Reign 1687 – 4 June 1707 House House of Dinajara Parents Rajasinha II of Kandy Coronation 1687 Father Rajasinghe II Place of burial Sri Lanka | Predecessor Rqjasinghe II Name Vimaladharmasuriya of Grandparents Senarat of Kandy Issue Vira Narendra Sinha Died June 4, 1707 | |
Successor Vira Narendra Sinha of Kandy Children Vira Narendra Sinha of Kandy | ||
Vimaladharmasurya II (ruled 1687–1707) was a king of Kandy who succeeded his father, Rajasinghe II. He allowed Joseph Vaz to settle in his kingdom and allowed him to preach the Christian faith.
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Childhood
Brought up a bhikku for a long period in his childhood, King Vimaladharmasurya II was naturally of peaceful temperament. During his childhood though, a sufficient number of Buddhist priests were not able to conduct the higher ordination (upasampada) ceremony.
Contributions to Buddhism in Sri Lanka
He invited 33 priests from Burma and established the higher ordination that helped protect Buddhism.
The Dutch
During the reign of King Vimaladharmasurya II, many attempts made by the Dutch to capture the Kandyan Kingdom had failed. However,the Dutch gained control of the Kandyan Kingdom's foreign trade.
Relations with Daud Khan Panni
In the year 1703, the Mughal commander at Coromandel, Daud Khan Panni spent 10,500 coins to purchase 30 to 50 War elephants from Ceylon. These purchases were acknowledged by Vimaladharmasurya II of Kandy.