William Gopallawa
William Gopallawa , MBE ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோப்பல்லாவ ) (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He served as Governor-General during the tenure of different governments headed by Sirimavo Bandaranaike of the SLFP and Dudley Senanayake of the UNP .
Page Revisions
| Year | Metadata | Sections | Top Words | First Paragraph |
| 2018 |
45305 characters 10 sections 12 paragraphs 8 images 116 internal links 16 external links |
gopallawa 0.615 matale 0.305 dullewe 0.237 kandy 0.229 ceylon 0.196 queen 0.152 municipal 0.117 sirimavo 0.115 william 0.114 ல 0.114 bandaranaike 0.098 elizabeth 0.095 scout 0.095 tikiri 0.095 buddhist 0.086 |
William Gopallawa , MBE ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோப்பல்லாவ ) (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He served as Governor-General during the tenure of different governments headed by Sirimavo Bandaranaike of the SLFP and Dudley Senanayake of the UNP . |
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| 2017 |
45163 characters 10 sections 12 paragraphs 8 images 115 internal links 16 external links |
gopallawa 0.619 matale 0.307 dullewe 0.238 kandy 0.230 ceylon 0.198 queen 0.153 municipal 0.118 sirimavo 0.116 william 0.115 bandaranaike 0.099 elizabeth 0.095 scout 0.095 tikiri 0.095 buddhist 0.086 1896 0.077 |
William Gopallawa , MBE ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ) (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He served as Governor-General during the tenure of different governments headed by Sirimavo Bandaranaike of the SLFP and Dudley Senanayake of the UNP . |
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| 2016 |
45243 characters 10 sections 13 paragraphs 8 images 116 internal links 14 external links |
gopallawa 0.614 matale 0.304 dullewe 0.236 kandy 0.229 ceylon 0.196 queen 0.152 municipal 0.117 sirimavo 0.115 william 0.114 bandaranaike 0.098 elizabeth 0.095 scout 0.095 tikiri 0.095 buddhist 0.086 1896 0.076 |
William Gopallawa , MBE ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ) (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2015 |
43647 characters 10 sections 14 paragraphs 7 images 110 internal links 14 external links |
gopallawa 0.615 matale 0.305 dullewe 0.237 kandy 0.229 ceylon 0.196 queen 0.152 municipal 0.117 sirimavo 0.115 william 0.114 bandaranaike 0.098 elizabeth 0.095 scout 0.095 tikiri 0.095 buddhist 0.086 1896 0.076 |
William Gopallawa , MBE ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ) (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2014 |
42717 characters 10 sections 13 paragraphs 7 images 109 internal links 14 external links |
gopallawa 0.615 matale 0.305 dullewe 0.237 kandy 0.229 ceylon 0.197 queen 0.152 municipal 0.117 sirimavo 0.116 william 0.114 bandaranaike 0.098 elizabeth 0.095 scout 0.095 tikiri 0.095 buddhist 0.086 1896 0.076 |
William Gopallawa ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ), MBE (17 September 1896 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2013 |
42976 characters 10 sections 14 paragraphs 7 images 109 internal links 15 external links |
gopallawa 0.598 matale 0.321 dullewe 0.249 kandy 0.241 ceylon 0.207 queen 0.160 municipal 0.124 sirimavo 0.122 william 0.120 bandaranaike 0.103 elizabeth 0.100 scout 0.100 tikiri 0.100 buddhist 0.090 ல 0.080 |
William Gopallawa ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ), MBE (17 September 1897 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2012 |
43088 characters 10 sections 14 paragraphs 7 images 111 internal links 15 external links |
gopallawa 0.598 matale 0.321 dullewe 0.249 kandy 0.241 ceylon 0.207 queen 0.160 municipal 0.124 sirimavo 0.122 william 0.120 bandaranaike 0.103 elizabeth 0.100 scout 0.100 tikiri 0.100 buddhist 0.090 ல 0.080 |
William Gopallawa ( Sinhala : විලියම් ගොපල්ලව, Tamil : வில்லியம் கோபள்ளவா ), MBE (17 September 1897 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor-General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2011 |
35636 characters 10 sections 14 paragraphs 5 images 98 internal links 9 external links |
gopallawa 0.632 matale 0.313 dullewe 0.243 kandy 0.235 ceylon 0.202 william 0.157 queen 0.157 sirimavo 0.119 bandaranaike 0.101 elizabeth 0.097 tikiri 0.097 municipal 0.097 buddhist 0.088 commissioner 0.072 1936 0.067 |
William Gopallawa ( Sinhala :විලියම් ගොපල්ලව), MBE (17 September 1897 – 31 January 1981) was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2010 |
35442 characters 10 sections 14 paragraphs 5 images 97 internal links 9 external links |
gopallawa 0.637 matale 0.315 dullewe 0.245 kandy 0.237 ceylon 0.203 william 0.158 queen 0.158 sirimavo 0.120 bandaranaike 0.102 elizabeth 0.098 tikiri 0.098 municipal 0.097 buddhist 0.089 commissioner 0.073 1936 0.068 |
William Gopallawa , MBE (17 September 1897 - 31 January 1981) was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was an Commonwealth realm with the Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2009 |
39935 characters 10 sections 12 paragraphs 4 images 146 internal links 9 external links |
gopallawa 0.636 matale 0.315 dullewe 0.245 kandy 0.237 ceylon 0.203 william 0.158 queen 0.158 sirimavo 0.119 bandaranaike 0.102 elizabeth 0.098 tikiri 0.098 municipal 0.097 buddhist 0.089 commissioner 0.073 1936 0.068 |
William Gopallawa , MBE (September 17, 1897 - January 31, 1981) was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared it self a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka. Until 1972, Ceylon was an Commonwealth realm with the Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state and Queen of Ceylon. He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2008 |
29843 characters 9 sections 11 paragraphs 3 images 94 internal links 8 external links |
gopallawa 0.600 matale 0.322 ceylon 0.290 dullewe 0.250 kandy 0.242 william 0.201 sirimavo 0.122 queen 0.121 bandaranaike 0.104 tikiri 0.100 municipal 0.099 buddhist 0.090 governor 0.077 commissioner 0.074 1936 0.069 |
William Gopallawa ( September 17 , 1897 - January 31 , 1981 ) was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first (non-executive) President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared it self a republic in 1972 thus changing its name to Sri Lanka. Till 1972 Ceylon was an independent Monarchy within the Commonwealth with the Monarch of the United Kingdom as the Queen of Ceylon . He was well known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. |
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| 2007 |
19262 characters 4 sections 10 paragraphs 4 images 50 internal links 5 external links |
gopallawa 0.553 matale 0.311 kandy 0.306 ceylon 0.275 william 0.222 queen 0.178 municipal 0.164 commissioner 0.137 tikiri 0.111 buddhist 0.100 sri 0.092 lanka 0.083 1936 0.076 maha 0.076 1939 0.075 |
William Gopallawa ( September 17 1897 - January 31 1981 ) was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon became Sri Lanka when it became a republic in 1972 . Till 1972 Ceylon was a Dominion Republic with the Queen of England as the head of state with the title of Queen of Ceylon . |
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| 2006 |
17612 characters 4 sections 10 paragraphs 2 images 46 internal links 5 external links |
gopallawa 0.527 matale 0.330 kandy 0.283 ceylon 0.243 william 0.235 municipal 0.174 commissioner 0.145 queen 0.141 tikiri 0.117 sri 0.114 buddhist 0.106 lanka 0.106 1936 0.081 maha 0.081 1939 0.079 |
William Gopallawa ( September 17 1897 - January 31 1981 ) was the last Governor General of Ceylon ( 1962 - 1972 ) as Sri Lanka was known prior to 1972, and first President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon became Sri Lanka and adopted a Republican Constitution. 1972 — Prior to that year, it was a Dominion Republic owing allegiance to the Queen of England. Before assuming office as the president he served in many positions in the government from Municipal Commissioner Kandy during WW-II where he acquitted himself for efficiency during the floods. He was known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure who commanded the respect of all political parties. He was the first to establish a spartan Buddhist Shrine room at the Queen's House. |
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| 2005 |
4689 characters 0 sections 2 paragraphs 1 images 17 internal links 0 external links |
gopallawa 0.741 william 0.298 ceylon 0.231 austere 0.185 monty 0.185 nonpartisan 0.185 1961 0.184 lanka 0.167 sri 0.155 councils 0.128 junius 0.128 ambassador 0.121 1962 0.112 jayewardene 0.101 municipal 0.092 |
Gopallawa served on municipal councils during his earlier political career. He served as Sri Lanka (known as Ceylon at that time)'s ambassador to China from 1958 to 1961 and served as ambassador to the United States from 1961 to 1962 . He became the Governor-General of Ceylon in 1962, and served until 1972. He was known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure. When Ceylon became the Republic of Sri Lanka in 1972, Gopallawa became the President. He retired in 1978 when Prime Minister Junius Richard Jayewardene had the constitution changed to make the Presidency an elective position with more powers, and Jayewerdene was elected President. William's son Monty Gopallawa was also involved in politics. |
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| 2004 |
3070 characters 0 sections 2 paragraphs 0 images 14 internal links 0 external links |
gopallawa 0.681 ceylon 0.283 austere 0.227 nonpartisan 0.227 1961 0.225 lanka 0.205 sri 0.190 william 0.183 councils 0.157 junius 0.157 1958 0.148 ambassador 0.148 1962 0.137 jayewardene 0.124 municipal 0.113 |
Gopallawa served on municipal councils during his earlier political career. He served as Sri Lanka (known as Ceylon at that time)'s ambassador to China from 1958 to 1961 and served as ambassador to the United States from 1961 to 1962 . He became the Governor-General of Ceylon in 1962, and served until 1972. He was known as an austere, nonpartisan and statesmanlike figure. When Ceylon became the Republic of Sri Lanka in 1972, Gopallawa became the President. He retired in 1978 when Prime Minister Junius Richard Jayewardene had the constituion changed to make the Presidency an elective position with more powers, and Jayewerdene was elected President. |