Tintagel Colombo | Udayashanth Fernando

History

Completed in 1930, Tintagel was intended as a residence for Dr. Lucian de Zilwa. In the mid 1940s de Zilwa was given a week to vacate the property by the British military to house one hundred soldiers. The military occupation saw the house wrecked and de Zilwa sold Tintagel to sir Solomon Dias Bandaranaike for his son, Solomon West Ridgeway (S.W.R.D.). It is from this point in time that the house gained recognition as a structure of national importance.

It was here that Ceylon’s political history was decided. S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike became prime minister in 1956 and he was shot on the verandah of Tintagel in 1959 and subsequently died in hospital.

In 1960, his widow, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, became the world’s first female prime minister.

Mrs. Bandaranaike won several elections and was re-elected in 1970 and 1994, thereby becoming the longest serving prime minister of Sri Lanka. Mrs. Bandaranaike resided at Tintagel right up until her demise in 2000. In 1983, their only son, Anura Bandaranaike became leader of the opposition, speaker of the house of parliament in 2000 and a minister of several ministries of government.

The younger daughter of S.W.R.D. And Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga progressively became a chief minister, prime minister and Sri Lanka’s first female president in 1994.

In 2005, Tintagel, the family home of the Bandaranaike’s was leased to Udayshanth Fernando by the family to become Paradise Road Tintagel Colombo, A unique private hotel.

Royalty

In November 2013, Paradise Road Tintagel Colombo was the chosen hotel to host His Royal Highness Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness Duchess of Cornwall, who attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo (CHOGM)