Exploring Galle Fort, Galle, Sri Lanka

"Rows of houses with their narrow sides facing the streets and verandas shaded by high overhanging roofs supported on slender columns create distinctive streetscapes. … an architecture which is European only in its basic design." - UNESCO World Heritage Site listing

Galle Fort is not only, as the name suggests, a fortification; it holds within its ramparts a beautifully preserved/restored colonial town. It has been inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as:

"an outstanding example of an urban ensemble which illustrates the interaction of European architecture and South Asian traditions from the 16th to the 19th centuries."

The town was founded by the Portuguese, then extensively fortified by the Dutch during the 17th century. Later it became the southern headquarters of the British colonial rule. The British made several modifications, including removing the moat and building a lighthouse. Despite these, and later changes during WWII, it retains much of the structure built by the Dutch in particular.

The old town is still today encircled by a three-kilometre ring of massive granite and coral ramparts, broken up at intervals by fourteen bastions in various states of preservation. Within these walls its charming streets are lined with hotels, restaurants and shops aimed at the town’s many visitors. But it is also still home to a diverse population of Sri Lankan Moors (descendants of the Arabs who settled here to trade), Sinhalese, Dutch, English, Portuguese and German settlers. It is popular with ex-pat artists, writers, photographers, designers and poets who find a market for their creative flair in the smart boutiques and galleries. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).