<P> The island was divided into numerous kingdoms over the following centuries , intermittently ( between CE 993 -- 1077 ) united under Chola rule . Sri Lanka was ruled by 181 monarchs from the Anuradhapura to Kandy periods . From the 16th century , some coastal areas of the country were also controlled by the Portuguese , Dutch and British . Between 1597 and 1658 , a substantial part of the island was under Portuguese rule . The Portuguese lost their possessions in Ceylon due to Dutch intervention in the Eighty Years ' War . Following the Kandyan Wars , the island was united under British rule in 1815 . Armed uprisings against the British took place in the 1818 Uva Rebellion and the 1848 Matale Rebellion . Independence was finally granted in 1948 but the country remained a Dominion of the British Empire until 1972 . </P>
when did sri lanka became part of the british empire
the island was united under British rule in 1815