The roots of the Gemunu Watch can be traced to the volunteer formations of the British Empire and the formation of the Ceylon Infantry Regiment by a Gazette notification on 1 April 1881. Later, in order to encourage the concept of volunteering, the volunteer force was expanded to include units at the district level. Accordingly, two Volunteer Detachments were set up in Galle and Matara in the old Dutch forts. Thereafter, the Ceylon Defence Force was established under Army Order No: 08 of 1910, to cater to the administration and discipline of these regiments, and came under the direct purview of the Commandant, Ceylon Defence Force. During World War I (1914 to 1918), the Ceylon Defence Force was engaged in active service and the troops deployed in Galle and Matara too were mobilized. After the War, the CDF was systematically "Ceylonised" by the appointment of Ceylonese officers as commanding officers of battalions.[1]
Following Ceylon gaining self-rule in 1948, and the establishment of the Ceylon Army under the Army Act, the Ceylon Defence Force became the Ceylon Volunteer Force and the detachments in Galle and Matara were renamed as "B" Company of the 2nd Battalion (Volunteer), Ceylon Light Infantry. The "B" Company in Galle and Matara was renamed the Ruhuna Volunteer Regiment in 1950 with Colonel C. A. Dharmapala, its first commanding officer. In 1956, with the change in the national political leadership to the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, the Ruhuna Regiment did not find favour with the political hierarchy and was disbanded. Subsequently, in October 1956, the second Regular Infantry Battalion, the 1st Battalion of the Sinha Regiment was established in the Imperial Camp in Diyatalawa. Thereafter, the 2nd [Volunteer] Battalion of the Sinha Regiment was raised in Kandy. When the Ruhuna Regiment was disbanded, the troops located in Galle and Matara were attached to various units. Subsequently, the troops that were deployed in Galle formed the "C" Company of the 2nd [Vol] Battalion of the Sinha Regiment. In the latter half of 1959, 110 soldiers deployed as "C" Company of the 2nd [Vol] Battalion, Sinha Regiment under the command of Capt. D.S. Amarasuriya were brought together to form a new Volunteer Unit called the Gemunu Regiment, which was raised in Galle on 23 November 1959. Capt. D.S. Amarasuriya was appointed the commanding officer. The new Unit did not have a flag or cap badge, therefore, it was originally proposed to have the image of a Leopard associated with the Yala Sanctuary with cross rifles designed for the cap badge. However, it was not adopted. As the Permanent Staff of the Unit was drawn from the Sinha Regiment, they followed the traditions associated with the Sinha Regiment.
The third Regular Infantry Regiment, the 1st Battalion of the Gemunu Watch, was raised at the Ceylon Volunteer Force [CVF] Camp in Diyatalawa on 7 December 1962, and subsequently occupied the Rangala Camp of the Royal Ceylon Navy and the Imperial Camp vacated by the Sinha Regiment (which had been moved to Colombo). As Gemunu originated in Ruhuna, the Volunteer Gemunu Regiment was established in Galle and the detachment located in Matara was renamed Gemunu Battalions and formed the Volunteer counterparts of the 1st Battalion of the Gemunu Watch.
The Founding Father and first commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the Gemunu Watch, Lieut. Colonel John Halangode was from the 1st Battalion of the Ceylon Light Infantry. He was inspired by the traditions of the British Regiment, the Black Watch, and inculcated those norms and customs into the 1st Battalion of the Gemunu Watch. The nucleus of 1GW consisted of Officers and Other Rank Cadres drawn from the Regular Units already established.
Units
No
Unit
Formed
Disbanded
Notes
1
1st Battalion, Gemunu Watch
7 December 1962
2
2nd (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 October 1964
3
3rd (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 September 1965
4
4th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
27 December 1985
5
5th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 June 1987
First unit to be formed in the battle field, Vasavilan Jaffna. First commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel G.W.W. Perera.
6
6th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
22 May 1990
First commanding officer was Major M.M. Sumanasena
7
7th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
17 September 1992
On 13 June 2000, this unit was amalgamated with 5 Gemunu Watch and on 17 May 2005 the Battalion was re-designated as the 7th Battalion
8
8th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
28 January 1993
8 Gemunu Watch was amalgamated with the 6 Gemunu Watch on 9 June 2000 and on 17 May 2005, 8 Gemunu Watch re-commenced working as an independent Unit once again.
9
9th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
24 January 1994
On 18 June 2000, 9 Gemunu Watch was amalgamated with 1 Gemunu Watch and on 24 January 2002 it re-commenced functioning independently
10
10th (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 June 1994
11
11th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
4 September 1996
On 17 May 2005, 11 Gemunu Watch was re-named as 7 Gemunu Watch. Later this Unit once more became 11 Gemunu Watch on 4 October 2007.
12
12th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 January 1997
12 Gemunu Watch was amalgamated with 4 Gemunu Watch on 12 June 2000, but became an independent Unit on 11 November 2002.
14
14th (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
7 January 1997
15
15th (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 December 2007
16
16th (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
9 May 2008
17
17th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
16 October 2008
18
18th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 December 2008
19
19th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
12 January 2009
20
20th (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
7 March 2009
21 November 2018
21
21st (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
1 May 2009
15 November 2018
22
22nd (V) Battalion, Gemunu Watch
29 July 2009
13 March 2012
23
23rd Battalion, Gemunu Watch
15 October 2009
24
24th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
9 November 2009
25
25th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
25 September 2010
1st Reinforcement [RFT] Battalion formed on 25 September 2008 was re-named as 25 Battalion, Gemunu Watch on 25 September 2010
26
26th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
20 September 2010
25 April 2012
2nd RFT Battalion of the Gemunu Watch formed on 31 January 2009 was re-named as 26 Gemunu Watch on 20 September 2010.
27
27th Battalion, Gemunu Watch
20 September 2010
25 February 2012
3rd RFT Battalion of the Gemunu Watch formed on 16 April 2009 was re-designated as 27 Gemunu Watch on 20 September 2010.
28
HQ BN Battalion, Gemunu Watch
Initially formed as RFT Battalion of the Gemunu Watch on 17 January 1998. On 8 October 1999, the RFT Battalion was re-named the Headquarter Battalion.
