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Solomon Bandaranaike

The Honourable
S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike
MP
Official Photographic Portrait of S.W.R.D.Bandaranayaka (1899-1959).jpg
4th Prime Minister of Ceylon
In office
12 April 1956 – 26 September 1959
Monarch Elizabeth II
Governor General Oliver Ernest Goonetilleke
Preceded by John Kotelawala
Succeeded by Wijeyananda Dahanayake
Leader of the Opposition
In office
9 June 1952 – 18 February 1956
Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake
Preceded by N. M. Perera
Succeeded by N. M. Perera
Chairman of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
In office
2 September 1951 – 26 September 1959
Succeeded by C. P. de Silva
Minister of Health and Local Government
In office
26 September 1947 – 12 July 1951
Prime Minister D. S. Senanayake
Preceded by Position established
Succeeded by Dudley Senanayake
Member of the Ceylon Parliament
for Attanagalla
In office
14 October 1947 – 26 September 1959
Preceded by Constituency established
Succeeded by James Obeyesekere
Personal details
Born (1899-01-08)8 January 1899
Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
Died 26 September 1959(1959-09-26) (aged 60)
Colombo, Ceylon
Political party Sri Lanka Freedom Party
(1951-1959)
United National Party
(1946-1951)
Spouse(s) Sirimavo Bandaranaike
Relations Panini Ilangakoon (Cousin)
Children Sunethra
Chandrika
Anura
Alma mater Christ Church, Oxford
Religion Theravada Buddhism
Website Official website

Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike (Sinhalese: සොලමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක,Tamil: சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் பண்டாரநாயக்கா; 8 January 1899 – 26 September 1959), frequently referred to as S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, was the fourth Prime Minister of Ceylon (later Sri Lanka) and founder of the left wing and Sinhala nationalist Sri Lanka Freedom Party, serving as Prime Minister from 1956 until his assassination by a Buddhist monk in 1959.

Bandaranaike was born in Colombo, Ceylon, to an elite Sinhalese Anglican Christian family and was the son of the powerful Sir Solomon Dias Bandaranaike the Maha Mudaliyar (the chief native interpreter and advisor to the Governor) of Horagolla Walauwa in Attanagalla, during British colonial rule, who named his son after West Ridgeway, the Governor of Ceylon at the time and was his god father. In later life he converted to Buddhism in order to join politics. He received his secondary education at S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia and went on to study modern greats at Christ Church, Oxford University, where he was Secretary of the famous Oxford Union. He later qualified as a Barrister in England. After having moved there in 1930s. It is also believed he was privately tutuored and was sent to S.Thomas' for sake of records - as it was a requirement to gain admission to a British University one had to be at a formal school. His stint at STC was very brief before he entered Oxford University.


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