While the British government had a preference for Christians, they were not openly hostile to Buddhism, due to their fear that religious controversies might provoke political unrest. During the first two decades of British rule, there was no official British support for Christian missionary societies. Left to their own resources, the efforts of these missionary organizations made their progress in converting the population slow, though they did grow. Their activities were also very restricted in the Kandyan regions. From the beginning, the missions used education as a means of evangelisation. Education in these schools (which disparaged Buddhism) was a requirement for government office. Christian missionaries also wrote tracts in Sinhalese attacking Buddhism and promoting Christianity.