Although it is not known when ethnic Tamils first settled in Sri Lanka, early settlements occurred in the aftermath of repeated South Indian invasions (c. 1st to 13th centuries.). Tamil royal dynasties in this period are known to have patronized Tamil Saivite culture in the east that parralled the growth of the community in the area, and by the 6th century, a special coastal route by boat was functioning to the Koneswaram temple of Trincomalee and Thirukkovil temple of Batticaloa. It was not until the 13th century that there was firm evidence of the rise of a significant Tamil Hindu kingdom in the Jaffna Peninsula, complete with a Hindu king and a palace, in the aftermath of the collapse of the classical Sinhala Dry Zone civilisations. By the 11th and 12th centuries, the upper half of the eastern province had a large Tamil community.