Kingdom of Kandy
In January 1599 the Portuguese erected a "tranqueira" (a wooden stockade) on the site. In 1603 the Portuguese were forced to withdraw from the area by the Kandyan forces. In 1626, under the supervision of the Portuguese Governor, Constantino de Sá de Noronha, the fort was upgraded and strengthened, the rectangular fortification was known as the "Forte Santa Fe" or the "Cidadela (Citadel) of Forte Cruz", it had four bastions on each corner, named Saõ Iago, Saõ Boa Ventura, Saõ Jorge and Saõ Pedro. The fort was not a major structure and its status as a fort is questionable given that it consists mainly of earth ramparts. It did however play a strategic important role against the Kandyan kingdom, as the main marshalling point for Portuguese forces in their ongoing fight against the Kingdom of Kandy. It was recorded that approximately 400 Portuguese soldiers were garrisoned in the area. In the 1630s the fort fell to Kandyan forces, as the result of ongoining rebellion against the Portuguese invasion of the Kingdom of Kandy. The Portuguese however re-captured it. Following the defeat of the Portuguese in 1658, the area was re-occupied by the forces of the Kingdom of Kandy. The Menikkadawara fort lost its strategic role, once the Dutch secured control of Ceylon.