Sigiriya Castle, also known as the Lion Castle, was built on a huge rock. The castle, which has an impressive appearance, also has a very rich culture in terms of history. The fort is located in the Northern Matale region of Sri Lanka. Built by the king of the period, the castle was built as a base for protection. Equipped with various structures, the castle has a unique beauty that will fascinate those who see it. The ancient fort, which has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1982, is one of Sri Lanka’s most famous tourist destinations.
Structural Features of Sigiriya Castle
Standing alone on a very wide plain, the rock has a height of 200 meters from the ground. Surrounded by ditches, the rock has an impressive landscaping. Aslankaya name; It is named after the lion figures on it. The castle has a very large entrance gate and above this gate is a huge lion statue. Only the foot parts of the lion statue remain today.
There are water ditches on the plains around the castle, which dates back to the 4th century. At that time, crocodiles lived in the water ditches, which were not known exactly how they were built. For this reason, as it was almost impossible to cross these ditches, the castle was used as a very sheltered base.
There are stairs made with suspension bridges around the castle. It is quite difficult to get to the castle using the stairs with 1200 close steps. The impressive view on the rock, which is reached as a result of a difficult climb, is worth the difficulties. On the rock with the ruins of the palace; There are wall paintings made by using madder, mirror rock, and pools fed by rain water. The paintings in the castle are thought to be 1600 years old. A different structure was revealed by applying various oils on some rocks. The castle was used as a Buddhist Monastery until the 14th century. A peaceful atmosphere prevails in the abundant greenery where all the king’s living spaces can be seen.
The Interesting Story That Caused the Castle to Be Built
According to the ancient Sri Lankan Culavamsa chronicles, the area was chosen as the capital city by King Kasyapa. According to the story told about the castle; The king of the country had a son named Kasyapa from a concubine who was a dancer. The King, who later married a nobleman, had a son named Rupala. Before the king died, he left the throne to the nobleman Rupala. On top of that, the general of the period provoked Kasyapa to rebel.
Kasyapa, who acted together with the general, killed his father by making a coup. His brother Rupala fled to South India. Because of these actions, Kasyapa received a great reaction from the public. At the same time, his brother Rupala went with many people while he was running away, and it is predicted that one day he will return and take revenge. With this fear, the King had the castle and palace built on this huge rock.
After a while, indeed, his younger brother came back with his army. The two armies met and carried out a great field battle. King Kasyapa, who was fighting on the elephant, came in front of a large swamp and he maneuvered to avoid falling into the swamp and returned. When it was thought that the king was afraid and ran away, the king committed suicide there and ended his life. After the death of the king, the capital and the royal palace were abandoned and this magnificent structure was used as a Buddhist Monastery.
