THE GRAND PLANS
Sir Edwards Barnes returned to Ceylon for his second term of office on 24th January 1824, a distinguished military man. In Fortescue's History of the British Army, referring to the battle of the Pyrenees in 1812, Wellington is quoted as writing:
'In my life I never saw such an attack as was made by Barnes Brigade upon the enemy; it is impossible that I can extol too highly the conduct of General Barnes and those brave troops, which was the admiration of all those who witnessed it'.
A military man first and foremost, Barnes quickly climbed the ranks through Colonel to Major-General of the 78th Regiment of Foot. In 1825 he became Lieutenant-General, and was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in February 1831. While in Ceylon he had rapidly acquired a solid grasp of the island's administrative and economic problems. There is no doubt that Ceylon and the plantation industry were fortunate in having a very clear-thinking Governor at this time, as well as some extremely capable engineers. Barnes opened up and developed access to to the resources of the country, building a series of major roads through previously inaccessible and impassable terrain.
Barnes returned to the island bringing along with him his young bride, Maria. The story of his marriage gives a fascinating insight into his spirited and impulsive character: In a letter that John D'Oyly, the First Resident of Kandy, received from his younger brother, Henry, the circumstances of Barnes' marriage are mentioned:
'Sir E.(dward) Barnes I have seen frequently, he engaged the Hercules to take him to Ceylon: she, in going round to Plymouth, got on shore and was damaged. It became necessary to land all the cargo, and this caused a delay of six weeks. In the meantime Sir Edward met at dinner a Miss Fawkes, daughter to a Yorkshire country Gentleman of large fortune, and it was settled in a few days that he was to marry her. About a week ago he left London for Yorkshire in order to be married, and was to cross over from thence with his wife to Plymouth and to embark immediately. I think Sir Edward is now likely to continue your Governor for a long time, and he is a most excellent person.' (Pieris, 1938)
Sir Edward was passionate and spontaneous by nature; now, with a new wife, he would need a far more comfortable abode. On his return to Ceylon, he promptly resumed his programme of public works. With his attention once more falling on Mount Lavinia, it was not long before he was writing to the Colonial Secretary in London:
| 'Earl Bathurst Downing Street |
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| King's House Colombo 3rd November 1824 |
Dear Sir,
Adverting to that part of Sir Edward Paget's letter to the Lord Commissioner of the Treasury of which he sent a reply to your Lordship with his Despatch No. 25, wherein he refers to the state of the House in 1822: I now have the honour to report to your Lordship that the measures he adapted in respect to it were as he mentioned to be his intention, simply calculated to prevent it from going under ruin, but very far either from adequate permanent repair or from making the house even a convenient habitation for the Governor's family, it not affording as I have before in my despatch No. 21 mentioned a spare bedroom, the only two offices of my staff were inmates of the House.
In respect of the House at Mount Lavinia, it is from the nature of its construction an object of continued expense for repairs to a roof badly put on and of temporary materials even immediately after what is called (a) complete repair, it admits the rain in every part and is uninhabitable for nearly one half of the year. Under the circumstances I think it is my duty to appeal to your Lordship on the absolute necessity that exists for rendering Governor's House habitable and to request your permission to expend a sum not exceeding Five Thousand Pounds in currency, or Fifty-Seven Thousand Rix Dollars to be applied to the effectual repair of the Governor's House in the Fort and at Mount Lavinia, being not half of what was estimated by Sir Edward Paget as the sum requisite for the repair.
I expect to provide comfortable habitations for His Majesty's Representative in the Island and it is my intention in every practicable instance to substitute stone and brick for more perishable material and to dispense with timber as far as possible and to use only the most durable kinds of wood. I anticipate that there will not be any call on Government for repairs to those buildings beyond painting for fifty years to come. I have preferred asking for the sum of Five Thousand Pounds in lieu of making out a regular estimate because I am convinced were a detailed statement made out the prices of the materials at the rates they have hitherto cost would swell the amount much beyond the sum I have specified which I propose making sufficient by adopting more economical methods for procuring materials, the exact value of which it is however out of my power now to estimate.
I have the honour to be your obedient servant
Edward Barnes'
Barnes was to boldly lay out his plans before the Colonial Office in London in a direct and forceful manner. He was, after all, the British Governor of the Colony, the principal representative of His Majesty's Government, and Commanding Officer of the Forces. The very last he could expect was a residence befitting such exalted status. With abundant confidence and skill, master of his desires and pleasures, Barnes set to work on his grand plans. Mount Lavinia was to be his ultimate creation; a magnificent residence fit for the Grand Master, such as Versailles was to Louis XIIII. How could he be expected to command respect without a visible symbol of his power and prestige?
Barnes received eventual sanction from the Colonial Secretary. In a reply dated 18th May 1825, assent was given to his request:
'Under the urgent circumstances of the case I am induced to sanction the measure you have submitted to my consideration without first receiving a Report on the subject from the Commissioner for which I should have felt inclined to have waited and the case been left pending'.
The letter continues:
''Although my authority extends to the disbursements of a sum amounting to 5000 currency, yet I feel every confidence that if the subject in view, that of placing the habitations of His Majesty's representative in Ceylon in a permanent and fit state for his residence, can be obtained at an expense under the sum stated, your excellency will not lose sight of the importance of keeping Colonial Expenditure within the narrowest limit by showing such additional sum to the public and that to enable you so to do, you will have recourse to the most economical methods that can be pointed out with a view to the repairs in question'.
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