[1] In the middle of 1816, Madugalle Nilame and others conspired to oust the British and enthrone a Sinhala king.
The British imposed martial law to suppress the fighting and relentlessly killed the Sinhalese.
The Governor-General of England, Robert Brownrigg, published a proclamation on March 19, 1818, which contained the names of rebel leaders, including Nilame, and the amount of rewards to be given to their captors.
The group entered the Vidanevara's house and hid there to trap Nilame that night.
Teldeniya Commanding Officer Captain Dobin became alarmed because he did not receive information about the troops who went to Madugalle village.
The British troops were able to free two Lanci men captured by the Nilame's forces in March 1818.
Based on the information received, at around 3.00 pm, a group of about 30 troops deployed surrounded a palace near Paravahagama, where Nilame sheltered.
On the morning of November 2, with the assistance of the villagers of Nigawella, Pubbiliya, Kongahawela, Udugoda Korale, and Matale, the Seventy-third Regiment's Ensign Suitbread, with a contingent of troops, captured Nilame at the Matale Kaikawala outpost near Elahera.
The Nilame's wife and four sons were sent to Kalutara and his mother and sister to Colombo in retaliation from relatives.