The arrival of 

Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 began a period of Spanish

exploration and colonization. [9][10]
Losing the favour of King Manuel I of Portugal for his plan of reaching the Spice Islands by sailing
west from Europe, Magellan offered his services to king Charles I of Spain (Charles V, Holy Roman
Emperor). On 20 September 1519, Magellan led five ships with a total complement of 250 people
from the Spanish fort of Sanlúcar de Barrameda en route to southeast Asia via the Americas and the
Pacific Ocean. They reached the Philippines on 16 March 1521. Rajah Kolambu the king
of Mazaua told them to sail for Cebu, where they could trade and obtain provisions.
Arriving in Cebu City, Magellan, with Enrique of Malacca as a translator, befriended Rajah
Humabon the Rajah or King of Cebu, and persuaded the natives to ally themselves with Charles I of
Spain. Humabon and his wife were given Christian names and baptized as Carlos and Juana. The
Santo Niño was presented to the native queen of Cebu, as a symbol of peace and friendship
between the Spaniards and the Cebuanos. On 14 April Magellan erected a large wooden cross on
the shores of Cebu. Afterwards, about 700 islanders were baptized.
Magellan soon heard of Datu Lapu-Lapu, a native king in nearby Mactan Island, a rival of the Rajahs
of Cebu. It was thought that Humabon and Lapu–Lapu had been fighting for control of the flourishing
trade in the area. On 27 April the Battle of Mactan occurred, where the Spaniards were defeated and
Magellan was killed by the natives of Mactan[11] in Mactan Island. According to Italian historian and
chronicler Antonio Pigafetta, Magellan's body was never recovered despite efforts to trade for it with
spice and jewels. Magellan's second-in-command, Juan Sebastián Elcano, took his place as captain
of the expedition and sailed the fleet back to Spain, circumnavigating the world.

Survivors of the Magellan expedition returned to Spain with tales of a savage island in the East
Indies. Consequently, several Spanish expeditions were sent to the islands but all ended in failure.
In 1564, Spanish explorers led by Miguel López de Legazpi, sailing from Mexico, arrived in 1565,
and established a colony.[12] The Spaniards fought the King, Rajah Tupas, and occupied his
territories. The Spaniards established settlements, trade flourished and renamed the island to "Villa
del Santísimo Nombre de Jesús" (Town of the Most Holy Name of Jesus). Cebu became the first
European settlement established by the Spanish Cortés in the Philippines. In 1595, the Universidad
de San Carlos was established and in 1860, Cebu opened its ports to foreign trade. The first printing
house (Imprenta de Escondrillas y Cia) was established in 1873 and in 1880, the Colegio de la
Inmaculada Concepcion (College of the Immaculate Conception) was established and the first
periodical The Bulletin of Cebu ("El Boletin de Cebú") began publishing in 1886. In 1898, the island
was ceded to the United States after the Spanish–American War and Philippine–American War. In
1901, Cebu was governed by the United States for a brief period, however, it became a charter
province on 24 February 1937 and was governed independently by Filipino politicians.
Cebu, being one of the most densely populated islands in the Philippines, served as
a Japanese base during their occupation in World War II which began with the landing of Japanese
soldiers in April 1942. The 3rd, 8th, 82nd and 85th Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth
Army was re-established from 3 January 1942 to 30 June 1946 and the 8th Constabulary Regiment
of the Philippine Constabulary was reestablished again from 28 October 1944 to 30 June 1946 at the
military general headquarters and the military camps and garrisoned in Cebu city and Cebu
province. They started the Anti-Japanese military operations in Cebu from April 1942 to September
1945 and helped Cebuano guerrillas and fought against the Japanese Imperial forces. Almost three
years later in March 1945, combined Filipino and American forces landed and reoccupied the island
during the liberation of the Philippines. Cebuano guerrilla groups led by an American, James M.
Cushing, is credited for the establishment of the "Koga Papers", [13] which is said to have changed the
American plans to retake the Philippines from Japanese occupation in 1944, by helping the
combined United States and the Philippine Commonwealth Army forces enter Cebu in 1945. The
following year the island achieved independence from colonial rule in 1946.
Cebu became a key center of resistance against the Marcos dictatorship,[14] first becoming apparent
when the hastily put-together lineup of Pusyon Bisaya defeated the entire slate of Marcos' Kilusang
Bagong Lipunan (KBL) in Region VII.[15] Later, Cebu would play a key role in the days leading up to
the 1986 People Power revolution and the ouster of Marcos. It was from Fuente Osmeña circle in
Cebu City that the opposition forces relaunched Civil Disobedience Campaign against the Marcos
regime and its cronies on February 22, 1986. After that, the Carmelite Monastery in Barangay
Mabolo, Cebu City, served as a refuge for opposition candidates Aquino and Laurel during the first
day of the People Power revolution, because it was not yet safe to go back to Manila. [16]
In February 2012 Cebu island experienced the effects of magnitude 6.7 earthquake on the
neighboring island of Negros and was the largest quake in the area for 90 years. The tremor shook
buildings but there were no reports of major building damage or loss of life on Cebu Island itself.
This tremor was caused by a previously unrecorded fault.
In October 2013, Cebu and Bohol were hit by record-setting 7.2 magnitude earthquake which left
more than 100 dead and collapsed some buildings, including 5 historical churches. There were over
700 aftershocks.