Maduwanwela Walawwa is a historical mansion located in upper South of Sri Lanka. Situated in the town Kolonne which lies between Embilipitiya and Suriyawewa in Ratnapura District, in a distance of 207 kilometres from the capital, Colombo, Maduwanwela Walawwa is well known as an architectural heritage of the country. Historical resources say the mansion had been built since 1700s to 1900s by the Maduwanwela clan in the middle of a land of over 80 000 acres in area. History The ancient anecdotes around Maduwanwela Walawwa are interesting and inspiring. According to the stories and written evidence, Maduwanwela Maha Mohottala who had been a weapon supplier of the king of Kandy, had been gifted this beautiful land because of one of his outstanding services for the king, Wimaladharmassoriya II. It had been a special task that could please the king and two legends can be heard about it. The first one says; Maduwanwela Maha Mohottala had captured a rare, snow white deer which had been roaming in the wilderness nearby Maduwanwela region and presented it to the Kandyan king. The delighted king had gifted Maha Mohottala such a huge land. According to the second story it had been a Dutch outlaw, loitering in the forest bothering villagers, so the Kandyan king had ordered to bring the head of that Dutch. Maduwanwela Mohottala had been able to fulfil this order and to be the owner of the king’s reward of 54 000 acres. The Maduwanwela estate had been expanded by another gift of a second king, it seems. Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, the last king of Sri Lanka had given another 24 000 acres to Maduwanwela clan. Not only about the king’s gift, but also there is another legend about building the Maduwanwela Walawwa (Maduwanwela Mansion). Once Maduwanwela Maha Mohottala had been watching game in the Maduwanwela land. Then he had come across an unusual sight, a jackal had been chased by a hare. By seeing the feat of the hare, Mohottala had thought that the relevant spot of his land had a superior power of victory and it was an ideal place to build up his mansion. It was just the start of the story. Alternate name Maduwanwela Mansion Location Sri Lanka Region Ratnapura District, Sabaragamuwa Province Type Archaeological Reservation History Founded in 1700 to 1905 Site notes Ownership Archaeological Department, Sri Lanka Public access allowed Image copyright, Prabodh Koushalya