TIAONG ELE03 CaringalA

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Southern Luzon State University

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Chapter
1
The Philippines and its People.
Overview
The Philippines is a tropical and archipelagic country found in Southeast Asia.
endowed with rich natural resources and a warm , hospitable people ,it has its own share of
political and economic challenges to meet
Objectives
At the end of the module, the student is expected to:
1. To become familiar with the country’s geological formation, geography, and natural
resources..
2. To identify the different traits and values of the Filipinos
3. Develop a sense of identity and pride in being a Filipino.
Discussion
GEOGRAPHY
The Philippines is an archipelago lying southeast of the cost of the mainland of Asia. It
is located a little above the equator and thus, belongs to the northern hemisphere. Of
approximately 7, 107 islands and islets that compose the archipelago, some 4,000 have no names.
Luzon, Mindanao, Negros, Samar, Palawan, Panay, Mindoro, Leyte, Cebu, and Bohol are the ten
biggest islands. The total land area, excluding the bodies of water surrounded by land, such as
Laguna de Bay, Taal Lake, Lake Lanao and many more like these, is 300,000 square kilometers.
The northernmost island of Luzon is just 100 kilometers away from the island of Taiwan,
formerly called Formosa. North and west of the archipelago lies the South China Sea; to the east
is the Pacific Ocean; and to the South are the Celebes Sea and the waters of Borneo.
The coastline of the Philippines is irregular and stretches for about 36,289 kilometers,
about twice as long as the coastline of the United States, excluding that of Alaska and Hawaii. In
a note verbal submiited by the Philippines government to the United Nations on march 7, 1955,
the Philippines is defined as “a mid-ocean archipelagic sate.” Thus, all water around, between and
connecting different islands belonging to the Philippines Archipelago, irrespective of their width
od dimensions, are necessary appurtenances of it’s land territory, forming an integral part of the
national inland waters, subject to the exclusive sovereignty of the Philippines.” Because of the
irregular coastline, the country abounds in good harbors, landlocked straits, and hundreds of small
rivers, bays and lakes. Manila Bya, which has an area of ales than 2,000 square kilometres and a

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circumference of about 190 kilometres, is considered one of the finest natural harbors in the
world. The Philippine Deep , which is found east of the Philippines near Samar and Leyte, is
considered as one of the deepest sea trenches in the world.
A look at the physical map of the Philippines shows that it is mountainous. There are
numerous peaks from the north and south, of which Mount Apo in Mindanao is the
highest,standing at approximately 2,954 meters high. The second highest is Mount Dulang-
dulang in Bukidnon, which is 2,938 meters high. The northern and eastern parts of Luzon have
rugged mountains which are volcanic in origin. There are three large mountain ranges in Luzon.
They are the Western Caraballo de Baler, the Sierra Madre Mountain Range, and the Caraballo de
Baler. Western Caraballo runs from north to south and divides itself into the Central Cordillera
and the Northern Cordillera. It crosses the Provinces of northern Luzon, west of the Cagayan
River. The Sierra Madre begins at the town of Baler in the eastern part of Quezon Province, and
crosses the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela and Quezon, it is the longest continuous mountain
range in the Philippines. The third mountain range, the Caraballo de Baler, begins from the town
of Baler and ends in the Strait of San Bernardino. This mountain range includes Mayon Volcano
in Albay and Bulusan Volcano in Sorsogon.
Outside of his bid mountain rangers are the small mountain rangers of Zambales and the
Tagaytay Ridge. The Zambales range begins at Cape Bolinao, follows the coast of the China Sea,
and ends in the Bataan Peninsula. The Tagaytay Ridge crosses the provinces of Cavite and
Batangas. Mount Makiling in Laguna and Taal Volcano are parts of the Tagaytay Ridge.
Mindoro, Panay, and Negros have small mountain ranges. The highest peaks in these parts are
Mount Halcon in Mindoro and Kanlaon Volcano in Negros. Leyte and Samar are not as
mountainous as the provinces mentioned above. Mindanao, on the other hand, has four distinct
mountain ranges. They are the Eastern Mountain Range, which begins at Surigao and follows the
Pacific coast; the Central-Eastern Range Mountain Range which begins at Butuan and extends
south to Agusan on the East and to Pulangui on the west; the Central-Western Range, which
begins at Mount Apo, Follows the boundary of Cotabato, and ends in the Zamboanga Peninsula;
and the Western Range which begins west of Iligan Bay and ends on the shores of Basilan Strait.
Volcanoes and Earthquakes
There are many volcanoes in the Philippines whose eruptions caused much damage to
lives and property. Twenty-six of the volcanoes are considered active, while the rest are supposed
to be dormant or “sleeping.” The most famous of these active volcanoes are Iraya in Batanes;
Taal in Batngas; Banahaw in Quezon; Mayon in Albay; Bulusan in Sorsogon; Hibok-Hibok in
Camiguin Island and Makaturing in Lanao. Mayon and Taal are the most active of these
volcanoes. They have erupted for no less than twenty-five times. Mayon is famous the world over
forits perfect cone shape, while Taal is famous for being the smallest volcano in the world. In
1966, Taal volcano erupted, which led to the resettlement of the people of Volcano Island to
others places.
The Philippines is within what is called the seismic belt, that is, it lies in the path of
earthquakes. Manila and many parts of Luzon experienced several earthquakes over the years
including that of 1863, which caused the destruction of many residential houses and government
buildings and death of famous priest, Father Pedro Pelaez in the Manila Cathedral; that of 1937,
which destroyed, partially, or completely, many big buildings in Manila; that of 1968, when many
buildings were partially destroyed while an apartment building was completely destroyed
resulting in the death of hundreds of people; and that of 1990, which registered 7.8 on the Richter
scale, killing and injuring thousands of people, and damaging about 20,000 square kilometers of
densely populated areas in Luzon.
Climate
The Philippine has a tropical and maritime climate which is tempered by the breeze from
the Pacific Ocean on the east and the China Sea on the west. Based on rainfall and temperature,
there are two major seasons: the dry season which extends from June to November, the period
from late November to February is usually col. May is often the hottest month of the year, while
January is the coldest. Even so, the climate in general is healthful. Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the

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first governor-general of the Philippines, describing it to the King of Spain said, “This country
[the Philippines] is salubrious and has a good climate…”
Generally, typhoons have influenced the climate and weather of the country. These
typhoons may be classified into ‘remarkable’ and ‘ordinary’. The former have destroyed millions
of pesos worth of crops and property. Typhoons and tropical cyclones most frequently enter the
Philippine are of responsibility (PAR) during the months of July to October. Some of the worst
typhoons that ever struck the country include Uring in November 1991, Rosing in October 1995,
Reming in November 2006, Ondoy in September 2009, Pepeng in October 2009.
Natural Resources
Nature has given the Philippines rich soil and plenty of natural resources. The rich
valleys and fertile plains are planted to crops such as rice, corn coconuts, sugar cane, bananas,
pineapples, and varieties of vegetable. The country has enough water resource for electricity;
food such as fish, seaweeds, sea shells; as well as pearl for jewelry. There is an abundant supply
of minerals like gold, copper, silver, lead, zinc, nickel, manganese and chromium, as well as non-
metallic minerals like salt, clay, coal, sulphur, asbestos, limestones, gravel, and gypsum. Gum
resins and lumber can be obtained from the country’s’ vast forests. The Philippines also has oil.
Called “black gold,” its discovery at Malampaya , Palawan has encouraged foreign and Filipino
firms to drill wells for oil. Its commercial exploration will greatly improve the country’s
economy. However, despite this natural abundance conservation and civil society have expressed
concern over the depletion of forests, abuse and misuse of land resources, and threats to marine
and coastal ecosystems. A significant response by the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (DENR) was its lobby for Congress to pass the National Integrated Protected Areas
System (NIPAS) Bill in 1992. Now called R.A. 7586, the law is premised on the concept of the
involvement of local communities in biodiversity conservation and habitat management. This,
indigenous peoples living in the protected areas are given responsibilities over their territories and
sustainable livelihood alternatives. Other laws that protect our environment include the Philippine
Clear Air Act of 1999, the Ecological Solid Waste management of 2000, and the Clear Water Act
of 2004.
ECONOMY
Rice is the main crop of the country and is cultivated in large qualities in Central Luzon,
Western Visayas, and Mindanao.its production, however, remains insufficient due to several
factors. First, destructive typhoons and floods often destroy thousands upon thousands of rice
lands leading to government importation of rice. Second, the agricultural sector remains
backward despite government efforts to modernize it through the introduction of programs like
the “Masagana 99” technique in the sixties and the comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program in
recent years; the use of “miracle rice varieties”; the use of fertilizers and pesticides to increase
rice production, which puts a toll not only on poor farmers, who oftentimes cannot afford them,
but also on the environment, particularly the quality of soil. Third, the production shift to sources
of bio fuels such as jathropa and other cash crops, which command higher prices in the market,
has also affected rice production in no small way. Fourth, the massive conversion of farm lands
for residential and commercial use has also contributed to low rice productivity, not to mention
the loss of farm labor.
The major Philippines products for export include coconut oil, fresh bananas, pineapples,
sugar, gum resins and abaca, among others. Among the country’s growing industries are mining,
lumber, metal, woodcraft, furniture, and petroleum. The Philippines is also among the world’s
supplier of semiconductors and manufactured goods like ignition wiring set and other wiring sets
used in vehicles, air crafts, and ships; cathodes or refined copper; and microprocessors. Clothing
and clothing accessories are also produced in the country. The United States of America remains
out top market for export followed by Japan, Hong Kong, and the People’s Republic of China.
Other big markets of Philippine products are the Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia,
Republic of South Korea and Taiwan (National Statistic Office, 2007).

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POPULATION
Based on the latest figures from the National Statistics Office (2008-2009), the
Philippines has one of the fastest-growing population with a birth rate of 26.42 births/1,000. life
expectancy stands at 67.89 years for men and 73.85 years for women. there are approximately 92
millions Filipinos today as projected by the NSO. Concentrated in the more urbanized sections of
the country, 84% of the population is functionally literate. as of 2009, an estimate of 35 million
Filipinos are employed. thirty-four percent of employed Filipinos are engage in agriculture
(hunting,forestry and fishing);15% work in the industry sector (mining and Quarrying,
manufacturing, electricity, gas and water, and construction); while 51% are employed in the
service sector(wholesale and retail trade, repairs of vehicles, household goods; hotels and
restaurants;transport, storage and communication; financial, real estate, renting and business
activities; education, health, and social work, etc.). these figure raise the question weather the
country is truly n its way towards industrialization or not.
The majority of the Filipinos belong tothe Austronesian ethic groupdue to early trade
contacts and subsequent colonization by the Spaniards and later by the Americans, Filipinos
today are a mixture of races. The offspring of a native Filipino and a foreigner, whether Chinese,
Spaniards, American is called Mestizo. With the phenomenal growth of Filipinos working
overseas (OFWs) the mestizo group has expanded to include Arabs, Japanese, Koreans and
Europeans. There are around 170 spoken languages are Bicolano, Bisaya, Cebuano, Chabacano,
Hiligaynon/Ilonggo, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Maguindanaon, Maranao, Pangasinnse, Tagalog,
Tausug, and Waray. Filipino is the national language with Filipino and English as the official
languages of country.
GOVERNMENT
The Philippines is a constitutional republic with three co-equal branches; the executive,
legislative, and judiciary. The executive branch headedby the President and Vice President,
administer the function of the government through the cabinet that is made up of departments and
headedby the department secretaries. The legislative branch, which is responsible for enacting
bills into laws, is composed of the Senate (Upper House) and the House of Representative (Lower
house), led by the Senate President and the Speaker of the House respectively. The judiciary
consist of the systems of courts with the Supreme Court as the highest court in the land and
headed by the chief justice.
For administrative purpose, the Philippines is subdivided into regions and provinces,
except for Metropolitan Manila. Each province is headed by a governor and has its own
legislative body called Sanguniang Panlalawigan. The provinces, in turn, are composed of cities
and municipalities. Cities and municipalities are further divided into barangays. A barangay is the
smallest political unit of the country and headed by a barangay captain.
The country has undergone five constitutional changes since the Malolos Constitution of
189 which set up the First Filipino Republic with Emilio F. Aguinaldo as President. These
constitutions re:
(1)v the 1935 Constitution, which served as the basis for the transition commonwealth
government with Manuel L.Quezon as president followed by Sergio S. Osmeña;
(2) The 1943 Constitution of the Japanese-sponsored government which recognized the Second
Republic under President Jose P. Luarel;
(3) the 1935 Constitution, which set up the Third Republic under President Manuel A. Roxas,
followed by Elpido R. Quirino, Ramon F. Magsaysay, Carlos P. Garcia, Diosdado P. Macapagal,
and Ferdinand E. Marcos (for his first term);
(4) the 1973 Constitution that extended the term of president Marcos beyond the provision of the
1935 Constitution, and set up the Fourth Republic; and
(5) the 1987 Constitution during the presidency of Corazon C. Aquino (as the first president of
the Fifth Republic), to that of Fidel V. Ramos, the short-lived administration of joseph E. Estrada,

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and that of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

FILIPINO TRAITS AND VALUES
The Filipino people have may common traits. Perhaps the most important trait of the
Filipinos is their hospitality. They welcome visitors, whether Filipinos or non- Filipinos, with
open arms and warm hearts. Visitors are given the best in the he house and they would go to
extent of incurring debts to make their visitors contented, happy and comfortable. Filipinos
hospitality is unequaled and known the world over.
Filipinos maintain close family ties. The family is the unit of society and consists atleast
until very recent times, of the parents, the grandparents, and the children. The head of the family
is the father, but it is really the mother who governs. The mother does a lot of things for the
family; she is the first teacher of the children; she is the treasurer of the home, the accountant, the
censor, the laundrywoman, and the cook. Thus, in the Filipino families, even the father calls the
wife “Mama” or “Mommy.” He dutifully hands over his salary or earnings to the wife, who in
case of the father’s illness, works to support the whole family. Present-days women’s rights
advocates in the country, however, call this “double-burden.” The problem of the family is not
the problem of the parents alone; it is the problem of all the adult members of the family. If
Juana, one the children, wants to continue her studies, say in the high school, the older brothers
and sisters help the parents in sending her to school. If she finds employment, she in turn helps
her parents, brothers and sister to send the younger children to school. Thus, cooperative work
within the family circle is not uncommon.
Respect for the elders is one of the best Filipino traits. Filipino parents exercise moral
influence over their children. The latter obey their parent willingly and help them in their work.
The younger men and women do not, as a rule, disturb their elders when the latter are talking or
conversing with other people. Even among strangers, respect is shown by slightly bowing the
head or by using some words of respect. The Tagalog po is commonly used by almost everybody
to show respect even to younger man (or woman) is the latter is a stranger.
The Filipino is sentimental. This sentimentalism is shown in many ways. For example,
someone from the province pays his friend from another province a visit. The visiting friend
brings along with him gifts for the host’s family. These gifts are called pasalubong. When it is
time to go, the friend may fell deeply sad to depart from the friend’s house. Kindness is never
forgotten. The friend who is left behind also feels sad and gives the departing friend some pabaon
like food or anything to give to the departing friend’s family. Leaving home for another country
or even for places within the Philippines is usually accompanied by much crying and silent tearful
goodbyes.
Filipino as a people has several values. Values are those aspects in life that include
custom, traditions, etc,., which the people regard as necessary and important in their dealings with
one another. One of this values is pakikisama, a sense of togetherness or comradeship.
Pakikisama refers to doing somebody a good deed, such as helping a relative or neighbor build a
house without asking for compensation, or helping someone look for a job, and so on. If one does
these, he/she is said to be mabuting makisama. If one does the opposite, he/she is called
masamang makisama. Pakikisama does not mean doing crooked or dishonest thing in order to
llook good to others. Pakikisama in positive value and means doing somebody a good turn or
being helpful without ulterior motive.
Utang na loob or debt of gratitude is another famous Filipino value. A person who
receives favor from another, whether this person is a friend or a stranger, is expected to pay this
debt of gratitude by returning the favor in the same measure, if not, more. A friend who fails to
return the favor is called walang utang na loob or an ingrate. People who lack utang na loob are
disliked or avoided.
Hiya or kahihiyan is another Filipino values. It means sense of shame. To the Filipino,
just like the other Asian people, hiya is something that a person must possess to high degree. A
person without hiya is called walang hiya or shameless. Because of this value, a f Filipino would
sometimes do something foolish in order to save face. Thus, because of hiya, a poor Filipino
peasant will contract debt or borrow money from relatives, neighbors, or friends in order to have

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a feast for the baptism of a son or daughter. On other occasions, many Filipino borrow money to
spend on food and other things to celebrate a town fiesta at the expenses of the family budget.
Out of shame or hiya, they do not want neighbors to think that they could not afford to spend for
the event.

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EVALUATION
Name_________________________________________________________________
Course/ Section___________________________________________________Date________
A. Answer the following: (5pts. each)
1. How would you describe the climate of your province?
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2. Using a graphic organizer such as the one below, list the products found in your province
indicate which of these are exported to foreign countries and which of these are imported from
the other countries or obtained from other parts of the Philippines.
Name of Province:______________________________________
Population:____________________________________________
Kinds of products Exported to Imported/Obtained from
1
2
3
Etc.
3. Look at the map of the Philippines and that of the United States. Compare their Coastlines.
What do you think is the advantage of the Philippines over continental United States in this
respect? What do you think are the disadvantages of being an archipelagic country in the tropics?
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4. In your opinion, which among the reasons cited in the chapter on why the Philippines imports
rice from foreign countries, can easily be remedied? Explain your answer.
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5. Do you agree that the Philippines is not yet an industrialized country? Explain your answer.
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6. Does having around 170 languages pose an obstacle in unifying the Filipinos? Provide
evidence and data for your answer.
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7. Which among the five promulgated constitution were under foreign domination? Which were
not under foreign domination and hence expected to be more democratic? Justify your
answer.
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8. In your opinion given the archipelagic character of the Philippines, is the present unitary and
presidential system of government suited to its geographic characteristic? Explain your
answer.
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9. Filipinos have values. From your observation and experience which among the following
values: (a) hiya , (b) utang na loob, and (c) pakikisama involve a lot of grey areas or issues.
Explain your answer.
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10. How would you describe your physical characteristics- are you a native Filipino or mestizo?
If you are mestizo, what type of mestizo or mestiza are you?
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References
Agoncillo, T.A. and Mangahas, F.B. (2010).Philippine History. Expanded and Updated
Edition. C & E Publishing, Inc., Quezon City, Philippines.
De Viana, A.V. (2011). The Philippines: A Story of a Nation. Rex Printing Company,
Inc., Quezon City, Philippines.
Halili, M.C.N. (2010). Philippine History. 2nd Ed. Rex Printing Company, Inc. Quezon
City, Philippines.
\
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Chapter
2 The Philippines in Ancient Times
(200,000 B.C.-1300 A.D.)
Overview
On the average, we Filipinos find it difficult to believe or even imagine the existence of
an ancient and evolved people as our ancestors. These ancient Filipino possessed a culture of their
own comparable to other civilization in Southeast Asia and the rest of Asia for that matter. The
lack of awareness of our ancestry resulted to feelings of inferiority to other cultures and
dependence on the influences brought in by colonizers and foreigners as sources of our identity as
a people.
Evidences, both material (economic, social, and political structures) and non-material
(language, literature, arts and belief system) demonstrate that the ancient Filipino were productive
and creative people. They produced their own unique technology and culture that were
appropriate to their given natural environment, climate and geography. Hence, Filipinos were
already civilized people long before the encounter with the west.
Objectives
1. To know the origin of early ancestors of the Philippines.
2. To become aware of the physical characteristics, government, cultural and economic
development of early ancestors during ancient times.
3. To compare the way of life of the early Filipinos and modern Filipinos.
Discussion
EARLY SETTLERS
Some theories on Philippine prehistory suggest that the Philippines and the rest of the
island in the Southeast Asia may have been sites of human evolution between 200,000 and 30,000
years ago.one theory say that during the Ice age, the water around what is now the Philippines
fell about 47.5 meters below its level. Because of this, large areas of land came to the surface and
formed “land bridges” to mainland Asia. It is said that it was during this period that the first
settlers, a small group of hominid, came to the Philippines. Most likely, they were hunters and
gatherers on an exploration trip. The earliest stone tools and animals fossils found in Cagayan
Valley in Northern Philippines were dated back to atleast 200,000 years ago. Although no human
fossils were found yet, the artifacts suggest their existence. Collectively they were called Cagayan

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Man or homo erectus philippinensis. They had similar characteristics as the Java man and Peking
man of China.
In 1962, a skull cap of man was discovered in the tabon caves of Palawan. From this
skull, archeologist learned that man had been in the Philippines for at least 22,000 years. The
cave where the Tabon Man was found. Was dated back to half a million years old and had been
occupied for more or less 50,000 years. A piece of charcoal which dated back to 30,000 years was
also found which may indicate the first use of fire in the archipelago. The prehistoric people had a
primitive culture characterized by the use of stone implements. They haunted animals such as the
pygmy elephant and rhinoceros. In some languages of the Philippines, including Tagalog, the
word for elephant is gadya. This shows that once upon a time there were elephants in the
Philippines. The early Filipinos8 lived in caves. They also gathered food from their immediate
environment. They were clothing made from material they got from nature.
Some 25,000 to 30,000 years ago, another kind of settlers, the ancestors of the Negritos
(Aeta, Ati, Dumagat), came to the Philippines by crossing the “land bridges”. They were said to
have come from the south, by way of Palawan and Borneo. Another Negrito migration occurred a
little later by way of Sulu and Mindanao. These immigrants used blow gun, bow and arrow. They
practiced fry agriculture similar to the kaingin system that is practiced today by some hill and
mountain people. Their tools were made of stone. Their clothing consisted of bark of trees and
their houses were made of leaves and branches of trees.
More than 7,000 years ago, long after the ice that covered the world melted, the resulting
rise in the sea level ushered in the arrival of another group of people, the Austronesians. They
came to Southeast Asia by boast from Southern China. They have brown skin (kayumanggi) and
an early Stone Age culture.
Much later, some of them came to the Philippines from Indochina and South China also
by boats. They built their houses with pyramidal roofs. They practices dry agriculture and
produce yams, rice and gabe. Their clothing consisted of pounded bark of trees with various
printed design. The Kalingas, the Gaddangs, the Apayaos, the Igorots and the Ilongots, all
indigenous groups of Luzon; the native Visayans; the Tagbanuas of Palawan, the Bagobos, the
Bilaans, the Manobos, and the tirurays of Mindanao, are probably descendants of this group.
By 500 to 800 B.C., the early Filipinos knew how to make copper and bronze
implements. They irrigated their rice lands and built the first rice terraces in the Philippines.
Another migration allegedly occurred about 300 or 200 B.C., or more than two thousand years
ago. Those who came to Luzon by way of Palawan and Mindoro were said to have known
irrigation, smelting and manufacturing of weapons, tools and utensils and ornaments made of iron
and other metals. This Austronesian migration continued up to the beginning of the Christian era
in the thirteenth century. The latest group was more advanced than the previous immigrants. They
had a syllabary or alphabet that might have come from India. These Austronesians were the
ancestors of the settlers that traded with ancient China and early Southeast Asian communities.
They would later lay the foundation is Islam in Sulu Mindanao.
These theories of migration, however, are still subjects of debates. The artifacts are not
enough to warrant definite conclusions about Philippine prehistory.
ECONOMIC LIFE
The ancient Filipino practices agriculture, which was the main source of their sustenance.
Rice, coconut, sugar cane, cotton, banana, hemp, orange, and many kinds of fruits and vegetables
were raised. Land cultivation was done in two ways: the kaingin system and tillage. In the
kaingin system, the land was cleared by burning shrubs and bushes. The cleared land was then
planted crops. In the tillage system, the land was plowed and harrowed, then followed by
planting. Pigafetta, the historian of Magellan expedition which reached the Philippines in 1521,
said that he found in Sugbu (Cebu) such foodstuffs as sorgo, orange, garlic, gourd, lemon,
coconut, sugar cane and many fruits.
The ancient Filipinos practiced irrigation. They increased their crop production by
irrigating ditches. The rice terraces in Banawe, Mountain Province attest to this ancient practice.

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The ditches of these rice terraces are stone-walled and run for thousands of feet up the mountain
side. If viewed from a distance the whole rice terraces give the viewer the picture of a huge
stairway to the sky. It is estimated that if placed from end to end, the length of the Banawe rice
terraces would total about 19,312 kilometers or almost half-way around the world from the North
Pole to the South Pole. The rice terraces of Banawe are one of the wonders of the world.
Aside from agriculture, the ancient Filipinos engaged in industries such as fishing,
mining, shipbuilding, poultry, and livestock rising, logging, pottery and weaving. Textile lie
sinamaywerewoven with threads obtained from banana and cotton plants. The ancient Filipinos
also domesticated chickens, native ponies, carabaos, pigs and goats.
Fishing was a common industry because most of the settlements were along rivers an seas.
Antonio de Morga, a Spanish official in the judiciary who wrote about the early Philippines, said
that “this industry [fishing] is quite general in the entire country and is considered a natural
activity for the self-support of the people.’ Various methods of catching fish were used such as
the use of nets, bow and arrow, lance or spear, the wicker basket, hook and line, corrals, and fish
poison.
Mining was also another important industry before the coming of the Spaniards. In 1569,
Miguel Lopez de Legazpi reported to the Viceroy of Mexico that there was “More or less
gold…in all these islands; it is obtained from rivers and in some places, from mines which the
native work.” He mentioned Paracale in Camarines Norte, the Ilocos, the Visayas, especially
Cebu, and along the Butuan River in Mindanao, as places where “very good gold” could be
found.
Ship building and logging were also thriving industries. Morga testified that many
Filipinos we “proficient in building ocean-going vessels.” This skill can perhaps be explained by
the abundance of thick forests in the archipelago that are rich in hardwoods, and by the facts that
the Philippines, being surrounded by water, naturally produced good sailors. The Filipino
shipbuilders built all kinds of boats for travel, war and commerce. The Spaniards later classified
these boats into banca, lapis, caracoa, virey, praiandvinta. These boats carried product between
Manila in Luzon and Cebu in Visayas and as far as Butuan and the rest of Mindanao.
No currency was used in trading. Goods were bought and sold through the barter system
called baligya. For example, a goat is exchanged for a big basket full of fish. Sometimes, the
Filipinos would exchange gold for products sold by the Chinese, who trusted the Filipinos and
consigned their good to be paid only upon their return trip to the islands. Commerce extended far
and wide into nearby foreign land such as Borneo, Malaya, Thailand, Cambodia, Sumatra, and
India.
SOCIAL LIFE
The ancient Filipinos were divided into social classes. These were the nobles, the
freemen and the dependents. The nobles, composed of the chiefs and their families, were the
early society’s upper class. They were highly respected in their community. In the Tagalog
region, the nobles usually carried the title of Gat or Lakan. One finds these words today in some
surnames like Lakandula (LakanDula), Lakanilaw (Lakan Haw), Gatmaitan (Gat Maitan),
Gatchalian (Gat Saiian), Gatbonton (Gat Bunton), and many more.
Next to the nobles were the freemen who may be regarded as the society’s middle class
during the ancient period of Philippine History. The members of the lowest class were the
dependents call alipin among the ancient Tagalogs. The low social status of the dependent was
acquired by captivity in the battle, by failing to pay one’s debts, by inheritance, by purchase or
being pronounced guilty of a crime. Among the tagalogs the dependents were classified into
aliping namamahay and aliping sagigilid. The namamahay had his own house and family. He
served his master by planting ang harvesting his master’s crops, by rowing the master’s boatman
by helping in the construction of the master’s house. On the other hand, the sagigilid had no
house of his own; he lived with his master, and could not marry without the latter’s consent.
Among the Visayans, the dependents were of three kinds: the tumataban, who worked for his
master when told to do so; the tumarampuk, who worked one day a week forh is master; and

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theayuey, who worked three days a week for his master.

Depends were further classified into three levels or grades; first as full dependent (whose
parents were both dependent); second as one half dependent (with one parent as dependent); and
third, as semi-dependent(with one parent being one-alf dependent and the other free).these levels
were not permanent. Anyone could move up or down a level upon payment of debts or ant
purchase. Thus, there were no slaves in the real sense of the word – only dependents due to debts
or captivity from way or battles.
Women’s position in Society
The Filipino women, before the arrival of the Spaniards, enjoyed high position in
society. As a custom, women were the equal of men in ancient Filipino society. They could own
and inherit property and sell it; they could engage in trade and industry; and they could succeed to
chieftainship of her community or barangay in the absence of male heir. Wives also enjoyed the
right to give names to their children. The names usually were derived from an event or from the
physical features of the child. Thus, a beautiful girl was named Si Maganda; a very healthy boy
was named Si Malakas, and so on. The men respected the women. To show his respect, the men
when accompanying women usually\y walked behind the later. This was done not only to show
respect for women but also to protect them from any harm that may come from behind.
Marriage Customs
In most cases, a woman of one class married into the same class. Thus, a noble married a
woman from a noble family; a woman from freemen class married into this class; and the man
from the lowest class married into his own class. However, there were exceptions when a man,
for example, showed bravery and courage in battle or when he had become powerful enough to
lead the people of his community.
A man could marry as many women as he could support. His children by his first wife
were consider legitimate children and could, therefore, inherit his property. The so-called
illegitimate children were not given the right to inherit from their father.
Courtship during that period of Philippine history was long and difficult. A man served
the parents of the girl he loved for years. He chopped wood, fetched water and did errands for the
girl’s parents. When accepted by the latter, the marriage was then arranged. The man was
required to give a dowry called bigay-kaya, which usually consisted of a piece of land or gold. To
the parents of the girl, the man must give a gift called panghimuyat. To the girl’s wet-nurse, the
man must also give a gift called bigay-suso. These arrangements were made by the parents of the
bride and groom. The marriage ceremony was simple. It consisted of the groom and the bride
drinking from the same cup. Then an old man would announce that the ceremony was about to
begin. A priestess would bow to the assembled guest and then would take the hands of the couple
and join them over a plate of uncooked rice. She would then shout and throw the rice to the
guests. The latter would respond with a loud shout and the ceremony was over.
Mixed Marriages
Mixed marriages, that is, marriages between a man and woman belonging to different
social classes were not common. A marriage for example, between a dependent and a freeman
would result in the division of their children into two classes. If the father was a free man, the
eldest, the third, the fifth, the seventh and so on, belonged to the father’s class. The rest of the
children, that is, the second, the fourth, sixth, etc., belonged to the mothers’ class. If there was
only one child, this child was classified as half-free and half-dependent. If the number of children
was odd, the is three, five, seven, etc, then the third, the fifth, and the seventh would become half-
free and half-dependent.
THE GOVERNMENT
The community called barangay was the basic unit of government. It consisted of 30 to
100families. The Tagalog word barangay was derived from the Austronesian balangay , a boat
which transformed the Austronesian immigrants to the Philippines. The Spaniards changes the
letter “l’ in balangay to “r” and pronounced it into Spanish way: barangay. Each barangay was

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independent and was ruled by chieftains. It was the primary duty of the chieftain to rule and
govern his people justly and to promote their welfare. The subjects on the other hand, served their
chieftain in times of war with other barangays and help him tilling and sowing the land. They
paid tribute to him. This tribute was called buwis, the Tagalog word for ‘tax’. The chief’s children
and other relatives were highly respected in the community and were exempted from paying
tribute and from rending personal services to the chieftain. The chieftain was powerful and
exercised the power of executive, the legislative, and the judiciary. In a war, he was the
supreme commander. However he was aided by a council of elders in his role as law maker. This
council gave the chieftain some wise pieces of advice in order to guide him in the administration
of justice. Relation existed between barangay. They traded with one another. Sometimes,
alliances were concluded between barangays for mutual protection against a common enemy. An
alliance was sealed through ritual called sanduguan or bloodcompact. They entailed drawing og
blood from the arms of the contracting parties mixing their respective blood in an cup of wine,
and drinking the mixture. Having drunk each other’s blood; the contracting parties then became
“blooded-brothers”
How a Law was made
The chieftain of a barangay made the laws off the community. When he had a law in
mind, he called in the council of elders to give their opinion. If the elders approved the proposed
law, the chieftain order a town cryer, called umalohokan, to announce to the community the
approval of the law. With a bell in one hand, the umalohokan would ring it as he went along to
call the attention of the people. Then he explained the new law to them. Any person violating the
law was immediately arrested and brought before the chieftain for trial.
Deciding Cases
Most disputes during the ancient times were decided peacefully. The court of justice was
composed of the chieftain as a judge and the elders of the barangay as a member off the “jury.” If
conflicts arose between members of different barangays, the differences were resolved by
arbitration. A board composes of elders from neutral barangays acted as arbiter.
The trial of a case was usually held in public. The accuser and the accused faced each
other with their witnesses. The witnesses usually took an oath to prove their honest. The oaths
took such forms as, “May the crocodile devour me if I tell a lie”; “May I die here and now if I do
not tell the truth” and so forth. Then the parties to the litigation presented their arguments and
their respective witness. The man who had more witnesses was usually judged to be the winner. If
the defeat person contested the discussion of the chieftains, the latter openly sided with the
winner and compelled the loser to accept this decision. The loser had no other alternative than to
accept the decision of the chieftain.
The Trial by Ordeal
The trail by ordeal was not unique to the ancient Filipinos. It was also done in Europe to
determine who of the disputant was right or telling the truth. As practiced in the Philippines, the
trail bi ordeal is consisted of ordering the suspects, in the case of theft, to dip their hands into a
pot o boiling water. The suspect whose hand was scalded the most was judged guilty. Another
form of trial by ordeal was holding lighted candle by the suspects. The suspect whose candle died
out first was the guilty party. Another form of trial by ordeal consisted of ordering the suspects o
plunge into a deep river with their lances. The one who rises to the surface first was pronounced
guilty. Still another form was ordering the suspects to chew uncooked rice. The one whose saliva
was thickest was the culprit.
CULTURE
Clothing
When the first Spaniards came to the Philippines in 1521, they found the early Filipinos
with a culture that was different from theirs. Some aspects of this old culture were undoubtedly
Malay, but the other aspects were probably the result of a different environment.

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Among the ancient Filipinos, the male clothing consisted of the upper and lower parts.
The upper part was a jacket with short sleeves called kangan. The color of the jacket indicated
the rank of wearer ;the chief of wore a red jacket , while those lower in rank wore either black or
blue. The lower part of the clothing was called bahag, which consisted of a cloth wound about
the waist, passing down between the thighs..
The women were usually naked from the waist up. They wore a sayaor skirt, among the
Visayans, this lower part was called patadyong. A piece of white or red cloth, called tapis, was
usually wrapped around the waist or the chest.
The ancient Filipinos had no shoes. They walked about barefooted. Men usually wore a
headgear called putong, a piece of cloth wrapped around the head. The color of the putong
showed the number of persons the wearer had killed. Thus, a man wearing red putong had killed
at least one man, and the one wearing embroidered putong had killed at least seven men.
Ornaments
The ancient Filipino’s wore ornaments made of gold and precious stones. Women as well
as men wore armlets called kalumbiga, pendants, gold rings, earrings, leglets, and bracelets.
Gold was common, so the ancient Filipinos used it only in making rings, armlets, and bracelets,
but also as filling in between the teeth. These fillings were made to adorn the teeth.
The body was also adorned by tattooing including the face. The women also tattooed
their arms and faces to make themselves beautiful. Among men, however, tattooing has another
use. It was used as a man’s war record, that is, the more a man was tattooed the more he was
admired by the people of his community for his bravery in battle. According to the first Spanish
missionaries who wrote about the ancient Filipinos, the Visayans were the most tattooed people
of the Philippines. For this reason, the Spanish missionaries called Visayans, pintados or painted
people.
The houses
The Filipino houses of today in the barrios are no different from the typical ancient
Filipino house. The ancient house was built of bamboo, wood and nipa palm. His kid of house
was (and is) suited to the tropical climate of the country. The house was set on stakes called
haligi, which were made of bamboo. This held to the house above the ground. The lower part of
the house was enclosed with stakes. Fowls were placed inside the enclosure. To go up the house,
one must ascend a ladder made of bamboo. At night or when the owner of the house was not
around, the ladder was drawn up. There was also a sort of gallery called batalan where household
work was done. What is called the sala now was used not only as an area for receiving visitors,
but also as a place to sleeping. A small room near the sala, called silis, was place where mats.
pillows and baskets of rice were kept.
Among the Ilongots and the Kalingas of northern Luzon and among Mandayas and the
Bagobos of Mindanao, the houses were built on treetops. On the other hand, the Bajaos or Sea
Gypsies of Sulu had their houseboats. They lived in such houses because they are a sea-loving
people. They roamed the seas for living and for adventure.
Educational and System of Writing
There were no formal Scholl but children of school age were taught in their ownhouse by
their mothers who were their first teachers. Based in the testimony of Spanish Jesuit missionary,
father Pedro Chirino, there was hardly a man or a woman who did not know how to read and
write. Perhaps it is an exaggeration to say that the literacy rate was 100% but it is safe to say that
the ancient Filipino’s was generally literate.
It was very likely that music and religion were also taught to be the children for it is
unthinkable that a religious people like the Filipinos would neglect the teaching of religion to the
children.
Our ancestors ‘possessed a system of writing or alphabet called syllabary, baybayin or
alibata where every letter is pronounced as a syllable.

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The syllabary consisted of seventeen symbols, three of which are vowels (patinig) and
fourteen are consonants (katinig).
It is still debated whether the ancient Filipinos wrote from left to right or from right to
left or from top to bottom or from bottom to top. Writing and language expert still argue about the
writing orientation of the baybayin. Perhaps Pedro Chirino, who wrote a book about the ancient
Filipinos with whom he had early contacts, was correct when he said that the early Filipinos
wrote from top to bottom and from left to right.
The early Filipinos wrote on large leaves of plants and trees, and sometimes on barks of
trees and bamboo tubes. They used the colored saps of trees as ink while they used pointed sticks
or iron as a pencil. Some samples of this ancient writing that have come down to the present are
found among the HanunuoMangyans of Mindoro and Palawan.
Early Literature
The ancient Filipinos has a literature that may be classified into written and oral. Among
the Tagalog, the oral literature consisted of sabi (maxism), bugtong(riddles), talindaw (boat song),
tagumpay (victory songs), uyayi and hele (cradle song), ihiman (wedding song), kumintang (war
song), and many others. In nineteenth century, the kumintang became a love song. Duringthe
revolution, it disappeared and was replaced by the kundiman.
The early Filipinos had also written literature. The Ifugaos of northern Luzon for
example, had epics where originally recited but later on were written down. Their epics are the
Hudhud and the Alim. The former glorifies Ifugao history and its hero, Aliguyon. The Alim, on
the other hand, tells the story of gods that resemble the Indian gods in the epic Ramayana. The
epic of the Ilocanos, Biagni Lam-ang (Life of Lam-ang) originated even before the arrival of the
Spaniards. The Bicolanos have their epic called Handiong. The Muslims, a very daring, brave and
courage people have produced several epics: the Bantungan, Indarapatra and Sulayman, Bidasari
and parang sabil. The other non-Muslim and non-Christian peoples of Mindanao also have their
epics, but these have not yet been written down completely have not been translated into English
or any of the well-known Philippines languages.
MGA KASABIHAN SALAWIKAIN BUGTONG

(Sayings) (Proverbs) (Riddles)
1. Ang kapalaran ko di ko 1. Ang tumatakbo nang 1. Isda kosaMaribles,
man hanapin, dudulog, lalapit matulin, matinik ay malalim. nasaloob ng kaliskis.
kung talagang akin.
(Answer: sili)
2. May taingaanglupa, may 2.Anghindilumingon sa 2.NagtagosiPerico, nakalitaw

pakpak and balita. pinanggalingan ay hindi angulo.
makararatingsa paroroonan.
(Answer:pako)
3. Huli mandaw at magaling 3. ‘Pag may isinuksok, may 3. matanda na angnuno,hindi
ay naiihabol din. madudukot. pa naliligo.
(Answer: pusa)
Music and Dance

Filipinos are considered born musicians. Many of them play two or more musical
instruments. Pigafetta, already mentioned earlier, that the natives of Sugbu (Cebu) played much
musical instruments as the timbal, the cymbal, the drum, and other instruments, most of which are
made of wood or bamboo. When an officer of the Spanish explorer Villalobos went to Samar in
1543, he saw native playing a stringed instrument called kudyapi.Among the Negritos of
Zambales and Bataan, the favorite musical instruments were the kullibaw, which resemble the
Jew’s harp made of bamboo; bansic, a sort of flute made of bamboo; and the gangsa, a kind of
guitar. To the accompaniment of these musical intruments, the Negrito’s performed their potato
dance in which a man was represented as a thief stealing sweet potatoes in the farm. They had

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also the torture dance which commemorated the capture of enemy; the duel dance between two
warriors; and the lovers dance in which man danced around woman to shoe his love for her.
The Illocanos had their musical instruments like kutibeng, a sort of guitar with five
strings; the flute; and the kudyapi. Their favorite dances were the kinnallogong (hat dance0 and
kinnoton (ant dance). Among the Visayas, the favorite dances were the balitaw, (exchange of
extemporaneous love verses) and dandansoy (courtship dance). Both these dances are still
popular today. Among the Tagalogs, drama, dance and music developed almost at the same time.
This was because drama could not be staged without the accompanying music and dance. So the
music and the dance were classified into balatong, dalit, lulay, kumintang, tagulaylay, subli,
barimbaw, tagayan and others. Thus, the ancient Filipinos from all regions had dances and songs
for all occasions.
The Arts
The earliest Filipino works of art may be seen in their tools and weapons. These tools and
weapons were at first rough, but as time went on, the Filipinos began to polish them. Later, beads,
amulets, bracelets and other ornaments were used to improve their appearance. With the
introduction of bronze, certain instrument were manufactured like bronze gongs, bells, and even
drums. This indicates that the social arts such as dance and music were already developed in
ancient times.
The early Filipinos also used metal and glass. Simple weapons such as daggers, bolos,
knives, and spears were made with artistic designs in their handles. Pottery with the beautiful
designs was also made, while images made of wood, ivory and horn were carved.
Muslim art, in particular, deals with plant and geometrical designs, while Ifugao art deals
with animal and human representation.
Religious beliefs
The prehistoric Filipinos believed that the soul was immortal. They also believed in life
after death as evidenced by the manunggul jar, a container for bones of the dead. They believed
in one Supreme Being they called BathalangMaykapal or simply Bathala. Aside from the
Supreme Being, they also worshipped minor deities whose functions were closely related to daily
life of the people. Thus, the god of agriculture was called Idiyanale, the god of death, Sidapa; the
gid of fire, Agnu; the god of rainbow, Balangaw; the god of war, Mandarangan; the goddess of
harvest, Lalhon; the god of hell, Siginarungan; and other gods and goddesses. The ancient
filipinos worshipped the sun and venerated the moon, the animals and birds for they believed in
the interconnectedness of the unseen with the visible. Thus, the objects of nature should be
respected. Even very harmful and dangerous animals like crocodiles, were venerated. Old trees
too, were considered sacred and nobody was allowed to cut down such trees. Reef, rocks, and
crags were also revered, and dished and kitchen wares were left on them as a sign of reverence.
The soul-spirits called anito were venerated. This called the “Cult of the Dead.” The
memory of dead relatives was kept alive by carving images made of gold, stone and ivory. The
image was called larawan or likha among the tagalogs, diwata among the Visayans, and
bulólamong the Ifugaos. The people offered prayers and sacrifices to these images or symbols in
order to win their sympathy. Not all anitos were good; some were bad. But whether an anito was
good or bad, the people prayed to it and offered various sacrifices to win its goodwill, if it were
good, and to placate its anger, if it were bad. The offerings or rituals were laid down by woman
priest called baylana, babaylan, or katlona, and occasionally by male priest.
Burial
The ancient Filipinos believed in the life hereafter and the relationship between the living
and the dead, which made them respect the memory of the dead. When a relative died, he/she was
placed in a coffin and buried under his/her house; the living relatives placed his/her cloth, gold,
and other valuables in the coffin. This was done because the ancient Filipinos believed that in this
way, the dead relative would be gladly received in the Other World.

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Upon death of a person, the neighbors and relatives made fires under his/her house.
Armed sentinels guarded the coffin lest some sorcerers open it and thus release the foul smell of
the dead person. Professional mourners were hired by the relatives of the dead person in order to
show their deep feeling of loss. Mourning for a woman was distinguished from that of a man such
that the former was called morotal and latter was called maglahi. Mourning for a dead chieftain
was called laraw. When his death had been announced, all quarrels, and even petty wars, were
stopped. Spears were carried with the tips pointing downwards; daggers were carried with hilts
reversed; singing in boats was prohibited; and the wearing of “loud” clothes was also prohibited. \

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Evaluation
Name__________________________________________________________________
Course/ Section___________________________________________________Date____
Answer the following: (5pts each)

1. Make a timeline of events depicting the early settlers in the archipelago. Include details
like period or time of Arrival, Physical Characteristics, and level of cultural development.
What conclusions can you make based on these data about the Filipino’s ancestral origin
and way of life?
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2. What are the similarities of the economic lives of the ancient Filipinos and the modern
Filipinos? Would you say that agriculture as practiced during that period of our history was
practically the same as today? In what ways do they differ? In what ways are they similar?
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3. Given the social classes during the ancient times in the Philippines, would you consider the
society as democratic and egalitarian?

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4. Describe the ancient Filipino houses and clothing (including ornaments) and show how
these reflect the climate and environment in which these evolved?
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5. Are you in Favor of the dowry in marriage and the idea of “ marrying in the same “class”
as practiced during the period ? Explain your answer.
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References _________________
City, Philippines

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Chapter
3 EARLY CONTACTS WITH NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES
(900-1400)
Overview
Though less studied due to scarce written sources, the topic on the Philippines’
early contacts with its neighbours can now be better appreciated with the recent discovery
of material evidences as well as new documentary sources.
Oral and cultural evidence show the early on , the Philippines already had trade ,
and cultural exchanges with its Asian and Southeast Asian neighbours. The seemingly
scattered island-group of people actively engaged in trade and commerce with their
neighbours: an exposure that further enriched the economic life and culture of the early
Filipinos, long before the coming of the West.
Objectives
1. To identify the Philippine’s early contacts with its neighbours.
2. To appreciate the discovery of material evidences and documentary sources of the early
contacts of the Philippines
3. To list down the economics and cultural exchanges brought by the influence of early
contacts in the Philippines.
Discussion
EARLY TRADE ROUTES AND CONTACTS

Ancient Filipinos, just like their Southeast Asian neighbors, were expert seafarers
and boat builders. They made all sizes and type of boats – big or small, single-hulled or
outrigged. Because they had mastered the wind and sea currents, they could travel far and
wide to trade with nearby Southeast and East Asian neighbors. Some scholars suggested
they reached even as far as Champa (present-day Vietnam) and India. Thus, long before
the coming of the Portuguese and Spaniards In the region, the Philippines had outside
trade contacts, and along with these varied cultural exchanges took place.
Scholars have yet to agree as to when and with whom these contacts began O.W.
Wolters said such a trade may have been there as early as third century, based on the
pearls and gold excavated in Funan. Sulu was rich in peals and gold was abundant in the

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country. Filipino historians and archeologist helieve in the Filipino – Chinese trade
contacts began around the ninth century during the Tang dynasty (618-906 A.D.). They
cite as evidence Tang stonewares that were found in the Babuyan Island, along the coast
of Ilocos, Pangasinan, Mindoro (Puerto Galera), Batangas (Calatagan), Manila (Santa
Ana), Bohol, Cebu, Jolo and Cagayan de Oro. If the Chinese did not bring these items
directly to the Philippines, through Arab traders who had earlier direct contacts with the
Chinese.
Arab Trade Routes in Southeast Asia
Bewtween 900 and 1200 A.D., a group of people called Orang Dampuan from
Southern Annam (Vietnam today), established trading posts in Sulu. A flourishing trade
developed between Champa (Annamese Kingdom) and the people Sulu who were called
Buranun. This trade proved favorable to the Orang Dampuans whose prosperity drew the
ire of the Buranuns. In a fit of jealousy, the Buranuns massacred some Orang Dampuans
causing the others to flee and return to Sulu to trade peacefully once more. The famous
pearl trade of Sulu also attracted another group people known as the Banjar of nearby
Borneo. Regular trade relations ensued between Sulu and Banjamassin. The Buranuns
who had not yet forgotten their tragic experience with the Orang Dampuans, were also
suspicious of the Banjars. But the traders of Banjarmassin, aware of the fate of the Orang
Dampuans, were more diplomatic. Instead of antagonizing the Buranuns, they brought
their beautiful princess to Sulu and offered her as a bride to the Buranun price, who
eventually married her. Sulu thus became a tribute-state of the empire of Sri-Vijaya,
along with Banjarmassin and Brunei. Sulu developed into an emporium to which trading
ships of Java, Sumatra, Cambodia, Siam and China would anchor to savor Sulu’s
prosperous trade and splendor.
Arab traders, who up to this point dominated this Southeast Asian trading, were
later barred from the central Chinese coast. They relocated to the Malay Peninsula where
they sought an alternative route starting from Malacca and passing through Borneo and
the Philippines to reach Taiwan. They continued to carry the Southeast Asian goods to
Western world using this southern route. They also carried Philippines goods on board
Arab ships to the Chinese mainland through Canton. So keen was the competition that the
Arab ships carried non-Chinese goods amounting to 20-40% of the total cargo. This
lasted up to the Javanese or Madjapahit period (1377-1478).
ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES
Using the compass on sea voyages, Chinese traders competed with the Arabs
from the eleventh to the twelfth century. Sung porcelain unearthed in Sta. Ana, Manila
around the Laguna de Bai, attested to the success of this trade. By the thirteenth century,
the Chinese had overtaken the Arabs in the region. Description of the lucrative trade
between China and the Philippine archipelago can be found in Chao Jukua’s Chu fan-chi
(1225) where the Chinese mentioned the following place: Ma-i (Mindoro or Baế in
Laguna), Min-to-lang (Mindanao ), Ma-li-lu (Manila), Su-lu (Sulu), and Pi-sho-ye
(Visayas). The Philippine trade goods included bulak(raw cotton), abaca, cloth of various
patterns, hardwoods, gums, resins, betel nuts, pear shell, sponges, rattan, beeswax, musk,
sandalwood, leather, mats, and pepper. In exchange, China brought: iron bars, porcelain,
and pottery, silk, chintz, black damask, Java cloths, red taffeta, blue cloth, bronze gongs,
small bells, mirror, scales, coins, jade, projectiles, gold, silver, censers, lead, colored
glass beads, iron needles, tin, lead sinkers for fishing nets, lacquered ware, copper
cauldrons, wine, ivory, and tint (a kind of Chinese silver money.) Although, trade was
conducted in general through the barter system, by the eight century, a type of currency
began to be used in the fore of barter rings. By the twelfth century, gold coins (piloncitos)

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began to be used as medium of exchange.

With trade of products came cultural exchanges, including religion. These in
turn, would influence the indigenous lifestyle, customs, and religious beliefs on the
ancient Filipinos. This is particularly true of the influences on our language, system of
writing, technology, attire, ornaments, food, and religious beliefs and practices. Much of
these Chinese influence on Filipino life in economic in nature. This is shown by the
Chinese words that were adopted into the languages of the Philippines particularly
Tagalog. Here are some examples:
Chinese Tagalog English
Am-pau Ampaw Puffed rice or corn
He-bi Hibi Dried salted shrimp
Ke-tai Katay Cut up meat
Le-piah Lipya Plowshare
Hok-bu Hukbo Army
Peh-chihai Petsay Chinese cabbage
There are hundreds of Tagalog words which have their origin in Chinese. Most of
these words have economic meanings.
The Filipinos also learned from the Chinese the use of umbrellas, porcelain,
gongs, the manufacture of gun powder, metallurgy, and mining methods. Perhaps the
Filipinos also borrowed the Chinese custom of having parents arrange the marriage of
their children. Wearing white clothing, instead of black, for mourning the death of family
and relatives, is also of Chinese origin, especially among the Visayans.
Quite apart from the Chinese, the ancient Filipinos were also influenced by the
Indians of India. The ancient of Indians may not have settled in huge numbers in the
Philippines, but their influence on filipino culture may have come through the ancestors
of the present Indonesians. The Malay who came to the Philippines was possibly
Hinduized Malays, that is, Malays who professed the Hindu religion of India. This Indian
influence is clearly seen in some of the words in the different languages of the
Philippines, including Tagalog, which were derived from Sanskrit, the ancient language
of India. Some of the Tagalog words of Sanskrit origin are the following:
Sanskrit Tagalog English
Ahi Ahas Snake
Swamin Asawa Husband or wife
Bhaga Bahagi Part, portion
Vartta Balita News
Kotta Kuta Fort
Dala Dala Fishing net
Ganda Ganda Beauty
Hari Hari King
Lalarawa Lalawa Spider

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Tara tala Star

Sanskrit word or their variations are also found in Visayan and Maguindanaoan
languages. Suvh as words as agama(religion), pandita (priest or scholar),
tumabaga(copper), baginda(emperor), sutra (silk), and many others, are of Sanskrit
origin. Several deities in the myths an ancient filipinos shows traces of indian influence:
IndraBatara, Lord of the Universe; Idiyanale, god of agriculture, Agni, god of fore and
many more. A figurine of the Hindu goddess Padmapani was foung in Butuan and was
dated to 300A.D. This could attest to that ancient contact between the Philippines and the
Indian sub-continent.
The Philippine Catholic wedding ceremony has Indian influences. The use, for
example, of the cord and the veil during the catholic marriage ceremony in the
Philippines is Indian in origin. It is not originally Western or Spansih Catholic, because
the non-Philippine Catholic marriage has no veil and cord ceremonies.
The Laguna Copperplate discovered in the Pagsanjan, Laguna river delta in
1986 is another evidence of this early Philippines contact with its Southeast Asian
neighbors particularly the Malays and Indonesian. Dated to 900 A.D., the copperplate
contains an inscription in an old Philippine language, stating the full payment of a loan
obtained by a woman trader from her contacts in the nearby Indonesia. The copperplate
also shows shared knowledge in metallurgy and its use in trade and commerce to record
transaction, as in this case, as a certificate of credit and loan payment.
THE COMING OF ISLAM
After Mohammed’s death in 632 A. D. Islam spread outside of Arabai in two
stages. In the first satge , Islam was brought to the rest of the middle east, Northern
Africa, Spain and central Asia. In the second stage, Muslim missionaries travelled with
Arab merchants to India , China and finally Southeast Asia where number of them (
traders and aldo missionaries ) settled and intermarried with members of the Royalty.
They also set up mosques and madrashs (schools) . In the Philippines , Islam was
introduced by Tuan Masha’ika , atrader from 1240s. According to Sulu genealogy called
tarsilla , his wealth increased and with it, the status of Muslim in the communities was
raised.
TEACHINGS OF ISLAM
The basic tenets of Islam are found in the Qur’an (Koran), the holy book of the
Muslims. Written in Arabic, the Koran is considered the word of Supreme Creator, Allah
, as directly communicated by the angel to the prophet Mohammad.

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Evaluation
Name__________________________________________________________________
Course & Year_______________________________________________Date_______
A. Answer the following: (5pts)
1. What factors encouraged the ancient Filipinos to trade with China and its Southeast
Asian neighbours?
______________________________________________________________________________
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2. Among the early trade contacts of the Philippines during the ancient period, which
country do you think had the most influence on the early Filipinos? Explain your
answer.
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3. Which among the early contacts of the Filipinos had at least or minimal influence?
Explain your answer.
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4. Make a timeline of events to show the chronology of early trade contacts of the
early Filipinos before the coming of the Spaniards.
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References
City, Philippines.

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Chapter
4 ENCOUNTER WITH THE WEST (1400-1600)
Overview
To the West, for quite a long time, the Philippines and the rest of the world was
TierraIncognita (Unknown Lands). Coming into the region for purposes of trade and other
reasons (Christianization and civilizing the “uncivilized”), these lands were new and exciting
“discoveries” for the Europeans. But this is certainly not true of the Filipinos, of the “Indians” of
America and the “Blacks” of Africa. These peoples, unknown to the West, have long inhabited
these lands and evolved their own civilizations that are unique to their given environment and
history.
The West, led by Portugal and Spain, rival each other for the possession of rich colonies
In America, Asia, and Africa. With her naval supremacy, daring and imaginative explorers, and a
Spanish Pope who drew up treaties defining territorial rights to her, Spain won over her rivals.
Using both the “sword and the cross” Spanish conquistadores and missionaries succeeded in
establishing colonies in the Americas without much resistance. Until the fatal battle in Mactan,
Cebu, an island in the Philippines, when Spain’s famed explorer, Ferdinand Magellan, was killed
by the local chieftain LapuLapu. It took almost fifty years before another attempt to colonize the
islands succeeded under Miguel Lopez de Legazpi. After meeting stiff resistance in Cebu Legaspi
later established the first European settlement in the archipelago. Then he moved to the island of
Luzon where he founded a permanent Spanish colony in the kingdom of Maynila.
Objectives
1. Identify the circumstances surrounding the colonization of the archipelago and the
influences brought about by foreign interaction
2. Analyze the various factors that led to the territorial expansion of the Spanish
Colonization.
3. Understand the struggle of the Filipinos in fighting the freedom of our country.
Discussion
THE COMING OF THE SPANIARDS
How and why the Spaniards and the Portuguese came to the “Orient”(the European’s term
for Asia or the East) is a long story. In the sixteenth century, Europe was experiencing some
changes because of the growth of industry and commerce, the advances in science, the
improvement in the science of navigation, and the invention of machines and marine instruments.
Added to this was the desire of the Europeans to know more about the countries of the “Orient”
because of the stories told by the Christian crusaders of Europe, who went to the Holy Land to
reclaim it from the Muslims. The stories led many Europeans to admire the wonders of the East.

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Also,some Europeans were already trading with Asian countries. Oriental spices, silk, fruits, attar
of roses, Persian rugs, perfumes, and precious stones were easily sold in European markets at big
profits. This stimulated more trade with the countries of Asia.
The Venetians or citizens of Venice, which later became a city of Italy, enjoyed this
monopoly at the start. Soon after, the Portuguese, the Spaniards, and other peoples of Europe
began to trade with Oriental countries. As a result, rivalry developed among the European
countries. This commercial rivalry led to European expeditions to Asia.
Crusaders-those who took part in the military expeditions by Christians in Western

Europe(11th-13th centuries), to retake the Holy land(Jerusalem) from the Saracens or Muslims
Expedition-a journey or voyage undertaken by a group of people for a particluar purpose.
Especially exploration
The Trade Routes
At the time the Europeans were developing their trade with Asia, there existed three trade
routes connecting Asia to Europe. The first was the Northern Route which passed through
Central Asia by land, then to the cities of Samarkand and Bokhara, then around the Caspian Sea
and the Black Sea, and finally to Constantinople in the Mediterranean. The second was the
Central Route which started form Malacca in the Malay Peninsula, then to the Indian Ocean and
the Indian ports, then to the Persian Gulf to Baghdad and Constantinople, and finally to Cairo in
the Mediterranean. The third was the Southern Route which also started from Malacca, then to
the Indian Ocean and to the ports of India, then to the Red Sea, and finally to Cairo in the
Mediterranean.
In the fifteenth century an important event took palace which led to the search for new
routes. In 1453, the Turks captured the city of Constantinople through which two routes passed.
They closed the Northern and Central Routes. However, they allowed the Venetians to use the
Southern Route on condition that they pay a certain sum as fee. The Venetians, therefore, came to
monopolize the Southern Route. This proved advantageous for them, since they controlled the
European trade to the East. This Venetian monopoly compelled Portugal and Spain to look for
another route to Asia so they could continue their lucrative trade with the Asian countries.
Early Voyage to Asia

Of all European countries, Portugal was the first to send expeditions to the East. One of the
most famous Portuguese navigators was Prince Henry, who was also called, “The Navigator.” In
his desire to make Portugal a sea power, he sent an expedition to the Azores, near the coast of
Africa in 1421.
This expedition “discovered” the islands of Madeira and the Azores and soon they were
developed into Portuguese colonies. Later, Prince Henry himself led expeditions to Western
Africa, using the instruments for navigation he developed, like the astrolabe, the windrose
compass, and the caravel, which was a kind of ship.
Prince Henry’s voyages inspired other explorers to sail to the East. In 1487, the Portuguese
navigator Bartholomew Diaz “discovered” the Cape of Good Hope and, continuing his voyage,
reached Calicut, India. This voyage marked the first time that a European country, through her
explorer, reached the East by sailing around the southernmost tip of the continent of Africa.
Spain, upon learning of this successful voyage, sent an expedition to what is now North America.
Christopher Colombus, a native of Genoa, which later became a part of Italy, went to Spain and
offered his services to the King and Queen. Sailing from Spain, he “discovered” North America
in 1492. He thought that the large mass of land he had “discovered” was Asia. Later, Amerigo
Vespucci, also an Italian, was sent by the Spanish King and Queen to explore what Columbus
had found. The geographers at the time thought that Amerigo found a “new world,” and so they
named this land, America.
Other “discoveries” followed soon after. In 1500, Vicente Pinzon “discovered” what is now
Brazil. In 1513, Nunez de Balboa crossed what is now Panama and “discovered” the Pacific

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Ocean. These geographical “discoveries” led to more explorations of new lands and their
development as colonies of European Countries.
Astrolabe- an instrument formerly used in measuring the altitudes of the stars and other
heavenly bodies
The Division of the World

The fact that Portugal was the first country to sail to the East and establish colonies earned
her the prestige as the first sea power to chart an alternate passage to India. On the other hand,
Spain, which sent explorers to the Americas, began to lay claim to these areas. Thus, a sea rivalry
resulted from the “discoveries” made by Spain and Portugal. To avoid a possible war between the
two great nations, Pope Alexander VI, a Spaniard, whose family name Borja was Italianized into
Borgia, issued a bull in 1493 dividing the world into two. All lands south and west of the Azores
and Cape Verde Islands were to belong to Spain. Portugal, on the other hand, was to take
possession of the continent of Africa. In order to make this provision clear, the Pope issued
another bull on the same day (May 3) by which an imaginary line was drawn from north to south
at 100 degrees west of the Azores. Lands to be discovered east of this imaginary line would
belong to Portugal, and those on the west would belong to Spain. But in September of the same
year (1493) the Pope, being a Spaniard, nullified this provision of the second bull by allowing
Spain to own lands to be discovered in the East, which properly belonged to Portugal. The King
of Portugal protested the decision of the Pope because it violated the rights of Portugal as provide
for in the second bull of May 3, 1493. To avoid any conflict between the two nations, they
concluded the Treaty of Tordesillas on June 7,1494. The important provisions of this treaty were
the following:
(1) An imaginary line was drawn from north to south at a distance of 370 leagues west of the
Cape Verde Islands. Lands to be discovered east of this line would belong to Portugal, and those
on the west would belong to Spain.
(2) If Spanish ships discovered lands east of the demarcation line, the said lands should be
turned over to Portugal, and lands discovered by Portuguese ships west of the line should be
turned over to Spain.
(3) No Portuguese ships shall be sent to lands belonging to Spain, and vice versa, for the
purpose of trading with them.
Papal bull- an edict or law from the

Pope
The Magellan Expedition

Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese who went to Spain to offer his services to the
Spanish King. He had seen battles in Malacca and Africa for the King of Portugal, who ignored
Magellan rather than reward him fo his service to the Crown. This hurt Magellan, so he left
Portugal for Spain. With the help of his father-in-law and Don Juan de Aranda, a man occupying
a very high position in the Spanish India House of Trade, Magellan was able to see King Charles
I of Spain. The meeting between the two was held in1518. Magellan, with help of visual aids like
maps and illustrations, explained to the young King that he could reach the Moluccas, then
known as the Spice Islands, by sailing west. Moreover, he told the King that the Moluccas
belonged to the Spanish side of the demarcation line, drawn according to the Treaty of
Tordesillas. So impressed was the youthful King that he agreed to send an expedition to the Spice
Island under the command of Magellan.
The expedition consisted of five ships: the flagship Trinidad, the Concepcion, the Victoria,
the Santiago, and the San Antonio. Magellan and his men heard Mass in the Church of Santa

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Lucia de la Victoria, after which, the contains and the crew of the ships took an oath of loyalty to
Magellan as their commander-in-chief. Amidst the cheers of the people and the ringing of church
bells, the ships sailed down the Quadalquivir River to San Lucar de Barrameda. On September
20, 1519, the expedition left port and sailed southward across the Atlantic.
After two months of difficult voyage, hardship, and hunger, the Magellan expedition reached
what is now Pernambuco in Brazil. From here, Magellan continued his voyage to Rio de Janeiro
and reached the Rio de la Plata in February 1520. In March, he reached Port St. Julian at the
southern tip of South America, where a mutiny of his captains took place. Magellan suppressed
the mutiny and punished the rebels severely. Continuing his voyage, Magellan reached the
southernmost tip of South America. He crossed a strait to the Pacific Ocean. This Strait now
bears his name, the Strait of Magellan. By this time, he only had three ships remaining. With
courage and determination, Magellan crossed the Pacific and reached the Landrones Islands, now
the Marianas, in March 1521. He ordered his men to rest and to get some fresh food and water.
Some of the natives there stole one of his boats. In anger, Magellan named the islands Islas de
Ladrones (Islands of Thieves).
After allowing his men to rest and procure provisions, Magellan continued his voyage. On
March 17, 1521, he sighted the mountains of what is now Samar. This event marked the coming
of the first Spaniards in the Philippines. The next day, Magellan ordered his men to land at
Homonhon islet so the sick men could be taken care of. Having rested, Magellan proceeded to
the islet of Limasawa, which at that time was ruled by Rajah Kulambu. He befriended the rajah
and his brother, Si Agu, and sealed their friendship with a blood compact. This was the first
blood compact between Filipinos and Spaniards.
On Easter Sunday, March 31, Magellan ordered a Mass to be celebrated on the islet. Father
Pedro de Valderrama, who accompanied the expedition, celebrated Mass near the seashore. This
was the first Mass celebrated in the Philippines. Afterwards, Magellan ordered that a large cross
be planted on the top of a hill overlooking the sea. Pigafetta said, “ After the cross was erected in
position, each of us repeated a Pater Noster and an Ave Maria, and adored the cross; and the
kings[Kulambu and Si Agu] did the same.” Magellan took possession of the islands in the name
of King Charles and called them the Archipelago of St.Lazarus because it was on St. Lazarus
day that he found the islands.
Strait-a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water

Rajah-the title for King or prince in India; in early Filipino society, it referred to a chieftain,
the highest leader of the community
The First Baptism

Magellan stayed only a week in Limasawa because there was not enough food in the islet.
Hearing of a rich island not far away, he ordered his captains to sail for what is now Cebu.
Guided by Rajah Kulambu, the ships entered the harbor of Cebu on April 8, 1521. Magellan told
his Malay slave, Enrique, to assure the people of Cebu that they came as friends and not as
enemies. The Cebu chieftain, Rajah Humabon, welcomed the Spaniards and soon a blood
compact ensued between him and Magellan. Gifts were exchanged between the parties of the
blood compact. On April 15,1521, Mass was celebrated in Cebu. A cross was erected and
Magellan persuaded the Cebuanos to become Christians. Some 800 natives became Christians
that day, among them Rajah Humabon, who was given the Christian name Carlos in Honor of
King Charles of Spain, and his wife, who was given the name Juana, in honor of King Charles’
mother. To commemorate this event, Magellan presented Juana an image of the Infant Jesus is
now Patron of Cebu.

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The Battle Of Mactan

Meanwhile, a quarrel between two chieftains of the neighboring island of Mactan
occurred. Rajah Sula asked Magellan’s help to defeat his rival, Rajah Si LapuLapu, who,
according to Sula, refused to recognize the King of Spain as his sovereign. Magellan at once
accepted the invitation to interface in the local quarrel in order to show his might. He and around
sixty of his men, all well-armed, sailed for Mactan early in the morning of April 28. Si
Lapulapu, who refused to listen to Magellan’s demand that he pay tribute to Spain,
prepared to fight to the end. In battle that followed, Magellan was wounded in the leg. Seeing
this, the brave people of Mactan rushed at him and killed him with their spears. With the death of
Magellan, the Spaniards fled to their shipd and left. Some of them, however, returned to Cebu and
there, while attending a party given by Rajah Humabon, were massacred by some Cebuanos. This
horrific event happened because some Spaniards robbed the natives and raped some women.
The Importance of the Expedition

The remaining Spaniards decided to leave Cebu. Of the three ships, one was burned
because it had become useless. Two ships remained: the Victoria and the Trinidad. The Victoria
was to sail to Europe by way of Africa, while the Trinidad was to return to Europe by way of the
Pacific. The Trinidad was captured by the Portuguese, while the Victoria, commanded by
Sebastian del Cano, succeeded in reaching Spain.
Magellan’s voyage across the Atlantic and the Pacific was the greatest single voyage ever
known to man in early modern times. The hardship,especially the hunger and the cold weather
that the crew of the Magellan expedition experienced, remains unsurpassed to this day. The route
that Magellan took in reaching the Philippines was a new”discovery” then, which put an end to
the Venetian monopoly of the Southern Route. From this time on, Spain became supreme in the
building of a colonial empire that only Great Britain in later modern times was able to equal.
More importantly, insofar as geography was concern, Magellan’s voyage proved conclusively
that the earth was round.
Insofar as Filipinos were concerned, Magellan’s expedition was significant because it led
to other Spanish expeditions to the Philippines. These expeditions, especially that of Legazpi’s,
led to the Spanish colonization of the Philippines and with this, contacts between Europeans and
Filipinos were established.
The Villalobos Expedition

The return of the Victoria to Spain won the admiration of the King and the Spanish
people. Encouraged by the result of the Magellan expedition, King Charles sent other expeditions
which, however, failed. These were the Loaysa expedition of 1525-1526, commanded by Father
Juan Garcia Jofre de Loaysa; the Cabot expedition of 1526-1530, commanded by Sebastian
Cabot; and the Sayavedra expedition of 1527-1528, commanded by Alvaro de Sayavedra, which
reached Mindanao but did not succeed in settling in any of the islands.
Meanwhile, Spain and Portugal quarreled over the possession of the Moluccas. The
monarchs of the two countries were close relatives and so they agreed to settle the question of
ownership by peaceful means. On April 22, 1529, Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of
Zaragoza, under which Portugal won possession of the Moluccas after paying Spain the sum of
350,000 gold ducats. To avoid future misunderstanding between the two countries, another
imaginary line was drawn form north to south at 297 1/2 leagues east of the Moluccas. Lands to
be found on the west of this line would belong to Spain, while those on the east would belong to
Portugal. In paying Spain a sum to get the Moluccas Islands lay east of the demarcation line as
provided in the Treaty of Tordesillas.
For many years after the conclusion of the Treaty of Zaragoza, Spain respected its
provisions. However, form 1538 to 1541, King Charles of Spain agreed with his viceroys in

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Mexico and Guatemala that expeditions should be sent to the East, particularly to the Spice or
Moluccas Islands.The Viceroy of Mexico chose his brother-in-law, Ruy Lopez de Villalobos, to
command the expeditions. With six ships, Villalobos left Mexico on November 1, 1542, crossed
the vast Pacific, and reached Mindanao in February 1543. The natives of Mindanao refused to
have any dealing with the Spaniards. Faced with starvation, Villalobos ordered his men to plant
corn to feed themselves. But the crop failed and Villalobos was forced to send one of his men,
Bernardo de la Torre, to Tandaya (now Samar) to get some food. Villalobos, in his pleasure,
named the islands of Samar and Leyte, Felipinas in honor of Prince Philip of Spain, who later on
became King Phillip II. Leaving the Philippines, Villalobos sailed for the Moluccas where they
ere captured by the Portuguese. They were later set free and Villalobos tried to sail for Mexico
but died in Amboina in 1546.
Viceroy- a ruler on behalf of a sovereign in a colony or province of the colonizing

country
The Legazpi Expedition

Many years passed before another expedition was sent to the Philippines. In 1556,upon
the suggestion of the Viceroy of Mexico, an expedition to the East was sent by King Phillip II,
who succeeded his father, King Charles I. King Phillip emphasized that the expeditions should
not enter territories belonging to Portugal. The purpose of the expedition was to survey the trade
in spices and make a report on it. The king also specifically ordered that a new return route from
the Oriental islands to Mexico be discovered.
The King chose Father Andres de Urdaneta, who was a member of the Loaysa
expedition, as pilot of the new mission. With four ships and about 380 men, Legaspi sailed from
the Mexican port of Navidad on November 21, 1564. One of the ships got lost on its way but was
found later and ordered to head back to Mexico ater reaching Mindanao. The expedition reached
Cebu in February 1565. Later, Legazpi sailed to Cibabao (Leyte) then to Samar. Hre, He
concluded a blood compact with some of the chieftains, one of whom was Bankaw, datu of
Limasawa. Early in March, he sailed to Camiguin Island, the to Bohol where he entered into a
blood compact with Datu Si Katuna and Si Gala. The scarcity of food in Bohol led Legazpi to
order his men to sail for Cebu.
Settlement- a previously unoccupied land in which newcomers come to settle and occupy
as their home
The Discovery of a new Route

Having settled in Cebu, Legazpi ordered the return of the ship San Pedro to Mexico. It
was to be piloted by Father Urdaneta and accompanied by Legazpis’s grandson, Felipe de
Salcedo. Sailing form the port of Cebu on June 1, 1565, Father Uradaneta steeered the ship
northeastward form the Philippines in a wide arc through the Pacific and ended in Santa Catalina,
in California. After overcoming many difficulties, the ship sailed down the California coast to
Mexico, arriving at the port of Natividad on October 1. From Navidad, the ship sailed to
Acapulco. With this return voyage, Father Urdaneta discovered a new route, which the Manila
galleons would follow in later years.
FIRST SETTLEMENT IN CEBU
Legazpi and his men entered Cebu harbor on April 27. The Cebuanos were hostile to him
probably because in the past, some white men who looked like Spaniards maltreated them.
Legazpi explained to the Cebuanos that the white men who maltreated them were not Spaniards
but Portuguese. He also told them that he wanted the Filipinos and the Spaniards to be friends.

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The Cebuano and the Spaniards found themselves in skirmishes. Tupas fled to the mountains
after setting all the houses on fire in what is now Cebu City. The day after skimish, a Spaniard
found the image of the Infant Jesus which Magellan gave to Juana, Rajah Humabons’ wife, forty-
four years earlier. The image was not burnt.
Legazpi, although victorious, applied a policy of attraction. He invited the Cebuanos to
come down from the mountains and promised not to harm any of them. Convinved that Legzpis
was sincere, Tupas and his men returned to the lowland and entered into an agreement with
Legazpi with the help of Tupas’ brothers, Si Makayo and Si Katapan. The agreement provided
that(1) the Filipinos promised to be loyal ti the King of Spain and to the Spaniards;(2) The
Filipinos promised to help the Spaniards in any battle against an enemy; and in return, the
Spaniards promised to protect the Filipinos from all enemies;(3) a Filipino who had committed a
crime against a Spaniard should be turned over to the Spanish authorities, while a Spaniard who
had committed a crime against Filipino should be turned over to the Filipino chieftain;(4) goods
to be sold, to either the Spaniards or the Filipinos should be moderately priced;(5) an armed
Filipino would not allowed to enter the Spanish settlement.
With the conclusion of this agreement, peace reigned in Cebu. Legazpi then turned his
attention to the founding of a Spanish settlement. A land, donated by Tupas and other Cebuano
chieftains, was used as Spanish settlements. This was in the form of a triangle one side of which
faced the land and the other sides faced the sea. A fort was constructed and the Spaniards called it
Fort San Pedro. Initially, the Spanish settlement was called San Miguel. But Legazpi remembered
the unharmed image of the Infant Jesus and renamed the settlement, “City of the Most Holy
Name of Jesus.”
THE SETTLEMENT IN PANAY
Legazpi was beset with many problems in Cebu. One was the bad feeling of some of how
own men who refused to work. Some of them robbed the graves of the Filipinos. Legazpi acted
justly and punished all those who refused to cooperate with him. There was also a conspiracy
among the Spanish soldiers to seize the ship San Pablo. The captain of the boat informed the
Master of Camp, Mateo del Saz, about it and the conspirators were arrested. The leader of the
conspiracy was beheaded, and the rest were pardoned.
Legazpi also faced the hostility of the Portuguese.The latter realized that the Philippines lay
ojn the Portuguese side of the demarcation line. The Portuguese captain, Gonzalo de Pereira,
harassed Legazpi by blockading Cebu in order to starve the Spaniards. With the help of the
Cebuanos, Legazpi succeeded in forcing Pereira to leave the Philippines. Faced with these
problems, Legazpi decide to move to Panay. Upon learning that there was plenty of food there, he
and some of his men sailed for Panay in 1569. On the banks of the Panay River, Legazpi founded
the second Spanish settlement in the Philippines. He won over the people of Panay by convincing
them of his peaceful intentions. The Spanish missionaries, the Augustinian friars, converted some
natives to Christianity. The friendliness of the Filipinos was shown when they brought food to
Legazpi. Consequently, the Spaniards were saved from starvation.
The First Spanish Voyage to Manila

With Panay as his home base, Legazpi decided to spread Spanish rule to other islands of the
archipelago. He sent small expeditions to the other island of the Visayas, Masbate, Burias, and
Ticao were claimed in the name of the King of Spain. Then the same expeditions, headed by
Captain Enriquez de Guzman sailed for southern Luzon and reached Albay.
At almost the same time, Juan de Salcedo, Legazpi’s younger grandson, led a small
expedition to the north. With a few Spanish soldiers and about 500 Visayans, Salcedo sailed to
Talim Island and claimed it for Spain. Then he continued his voyage until he reached Lubang
Island, near Mindoro, and fought the Filipinos who refused to recognize him. Defeating the

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people of Lubang, Salcedo returned to Panay after reaching the outer rim of Manila Bay. He
reported to his grandfather that Manila was a prosperous Muslim kingdom. Legazpi then decided
to send an expedition to Manila. This expedition left Panay for Mindoro on May 8,1570, and
sayed there for five days. Then the voyage to Manila Bay was continued. The Spanish forces
were now divided into two: one was headed by Martin de Goiti, who succeeded Mateo del Saz
as Master of Camp, and the other was commanded by Salcedo. When they reached Batangas,
Salcedo explored the Bonbon River in what is now Taal, while Goiti explored Balayan. In Taal,
Salcedo had an armed encounter with some Filipinos. He was wounded in the leg, but the
Spaniards with their superior weapons won the skirmish in the end. Then Salcedo rejoined Goiti
and the two proceeded to Manila by sea.
At that time, Manila or Maynila as it was called by the natives, was a thriving Muslim
kingdom ruled by Rajah Sulayman or Soliman. The kingdom was south of the Pasig River in
what is now Fort Santiago. Goiti demanded that Sulayman paid him trubute, but the ruler of
Maila refused. On May 24, Goiti fired a cannon shot to recall a boat he had sent on an errand.
Sulayman and his men thought that it was a sign of Spanish hostility, and so they answered with
shots form their native cannons called lantaka. The superior fire power of the Spaniards led the
Filipinos to burn down their houses and left Manila in the hands of the enemy. But Goiti did not
stay in Manila. He returned to Panay to report to Legazpi what happened.
THE FOUNDING OF MANILA

Legazpi was happy to hear from Goiti. He informed his men that the King of Spain
appointed him as governor and captain general of the islands, which was equivalent to governor-
general. He was, therefore, the first governor-general of the Philippines. Legazpi also informed
them that the King ordered them to colonize the rest of the archipelago. At this time, however,
food became scarce in Panay. Father Diego de Herrera, an Augustinian friar, suggested that they
settle in Luzon instead. So Legazpi decided to leave for Luzon on April 20, with Manila as the
object of his expedition. In Manila, Rajah Sulayman, realizing the fire power of the enemy,
ordered his people to burn their houses and to retreat to the interior. At the same time, he gathered
a force of fierce warriors from the barangays of Pampanga and Bulacan, and fought the enemy in
the Battle of Bangkusay in Tondo. He and the warriors were defeated. What happened to
Sulayman was not clear. Some say he died in battle; others say that he escaped to the interior. At
any rate, the Filipinos were defeated and Legazpi took over Manila in 1571.
Legazpi began laying the foundation of a new city. Manila was in ruins so he ordered his
men to build new houses. A church was also costructed for the missionaries, while a big house
was built as the governor’s official residence. On June 24, 1571, Legazpi made Manila the
Capital of the Philippines. King Philip II later called Manila, “Distinguish and Ever Loyal City.”
On the same day that Legazpi declared Manila as the capital of the archipelago, a city
government or ayuntamiento was organized. He appointed two alcaldes or magistrates, an
alguacil mayor or chief constable, twelve regidores or legislative council members, and one
escribano or court clerk. With the founding of Manila as the capital of the Philippines, the
foundatiom of the Spanish colonial empire in Asia had been laid.
Expeditions to Other Parts of Luzon

With Sulayman defeated and Sulayman’s uncle, Lakan Dula, cooperating with the
Spaniards, Legazpi thought of sending expeditions to other parts of Luzon. He sent his grandson
to the towns on the south of Manila, while he sent Goiti to explore Central Luzon, as far as
Pangasinan. Salcedo conquered Taytay, Cainta, and other towns of what is now Rizal Province.
Then in 1572, he went to northern Luzon and defeated the Filipinos in Zambales, Pangasinan, and
the Ilocos region. In what is now Vigan, Salcedo founded the town of Villa Fernandina in honor
of Prince Fernando, the first-born son of King Philip II. From the Ilocos, Salcedo proceeded to
the northeastern coast of Luzon, marched along the Pacific coast of what is now Quezon
Province, sailed to Polillo Island, back to the shore of Luzon, and from there retturned to Manila,
for he was informed that his grandfather, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, had died on August 20,1572.

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Evaluation
Name_____________________________________________________________________
Course/ Section______________________________________________Date__________
A. Answer the following (5pts. each)
1. In what way was the capture of Constantinople(Istanbul today) by the Turks a factor in the
geographical discoveries of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries?
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2. Explain why and how the Spaniards and Portuguese came to the East.
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3. Why did Pope Alexander VI divide the world between Spain and Portugal? Were the terms of
this division fair or justified for each one? Why or why not?
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4. Describe the route taken by Magellan from the time he left San Lucar de Barrameda to the
sighting of the coast of Samar. Use a map or globe.
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5. Would you call the sighting of the archipelago by Magellan a discovery? Explain your answer.
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6. Why did Magellan interfere in the quarrel between the two Mactan chieftains? Was he right in
doing so? Give your reasons.
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7. What was the importance of the Magellan expedition?
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8. What were the Treaty of Tordesillas and the Treaty of Zaragoza all about? Name the most
important provisions of these two treaties.
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9. Why do you think were Rajah Humabon and his wife, along with 800 natives, persuaded by
Magellan to become Christians? Explain your answer
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10. Why do you think Legazpi succeeded in befriending Rajah Tupas and the Cebuanos?
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11. What was Father Urdaneta’s contribution to the voyage of Legazpi?
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12. Describe the conquest of Luzon and the other islands. Name the places and Spanish
conquistador in charge of the conquest.
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13. What did the conquest mean for the inhabitants of the islands then? What did it mean for the
Spaniards?
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14. On a photocopied or printed map , draw the route taken by Magellan until he reached
Cebu and return route by Sebastain del Cano to Spain. Compare the travel by sea during
Magellan’s time and the present. Which is more dangerous of the two? Why?
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15. Consult a map of Asia. Read the principal provisions of the Treaties of Tordesillas
and Zaragosa. Draw the Demarcation lines of the two treaties. To which side of
demarcation lines of the two treaties. To which side of demarcation lines do the following
lands belong.
a. The Philppines

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b. North Amrica
c. The Azores Islands
d. The Moluccas
e. The Malay Peninsula
f. India
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References
City, Philippines.

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Chapter
5 THE PHILIPPINES UNDER SPANISH RULE
(1600s-1800s)
Overview
Unlike the country’s early contact with its Asian neighbors, which was limited to trade and
commerce, the encounter with the West, particularly with Spain, led to direct rule or colonization.
What did it mean to be a colony, specifically, a “crown colony” in those times?
Spain governed the Philippines through the Union of Church and state, introducing in the
process new beliefs, institutions, and practices in the political, economic, and religious aspects of
people’s lives. The results, though effective and positive for Spain, caused hardships for the
majority of the inhabitants, except for the few members of the maharlika class. The Maharlika,
who later emerged as the new class called principalia, benefited under the regime and was
integrated into the new colonial order for good or ill as shown in the succeeding events.
Objectives
4. To know the goals of Spain in colonizing the Philippines.
5. To have a deeper understanding of how the Spaniards administered the Philippines and
the effects of their colonization.
6. To evaluate the impact of colonization in the cultural development and contribution to
contemporary society.
Discussion
THE PHILIPPINES UNDER SPANISH RULE (1600s-1800s)
Unlike the country’s early contact with its Asian neighbors, which was limited to trade and
commerce, the encounter with the West, particularly with Spain, led to direct rule or colonization.
What did it mean to be a colony, specifically, a “crown colony” in those times?

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Spain governed the Philippines through the Union of Church and state, introducing in the
process new beliefs, institutions, and practices in the political, economic, and religious aspects of
people’s lives. The results, though effective and positive for Spain, caused hardships for the
majority of the inhabitants, except for the few members of the maharlika class. The Maharlika,
who later emerged as the new class called principalia, benefiteed under the regime and was
integrated into the new colonial order for good or ill as shown in the succeeding events.
REASONS FOR SPANISH COLONIZATION
When King Charles I decided to send an expedition to the Moluccas, his purpose was
primarily commercial. Spices commanded high prices during that time, so trade in spices was
very profitable. Thus, King Charles was persuaded to send the Magellan expedition to Asia to
search for the Spice Islands. Later, when Legazpi succeeded in founding Spanish settlements and
in laying the foundation of Spanish colonization of the Philippines, the Spanish claim to the
archipelago was sealed based on two reasons. First, since the “discovery” of the Philippines was
made under the auspices of Spain, the Philippines, therefore was rightfully owned by Spain.
Second, since Spain, being in actual possession of the Philippines by right of “discovery” and
by right of actual occupation or conquest. As such, the Philippines was a possession or property
of the King of Spain and, therefore, a crown colony.
Auspices-patronage, direction, or support
POLITICAL CHANGES
As a crown colony, the Philippines was adminitered by the Council of the Indies. Even so,
the Spanish officials in the Philippines were appointed by the King of Spain, who issued Royal
orders and decress dealing with the proper administration of the colony. In 1863, the Philippines,
as a colony, was placed under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Colonies orOverseas
Ministry (Ministerio de Ultramar). In order to make the administration of the Philippines
efficient, the Overseas Ministry was advised and aided in its work by the Council of the Indies.
The Central Government

In organizing the central government of the Philippines, the Spanish authorities saw to it that
they would be guided by their experience in Mexico and South America. Consequently, many
features of the government established in these countries were adopted in the Philippines. Like
Mexico and Spanish America, the Laws of the Indies were applied in the Philippines. Some
Spanish laws were likewise adopted,like La Novisima Recopilacion, Leyes de Toro, and the
Siete Partidas. These laws, as well as the Laws of the Indies, were humane, however, most of
them were not even enforced in the Philippines.
The Spanish colonizers organized highly centralized form of government. By this, it meant
that the central or national government was so powerful that almost everything had to be done
with its knowledge and consent. The central government was headed by the governor and
captain-general, or governor-general, who was appointed by the King of Spain. As governor-
general, he was the King’s official representative in the colony. He possessed vast executive,
legislative, and judicial powers. There were, however, only two branched of government: the
executive and the judicial. There was no legislature or congress because the laws for the
Philippines were made by the Spaniards in Spain and,to a certain extent, by the governor-general
himself. He issued orders with the force of law, which were called superior decrees. On the other
hand, decrees or orders coming form the King of Spain were called Royal decrees or orders.

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The governor-general was the president or presiding officer of the Audiencia. He was also
the vice royal patron in the Philippines. As the King’s representative, he could appoint minor
officials in the government, including the parish priests. He was also the commander-in-chief of
the armed forces. Combining all these powers , the governor-general was truly a powerful
official. This power was best shown in the right of cumplase bestowed upon him by the King.
The cumplase was the right of the governor to suspend the operation of a Royal decree or order
relative to the Philippines if in his opinion, the said order or decree would not be beneficial to the
administration of the country. The usual formula in exercising the right of cumplase was “I obey
but do not comply.”
The Audiencia
The judicial powers of the government were exercised by the Audencia and the lower courts.
The Audencia was established in the Philippines in 1583 to administer justice to the aggrieved
people in the colony. Governor Santiago de Vera was its first president. The Audencia was the
highest court insofar as civil and criminal cases were concerned. Moreover, political and
administrative matters were brought before the Audencia by the governor. In the absence of a
governor or when he could not perform his duties, the Audencia exercised political and
administrative powers. It also audited the finances of the government.
Some powerful persons in the colonial government were against the Audencia because the
population of the Philippines was still small to justify having an Audencia. Also, the natives were
very poor. This being the case, the Audiencia was a financial burden to the King of Spain.
Because of this opposition, the Audencia was abolished in1589. In its place, a council composed
of 400 members headed by the governor-general was created. This council, however, was
unsatisfactory to many because of its many members. So the King ordered the re-establishment of
the Audiencia in1595. However, it actually carried out its function in 1598 when it was
inaugurated.
Aggrieved- distressed, troubled or

pained
Local Government
Under the central government was the provincial government. Pacified provinces, which were
already recognizing the authority of Spain, were governed by civil provincial governor. Those
that were not yet fully pacified and conquered were ruled by military officers. The provincial
governor was called alcalde mayor. He was appointed by the governor-general. His salary was
small but he could collect a part of the tribute to increase his income. What made him rich and
powerful was the right given to him to engage in trade. This right was called indulto de
comercio. In almost all cases, the provincial governor abused this power so that he committed
graft and corruption. It was later abolished in 1844 because the alcalde mayor abused his power
to the extent of scandalizing the Spaniards. Another anomalous practice was the provincial
governor’s role as judge of the province. Since many abuses were committed by the governor-
judge, in 1886, the King ordered that the provincial governor should remain as judge only.
Another man was appointed as provincial governor whose main duty was to administer the
province.
Under the provincial government was the municipal government. The town or municipality,
composed of several barrios, was headed by the gobernadorcillo (little governor), also called
capitan municipal or simply capitan. Today, he is called mayor. The gobernadorcillo was elected
by thriteen electors who were prominent in the town. Six of these electors were former cabezas
de barangay; six were actual cabezas de barangay, and the thirteenth elector was the outgoing
capitan. The one selected as gobernadorcillo had to be approved by the Spanish friar-curate. If
approved, his name was sent to the provincial governor who, in turn, submitted his name to the
office of the governor-general in Manila for final approval. The capitan was aided in the

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administration of the town by deputies called tenientes, a chief of police, and subordinate
officials called alguaciles.
Subordinate- under the authority or control of another; of lesser rank
The City and its Government

During the first century of Spanish rule, there were only two cities: Cebu and Manila. As
conquest and settlement continued, the Spanish officials created on city after another. By the
seventeenth century, the Philippines had six cities: Cebu, Manila, Vigan, Nueva Segovia (now
Lal-lo, Cagayan), Arevalo (now a part of Ilolo City), and Nueva Caceres (now Naga). The city ,
then and now, was the center of social, commercial, religious, and cultural life. Its government
was different form that of the town. It was called ayuntamiento, equivalent to today’s city hall,
consisted of two alcaldes, twelve regidores (now called councilors), a chief of police, a city
secretary, and few other lesser officials.
Each barrio or barangay of the town was headed by a cabeza who did not receive any salary.
However, he was given a portion of the taxes collected in his barrio. Also, he was considered a
member of the pricipalia or the aristocracy, together with the town mayor and other municipal
officials. As a former maharlika, who ruled the barangay as datu, gat, or lakan, they were given
economic and political privileges.
Propagating the Catholic Faith

When Legazpi sailed for the Philippines, he was accompanied by some friars belonging to
the Augustinian Order. Many Filipinos who were converted to the Catholic faith by the first
Augustinians that came with Legazpi in 1565, later on returned to their old animist religion. The
King then decided that the entire Philippines should be converted to the Catholic faith.
Missionaries were sent to the colony after the death of Legazpi. The Augustinian Order continued
to sedn its missionaries to make converts. The missionaries spread Catholicism in and around
Manila, the Visayas, the Ilocos, Pampanga, and Pangasinan. In 1577, the Franciscan missionaries
arrived and spread the Catholic faith in Manila, in the provinces near and around Laguna de bay
(pronounce Ba-I), such as the present provinces of Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon. They
also established missions in Camarines and other parts of Bicol Provinces. In 1581, the Jesuits,
who were not friars, arrived in the Philippines. They spread Catholicism in Manila, Leyte, Cebu,
Bohol, Samar, and later, in Mindanao. The Dominican missionaries came to Manila in 1587 to
spread the Catholic faith in Manila, the Cagayan region, and Pangasinan. The Recollect
missionaries came in 1606 and propagated the faith in Manila, Bataan, Zambales, Mindoro,
Masbate, Ticao, Burias, Cuyo, Romblon, Negros, and some parts of Mindanao.
These missionaries worked hard to convert the Filipinos to Catholicism that in a span of a
little more than twenty years form the time Legazpi landed in Cebu, the number of converts to the
Catholic faith was about 250,000. This number rose to a little less than a million in the middle of
the eighteenth century; to about four million in the 1860s; and to about six and a half million at he
end of the Spanish period in1898. Although the number was not enough to cover the entire
Philippines. The lack of missionaries was responsible for the return of some converts to their old
religious practices.
Propagate- to breed or reproduce from parent stock; to disseminate news or ideas

Animist religion- belief in a supernatural force that animates things in the universe.
people, tress, mountains,sky etc.

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The Union of Church and State

Because the early Kings of Spain helped much in propagating and defending the Catholic
faith, they became closely identified with the Church. There was union of Church and State in
Spain. The same union was introduces in the Philippines, so tat the officials appointed by the
King and by his representative in the colony, were also defenders of the faith. On the other hand,
the friars and the Jesuits were not only priests, but also agents of the Spanish King. Thus, because
of this union, the governor-general had authority to appoint priests to the parishes. The clergy, on
the other hand, were active in the government and had political powers. The friars became
members of some agencies of the Central Government. In the local government, the friar-curate
almost always was the census enumerator, the health officer, the inspector of schools, the
examiner of pupils who wanted to study in primary school, the censor who approved or
disapproved dramas and other writings to be published, and the auditor of the local government.
He also certified the good physical condition of a young man who was to become a soldier in the
colonial army. To the people of every town, the friar-curate performed many duties. In this way,
he became very powerful.
In some cases, a high Church official was also eligible to become governor-general during
the latter’s absence or illness. Examples of Church officials who became acting governor-
general were Archbishop Francisco de la Cuesta (1719-1721); Bishop Juan Arrechederra (1745-
1750); Bishop Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta (1759-1761); and Archbishop Manuel Rojo (1761-1762).
The Church Organization

To administer the parishes efficiently, the Catholic Church was divide into districts. In turn,
each district was divided into parishes and missions. The districts represented geographic
religions that had different dialects or languages. On the other hand, the parishes represented
villages, while missions represented areas or regions that were not yet conquered and converted
to Catholicism.
In 1578, Manila became a diocese. At first, it was a mere suffragan of the Archbishopric of
Mexico. Three years later, Father Domingo de Salazar was appointed the first Bishop of Manila.
The bishopric of Manila became an archbishopric in 1595 with Father Ignacio Santibanez as the
first archbishop. Under the Archbishopric of Manila were the bishopric of Cebu, Nueva Caceres,
and Nueva Segovia. The Ecclesiastical Government was headed by the Archbishop of Manila,
who was appointed by the Pope upon recommendation of the King of Spain.
Serving under him were the bishops who administered the parishes under their jurisdiction.
The Church, like the civil government, had a court of justice called Ecclesiastical Court or
Archbishop’s Court and was composed of the archbishop, the vicar-general, a notary, and other
official. Cases dealing with the laws of the Church and those involving priests were tried by this
court.
The Inquisition
The Inquisition was an ecclesiastical office, whose duty was to search for heretics and those
guilty of preaching or practicing religious doctrines that were contrary to that of the the Catholic
Church. There was no office of the Inquisition in the Philippines. There was, however, a
representative or commissary of the Mexican Inquisition in the Philippines. It was the duty of the
representative to ferret out heretics among the Spaniards. The Filipinos ere not subject to
inquisitorial practice and method, according to the instructions of King Philip II. Only Spaniard ,
therefore, were subject to arrest by the representative of the Holy Inquisition in Mexico.
The Introduction of Printing

Most religious works used by the missionaries during the early years of Spanish rule were
handwritten. There was no printing press during those early years. Because it took much time to

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copy religious books, the Dominicans introduce in the Philippines the art of printing. The first
printing press they introduced was called xylography or printing by woodblock, in which a
rectangular piece of wood , say, one or two inches thick, was carved out with words. Then the
piece of wood was covered evenly with ink and a piece of paper was placed on the woodblock
and pressed with heavy object. When the paper is lifted , it has an imprint of the words in the
woodblock. The first books printed by this method were the Christian doctrine in Tagalog and in
Chinese. They were printed in 1593. it cannot be determined as to which of the two books was
printed first because there was no record of the exact date of the printing of the book. At any rate,
the two books were printed in the same year.
Printing by woodblock was cumbersome , so the Dominicans improved printing by
introducing the use of movable types. In this kind of printing, a letter is joined to a small piece of
wood or iron or any similar material. Father Francisco de San Jose, popularly called Blancas de
San Jose, introduced the movable type of printing (also called typography) in 1602. he became
an expert in this kind of printing and wrote a grammar book in Tagalog and printed it in the
Dominican press. In 1606, the Franciscans put up a printing press in Tayabas
(now Quezon Province). the famous book, Vocabulario de la Lengua Tagala by Father Domingo
de los Santos was printed in 1703 in Tayabas.
The Residencia and the Visita

Because of the abuses committed by many Spanish officials who were sent to the Philippine,
the King and Ministers of Spain introduced two institutions in their colonies, including the
Philippines. There were residencia and the visita. These two institutions were introduced to stop
the abuses of high Spanish officials in the colonies. The residencia was the public investigation
snd trial of outgoing colonial officials in order to ascertain whether they had committed abuses in
the performance of their duties. The procedure involved the incoming governor0general to
conduct the investigation and trial of his predecessor and other officials of the government.the
result of the investigation and trial was sent to Spain for final decision. While the residencia was
instituted with a good purpose , in many cases, it was abused by thew investigating govenor-
general; and his men, who often harasses the outgoing governor. It was common during those
days for enemies of an outgoing official to in vent charges to embarrass him. Governor-general
Sebastian Hurtado de Concuera (1635-1644) was a good example when his enemies filed
unfounded charges against him, resulting in his imprisonment.
The visita,on the other hand, was a secret investigation of an official’s conduct as a public
servant. It’s purpose was to ensure that the official will work honestly and efficiently as he was
expected to do. This was done anytime in the duration of the official’s term.
The Plaza Complex

The plaza complex can best illustrate this politico-religigious structure of the colonial
government of the country under Spain. The houses of the natives were situated around a plaza or
town center to bring them close to the church, the convent, the municipio, the marketplace, and
the cemetery. This setup allowed the Spaniards to effectively administer and control the natives.
The church easily regulated the activities of the natives, whose residences were “under the peal of
bells” or bajo de las campanas.
ECONOMIC CHANGES
The Encomienda
In order to reward the Spaniards who hel[ed in the conquest and the establishment of
settlements in the Philippines, the King of Spain, as early as 1558, ordered that lands be

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distributed to his loyal subjects, in accordance with this order, Legazpi gave lands to those who
had helped in the conquest of the Philippines. The encomienda, in principle, was not actually a
piece of land, but a favor from the King, under which the Spaniard receiving the favor was given
the right to collect tributes or taxes from the inhabitants of an area assigned to him. The man who
received this favor was called encomendero. The encomienda was. Therefore, a public office.
The size of the encomienda was determined by the number of people living in it and the
value of the landa on which the natives lived. The law limited the number of natives in an area
administered by an encomendero to 300, while the value of the land was limited to P2,000. at
first, an encomienda could be held for three generations, but it was later reduced to only two
generations. However, because of the complaints of the holders of encomiendas, the King in 1635
returned the tenure to three generations. In the encomendero should teach the natives under his
jurisdiction the Christian doctrine. He was also ordered to protect them from any harm. However,
these humane provisions, like the many lawas coming form Spain, were not followed. Instead,the
encomenderos, with possibly very fee expectations, abused their authority and maltreated the
Filipinos.
The were three kinds of encomiendas;(1) the Royal encomienda, which belonged to the
King;(2) the ecclesiastical encomienda, which belonged to the Church;and (3) the private
encomiennda, which belonged to a prrivate individual. So many were the abuses committed by
the encomenderos that the King abolished the private encomienda toward the end of the
seventeenth century.
Forced Labor
In theory, Spain’s colonial system was the best of all colonial systems followed by other
European countries like England, France, and Holland. The laws of the Indies, for example,
described hoe to prevent the exploitation of natives in their employment. While Filipinos were
required to render services to the State and the Church, the same Laws of the Indies provided that
the natives, who were ordered to work either for the State State or Church, should be paid their
wages. The Spanish officials in the Philippines ordered the Filipinos to work in the construction
of churches, roads,bridges, ships and in the industries of hauling and cutting timber. However,
some conditions were set for forced labor called polo y servicio, which included the following;(1)
that the Filipinos to be drafted for work must be paid for their work;(2) that the Filipino laborers
should not be made to work in distant places where they could not return to their families;(3) that
the drafting of laborers should not coincide with the planting and harvest seasons;(4) that men
who are physically incapable should not be overworked;(5) that forced labor should be restored to
only in cases of absolute necessity;and (6) that the number of laborers drafted should be
diminished as soon as laborers form other countries(probably referring to the Chines) had
volunteered to work.
On paper, the provisions of the policy on forced labor protected Filipino laborers form
exploitation. In practice, however, it was cruel because the laws regarding forced labor were
violated. For example, Filipinos were not paid their wages. They were separated form their
families by sending them to far-flung provinces. They were not given food, as required by law,
but instead they had to provide for their own food. Moreover, they were overworked and as a
result thousands of Filipino laborers died. This was one of the causes of the decrease in the
population of the Philippines for some years in the sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries. For a
Filipino laborer to be exempted from force labor, he had to pay a fee called falla. This fee was
unreasonably high, and oftentimes the laborer could not afford to pay it.
The Tribute
In order to raise enough money to finance the administration of the colony, especially, the
construction of churches, government buildings, roads, bridges, and improvements in
transportation and communication, the Filipinos were compelled to pay a tribute in cash or in
kind, in full or installment basis, to the Spanish colonial government. The tribute was a form of

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recognition of the Filipino’s loyalty to the King of Spain. When it was introduced officially in
1570, the amount was small. Those who paid tribute were persons above sixteen years and those
below sixty. In 1589, the tribute was raised, of which a small portion went to the Church. This
was called sanctorum. Because of the opposition to the tribute and to the abuses connected with
its collection, the King abolished it in 1884 and the cedula personal was introduced. This is the
present equivalent of the residence certificate class “A.”
Taxes
Aside from the tribute, the Filipinos also paid other taxes. They included the diezmos
prediales, the donativo de Zamboanga, and the vinta. The diezmos prediales was a tax which
consisted of one-tenth of the produce of the land. The donativo de Zamboanga, which was
introduced in 1635, was a tax specifically used for the conquest of Jolo. The vinta, on the other
hand , was a tax paid by the people of some provinces along the coast off western Luzon for
“slaves” that they needed in their overseas trading.
The Galleon Trade

Even before the arrival of the Spaniards, the Philippines had already been trading with her
neighbors. Jolo and Manila were trading centers of the archipelago. After the Spanish conquest
and the settlement of a large part of the Philippines, Manila became a leading commercial center
in the region. The early Spanish colonial officials encouraged trade between Manila and other
countries of the East because it was so lucrative that it could make them wealthy within a short
period of time. Ships form Japan, China, Siam(Thailand), India, Cambodia, Malacca, and what is
now Indonesia, anchored in Manila to unload their valuable cargoes. These, in turn, were shipped
by Spanish traders to Mexico where they commanded high process. Later, commercial
restrictions were placed on trade due to the complaints of the merchants of Cadiz and Sevilla.
They complained that their goods were being driven out of Mexico by the oriental goods that
came from Manila. The Spanish merchants of Manila died the charge. But the King did not lift
the restrictions on trade. These restrictions consisted of p250,000 worth of goods to be sent to
Mexico and P500,000 worth of goods to be sent from Mexico to Manila, This trade across the
Pacific was called the galleon trade. Later, the amounts were raised to P 300,000 up to P500,000.
Not all could engage in the galleon trade because it was a government monopoly, Only
privileged persons, such as high-ranking officials of the State, the Church,and the crew of the
galleons, were allowed to engage in trade. The galleon trade was so restrictive that the prosperity
of the Spaniards in Manila depends solely on the success of the voyage to and form Mexico.. In
some cases, the galleons were captured by English buccaneers. Others, however, sank in the
southern coast of Luzon near Samar. In the nineteenth century when commercial liberty was
adopted as a European policy, the monopolistic galleon trade declined. In 1811, the last galleon
form Manila sailed for Acapulco, Mexico, and the government’s monopoly of the galleon trade
came to an end. Other ports in the Americas, like Peru and Ecuador, were opened to Philippines
trade and thus, the Manila-Acapulco trade further declined.
The Mexican Subsidy

Because of the poor economic condition of the country, which the Spaniards, generally
speaking, did not try to improve, the Philippines became a burden to Spain. In order to prevent
the government from becoming bankrupt, the Mexican government sent to the Philippines an
annual subsidy called the situado. This subsidy amounted to P250,000,on the average. This
amount was enough to save the colonial government of the Philippines from bankruptcy.
However, the money received form Mexico was not spent for the improvement pf the condition
of the Filipinos. A large portion of the subsidy went to the pockets of Spanish officials,
employees, and priests in the form of salaries. The Mexican subsidy was finally stopped when
Mexico became independent in 1821.

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The Economic Society

Governor Basco founded the Economic Society of Friends of the Country in 1781 to
effectively implement an economic policy in the colony. This was according to the King’s decree
which gave him the right to establish a society “of selected persons who are capable enough to
produce useful ideas.” In order to make it solvent from the start, prominent Spanish traders of
Manila gave the Society the sum of P960 a year, a hefty sum during those days. The Society was
divided into sections: (1)factories and manufacturers,(2)industry and popular education,(3)
natural history,(4)domestic and foreign commerce, and (5) agriculture and rural economy.
Under the auspices of the Society, economic subjects were discussed by government
officials, traders, and merchants;pamphlets on the cultivation of indigo, coffee, sugar, cacao,
hemp, and other plants were published and widely distributed; agricultural implements from the
United State were imported to improve agriculture and thus increase production;and advanced
agricultural methods were also introduced. As a result of these activities, the Society was able to
export indigo to Europe for the first time in Philippines history. This was in 1784. The Society’s
activities were not limited to the encouragement of agriculture and industry. It also founded the
Academy of Drawing in Manila in1824,and granted scholarships to those who were interested in
the art of dyeing. In 1861, the Society founded an agricultural school in Manila for the purpose of
training farmers in advanced agricultural methods.
The Government Monopolies

Governor Basco was also remembered for his role I establishing government monopolies, the
most important of which was the tobacco monopoly,Seeing the advantages of a monopoly in
tobacco, Basco recommended to the King that the monopoly be established in the Philippines.
Consequently, the King issued decree in 1780 ordering the establishment of the tobacco
monopoly. It was, however actually established in their colony in 1782. the following were the
provisions of the decree;(1)the cultivation of tobacco was prohibited except for the provinces
selected to grow it;(2) contraband sale of tobacco was forbidden;(3)the government had the
exclusive right to purchase all tobacco products, to inspect and classify the tobacco plant and to
prepare and manufacture cigar and cigarettes;and (4) the government had the right to prohibit the
exportation or importation of tobacco by any agency not connected with the government. In other
words, the government had the monopoly of the planting, inspection, sale and purchase of
tobacco, and its manufacture into cigar and cigarette.
Basco’s estimate that increased government revenues would result form the tobacco
monopoly was correct. In 1808, the government realized a net profit of aboutP500,000. For he
planting year 1880 to 1881, the net profit amounted to a staggering P3,500,000. Furthermore, the
monopoly led to the development of agriculture in provinces where tobacco was grown, like the
Iloos, Nueva Ecija, the Cagayan Valley,and Marinduque. On the other hand, these advantages of
the tobacco monopoly were offset by its bad results. For Example, the Spanish officials in charge
of inspection and classification of tobacco committed abuses like seizing the lands form tobacco.
In most cases, inspector also searched the houses of farmers for alleged contraband tobacco, but
in reality the purpose was to abuse the farmer;s family, In other cases, the farmers were not paid
the value of the tobacco crop,instead, hey received nothing but paper promises or promissory
notes saying that they would receive the amount due them. This amount,in many cases,was not
paid because of the dishonesty of Spanish employees and officials. The payment for the tobacco
found its way into their pocket. What was worse was that the tobacco farmers themselves could
not smoke the tobacco they produced. They could not afford to buy cigar manufactured by the
government because of its steep price. Thus, because of the anomalies connected with tobacco
monopoly, opposition to it grew. Consequently, the King, in 1881, ordered its abolition, but I was
actually abolished in 1882 in the Philippines.
The government also had other monopolies, such as those on wine and liquor, gunpowder,
playing cards, and buyo or anise. While it was true that these monopolies gave the government a
big income, at the same time, they were a burden to the Filipinos.Many farmers from the Ilocos

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and the Cagayan Valley left their homes in disgust and went to Manila. As a result, the population
of the tobacco provinces decrease which led to the neglect of agriculture and, consequently, to the
low income of those provinces.
The Royal Company

Governor Basco’s administration was also highlighted by the establishment of the Royal
Company of the Philippines in 1785. the Company had a capital of P8,000,00. This amount was
divided into 32,000 shares costing P250 a share. The aims of the Company were to promote the
progress of the Philippines by improving the foreign trade of the colony with Spain and to
develop the natural resources of the Philippines by encouraging industry, manufacturing, and
agriculture. Of the expected net profits of the Company, four percent was to be invested in
agricultural pursuits. To implement this program, the King granted the Company many privileges.
For Example, it was given the monopoly of the trade between the Spain and the Philippines.
Again, products that the Philippines exported to Europe were exempted from tariff duties.
Moreover, the company’s ships were allowed to visit oriental ports and the prohibition that
Manila merchants could not trade with China and India was lifted.
Because of these privileges, commercial relations between the Philippines and Europe were
promoted and, consequently, led to increased revenues. The encouragement of the cultivation of
indigo, sugar cane, pepper, and other spices by the Company, led to increased agricultural
production. Moreover foreign capital was encouraged to enter Manila thus improving the trade
and commercial relations between other countries and the Philippines. With the influx of foreign
capital, the revenues of the government increased.
In spite of these incentives, the Company failed in its two fold aims. This failure may be
attributed to the following causes;(1)the Spanish merchants in the Philippines, who had been
accustomed to the profitable galleon trade, did not cooperate wholeheartedly with the
Company;(2)the company was not able to establish direct commercial contact with Japan, China,
and India, so it had to buy commodities form these countries through the Manila merchants,
resulting in paying higher prices for those commodities than in the countries wether they came
from;(3)the Company was not well-managed because its officials spent thier time in activities that
were note connected with the promotion of the welfare of the Company;and (4)foreign vessels,
instead of the Company’s vessels, brought to Manila such times as groceries, canned goods, wine,
and other European products. As a result of the failure of the Company to implement its program
for the Philippines, it was abolished in 1834.
Economic Development :An Overview
The first one hundred and fifty years of Spanish rule was characterizes by a slow economic
development. Population decreased and uprisings and revolts became problems to the colonial
government.Several factors accounted for the slow development of the Philippine economy. First,
most Spanish officials were lazy, incompetent,and inefficient. Instead of developing the natural
resources of the colony, the Spanish officials and minor employees were interested in enriched
themselves in office. There were many loafers among them who depended on government
employment to earn living. Consequently, they refused to till the soil. To them, soiling the hands
was demeaning.They wanted “white collar” jobs. Second, there were frequent quarrels among the
Spaniards themselves, especially between the clergy and the governor-general, on one hand , and
the high ranking ecclesiastical officials and the friar-curates, on the other. These of improving the
condition of the colony, they helped make things worse by spending their time fighting each
other.
Incompetence was paramount among Spanish officials. It was seldom that one of them cared
for the welfare of the Filipinos. For these officials and employees, the Filipinos. Were there to be
exploited. Thus, even the Spanish writer, Tomas de Comyn, said in 1810:
In order to be a chief {governor} of a province of those Islands [Philippines], no training or

knowledge or special services are necessary;all persons [Spaniards] are fit and admissible…It is

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quite a common thing to see a barber, or a governor’s lackey, a sailor or as deserter, suddenly
transformed into an alcalde [provincial governor], administrator, and a captain of the forces of a
populous province without any counselor but his rude understanding, or any guide but his
passions.
Under these circumstances, the people became unproductive and seemingly indolent. There
was very little economic and social improvement in the life of the masses, while the colonial
officials and the church hierarchy grew rich.

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EVALUATION
Name__________________________________________________________________
Course/ Section__________________________________________________Date_____
A. Answer the following:
1. Besides the commercial and religious goals of Spain in colonizing the

Philippines, Give two other reasons ( political and legal) why Spain claimed
the country as its possession or the property of the King of Spain.
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2. Why was the governor General powerful? Enumerate the powers.

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3. Define or explain the following:

a. Cumplace
b. Audencia
c. Superior Decree
d. Indulto de Commercio

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e. Captain
f. Principalia
g. Cabeza de barangay
h. Ayuntamiento
4. How did the Spanish king try to lessen , if not completely prevent , the abuse
of Spanish officials? How effective were the steps taken by the King?
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5. What is opinion on the effects of forced labor on the Filipino laborers? Explain your
answer.
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6. What was the effect of Galleon trade in the Philippines? Why did it decline despite
the prosperous start?
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7. How did the Economic society help to improve the economy of the Philippines?
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8. Why were monopolies established during the Spanish period? What were the bad
effects of the established monopolies? What were their advantages?
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References
City, Philippines.

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Chapter
6 CHALLENGES TO SPANISH AUTHORITY
(1560-1820)
Overview
Ruins of old Spanish Forts, a Moro watchtower along the coast, statues of Spanish
conquistadores and missionaries, and occasionally, images of Filipino heroes like Lapulapu,
Rajah Sulayman, SulatanKudarat, mark many Philippine towns. Though seemingly cold and
mute, these markers have great stories to tell and lessons to teach.
The Spanish colonial government was greatly challenged by its rivals, the Portuguese and
the Dutch, as well as the numerous uprisings and revolts by the Filipino in Luzon, Visayas, and
Mindanao.However, the colonial government was able to quell all the revolts in spite of the very
small number of Spaniards in the country. Why? First, the revolts lacked coordination. Second,
the Filipinos had no leader of great ability. Third, the Filipino rebels had insufficient arms with
which to fight on equal terms the Spaniard and their Filipino soldiers. Fourth, there was no
feeling of unity and nationalism among the Filipinos. Fifth, many Filipinos were more loyal to the
Spaniards, especially to the friars, than to their countrymen. The Spanish colonial officials and
friar-curates worked hand-in-hand and adopted the policy of “divide and rule”. This policy was so
successful that the Spaniards could boast that with only a few Spanish soldiers, they were able to
hold the Philippines for the King of Spain; that in all the revolts, the Spaniards used the Filipinos
against Filipinos. The Spaniards alone never succeeded in quelling the numerous revolts and
uprising. It was the Filipino soldiers who did the job for them.
Objectives
1. Identify the different revolts during Spanish period.

2. Examine the causes of different revolts in the country.
3. Appreciate the struggle of fellow countrymen to achieve the freedom of the
country..
Discussion
PORTUGUESE AND DUTCH THREATS

Spanish claim over the Philippines was challenged by a keen rival form the very start.
The Portuguese, knowing that the islands belonged to them from the very start. The Portuguese,

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knowing that the islands belonged to them under the Treaty of Zaragosa, refused to acknowledge
that the Legaspi’s presence in Cebu was legal. In 1566, and again in 1568, Portuguese ships
under the command of General Gonzalo Pereira anchored in Cebu without Legazpi’s
permission and on both occasions asked Legazpi to leave. When Legazpi refused, Periera
blockaded Cebu to starve the Spaniards but Legazpi and his men held their ground and forced the
Portuguese to leave instead. Returning in 1570, Periera bombarded the Spanish settlement.
However, the Portuguese again failed to dislodge their rivals. Portuguese incursions into the
archipelago ceased only when Portugal became part of the Spanish empire in 1580.
The Dutch, the inhabitants of a small country called Netherlands or Holland, also
threatened Spanish rule. At the height of Spain’s power under King Charles I and his son, King
Philip II, Holland was part of the Spanish Empire. The Dutch, being a freedom-loving people,
revolted against Spain and proclaimed their independence in 1579. Spain, however refused to
recognized Dutch independence. Soon after the Thirty Year’s War in Europe, in which Spain
was deeply involved, Spain finally recognized Holland’s independence with the conclusion of the
Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Spain, however, closed the port of Lisbon to the Dutch to
discourage them from trading posts forced the Dutch to send their ships to the East. In the
process, Holland colonized Malaya, and what is now Indonesia.
In 1597,Holland sent an expedition to the East under the command of Admiral Olover
van Noort. Reaching Manila Bay, van Noort seized Filipino and Chinese vessels. A Spanish
squadron under the command of Antonio de Morga engaged the Dutch in a battle. In the first
battle ofMariveles, van Noort was defeated and was forced to leave for Holland. The second
Dutch attack occurred in 1610 when they tried to land on Cuyo Island. The Filipinos were,
however, hostile to the Dutch and fought them off. Another expedition was sent later, and upon
reaching Manila Bay, the Dutch fleet blockaded Manila. The Spaniards, aided by the Filipinos,
fought them and the second battle of Mariveles took place. In this battle, the Dutch were badly
beaten.
In spite of this, the Dutch were relentless. In 1616, another Dutch fleet appeared near
Manila Bay and began to plunder vessels carrying foodstuff from the provinces to Manila. The
Audencia, which was then discharging the duties of the governor-general, sent a fleet against the
Dutch and in the Battle of Playa Honda in 1617, the Dutch were again defeated. There were
more Dutch attacks in the succeeding years, but they were always deafeated by the Spaniards
with the help of the Filipinos. The last attack, which occurred in 1647, tried to capture Cavite and
Bataan, but this time they were finally driven off. The Dutch never again made any serious
attempt to contest Spanish sovereignty in the Philippines.
EARLY RESISTANCE IN LUZON, VISAYAS, AND MINDANAO
The early uprisings against the Spaniards were from Luzon. These were able to regain
lost freedom and authority over their kingdom and territory. Manila was probably the earliest
Spanish stronghold to stage an uprising. LakanDula was friendly to Legazpi and his men and
cooperated with thme in many ways. For intances, he and his men helped Legazpi rebuild Manila.
He also helped Martin de Goiti, Legazpi’s second Master of Camp, in the conquest of what are
now the Central Luzon provinces. Legazpi repaid LakanDula by exempting himand his
descendants from the payment of tribute and from forced labor. When Legazpi died, his
successor,Governor Guido de Lavezares, perhaps through ignorance or bad faith, lifted the
exemption of LakanDula and his relatives from the tribute and forced labor. The old rajah
resented this treatment. In 1574, during the attacked on Manila, by the Chinese Adventurer
Limahong, LakanDula led a revolt against the Spaniards. Having put to death some Spaniards
soldiers, he retreated to what is now Navotas, Rizal Province, and gathered his warriors.
Legazpi’s grandson, Juan de Salcedo, and Father Geronimo Martin persuaded LakanDula
to lay down his arms. In return, they promised to exempt him and his decendants from the

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payment of tribute and forced labor. LakanDula believed them and ordered his men to return to
their homes in peace. The governor pardoned him and gave him gifts of silk and gold.
The Tondo “Conspiracy”
Despite the Spanish promises of good treatment, the Filipinos harbored feelings of hostility
towards the colonizer. In some cases, the hostility was ignited by the love of freedom. This
happened in 1587 when a group of Filipinos in Tondo formed a secret society whose purpose was
to regain their freedom. Among the members of the society, which the Spanish writer Wenceslao
E. Retana called the first Katipunan, where LakanDula’s son MagatSalamat; his nephew Agustin
de Legazpi; Juna Banal, Chief of Tondo; Pedro Balingit’ Chief of Pandacan; and many others.
The plot spread throughout Central Luzon and as far as Cuyo Island and Borneo. The society’s
plan was to have a Christian Japanese ally bring Japanese weapons and soldiers to the
Philippines, and with these weapons drive away the Spaniards. After which, Agustin de Legazpi
would be proclaimed King of the Philippines. The plan seemed good, but it was aborted due to
spies who reported it to the Spanish authorities. Immediately, the leaders were arrested and
executed. While those implicated were banished to Mexico.
The Revolt of Magalat
Disillusionment with Spanish rule may not be national in scope but it spread to many places. In
Cagayan, some natives, led by Magalat, rose in revolt against Spanish rule in 1596 and although
it quelled, the Filipino rebels continued their opposition to the Spaniards. The governor-general
sent a strong contingent composed of a few Spanish soldiers and hundreds of Filipino recruits
against Magalat, but the Ilocanos fought bravely. When they failed to defeat Magalat, the Spanish
authorities thought of another way to get rid of him. They hired a Filipino assassin to murder
Magalat. The plan succeeded and Magalat was killed. According to a Spanish contemporary
historian, Antonio de Morga, with the death of Magalat. Cagayan “became quiet” and peace
reigned once more.
Ladia’s “Conspiracy”
A man claiming to be a descendant of LakanDula tried to instigate a revolt in 1643 against the
Spaniards of Malolos, Bulacan. He was Pedro Ladia, a native of Borneo who came to Bulacan to
lead an armed uprising against Spaniards. If they succeeded he would be proclaimed “King of the
Tagalogs”. His plan reached the friar-curate of Malolos who dissuaded the town people from
believing Ladia. He urged them to remain faithful to the Church and to the King of Spain.At the
same time, the friar-curate notified the Spanish authorities of Ladia’s activities. Ladia was
arrested, sent to Manila, and then executed.
The Revolt of Maniago
Central Luzon , since time immemorial, had been the center of discontent in the country. In 1660,
the Kapampangan, under the leadership of Francisco Maniago, declared war against the
Spaniards. This revolt, like the conspiracy of Agustin de Legazpi and that of Ladia, sought to
destroy Spanish power and to declare that the people of Central Luzon were free and independent.
But aside from this purpose, the revolt was also caused by the abuses of the Spanish officials

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who refused to pay for the food they had taken from the Filipinos. The angry Kapampangans set
fire to their houses and swore they would continue to fight until they regained their freedom.
Attempts of the friar-curates of the province to persuade the rebels to lay down their arms failed.
Instead, the Kapampangans tried to stop commerce between manila and the Central Luzon towns
by setting up stakes along the rivers. At the same time, they issued an appeal to the people of
Pangasinan and the Ilocos Provinces to join them in their battle for freedom. The governo-general
deployed Filipino troops under Spanish officers to the affected areas to prevent the further spread
of the revolt.
The governor-general himself, fearing other towns might follow Maniago’s example, personally
conferred with the chief of Arayat, Juan Macapagal, who promised to helped the Spaniards quell
the revolt. Maniago’scause weakened with Macapagal’s announced intention to side with the
Spaniards. Consequently, Maniago sent anf emissary to the governor-general in order to make
peace and make the following demands: (1) for the governor-general to pardon all those who
participated in the revolt; (2) the Kapampangans to receive the sum of ₱ 200,000 as payment for
the rice which the Spaniards seized from their barangays, of this amount ₱14,000 was actually
paid as downpayment, and the remainder of the total amount to be paid by installment; and (3) for
the Kapampangans to continue to cut timber, as required by the law on forced labor, but they
would be given sufficient time to perform their duties at home. The governor-general accepted
these demands and Maniago, satisfied, laid down his arms. The revolt was a success in the sense
that Maniago was able to air his people’s grievances and get what they wanted.
The Revolt of Malong
It soon became apparent that these struggles for freedom were duer to Spanish oppressive
impositions, for instance, one of the causes of the disillusionment of the people of Pangasinan
was the maltreatment of the people by Spanish officials of the province with regard to the polo y
servicio (forced labor). The Spaniards needed labor to cut down trees for timber.
In 1660, under the leadership of Andres Malong, a native of Binalatongan (now San Carlos), the
people of Lingayen rose up in arms. The revolt spread to the whole province and in the course of
the disturbance, many Spaniards including the provincial governor, were killed. So successful
was the revolt that Malong, in his enthusiasm, proclaimed himself “King of Pangasinan.” With
this royal title, he appointed officials in the areas under him. At the same time, he urged the
people of the Ilocos provinces, Zambales, and the Cagayan to take up arms against the Spaniarss.
To show his strength, he sent thousands of soldiers to Ilocos, Cagayan, and even Pampanga,
where Maniago was also fighting the Spaniards, to incite the people of those provinces to join the
revolt. By sending his own soldiers to other provinces, Malong weakened his position. The
government forces, as usual, consisting mostly of Filipino recruits, pursued Malong and in
skirmish he was defeated and captured. Later, he was executed for having been a “traitor” to
Spain.
In 1762, like Malong’s revolt, the people of Binalatongan, Dagupan, Calasiao, Santa
Barbara, Mangaldan, San Jacinto, Malasiki in Pangasinan, and the Panqui (then a part of
Pangasinan( rose in arms over the imposition of tribute. Led by Juan dela Cruz Palaris, the
uprising lasted a year and came to be known as the Palaris Revolts.
Revolt of Bancao
Disillusionment with the Spanish rule was not confined to the province of Luzon,
disturbances in the Visayas were also widespread. In Leyte, in 1622, Bancao, a chieftain in
Limasawa, led a revolt against the Spaniards because of the intolerance of the friars. Legazpi
befriended Bancao who had given him food and toher supplies. He became a Catholic and a loyal
subject of the Spanish king. Later, Bancao returned to the religion of the forefathers. Because of

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this apostasy, the Spanish friar-curate of his town hated him as he convinced a lot of natives to go
back to their original faith. The natives stopped going to church, which led the friar-curate to seek
help from the governor of Cebu to help restore Spanish influence on the Warays in Visayas. This
led Bancao to incite his people to rise in arms against them. The uprising spread from Carigara to
other parts of Leyte and endangered the friar-curate and the Catholic faith in the province. The
provincial governor of Cebu sent troops consisting of hundreds of Filipino soldiers under Spanish
officers and defeated Bancao, who died fighting. As in other instances, Filipinos, not Spaniards,
defeated their fellow- Filipinos.
The Revolt of Sumuroy

In accordance with the law on forced labor, in 1649 the governor-general ordered the
provincial governors of the Visayas provinces to send workers to the Cavite shipyard.
Consequently, the provincial governors recruited workers who were sent to Cavite. The workers
resented leaving their homes to be separated from their families. To show their deep resentment,
the people of Palapag, Samar. Gathered under the leadership of Agustin Sumuroy, and revolted
against the Spaniards. The friar-curate of Palapag was killed and soon the fire of discontent swept
other towns and islands. The revolt spread to Mindanao, particularly to Zamboanga, Camiguin,
Cebu, Masbate, and as far as Camarines and Albay. The governor-general in Manila was alarmed
at the spread of the revolt. He gathered a force consisting mostly of Filipino soldiers under
Spanish officers and sent an expedition to Samar. Sumuroy fought bravely and he won over the
Spanish- Filipino forces in several skirmish. Sumuroy chose the mountains as a natural fortress
and he withstood attacks from the enemy. In 1650, the government sent a strong army contingent
and engaged Sumuroy in a battle in the mountains. He was defeated, captured and executed.
This event in Samar did not discourage Tapar who led the uprisings in Oton, Panay in
1663 and Dagohoy who just like Tapar wanted to return to the religion of their ancestors.
Dagohoy’s uprising proved to be one of the longest rebellions in our history. Lasting from 1744
to 1829. Dagohoy set up his own “government” in the mountains, with some 20,000 followers
obeying his orders and practicing their own faith.
More Rebellions in Luzon
The succeeded rebellions mainly in Luzon were economic in nature. By the 1700s, friar
estates and the hacienda system had dramatically expanded due to the demand by the galleon
trade for agricultural products. This caused many inhabitants to lose their lands along with their
rights over communal rivers and forests. Thus, the violent uprisings in 1702 in Tond; Biñan,
Laguna; and Silang, Cavite were due to the loss of pasture lands and the lands of agriculture. By
1743, Pasig, Taguig, Bicutan, Parañaque and parts of Cavite and Bulacan were up in arms due to
their lack of access to rivers and forests. In 1745, haciendas in Bulacan’sBuenavista, Pandi and
Lolomboy were burned and the friar-owners killed. Up in the north, the principles couple Diego
and Gabriela Silang lead a widespread revolt in Ilocos Sur on the issue of the right to engage in
the galleon trade (indulto de comercio) by non-Spaniards or Indios ( as wah the Spaniards called
the native Filipinos). Likewise, in 1807, the Basi Revolt in Ilocos Norte erupted over the issue of
government monopoly on the production, pricing, and sale of basi, a local wine amongthe
Ilocanos.
Resistance in the Interior and Mountainous Parts
Rich in gold, forest products and trees for logs or lumber, the interior and mountainous
areas of the country were hard to penetrate yet much coveted by the Spaniards. In the Cordillera
region, for instance. People lived in separate and distant tribal communities lead by a maingel, a

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warrior-leader and expert in headhunting. Trade and commerce with the lowlanders existed but
on limited basis among the locals. Attempts by the Spaniards to send expeditions to the region
between 1591 and 1608 failed due to the fierce resistance by the taongbundok, which literally
meant “people of the mountains”. Their ancient beliefs and way of life that were less exposed to
the outside world, made them more resistant to colonization whether Spanish, or any of the later
incursions by the Americans and Japanese. The process did not only prove expensive and
frustrating for the Spaniards, but also dangerous as confrontations were practically reduced to
pangangayao or headhunting expeditons for the lumads, another term for those who remained
non-Christian and non-Muslim long after the colonization. This situation would also be true of
the lumads in the Visayas, as well asin Mindanao.
The Moro Wars in the South
Certainly the longest and bloodiest attempt by the Spaniards was the colonization and
Christianization of the Muslim in the Southern islands of Mindanao. In fact, the process did not
only take the longest, but also the most frustrating for the Spaniards. The Muslims in the country
remained unconquered and unconverted until the end of Spanish rule. The first encounter
between the Spaniards and the Moros (the term used by the Spaniards for the Muslims, who also
ruled their country for more than 400 years), took place in Cebu between Martin de Goiti and a
group of Bornean traders in 1569. Manila, even in 1571 to 1572 could hardly be called Muslim
kingdom. The connection between Islamized Brunei and Manila was more by ties in marriage and
economic or commercial transaction, rather than religious. Thus, no sultanate ever evolved in
Manila (Luzon) or in the Visayas. However, Islam penetrated the South early and spread
throughout Mindanao. Two sultanates were eventually set up, one in Sulu and another in the
Maguindanao- Cotabato area.
It was logical, therefore that ties between Brunei and the sultanates would continue
despite the Spanish conquest of Manila. In fact, the new government in Manila had to send troops
to Borneo three times (in 1576,1578, and 1588) to put an end to their trading activities and
military aid to Manila. However, succeeding military expeditions by the Spaniards directed at
Sulu and Maguindanao( 1596 to 1638) , though bloody and fierce on both sides, failed. The
Spaniards could only put up forts as defenses for their small territorial gains as outposts; one in
Jolo and another in Zamboanga. Under the capable leadership of Sultan Kudarat,Maguindanao
and Sulu United as a confederacy (1638-1671). This event forced the Spaniards to finally
withdraw from the place and focus instead on Luzon. During this time, the Muslims carried out
raids in the Visayas and Luzon for labor force (slaves or bihag) that they needed in the
procurement of products and in trading between Sulu and Maguindanao on one hand, and Borneo
, the Moluccas, Malaya, and Indonesia on the other.
After Sultan Kudarat’s death in 1671, these raiding activities slackened. The two
sultanates, lacking an expert leader like Kudarat, again engaged each other in battles over the
issue of trade and supremacy in the area. By 1716, to 1747, Spain came back in steamboats
equipped with more powerful cannons. Their victory allowed them to build forts in Iligan and
Cagayan de Oro. They also brought some Jesuits for mission work in Mindanao. In the face of
these developments, the Moro leadership finally entered into a treaty with Governor-General
Urbiztondo in 1851. With some compromises in the treaty, but with no actual surrender of
territory within the realm of sultanate, the Moros continued to resist the Spaniards. In 1762-1764,
during the brief Bristish occupation in the Philippines, the Moros were forced to give up part of
the Palawan and Sabah on a lease basis. Nevertheless, until the end of Spanish rule in 1898, they
remained sovereign.
REASONS FOR THE GENERAL FAILURE OF THE REVOLTS

 The Spaniards possessed superior weapons and were able to employ native volunteers or
mercenary soldiers.
 The people remained divided and lacked of unity

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 Giving the positions of power and privileges to the chieftain and their families by the
Spanish authorities ,weakened unity among the people
THE CHINESE PRESENCE
Among the early foreign contacts of the ancient Filipinos , the Chinese appeared to be the
most constant and steady visitors, most of them coming in from Canton. They readily interacted
with the Filipinos, adapted to the local ways, and eventually married native women. There had
been economic and cultural contacts with the Chinese for centuries before the Spaniards came.
The Chinese came to Manila annually, bringing with them fruits, ceramics, bowls and plates, silk,
and other items to exchange with Philippines gold and silver. To the Spaniards, the Chinese were
Sangleys which meant “traders who came and went” with no intention of conquest and
colonization. The Spanish started to get alarmed by the Chinese presence in 1574 when the
famous Chinese commander Limahong came with his ships and bombarded the walled city of
Intramuros and nearby Malate. Martin de Goiti lost his life in this attack. The combine forces of
the Spaniards and Lakan Dula forced Limahong to leave and head for Lingayen, Pangasinan only
to be pursued by Spanish- Filpino forces. However, Limahong and his men managed to escape.
Despite the Chinese threat on the Spaniards, the Chinese merchants, with thir stores and
restaurants, remained inside Intramuros. Their wares and goods like chocolates, candles , shoes ,
and bread as well as services that Spanish and Filipino communities needed like carpentry,
smiting and many more ,were in great demand. Thus , the Sangleys rapidly grew in number and
the Spanish authorities were forced to situate them within a limited space called parian. The
word “ parian” according to some , came from the Chinese word palien , meaning “union” or
“federation” .Originally , the parian occupied a space in front of the old Sto Domingo Church
inside Intramuros. When it burned down, the government moved their quarters outside
Intramuros, along the present day Manila Post Office, Liwasang Bonifacio, Arrocero, and the
GSIS building in Roxas Boulevard, Manila. In a sense , the parian was the precursor of the
country’s Chinatown. The government also passed laws allowing the Chinese to live in the
provinces, in an effort to spread them out. All sots of taxes were imposed on the Chinese, which
in the course of time, became abusive and oppressive. These impositions provoked the Chinese to
rebel . In 1603.chinese uprisings erupted in Tondo and Quiapo, which were easily quelled by the
combined Spanish- Filipino force. To scare the Chinese, their leader Eng Kang was beheaded and
his head wsa put on public display. But this did not prevent other Chinese revolts to spread from
Manila to Makati, Taytay, Antipolo , and the provinces. Agin , the combined forces of the
Spaniards and the Filipino soldiers stopped these rebellions in 1639, 1662, 1686 and in 1762 at
the cost of some 23,000 Chinese lives and great loss to their properties and businesses. Several
decrees were passed for their expulsion in 1744, 1758, and 1759, but these too failed because by
this time , the Chinese had controlled the source of livelihood and even the daily needs of both
Spaniard and Filipin0s. Their presence had become a necessity for everyone’s comfort and
convenience. Thus, from 150 Chinese living around Manila upon arrival of Legaspi in 1571, the
Chinese reached 100,000 during the revolution of 1896.

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Evaluation:
Name_________________________________________________________________
Year&Section_______________________________________Date_______________
A. Using graphic organizer table, classify the various uprising and revolts according to their
causes. Indicate the places in which they took place and their respective dates. Follow
this format.
Uprising/ Revolt Date Leaders Place Cause/s

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References
City, Philippines.

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Southern Luzon State University

Southern Luzon State University

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and that of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

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Southern Luzon State University

Southern Luzon State University

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Southern Luzon State University

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theayuey, who worked three days a week for his master.

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Southern Luzon State University

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MGA KASABIHAN SALAWIKAIN BUGTONG

2. May taingaanglupa, may 2.Anghindilumingon sa 2.NagtagosiPerico, nakalitaw

Music and Dance

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Answer the following: (5pts each)

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EARLY TRADE ROUTES AND CONTACTS

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began to be used as medium of exchange.

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Tara tala Star

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A. Answer the following: (5pts)

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Crusaders-those who took part in the military expeditions by Christians in Western

Early Voyage to Asia

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The Division of the World

Papal bull- an edict or law from the

The Magellan Expedition

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Strait-a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water

The First Baptism

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The Battle Of Mactan

The Importance of the Expedition

The Villalobos Expedition

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Viceroy- a ruler on behalf of a sovereign in a colony or province of the colonizing

The Legazpi Expedition

The Discovery of a new Route

FIRST SETTLEMENT IN CEBU

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THE SETTLEMENT IN PANAY