Battle of Mulleriyawa

Battle of Mulleriyawa
	Part of Sinhalese–Portuguese War
Date	1559
Location	Mulleriyawa, Outside Colombo on the southern bank of the Kelani River06°56′10.79″N 79°56′53.64″E
Result	Decisive Sitawaka victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Sitawaka	Portuguese Empire Lascarins (local soldiers on the Portuguese side); Supported by:; Kingdom of Kotte
Commanders and leaders
Mayadunne of Sitawaka; battle commanded by: Tikiri Bandara (subsequently Sitawaka Rajasigha); Wickramasinghe Mudali	Captain major Jorge de Menezes
Strength
4,000 Sitawaka men; Unknown number of militia; Unknown number of war elephants; Small number of cavalry	unknown
Casualties and losses
exact figures not known	1,600 Portuguese and Lascarins, several of the Kotte men and officers

The Battle of Mulleriyawa (Sinhala: මුල්ලේරියාව සටන) in 1559 was part of the Sinhalese–Portuguese War. It was one of the most decisive battles in Sri Lankan history and considered as the worst defeat of Portuguese during that period. According to local chronicles the marshlands of Mulleriyawa turned red with blood after the annihilation of the Portuguese. With this victory Sitawaka emerged as a military power which was able to challenge the Portuguese expansion.

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