The Ceylonese was an English-language newspaper in Ceylon founded by P. Ramanathan and other leading figures.[1][2] The newspaper started on 5 March 1913 with Americans H. H. Marcus as manager and Tom Wright as editor.[3] The paper was based at Tichborne Hall, Tichborne Avenue in Maradana, Colombo.[2] The paper's other directors included Hector Alfred Jayewardene and Francis de Zoysa.[4] The paper was editorially nationalistic and was run like an American newspaper, a contrast to other Ceylonese papers which were run according to the British model.[5][6]
Ramanthan used the paper to promote his candidature for the Educated Ceylonese seat in the Legislative Council of Ceylon.[7] During the 1911 election the de Soysa family had used their paper, The Morning Leader, to attack Ramanthan so that their relative Marcus Fernando would win the election.[8] This tactic failed with Ramanthan defeating Fernando by 1,645 votes to 981 votes.[9][10]
After some time differences arose between the paper's directors and Ramanathan resigned from the board of directors.[5] The remaining directors and shareholders continued to use the paper to promote their own interests.[11] World War I also impacted on the paper - there was war-time censorship and the cost of newsprint, ink, types and machinery soared.[11] The paper faced serious financial problems - it was making a loss and had large debts.[11] F. R. Senanayake issued a writ to auction the paper's assets in order to recover a Rs. 21,000 loan.[2][6] As a result, the paper ceased publication in late 1917.[4][12]
D. R. Wijewardena saw The Ceylonese's demise as an opportunity to grow his fledgling media empire.[13] The auction for the paper's assets took place in December 1917.[6] At the auction Senanayake and his brother D. S. Senanayake asked Wijewardena to make a bid of Rs. 21,000, the amount of the writ, but bidding was slow.[6] Wijewardena was able to buy the paper's plant and goodwill with a bid of Rs. 16,000.[6][13] He also paid off the remainder of mortgage held by F. R. Senanayake.[6] Wijewardena subsequently started the Ceylon Daily News on 3 January 1918 using The Ceylonese assets.[1][14]
^ abPeebles 2015, p. 390.
^ abcEdirisinghe, Padma (20 September 2010). "Ghostly beginnings of a famous newspaper". Daily News (Sri Lanka).
^Vythilingam 1977, p. 88.
^ abWijewardena, D. R. (22 February 1998). "It was difficult and dangerous". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
^ abVythilingam 1977, p. 89.
^ abcdefWijewardena, D. R. (23 February 1997). "The birth of a Newspaper". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
^Gunaratne, Shelton A. (2 November 2015). "Prairie Awards To Wijewardene Clan For Fostering Lankan Journalism". Colombo Telegraph.
^Vythilingam 1977, pp. 86–87.
^Ramanathan, P. (2 January 2000). "One of the "greatest" Ceylonese". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
^Sabaratnam, T. "Chapter 16: The Arunachalam Factor". The Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle.
^ abcVythilingam 1977, p. 90.
^Peebles 2015, p. 250.
^ abVythilingam 1977, p. 91.
^Perera, Miran (23 February 2007). "Lake House and D. R. Wijewardene: The informative and the pragmatist". Daily News (Sri Lanka).
TheCeylonese was an English-language newspaper in Ceylon founded by P. Ramanathan and other leading figures. The newspaper started on 5 March 1913 with...
The Malaysian Ceylonese Congress (MCC; Malay: Kongres Ceylonese Malaysia, Tamil: மலேசிய சிலோனீஸ் காங்கிரஸ், Sinhala: මැලේසියානු ලංකා කොන්ග්රසය) is a...
and the sciences flourished during the medieval period in the court of the Jaffna Kingdom. Since the beginning of the Sri Lankan Civil War in the 1980s...
The second election to the State Council of Ceylon was held from 22 February to 7 March 1936. The first State Council was dissolved on 7 December 1935...
Mudali) was a Ceylonese colonial title during Portuguese and British rule of the island. Stemming from the native headman system, the title was usually...
Under the British Empire, imperial units became the official units of measurement and remained so until Sri Lanka adopted the metric system in the 1970s...
Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian peninsula by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. It shares...
1931 the Donoughmore Constitution replaced the Legislative Council of Ceylon with the State Council of Ceylon as the legislature of British Ceylon. The State...
Singapore, that the term "Ceylonese" and "Jaffnese" were popularly used by the Sri Lankan Tamils to differentiate themselves from the larger Malaysian...
The Parliament of Ceylon was the legislative body of British Ceylon & Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1947 by the Soulbury Constitution...
The male often broods during the day, while both parents share the duty during the night. After the chick fledges, the male destroys the nest. The parents...
This is a demography of the population of Sri Lanka including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the population, economic status...
"rupee". Sterling became Ceylon's official currency in 1825, replacing theCeylonese rixdollar at a rate of £1 = 13+1⁄3 rixdollars, and British silver coins...
Belontia signata, theCeylonese combtail, is a species of gourami endemic to Sri Lanka. This species inhabits shallow, slow-flowing clear-water streams...
Sinhala. Ceylonese appointees to the privy council included D. S. Senanayake and Sir John Kotelawala. The Honourable The Much Honoured The Most Honourable...
The High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to India is the Sri Lankan envoy to India. Countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Nations typically exchange High...
forces. The election occurs under the Sri Lankan form of the contingent vote. Responsible to Parliament for the exercise of duties under the constitution...
English (SLE) is the English language as it is used in Sri Lanka, a term dating from 1972. Sri Lankan English is principally categorised as the Standard Variety...
The Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Soviet Union was the Sri Lankan envoy in Moscow (Ulitsa Shepkhina 24, Soviet Union) with concurrent, nonresident Diplomatic...
TheCeylonese cylinder snake (Cylindrophis maculatus) is a species of snake in the family Cylindrophiidae endemic to Sri Lanka. It is known from plains...
The Sri Lankan high commissioner to Canada is the Sri Lankan envoy to Canada. Countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Nations typically exchange high...
the first time, Ceylonese units were deployed outside Ceylon in formation until the Cocos Islands Mutiny after which deployment overseas of Ceylonese...
1872), Ceylonese lawyer Dharmasiri Bandaranayake (born 1949), Sri Lankan film director and playwright Felix Dias Bandaranaike (1930–1985), Ceylonese politician...
theCeylonese electorate. Four unofficial members were to be selected through an election and the remainder would be appointed by the Governor. The two...
Due to the Tamil tradition of using patronymic surnames it may also be a surname for males and females. C. Nagalingam (1893–1958), Ceylonese judge and...
(1938–2011), Sri Lankan soldier and politician Barnes Ratwatte (1883–1957), Ceylonese colonial-era legislator and a headman Barnes Ratwatte II (1918–2004),...
Alvis) is a Sinhalese surname derived from the Portuguese surname Alves. Albert L. De Alwis Seneviratne, Ceylonese politician Amali de Alwis (born 1980),...
attributed to a local Ceylonese builder, P. K. Appuhami, in consultation with British engineers. The chief designer and project manager of the 'Upcountry Railway...
Global Information