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Independence bill passed in parliament.
Independence bill passed in parliament. Inaugural meeting of the first parliament. (1947) -
1st parliamentary elections
First parliamentary elections.(1947) -
Sri Lanka gains independence.
Sri Lanka gains independence, ending 152 years of British rule.(4 Feb. 1948) -
National Flag adopted
The National Flag formally adopted (Feb. 13 1950) -
National Anthem adopted
The National Anthem formally adopted. (Nov. 22 1951) -
PM Senanayake dies
Prime Minister D S Senanayake dies in a horse riding accident. (22 March 1952) -
D Senanayake appointed PM
Lord Soulbury invites the late Prime Minister's son Dudley Senanayake to become the next Prime Minister. Dudley Senanayake appointed prime minister. (March 26 1952) -
First parliament dissolved.
First parliament dissolved.(April 8 1952) -
Anti-Tamil riots
Anti-Tamil riots in May 27 1958. Emergency declared. Detaining of Federal Party MPs.(27 May, 1958) -
Bandaranaike killed
Bandaranaike assassinated. Ven. Buddharakkhita who was the founder of the "Eksath Bhikku Peramuna" is accused of leading the conspiracy. A woman parliamentarian, Minister of Health, Wimala Wijewardene is also accused of involvement in the conspiracy. (25 September 1959). -
Elections held for 5th parliament.
General elections held for the fifth parliament. SLFP secures 75 seats and Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike becomes world's first woman prime minister. (20 July 1960) -
Military occupation of Tamil areas
Military occupation of Tamil areas for two years. Federal Party MPs arrested and detained for six months.(18 April 1961) -
Sinhala made the official language of Sri Lanka.
Sinhala made the official language of Sri Lanka. (01 January 1963) -
Sri Lanka declared a republic
The first Republican Constitution promulgated and Sri Lanka declared a republic; the name of the country officially changed from Ceylon to Sri Lanka.(22 May 1972) -
Jaffna mayor assassinated
Assassination of Jaffna mayor Duriappah by Velupillai Prabhakaran (the present leader of LTTE) (27 July 1975) -
TULF formed
Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) is formed with pledge to establish a separate Tamil State (15 May 1976) -
General elections
General elections 1977 returns UNP (led by J R Jayewardene) to power.(23 June 1977) -
Anti-Tamil riots
Anti-Tamil riots (August 1977) -
Jayewardene first Executive President
Adopting the new Constitution for the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. Presidential System of Government with J R Jayewardene as the first Executive President. (4 February 1978) -
Law enacted for the LTTE
A law enacted proscribing the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other similar organisations. (19 May 1978) -
2nd Republican Constitution formed
The Second Republican Constitution promulgated. (7 September 1978) -
Sirimavo Bandaranaike expelled
Former Prime Minister Mrs Sirimavo Bandaranaike deprived of her civic rights and expelled from parliament. (16 October 1980) -
Anti-Tamil rioting
Anti-Tamil rioting breaks out in several parts of Colombo and curfew imposed in the city (25 July 1983) -
Racial riots
Racial riots throughout the island. All-island curfew imposed About 70,000 Tamils flee to India.(26 July 1983). -
Two former TULF MPs murdered
Two former TULF MPs, V Dharmalingam and A Alalasundaram murdered (2 September 1985) -
A bomb explosion in an Air Lanka plane
A bomb explosion in an Air Lanka plane bound for Male at the Katunayake International Airport kills 17 passengers and injures about 24. (3 May 1986) -
Military operation Vadamarachchi
Launching of a military operation at Vadamarachchi to put an end to the dominance established by Prabhakaran in Jaffna after the black (26 May 1987) -
India shows its protest
India shows its protest against the Vadamarachchi operation by sending a flotilla of "humanitarian aid" to Jaffna. When these boats (Indian fishing vessels) were turned back by the Sri Lankan navy, the Indian Air Force dropped food and medical supplies in Jaffna the following day violating the Sri Lankan air space. (3 June 1987) -
Indo-Lanka peace accord
The signing of Indo-Lanka peace accord (27 July 1987) -
Arrival of the IPKF
Arrival of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) (late July 30th - early August 1987) (30 July 1987) -
LTTE attacks two mosques
LTTE attacks two Muslim mosques killing 290 people (August 1990) -
Ranjan Wijeratna assassinated
Defense Minister Ranjan Wijeratna assassinated. (2 March 1991) -
IPKF withdrawal completed
IPKF withdrawal completed (24 March 1991) -
Former Minister assassinated
Former Defense Minister Lalith Athulathmudali assassinated (23 April 1993) -
President R Premadasa assassinated
A bomb explosion in a street in Colombo kills President R Premadasa who was taking part in his party's May day rally. (1 May 1993) -
LTTE suicide bomber killed Former Minister
Gamini Dissanayake, a former minister in the UNP government, and a presidential election candidate is killed along with several other senior members of the party by a suspected LTTE suicide bomber in a manner identical to the killing of Rajiv Gandhi in Tamil Nadu in 1991 (24 October 1994) -
Bomb attack at Central Bank
A suicide bomb explosion by the LTTE at the Central Bank in Colombo kills more than 100 civilians and wounds 1,300 others. (31 January 1996) -
LTTE attacks Mulativu camp
Nearly 1,400 soldiers killed in an LTTE attack on the Mulativu military camp (18 July 1996) -
India bans the LTTE
India bans the LTTE (1 August 1996) -
Explosive attack at Buddhist shrine
A lorry packed with explosives is exploded at the outer gates of the Dalada Maligawa, a 400 years old Buddhist shrine in the city of Kandy, as it was preparing for the 50th independence celebrations (25 January 1998) -
Jaffna Mayor gunned down
Sarojini Yogeshwaran, the first woman mayor of Jaffna was gunned down by LTTE gunmen (17 May 1998) -
President escapes assassination bid
President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga narrowly escapes with injuries an assassination attempt by a suicide bomber at an election rally in Colombo. (18 December 1999) -
Norwegian-mediated ceasefire
2002 February - Government and Tamil Tiger rebels sign a Norwegian-mediated ceasefire. -
Tigers pull out of talks
2003 Tigers pull out of talks. Ceasefire holds. -
Tsunami
2004 December - More than 30,000 people are killed when massive waves, generated by a powerful undersea earthquake off the coast of Indonesia, devastate coastal communities. -
Government lifts ban on LTTE
2005: De-commissioning of weapons begins; the road linking the Jaffna peninsula with the rest of Sri Lanka reopens after 12 years; passenger flights to Jaffna resume. Government lifts ban on Tamil Tigers. Rebels drop demand for separate state. -
Row over Tsumi deal
2005 June - Row over deal reached with Tamil Tiger rebels to share nearly $3bn in tsunami aid among Sinhalas, Tamils and Muslims. -
State of emergency
2005 August - State of emergency after foreign minister is killed by a suspected Tiger assassin. -
Peace talks fail in Geneva.
2006 October - Peace talks fail in Geneva. -
Karuna sworn in as minister
2009 March - Former rebel leader Karuna is sworn in as minister of national integration and reconciliation. Senior Tamil Tiger leader Thamilenthi is reported killed. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay accuses both sides of war crimes.
