Richmond Castle, located in a lush and peaceful surrounding in Kalutara, Palathotaclose to the Kalu Ganga is an ideal spot to enjoy a day out for those travelling across Kalutara. This colonial mansion standing on an acre of land in a park 42 acres in extent is said to have prospered with fruits and flowers at the time of Pandikara Muhandiram Arthur Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardena, its creator and master.
The tale of this mansion of great antiquity dates back to the early 1900s when Mudaliyar Don Arthur De Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardena visited his college mate, Maharaja of Ramand in his mansion in India, after the completion of his studies in the UK. Hailing from the elite in society he was privy to move with colleagues of similar status in the British Empire while in the UK. Arthur had had a good rapport with the English government as well. On arriving in Sri Lanka, he had been bestowed the title ‘Mahamudali’, the head of Mudaliyars of the Kalutara region and thereafter he was bestowed the title Pandikara Muhandiram by the government. He was greatly inspired by the Maharaja’s mansion in India which influenced him in no small way to construct a similar mansion in Sri Lanka.
Stepping inside the castle it was amazing to see how graceful the building was, the windows paneled with stained glass, bathroom fittings and white marble from Italy and Scotland, Teak Timber from Burma (now Myanmar), roofing tiles, bricks and terrazzo from India and the architects from Sri Lanka including the lime, sand and mortar technology.
Arthur wed Clarice Matilda Maud on May 10, 1910, and they moved to the mansion. Their wedding feast had been honoured with the presence of prestigious guests from the British Empire. The then government facilitated the guests attending the wedding with a special train service. Arthur had a troupe of 50 performers to entertain the guests in the banquet hall with a special balcony for Arthur and Clarice to watch the troupe performing.
The castle appears to be an epitome of a 19th century British noble residence with its imposing exterior grounds and the blend of both Western and Eastern architecture. The wooden floor of the hall has small holes that blow in natural air from outside. The bedrooms are soundproof and the door frames one foot thick with the walls containing wooden frames within them. Arthur had been honoured like a prince. He had possessed a white horse-driven carriage, guarded with an Army troupe of 40.
Even though Arthur and his wife had been blessed with all the luxuries in life, the couple had been frustrated at not having a child of their own. They are said to have been fond of male children so that several statues of small boys and girls stood in the front yard facing Arthur’s huge balcony. On the sides of the mansion, are statutes of women turning away from the mansion which can be construed as a symbol of the emotional hang-ups between the couple due to the absence of children.
It is said that despite the grace and the opulence the couple was blessed with, thirty years after their marriage, their childlessness had led to their separation. In 1941, Arthur had taken residence at the Queens Hotel, Kandy, bequeathing a part of his wealth to his wife Clarice until the time of her death, leaving the Castle to the Public Trustee to be used as a children’s home for destitute boys. Arthur passed away at the age of 59 in Room No. 77 at Queens Hotel, Kandy, having spent his final phase of life as a loner. His wife passed away at the age of 80 at a nunnery.
Akin to his graceful life, Arthur had been a devout Catholic so that he was appointed as the ‘Papal Knight’ for the East of the Roman Catholic Church.
Anyone who pays a visit to this place would be awed by the mere splendour of it, which unfortunately had not been sufficient for Arthur and Clarice to enjoy life as it was.