Galle Face Green

Galle Face Green is a seafront lawn and promenade between Galle Road and the Indian Ocean in central Colombo, Sri Lanka, covering about 5 hectares along roughly 500 m of coast. In the evening it fills with families flying kites, couples walking and food carts selling isso wade (prawn fritters) and other snacks. It suits anyone in Colombo with a free evening.

From gun range to promenade

The Dutch reportedly kept the ground open so their cannon had a clear line of fire against the Portuguese. Governor Sir Henry Ward authorised a mile-long seaside promenade in 1856, completed in 1859, and the Galle Face Hotel (1864) stands at its southern end. The green was once far larger, reaching Beira Lake and the ramparts of Colombo Fort.

Horse racing, golf and the first rugby match in Ceylon

Horse racing ran here from the early 1820s until 1893. Golf arrived in 1879, and the Colombo Golf Club held its first annual meeting on 13 March 1880 before moving to Borella in 1896. The first official rugby match in Ceylon was played on the green on 30 June 1879, and the first Royal-Thomian cricket match on 15 to 17 July 1879.

Ports Authority care, national day and the 2022 protests

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority took over the green from the Urban Development Authority in 2014, and a ports subsidiary has maintained it since 2016. It hosts the national day celebration on 4 February, and in April 2022 it became the main site of the protest camp that demanded the president's resignation.