1208 AC - 1209 AC

The Mahavamsa states that Queen Kalyanawathi lost the throne and that a prince named Dharmashoka ascended to kingship, without providing an explanation for how she lost power. However, inscriptions indicate that she fled due to a Tamil invasion. The word “may not have been a conflict” suggests that it was indeed an invasion. Dharmashoka, who ascended the throne, was a child of three months.
The person who intervened in this was Ayasmanta Chamupathiya. The question that arises here is why he, who had elevated the queen to the throne, allowed another person to be placed there during her reign. There is no evidence that she was removed by Senaviya. What is visible is the Tamil invasion that acted against her.
Professor Senarath Paranavithana states that the Dravidian attack provided a perfect opportunity for Ayasmanta to remove Queen Kalyanawathi from the throne. However, there is no record in the inscriptions indicating that Senaviya had a reason to do so.
If the Tamil invasion and the attack by Prince Anikanga were one and the same, then the question arises why Ayasmanta Senaviya did not support Anikanga in crowning Dharmashoka, the infant king. The lineage of this prince is not mentioned in any chronicle, nor is the royal inheritance he had. According to the Poojawaliya, this child prince was the son of Prince Anikanga.
The period of Dharmashoka’s reign is recorded as one year in the Mahavamsa. However, the Minpe inscription, which mentions the eighth year of Queen Kalyanawathi’s reign, indicates a gap of about two years between her fleeing due to the Tamil invasion and Anikanga prince defeating them and ascending the throne. This interval may correspond to the reign of Dharmashoka, the child king.
There are no surviving inscriptions from his period, but a number of copper and metal plates have been found that include the words “Sri Dharmashoka Devah”, confirming both the historic existence of this king and that his reign, though brief, did take place.