In the 1795, Dutch Ceylon fell on United kingdom give, plus they managed to make it a top colony inside the 1802. By the 1815, they had and overcome the former separate Kingdom regarding Kandy. British stipulated one on former Dutch regions the existing guidelines might possibly be kept, whereas into the Kandy traditional legislation were to feel used, that have been then codified. We come across throughout the basic section you to numerous article authors assumed brand new Portuguese plus the Dutch had effectively stamped out polyandry in the newest coastal provinces. Several positives declare that, used, vintage law had kept precedence, unless of course regulations is actually ‘silent otherwise inapplicable’. Footnote 68 In reality, we have seen inside the section 3 just how a beneficial Western european lawyer indeed invoked this type of regular statutes to help you plead brand new authenticity of polyandry. Footnote 69 But not, british presumed right away the maritime provinces had been ruled centered on Roman-Dutch laws. Currently inside 1822, it bought the fresh re also-advent of the institution thombos, not just having Christians but for the entire society of maritime provinces. The fresh new pre-eminence away from Roman Dutch Law try codified in a charter off 1831, and you will an ordinance away from 1847 specified the blocked levels of relationship, restricted ages of people, and you can cause of separation and divorce. In the end, in 1861 Roman-Dutch rules try stated as the binding for your area. Footnote 70 Which paradoxical legal disease could have been summarised also by the Jayawardene: ‘[The brand new Dutch] brought the new Roman-Dutch Laws to Ceylon; but it is the new English… just who dependent it between your Singhalese, exactly who caused it to be the law of your land’. Footnote 71
The new lady becomes food regarding for every single spouse, in addition they the have more
I surmise that a lot more strict application of Roman-Dutch laws while the expansion off ilies regarding seaside parts given a good polyandrous relationship. As a result a marriage wasn’t judge, students couldn’t inherit off their 2nd father. How about the inside? The fresh new codified Kandyan regulations contained all sorts of fine print about how precisely inheritances off mutual husbands would be to become split. However in new 1850s a beneficial reent took place. Inside the 1855, Governor Ward received good petition from the Chiefs out-of Kandy, ‘hoping into the abolition from the laws and regulations off polygamy and you can polyandry’. The fresh plea is actually repeated double when you look at the 1858, in the end to-be obtained by instead perplexed United kingdom, exactly who continued during the 1859 to outlaw polygamy and you can divorce case of the mutual consent also to make registered monogamous relationship the only judge form. Why performed the new elites change facing their own heritage and just why did they offer british that it possible opportunity to ‘civilise’ the fresh new Sinhalese? Particular students exhort me to comprehend amongst the traces of the petitions. People say this professional away from landowners desired good ‘reform’ regarding relationships while they lined up to attenuate divorced and you can widowed ladies’ customary claims to your places of their mothers, which have been fundamentally exploited by the the brothers. House transactions and you can creating higher plantations expected simplified matrimony and you will genetics laws and regulations, however, this was cloaked from inside the a strike towards polygamy, a bait that the British took. Footnote 72 For this reason, british implemented good Western european notion of matrimony towards the Kandyan people, hence instantaneously brought about good flurry regarding litigation due to the fact all the unregistered ous – have been today considered illegal. Berwick, the important legal regarding Colombo, aptly called the 1859 Regulation a ‘bitter present away from bastardy’. Footnote 73
So it supposition perhaps comes from the fresh confusion about your relation anywhere between Dutch specialized laws japon kadД±n v amerikan kadД±n and traditional, uncodified, legislation of the Sinhalese
Although polyandry is penalized from the around three years out of tough work, the new practice proceeded up until better into twentieth century, albeit from inside the diminishing number. Therefore, it actually was nevertheless possible for the brand new ethnographers exactly who seen town existence in the mountainous interior on the 1950s to learn present polyandrous interactions or gather reminiscences out-of earlier instance affairs. Such as, people out of Udumulla for the eastern Sri Lanka analyzed polyandry definitely: ‘It is rather perfect for all. .. These people don’t need to cover-up the new plan, there’s nothing are embarrassed of’. Footnote 74 This new ethnographic definitions tend to stress new important and quite unified character of one’s polyandrous plan, which in an area was even called ‘living in you to definitely peace’. Footnote 75 As to the reasons following made it happen fall off?