As I read, with wry amusement, G. A. D. Sirimal’s fawning hosanna to the British colonialists [The Island 22/6] I discovered a glaring factual error. He writes "The throne of the last King of Kandy was taken away to England for safe keeping and returned after we gained Independence". This is utterly wrong. Sri Wikrema Rajasingha’s throne was returned to Ceylon in 1937 or so and welcomed at the Jetty by huge crowds. The rest of his apologia too seems to be based on similar inaccuracies.