Galle face green has always played a special part in the lives of Colombo-dwellers, although it is the British who are credited with making it a place of social interaction, as it remains today.
In colonial times, the British embraced Galle face green as a leisure ground especially in the evening when elite ladies were said to promenade the length of the green. Active pursuits of cricket, football, polo and the famed horse races also took place on Galle face green. Horse-racing become popular in the 1840s and the Ceylon turf club was founded here sometime between the and 1860, although official records were not kept until 1866. The formal structure of the walk along the seaside was built during the period of governor ward in 1859. A plaque recognizes his achievement in providing a place where residents of Colombo could gather and socialize. Before the British arrived in Ceylon, Galle face green remained a coastal swamp that both the Portuguese and the Dutch delivered acted as a perfect natural barrier against potential attacks on the city.
In its recent history, galle face green has passed through numerous phases of being physically green ( with grass) as in the old days, to times when it is referred to as gall face brown because of its complete lack of greenery. nevertheless, despite its changing face is remains as popular today as it was for the colonial British.
