SPANISH vs MORO

Cause of the War

The Philippines served as a staging area for the invasion of the Spice Islands. Spain's main colonial
intentions were to gain a piece of a sought spice market that could only be found in the Philippines, as
well as to establish a direct route to the Orient's valuable gold, pearls, and diamonds. Expeditions were
dispatched to use the Spanish territorial domain to resolve the economic insolvency. Moro simply lives
quietly as a member of the country's humanity, but the war began owing to the evil objectives of
Spanish colonists.

Key events of the War

The battle began around the arrival of Legazpi in 1565 and ended with the invasion of Borneo in 1578
and 1581 in the first phase (Brunei Cut-Off). The Spaniards captured a commerce vessel near Bohol in
March 1565. In 1569, Spaniards successfully engaged 20 vessels owned by Borneo and Sulu, symbolizing
commercial rivalry. The Spaniards were worried that the angry Bornean aristocracy would seek refuge in
Brunei after the fall of Manila. Spaniards invaded Brunei in 1578, forcing Sultan Seifer-Jiral to flee. In
1581, the Spaniards tried again but were unsuccessful, though they did succeed in eradicating Borneo
pretensions in the country.

The second phase (Strongholds) began when the Spaniards attempted to establish forts and colonies in
Muslim areas in order to extract tribute and wean the Muslims away from Ternate's alliance. The Sulu
Sultan, as well as the Pulangi chieftains, offered a small payment. A 1587 plot orchestrated by Magat
Salamat, a Tondo chieftain, failed. The Spanish government decided to colonize Mindanao and include it
in their Philippine colony in 1591. Esteban Rodriguez de Figueroa, the newly appointed governor of
Mindanao, landed in Cotabato in April 1596 but was unable to contact the Sultan of Maguindanao.

The Rajahs of Maguindanao and Bauyan launched raids on the Bisayas with 3000 soldiers each in the
third phase (Counter Attacks) between 1599 and 1600. In 1602, they mounted another raid, this time
with the assistance of sulu, and made it all the way to Southern Luzon. At 1627, the sulu assaulted Rajah
Bongsu's shipyard in Camarines. In 1930, Lorenzo de Olaro's expedition failed, leaving him injured and
his soldiers’ dead. Around 1619, Katchil Kudarat, the Iranun and Maguindanao chieftain, became a
chieftain and kept the peace with the Spaniards. The Spaniards built a powerful fort in Zamboanga
around 1635.

The fourth phase (Fortress War) started in 1635 with the fortification of Zamboanga and ended in 1663
with its abandonment. The Spaniards were forced to conclude a treaty in 1645 due to Kudarat's growing
strength. They signed a pact the following year, promising to surrender all forts in Sulu. The peace was
disrupted in 1655 when the Spanish ambassador was killed for insisting on converting the Sultan.
Kudarat declared jihad and appealed to the Sultans of Makassar, Sulu, Ternate, and Brunei for
assistance. Zamboanga was abandoned in 1663, resulting in a 50-year period of peace.

The Spanish king issued many royal orders for the occupation and refortification of Zamboanga during
the fifth phase. In 1718, the fort was garrisoned and strengthened. The fifth phase was set to begin
soon. The sulu and Iranun stormed the fort in 1720-1721 but were defeated despite the employment of
hundreds of war vessels and thousands of men. Spaniards altered their evangelization agenda in
exchange for trade partnerships and alliance treaties. The sultanates must accept Christian preaching.
Sultan Azim-din traveled to Manila for his baptism, incarceration, and return to Sultan Azim-din. To
preserve Jolo from the forces of the Spaniards, the Sultan went so far as to seek assistance from China
and the Ottoman Empire.

The war's sixth phase began in 1845 when the Spaniards used the threat of piracy to organize the
Balanging expedition. Another Spanish campaign to take Jolo was planned in 1876, but this time it was
justified by Sultan Jamal ul-misunderstanding Azam's of prior accords. The Sultan leased the Sabah
territory to the British business when Jolo was abandoned. Finally, a compact between the United
Kingdom, Germany, and Spain established that Spanish sovereignty extended to sulu. The last peace
pact signed by the Spaniards and the sulu was in 1878. The contract establishes a form of Spanish
protectorate for the sulu while also granting the sulu considerable autonomy.

Effects of the War

Since then, as a result of the battle between Moro and Spaniards, the number of Christians has
increased, and baptism has come to rule Filipinos. There is a virtual commercial monopoly with
neighboring countries. Large political groups with concentrated governance. The negative consequences
include religious confusion, centralized and civilized society leading to power, and catastrophic
depopulation. They are nearly hopelessly divided amongst themselves, and they are impoverished.
Trading ties that were once fruitful have ended. On a huge scale, plantations, boats, and cities were
devastated.