Edwin Wijeyeratne
| Sir Edwin Wijeyeratne | |
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Minister of Home Affairs and Rural Development |
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In office 1948–1951 |
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| Member of the Senate of Ceylon | |
| Ceylonese High Commissioner to Britain and India | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 January 1889 |
| Died | 19 October 1968 (aged 79) |
| Nationality | Ceylonese |
| Political party | United National Party |
| Spouse(s) | Lady Leela Wijeyeratne (née Pethiyagoda) |
| Children | Tissa, Nissanka, Manel, Cuda |
| Occupation | Politics and diplomat |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Buddhist |
Sir Edwin Aloysius Perera Wijeyeratne, KBE (Sinhala: ශ්රිමත් එඩ්වින් ඇලෝසියස් පෙරේරා විජයරත්න) (8 January 1889 – 19 October 1968) (known as Edwin Wijeyeratne) was a Sri Lankan politician, diplomat, and one of the founding members of United National Party. He was a Senator and Cabinet Minister of Home Affairs and Rural Development in the government of D.S.Senanayake.
Sir Edwin Wijeyeratne of Buddenipola Walauwa, Kegalle was born on 8 January 1889 in Rambukkana, Sri Lanka. He was the eldest son of Gabrial Perera Wijeyeratne, a respected notary public. The family hailed from the city of Kotte. His mother, Catherina Wickremasinghe Jayasekera Tennekoon, was the daughter of Jayasekera Tennekoon, a wealthy notary from the Four Korales in Kegalle. The family had come to Kegalle early in the 16th century, fleeing the Portuguese, and continued to intermarry with the Walauwes of Kotte, Madapatha, and Matara.
Wijeyeratne was first educated at the village school in Rambukkana. When nine years old, he went to Handessa Village School in Gampola, where he stayed at the home of his future wife, Leela Pethiyagoda. He was there for two years, after which he studied at St. Mary's College, Kegalle. He completed his secondary education at St Joseph's College, Colombo where he passed the Cambridge Senior exam with Honours. He won 15 prizes at the last school prize giving he attended. After leaving school he became a teacher at Lorenz Tutory while working as a journalist. He served under one of the greatest editors Ceylon had hitherto, Armand de Souza, whom Governors feared and officials dreaded. Wijeyeratne subsequently successfully entered Law College and became a lawyer in 1929.
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