon Books in his library and impatiently obtained a copy of the manuscript from Rio.[24]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Coming to know of the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0through Fr. Cooreman, Paul E. Pieris, of the Ceylon Civil Service, requested Msgr. Zaleski for a copy of it, but this request was declined for reasons not known. With the assistance of Bernard Quaritch, Pieris purchased a manuscript copy from Rio and used it for many of his works. After Pieris published an exact Portuguese version in 1916, the Ceylon Government requested him to translate the work to English. He, who was accused of a free usage of the\u00a0Conquista\u00a0<\/em>in other works, declined the offer. Through the intervention of John M. Seneviratne, the editor of the\u00a0Ceylon Antiquary and Literary Register<\/em>, the Government offered, the newly ordained Jesuit, Fr. S.G. Perera to do the translation.[25]<\/a>\u00a0At that time Fr. Perera, who was in Lisbon researching in the archives on the pioneer Jesuit fathers, reluctantly accepted the invitation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Msgr. Zaleski had left Ceylon during this time. However, he had donated his valuable copy to the Papal Seminary which was then in Ampitiya a suburb of Kandy. After obtaining this copy from the Seminary Rector, and referring to Pieris\u2019 1916 version[26]<\/a>, Fr. Perera engaged himself for more than a decade in translating what would be his\u00a0magnum opus<\/em>. The task was a labour of love and dedication. One must remember that Fr. Perera was never a professional historian, but the legend was that having served as a clerk in the British administration before joining the Jesuits he had developed a sixth sense to discern the genuine from the spurious in old deeds and\u00a0tombus.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Fr Zaleski\u00a0\u00a0\"\"<\/a>\u00a0Fr Cooreman<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

It was later as a Jesuit involved in active ministry in schools and the administration in the Diocese of Galle that he was able to produce a classic translation of the\u00a0Conquista\u00a0<\/em>in 1930. Scholars like the Portuguese, Fr. Jos\u00e9 Pereira Dias SJ, Fr. S. Gnana Prakasar O.M.I. of Jaffna, H.W. Codrington had assisted Fr. Perera in bringing out this translation. The indexing of the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0was done by the students of St. Aloysius\u2019 College, Galle, where Fr. Perera taught, along with Fr. Peter de Silva SJ. The proof-reading was diligently done by Fr. M.H. Soden SJ.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the translation was published in 1930, the reviews it received were highly positive. Both scholars and critics considered it a genuine masterpiece. In the review appearing in the\u00a0Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain<\/em>, Fr. Perera was praised for his skills in languages, his quality in keeping the originality of the work and for being so diligent that only a few minor mistakes were present in the 3-volume book.[27]<\/a>\u00a0This version has seen at least five reprints up to now and is considered to b e a classic source of Ceylon History and a work that all students of history are bound to peruse. []<\/span><\/p>\n

A Note from the Editor\u00a0V\u0101gdev\u012b<\/em>, Fr. Aloy Pieris SJ:\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cThe author is a 22-year-old Student Commercial Pilot, Colombo Airport, Ratmalana and an Undergraduate from the University of West Scotland. He is also the Author of\u00a0Till the Mountains Disappear: The Story of St. Joseph\u2019s College<\/em>\u00a0(2020).\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0END NOTES<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

[1]<\/a>\u00a0Originally,\u00a0Conquista Temporal e Espiritual de Ceyla\u00f5<\/em>, consisted of 168 chapters over 1054 pages.<\/span><\/p>\n

[2]<\/a>\u00a0Sometimes spelt\u00a0Queyros, Queyroz<\/em>\u00a0or\u00a0Queiroz<\/em>. I will be using \u2018Queyroz\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

[3]<\/a>\u00a0Pieris, P.E. ed. (1916)\u00a0Conquista<\/em>, Government Press, Introduction, p. III.<\/span><\/p>\n

[4]<\/a>\u00a0Ferguson, Donald (1907) \u201cThe Discovery of Ceylon by the Portuguese in 1506.\u201d,\u00a0The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland<\/em>, Vol. 19, no. 59, pp. 284-385.<\/span><\/p>\n

[5]<\/a>\u00a0Ibid, p.393.<\/span><\/p>\n

[6]<\/a>\u00a0Ibid, p.399.<\/span><\/p>\n

[7]<\/a>\u00a0I acknowledge and thank Prof. C.R. de Silva for his explanation on this.<\/span><\/p>\n

[8]<\/a>\u00a0See Pieris, P.E. (1911) \u201cThe Rebellion of Edirille Rala, 1594-1596.\u201d,\u00a0The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland<\/em>, Vol. 22, no. 64, pp 168-193<\/span><\/p>\n

[9]<\/a>\u00a0Pieris, P.E. (1913)\u00a0Ceylon, The Portuguese Era<\/em>, Colombo, (reprinted Tisara Press, 1992), p. xiii.<\/span><\/p>\n

[10]<\/a>\u00a0See Perera SJ, S.G. (1917) \u201cThe \u2018Conquista de Ceyla\u00f5\u2019 by Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz.\u201d\u00a0The Ceylon Antiquary and Literary Register<\/em>, p163.<\/span><\/p>\n

[11]<\/a>\u00a0Ibid.<\/span><\/p>\n

[12]<\/a>\u00a0In 1664, the Jesuit College of St. Paul, where Queyroz was residing caught fire. In order to save the manuscripts of other works, one lay brother rushed to the room of Queyroz, only to discover the biography of Basto left. Queyroz considered this a miracle.\u00a0\u201cHistoria da Vida do venerare Irma Pedro de Basto\u201d<\/em>\u00a0was published in Lisbon 1691 circa.<\/span><\/p>\n

[13]<\/a>\u00a0See Queiroz SJ, F. (1930) The Temporal and Spiritual Conquest of Ceylon<\/em>, Colombo (translated by Fr. S.G. Perera SJ), p.9*<\/span><\/p>\n

[14]<\/a>\u00a0Arsaratnam, S. (1961) \u201cKeystones of Ceylon History\u201d,\u00a0Journal of the Dutch Burgher Union of Ceylon<\/em>, p.57.<\/span><\/p>\n

[15]<\/a>\u00a0 Queyroz, F. (1930)\u00a0op. cit<\/em>., pIX.<\/span><\/p>\n

[16]<\/a>\u00a0Perera SJ, S.G. (1926) \u201cDe Queyroz\u2019s Conquista De Ceilao\u201d, Blue and White<\/em>, p.100.<\/span><\/p>\n

[17]<\/a>\u00a0This work was never printed and the manuscript has been lost.<\/span><\/p>\n

[18]<\/a>\u00a0Abeysinghe, Tikiri (1980) \u201cHistory as Polemics and Propaganda: An Examination of Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz, \u2018History of Ceylon\u2019, The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Sri Lanka Branch<\/em>, Vol.25, p.41.<\/span><\/p>\n

[19]<\/a>\u00a0See Ibid, pp.29-30, 33-34.<\/span><\/p>\n

[20]<\/a>\u00a0Queyroz, F. (1930)\u00a0op. cit<\/em>., pp.444-445, 707<\/span><\/p>\n

[21]<\/a>\u00a0Ibid, pp.469, 521-522, 707<\/span><\/p>\n

[22]<\/a>\u00a0See Perniola SJ, V. (2004)\u00a0Catholic Church in Sri Lanka, The British Period, Vol. IX<\/em>, Tisara Press, pp.141-142.<\/span><\/p>\n

[23]<\/a>\u00a0See Senewiratne, A.M. (2020) Till the Mountains Disappear, The Story of St. Joseph\u2019s College<\/em>, pp.13-14.<\/span><\/p>\n

[24]<\/a>\u00a0Msgr. Zaleski, who wrote many books under various pseudonyms, used the\u00a0Conquista<\/em>\u00a0to write his\u00a0\u201cLe Christianisme a Ceylan\u2019<\/em>\u00a0in 1900. The pseudonym he used for this work was Peter Courtenay.<\/span><\/p>\n

[25]<\/a>\u00a0Queyroz, F. (1930)\u00a0op. cit<\/em>., p.3*.<\/span><\/p>\n

[26]<\/a>\u00a0The working copy of Fr. S.G. Perera has been safely preserved at the S.G. Perera Library, Tulana.<\/span><\/p>\n

[27]<\/a>\u00a0W.H.M. (1931) \u201cReviewed Work: The Temporal and Spiritual Conquest of Ceylon by Ferna\u00f3 de Queyroz, P.E. Pieris, S.G. Perera\u201d,\u00a0The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland<\/em>, pp.880-882.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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