Fort (Colombo) (Sinhala: කොටුව; Tamil: கோட்டை) is the central business district of Colombo in Sri Lanka. It is the financial district of Colombo and the location of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the World Trade Centre of Colombo from which the CSE operates. It is also the location of the Bank of Ceylon headquarters. Along the foreshore of the Fort area is the Galle Face Green Promenade, built in 1859 under the governance of Sir Henry George Ward, the Governor of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during British colonial era. Fort is also home to the General Post Office, hotels, government departments and offices.
History
Known as Kolonthota, the area became notable as the site of the first landings of the Portuguese in the early 16th century and became one of their trading posts on the island. The Portuguese developed their trading post into a fortified base and harbour to extend their control of the interior of the island.
A detailed account of the first Portuguese settlement and fort can be found in the 1681 journal of Captain João Ribeyro;[2]"'Colombo was at first only a factory palisaded round about; it was soon made more extensive, a small fort was built and at length it became a very pretty agreeable little town, with twelve bastions and an esplanade. For a long time the walls were only of taipa singella with a ditch which joined a lake and that lake shut in one third of the town on the land side; there were always 237 guns mounted, of from 10 to 36 lbs caliber. The town fronted a bay capable of containing a great number of small ships but they were always exposed to the north-wind; it was 1300 paces in circumference. Where the reef ran out, there was a small battery with a heavy piece of artillery which commanded the whole of the bay. The southern part of the town lay entirely open, being well defended on that side by the same reef.'"Of the population, it is mentioned that 900 noble families and about 1500 of lesser citizens resided at the time in Colombo.