![]() ![]() The governor was the ex-officio Chancellor of the University of Ceylon and patron of the Royal College Colombo. In November each year, the governor would receive the annual tribute from the sultan of Maldives. The governor was the commander-in-chief of British Forces in Ceylon, except only during World War II, when Admiral Sir Geoffrey Layton was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Ceylon with power exceeding that of the governor. Upon independence in 1948, the office of the Governor was abolished and replaced with that of the Governor-General as the representative of the sovereign. These reforms introduced the first legislator which was expanded over the next century in the reforms that took place. it was in the Colebrooke Reforms which first defined the role of the governor as "the representative of the Sovereign the Monarch who rules over the Parliament of the United Kingdom". The governor had absolute power in the island deriving it from the traditional powers of the Dutch governors and the king of Kandy and reporting to the secretary of state for the colonies. Initially limited to the coastal regions, the authority of the governor was extended to the provinces of the Kingdom of Kandy following the Kandyan Convention in 1815. The governor was the head of the executive administration in the island. The governor, appointed by the British monarch (on the advice of the prime minister and the secretary of state for the colonies), maintained executive power in Ceylon throughout British rule. The office of Governor-General was itself abolished in 1972 and replaced by the post of President when Sri Lanka became a republic. With Ceylon gaining self-rule and dominion status with the creation of Dominion of Ceylon in 1948, this office was replaced by the Governor-General, who represented the British monarch as the head of state. The governor was the head of the British colonial administration in Ceylon, reporting to the Colonial Office. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces in Ceylon. The governor of Ceylon was the representative in Ceylon of the British Crown from 1795 to 1948.
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