The Sinhalese monarchy (Sinhala සිංහල රාජාණ්ඩුව) has its origins in the settlement of North Indian Indo-Aryan immigrants to the island of Sri Lanka.

The Landing of Vijay as described in the traditional chronicles of the island, the Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa and Culavamsa, and later chronicles, recount the date of the establishment of the first Sinhala Kingdom in 543 BC[note 1] when Prince Vijaya (543–505 BC), an Indian Prince, and 700 of his followers are claimed to have landed on the island of Sri Lanka and established the Kingdom of Tambapanni.

However according to the story in the Divyavadana, the immigrants were probably not led by a scion of a royal house in India, as told in the romantic legend, but rather may have been groups of adventurous and pioneering merchants exploring new lands.

Anachronistically referred to as the Kings of Sri Lanka,[note 3] the monarch held absolute power and succession was hereditary.

The monarchy ended with Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of Kandy in 1815 after generations of European influences and upheaval in the royal court.

The origins of the early Sinhalese kings are the settlement of North Indian Indo-Aryan immigrants to the island of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan historian Senarath Paranavithana suggests, and according to the story in the Divyavadana, the immigrants were probably not led by a scion of a royal house in India, as told in the romantic legend, but rather may have been groups of adventurous and pioneering merchants exploring new lands.

In the course of time some of the settlers would have settled down in order to supply valued merchandise to their compatriots who would periodically visit the island.

[4] Paranavithana hypothesised that the earliest Sinhalese kings may have actually been these elected common leaders called Gamani.

[6][7] This is also supported by the fact that the writer of the Mahavamsa lived in a time where the main form of government was a monarchy, and so it was natural to assume that whenever a ruler was mentioned, it was a king with the paraphernalia of royalty attributed to him.

During the end of his reign Vijaya, who was having trouble choosing a successor, sent a letter to the city of his ancestors, Sinhapura, in order to invite his brother Sumitta to take over the throne.

[13][14] When Vijaya's letter arrived Sumitta had already succeeded his father as king, and so he sent his son Panduvasdeva to rule Upatissa Nuwara.

Though it saw productive advances in the areas of economics, technology and culture, during the Early Anuradhapura period (137 BC – 684 AD) the political system was at its most brittle.

With the end of the House of Vijaya the Lambakannas were established as their successors, the Moriyas however challenged this claim and struggles for the throne ensued.

[17] The Moriyan claims to the throne diminished by the end of the seventh century leaving the Lambakannas a monopoly of power.

As absolute monarch the king was head of state, however he would be aided with high level officials and a board of ministers.

[28] However, towards the end of the Anuradhapura Kingdom a group of ten villages, known as dasagam, was responsible for upholding justice in that area.

[30] Udaya recorded judgments that were regarded as important precedents in the royal library in order to maintain uniformity in judicial decisions.

[35] Despite this, religious establishments were often plundered during times of internal strife by the rulers themselves, such as during the reigns of Dathopa Tissa I (639–650) and Kassapa II (650–659).

The ruling monarch would choose a member of the royal family to succeed him or her, usually a son or brother, and these wishes went generally unchallenged.

Political stability also gave way for smoother transitions of power, the spread of Mahayanaist ideas that kingship was akin to divinity increased the sanctity of the monarch.

This development meant that pretenders and rivals to the throne had a much harder time claiming succession even during the reigns of relatively weak monarchs.

[5] The consecration ceremonies and rituals associated with kingship began during the reign of Devanampiya Tissa, under the influence of Ashoka of India.

Named for Prince Vijaya, who is seen as the progenitor of the Sinhalese people, the dynasty continued into the Anuradhapura Kingdom until Subharaja (60–67).

[40] The last dynasty of the Anuradhapura period, the second Lambakanna dynasty, started with Manavanna (684–718) seizing the throne in 684 and continued till the last ruler of Anuradhapura, Mahinda V.[41] The Sinhalese monarchs have over time had many royal titles, both common to the Buddhist and ancient world as well as unique titles to the island.

These sceptres were a symbol of authority to the rulers of the island before Devanampiya Tissa and the introduction of kingship, after which it would assume regal honours.

[46] By the time of Sirimeghavanna (301–328), Sudatta, the sub king of Kalinga, and Hemamala brought the Tooth Relic of the Buddha to Sri Lanka because of unrest in the country.

This included "three chanks, including a chank produced in the sea, water from the Ganges, ruddy coloured mud, eight each of Khattiya, Brahmana, and Gahapati virgins, eight each of gold, silver, bronze, and earthen pots, eight Khattiya families, eight families of ministers-thus eight of everything (necessary for consecration)"[51]