Travel Guide Anuradhapura
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70 km northeast of Dambulla, 142 km north of Kandy and 200 km north of Colombo. Founded in the5th century BC, Anuradhapura was the capital of the island for fourteen centuries. Under the patronage of three great Buddhist monasteries, it grew up around immense reliquary buildings, the dagobas (or stupas): Thuparamaya, the oldest stupa on the island, immaculate Ruvanveliseya, the most venerated, and the two gigantic Jetavanaramaya and Abhayagiriya. The history of Anuradhapura begins in 380 BC with the monarch Pandukabhaya, but the holy city reached its peak with the arrival of Buddhism on the island under the reign of Devanampiyatissa almost two centuries later. Later, Anuradhapura fell into the hands of invaders from southern India and was reconquered by King Dutugemunu. Most of the buildings still visible today are due to him. The kings continued the expansion of the city until, much later in the tenth century, its competitor Polannaruwa was preferred. Three reservoirs are inseparable from the history of the city: Nuwara Wewa, which is the largest (1,200 hectares) and dates from 20 B.C., Basawakkulama (120 hectares) probably built in the 4th century B.C., and Tissa Wewa (160 hectares) which dates from the 3rd century B.C. Anuradhapura is registered since 1982 on the list of the world heritage of UNESCO
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