Lionrock; Fortress in the Rock, Built 477-495(earlier?) Secret tunnels, Battle elephants, Sri Lanka

Howdy ya’ll. If you watched my recent video on The Rock of Gibraltar, our video today is going to be quite entertaining. We’re going to be focusing on Lionrock in Sri Lanka, also known as Sigiriya or Sinhagiri. The history here, according to both legend and the current narrative, is absolutely enthralling. The structure is both immense and built into a massive rock formation. It should truly be considered one of the wonders of the ancient world. Current narrative suggests human occupation in the Lionrock area for the last 5000 years, and yet the documented history begins with the rock being a place of Buddhist worship in roughly the Third Century BC. From here, during the reign of King Kashyapa, a Usurper King, (from roughly 477 AD to 495 AD) we’re told he moved the Sri Lankan capital to this secluded Buddhist monastery, climbed the highest peak, and from here, built out Lionrock. The Rock itself, was said to once take the form of a giant Lion, chiseled by hand, built with the help of red brick. Only upon recent excavations have scholars and historians been able to find remnants of the previous culture that survived the destruction of Lionrock by the Kingdom of Kandy in the 17th century. Today we will discuss all the associated history, look at all the detailed photographs I could find, including the oldest photographs I could find, and we will discuss the endless possibilities as related to the outstanding fortress of Lionrock. As always, your input is more than welcome in the comment section down below. I’d love to hear your opinion on “Lionrock”! Links for further research; ūḷavaṃsa