Within the 1795, Dutch Ceylon dropped on the United kingdom give, and they caused it to be a venГ¤lГ¤iset naiset vs. amerikkalaiset naiset crown nest inside 1802. By the 1815, they’d along with conquered the previous independent Empire away from Kandy. British specified one in the former Dutch countries the current laws and regulations was kept, whereas for the Kandy traditional statutes were to be used, which have been after that codified. We come across regarding the basic point you to definitely several authors believed the fresh new Portuguese as well as the Dutch had effectively stamped out polyandry inside the brand new coastal provinces. Numerous gurus claim that, used, typical legislation got stored precedence, except if the law is ‘silent or inapplicable’. Footnote 68 In reality, we have seen from inside the point 3 how a beneficial Eu attorneys actually invoked this type of traditional rules in order to beg the new legitimacy of polyandry. Footnote 69 Although not, the british assumed from the beginning the coastal provinces had come governed centered on Roman-Dutch legislation. Already within the 1822, it bought this new re-advent of the college thombos, besides having Christians but also for the complete society of your maritime provinces. The brand new pre-eminence off Roman Dutch Law are codified in a rental away from 1831, and you may a regulation from 1847 specified their blocked levels of wedding, minimal age of people, and you may known reasons for split up. Eventually, within the 1861 Roman-Dutch law is proclaimed since joining for your isle. Footnote 70 That it paradoxical courtroom situation could have been summarised at the same time of the Jayawardene: ‘[This new Dutch] produced the new Roman-Dutch Rules so you’re able to Ceylon; but it’s the latest English… which built it involving the Singhalese, just who made it legislation of land’. Footnote 71
This new woman gets eating off for each and every husband, and so they most of the have more
We surmise your a great deal more stringent applying of Roman-Dutch guidelines therefore the expansion off ilies from the seaside portion given a beneficial polyandrous partnership. Therefore a married relationship wasn’t court, people couldn’t inherit using their next father. How about the inside? The newest codified Kandyan guidelines contained all sorts of fine print about how exactly inheritances away from shared husbands was to getting separated. In the 1850s an excellent reent took place. Into the 1855, Governor Ward acquired good petition from the Chiefs of Kandy, ‘praying to your abolition by guidelines out of polygamy and you may polyandry’. The fresh plea is frequent twice in the 1858, fundamentally are found from the as an alternative mislead Uk, exactly who went on from inside the 1859 to help you outlaw polygamy and separation of the shared consent and build joined monogamous relationships the only real courtroom means. As to the reasons performed the new elites turn up against her community and why did they give british that it possible opportunity to ‘civilise’ the brand new Sinhalese? Some students exhort us to read amongst the contours of your own petitions. It is said that professional regarding landowners desired a good ‘reform’ of matrimony while they aimed to attenuate separated and widowed ladies’ customary claims on places of its moms and dads, which were basically taken advantage of by the the brothers. Homes purchases and you can setting-up higher ranches necessary simplistic matrimony and you will genetics laws and regulations, however, this is cloaked in a strike on polygamy, a lure which the British got. Footnote 72 Therefore, the british imposed a good Western european concept of wedding towards Kandyan population, and this immediately triggered a good flurry regarding litigation since the unregistered ous – was today deemed illegal. Berwick, the latest important court of Colombo, appropriately called the 1859 Regulation a great ‘bitter current out-of bastardy’. Footnote 73
It conjecture possibly stems from the frustration regarding the relatives anywhere between Dutch specialized law additionally the traditional, uncodified, rules of your Sinhalese
Even if polyandry will be penalized from the up to 3 years regarding hard work, the habit carried on up until well towards the twentieth century, albeit during the diminishing numbers. Thus, it absolutely was however easy for new ethnographers just who observed community life regarding mountainous indoor on 1950s to study established polyandrous interactions or assemble reminiscences away from previous including connections. As an example, individuals regarding Udumulla during the eastern Sri Lanka analyzed polyandry definitely: ‘It is rather best for all. .. These folks don’t need to mask the brand new plan, nothing is to get embarrassed of’. Footnote 74 Brand new ethnographic definitions usually stress the fresh new fundamental and you can quite unified characteristics of one’s polyandrous plan, that one area happened to be named ‘staying in you to peace’. Footnote 75 Why after that achieved it drop off?
