Portuguese Ceylon Ceilão Português (Portuguese) පෘතුගීසි ලංකාව (Sinhalese) போர்த்துகீசியம் இலங்கை (Tamil) Portuguese colony 1597 -- 1658 Flag Coat of arms Extent of Portuguese rule in Ceylon Capital Colombo Languages Portuguese Sinhalese Tamil Religion Roman Catholicism Political structure Colony King of Portugal 1597 -- 1598 Philip I 1598 -- 1621 Philip II 1621 -- 1640 Philip III 1640 -- 1656 John IV 1656 -- 1658 Afonso VI Governors 1597 -- 1614 Jerónimo de Azevedo 1656 -- 1658 António de Amaral de Meneses Historical era Colonialism Portuguese arrival 1505 Death of Dharmapala of Kotte 27 May 1597 Luso -- Kandyan Treaty 1633 Surrender of Jaffna June 1658 Preceded by Succeeded by Kingdom of Kotte Kingdom of Jaffna Dutch Ceylon Today part of Sri Lanka
when did the portuguese come to sri lanka
1505