Charles Edward Victor Seneviratne Corea (born 29 January 1871 – 6 June 1962) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, legislator, politician, civil rights activist, and anti-colonial nationalist.

[1] Charles Edward Victor Seneviratne Corea was born on 29 January 1871 into a Sinhala family of Anglican faith in Chilaw, Sri Lanka.

[2] Corea attended the all-boys Anglican private school S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia in Colombo, Sri Lanka, graduating in 1889.

In 1924, Corea ran for a seat as an unofficial member of the Legislative Council of Ceylon as a delegate of the Colombo Western Province, winning against E. W. Jayawardene.

[4] All of these parties and committees were or still are largely characterised by their promotion of Sri Lankan independence amidst British colonial rule in Ceylon, including what was colloquially called the "Ceylonisation" (i.e., localisation) of the public services.

Corea then wrote a letter to then Governor of British Ceylon, Sir William Henry Manning, stating that he ought to be arrested according to colonial law.

Gandhi visited Ceylon in 1927 to tour the country amidst its independence movement, and stayed with the Corea family at their home in Chilaw.

They had two sons, Sri Sangabo and Edward Charles Vickrema, and six daughters, Leila, Ratna, Rupa, Chandrani, Lihini, and Indira.

The award is given to those who have made an "especially meritorious contribution to the historical struggle or national interests of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka" or who are "considered to have played a major role in fighting for the freedom of the country".

On 2 December 2008, the city of Chilaw paid tribute to Corea for his legal and political efforts in service of Sri Lankan independence by having a statue of him erected in his hometown.