After the demise of his elder brother Vijayabahu, Bhuvanekabahu I, as the next in line to the throne, shifted the capital to Yapahuwa for reasons of security.

After the assassination of Vijayabahu IV, his brother became king after a series of conflicts with several dissident generals thus became Bhuvanekabahu I.

The relics were carried away from the temple to South India by the Pandyas and then recovered in 1288 by Parakkramabahu III (1287–1293), who temporarily placed them in safety at Polonnaruwa.

The citadel of Yapahuwa lying midway between matara and galle was built around a huge granite rock rising abruptly almost a hundred meters above the surrounding lowlands.

In 1272, King Bhuvenakabahu transferred the capital from Polonnaruwa to Yapahuwa in the face of Dravidian invasions from South India, bringing the Sacred Tooth Relic with him.

Following the death of King Bhuvenakabahu in 1284, the Pandyans of South India invaded Sri Lanka once again and succeeded in capturing Sacred Tooth Relic.

Parakramabahu not only translated the Buddhist Jataka tales into Sinhala, he also commissioned a number of temples to be built including the Alutnuwara Dewale in the Kegalla District.

Not much is known about his successor Bhuvanaikabahu III who ruled for 9 years and the next two following rulers Vijayabâhu V and Bhuvanaikabâhu IV nor the reason why the capital was soon after moved again.

In the 13th century the city had a main citadel and today only a few remains are left of the tooth relic temple apart from a few stone steps and part of a doorway.

During the time of King Parakramabahu IV (1302–1326), there was a strong religious revival and rituals concerning the relic were re-ordered in a more systematic way as recorded in the Dalada Sirita.

Later on after the capital changed, the tooth relic was removed to the new capital Jayavardanapura Kotte closer to Colombo by king Virabahu but subsequent Portuguese colonial power in 1505 began to cause the deterioration of Buddhist activities and fearing for the safety of the relic, it was secreted away by Buddhist monks to the kingdom of Sitawaka ruled by king Mayadunne.

For a time it was moved around and placed in different locations including the cave temple of Ridivihara about 13 miles from Kurunegala and in the Delgamuva Vihara in Ratnapura.

His services and authority have been witnessed even beyond Kurunegala as far as Kandy, Kegalle, Colombo, Ratnapura, Kalutara, Galle and most of the Southern areas.

Important literary works such as Sinhala Thupavamsa, Dalada Siriththa, Sarajothi malai were written during the period.