Government

The unit of the government in the ancient Philippines was the barangay, so called after the sailboats on which the early Malay immigrants sailed to the Philippines. The barangay was a settlement of 30 to 100 families. Each barangay was independent and was ruled by a chieftain called datu or raja . The datu obtained his position by:

#1. inheritance#2. his own wisdom#3. his physical strength#4. his wealth

He was an absolute ruler. He was the chief executive, the chief legislator, the chief judge, and the commander in chief of the military. He was respected and obeyed by his subjects. In return, he protected them from their enemies, looked after their welfare, and ruled them in accordance with the customs and laws of the society. He was assisted by the elders of the barangay in deciding on important matters such as the promulgation of laws, the investigation of disputes, the declaration of war, and the negotiation of treaties with other barangays. The subjects, on the other hand, served their datu in his wars and helped to construct his house. To him they paid tribute, called buwis, from their harvests.

Peace or war existed among barangays. When not at war, the people were engaged in trade and commerce and other peaceful endeavors. They concluded alliances and friendships by means of the blood compact, called sangduguan or sandugo. This ceremony consisted of drawing blood from the arms of the contracting parties, mixing this in a cup of wine, and drinking the mixture. Having drunk from the same cup, the contracting parties became blood brothers.

Quarrels and wars between barangays were from the following causes:

when a man of one barangay was murdered without obvious cause by a man from another barangay when a man was kidnapped by a person from another

barangay when a trader from a barangay was maltreated or insulted by a man from another barangay The government of the ancient filipinos was clear enough that they were led by a leader and that they obediently follow what their leader said. This is also a clear evidence that they recognize the wisdom of one person to rule their community just like what is happening today.

The laws of the early Filipinos were either customary or written. The customary laws consisted of the customs of their ancestors. These were handed down by mouth from one generation to the next and constituted most of the laws of the barangay. The written laws were those that the datu and the elders promulgated from time to time as needed.

The early laws covered many of the matters included in today’s laws. Among these were family relations, property rights, inheritance, contracts, partnerships, usury, loans, crimes and their punishment, adoption, and divorce. Our early ancestors distinguished serous crimes (felonies) from minor offenses (misdemeanors). Regarded as serious crimes were insult, murder, larceny, sorcery, rape, arson, and trespassing. The penalties for these were death, slavery, burning to death, or exorbitant fines.

The minor offenses included petty theft, perjury, adultery, cheating in business dealings, and disturbance of the peace at night by loud singing. These offenses were punished by whipping, by exposure to ants, by cutting the fingers of one hand, by swimming for a certain number of hours, or by small fines. A habitual offender was punished more severely than a first offender.

How a Law was made?

The laws of the barangay were made by the datu with the help of his advisers, which may be called the council of elders. When the datu wanted to make a law, he called his elders to a meeting and told them what he had in mind. The group then discussed the proposed law with him. If the council approved the proposal, the datu summoned the barangay crier, called umalohokan, and ordered him to go around the community announcing the new law to the people–a practice still found today in many towns. With a bell in one hand, the umalohokan wen around the barangay and called the attention of the people.

He then announced or read the content of the new law. The law thus went into effect, and any person who should violate it incurred the prescribed penalties.

Judicial Process and trial by Ordeal

All trials in pre-Spanish Philippine society involving either criminal or civil cases were help publicly, and decisions were promptly given. The barangay court was composed of the datu as the chief judge and the elders of the barangays as its members.

During the trial, the accuser and the accused explained their respective sides. Both parties could present witnesses if they wished. These witnesses took an oath to show their honesty and sicerity. The oath was variously worded: “May the crocodile eat me if I tell any falsehood,” “May I die if I tell a lie,” “May the lighting strike me if I don’t tell the truth,” or “May the sun and the moon frown upon me if I tell a lie.”

The side who presented the more convincing proofs and witnesses was adjudged the winner. If the losing party contested the decision of the barangay court, the datu openly sided with the winner and compelled the loser to accept and respect the decision of the court.

In criminal cases, however, the procedure was different. The so-called trial by ordeal was used. It was believed that the gods would protect the innocent and punish the guilty, and that through the ordeals the gods revealed the divined truth to the people.

According to Miguel de Loarca, a Spaniard who wrote a book entitled Relacion de Las Islas Filipinas, published in 1582, the ancient Filipinos had several ways of determining guilt or innocence in a crime. These were the following;

1. The River Ordeal – the suspects were made to jump into a river with their lances, and he who first rose to the surface was pronounced guilty.

2. The Boiling-water Ordeal – usually used in cases of theft wherein the suspects were ordered to pick up a stone placed in a pot of boiling

water; the suspect who refused to obey the command is pronounced the culprit. However, if all the suspects did what they were ordered to do, the man whose hand was the most seriously burned was pronounced guilty.

3. The Candle Ordeal – the suspects were given lighted candles and the man whose candle first went out was declared guilty.

Religious Beliefs

The ancient Tagalogs believed in one supreme god called Bathala, and the ancient Visayans believed in a similar god they called Laon. He was said to be the creator of heaven, earth, people and the entire universe. Aside from this Supreme Being, they also worshipped lesser gods and goddesses whose functions were close to the daily lives of the people. These were some of the various ancient deities;

Idiyanale – Tagalog goddess of agricultureSidapa – Visayan god of deathBarangao – Visayan god of the rainbowLalahon – Visayan goddess of harvestApolaki – Pangasinan god of warDarago – Bagobo god of warDal-lang – Ilokano goddess of beautyKidul – Ifugao god of thunderDian Masalanta – Tagalog god of birth

The ancient Filipinos also believed in and worshipped lower spirits called anitos or diwatas . Anitos were either good or bad. They were good if they were the spirits of relatives and ancestors; they were bad if they were the spirits of enemies. To these anitos and minor deities, prayers and sacrifices were offered. Religious sacrifices, called maganilo, were performed by priests and priestesses called babayland, baylana, or katalona . The usual minister for religious worship was a woman. If a man performed the religious ritual, he was called asog (effeminate). Food, drink, fruit, animals, and sometimes human beings were offered or used in the sacrificial rites. By such means a person hoped to gain the blessings of the spirits and avoid their wrath.

The ancient Filipinos–and a number of Filipinos today–intense feared certain gods and goddesses which they believed to be mostly harmful. There are known by a great many names because there are some eighty different languages in the country–languages, not dialects, since the speakers of a dialect cannot communicate with the speakers of the other dialects.

In his extensive research on these creatures, Dr. Maximo D. Ramos has shown them to fall under the twelve groups according to what the creatures look like, what they do, and where they are usually found:

1. Demons such as the kapre and the tikbalang.2. Dragons such as the moon-swallowing minokawa and bakunawa that

are believed to cause the eclipse.3. Dwarfs such as dwende, matanda sa punso, and lamang lupa that live

underground.4. Elves such as the encantada and kibaan.5. Giants such as Angngalo and Onglo.6. Ghouls such as the corpse-eating aswang.7. Mermaids and mermen such as sirena, magindara, and siukoy.8. Ogres such as the busaw and siring.9. Vampires such as the blood-sucking mandurugo and aswang.10. Viscera suckers such as the manananggal and buroka, which leave their

lower body from the waist down and soar out to suck internal organs of the people especially pregnant women and unborn infants.

11. Werebeasts such as the malakat and segben (sigbin) which is a man who could become fierce dog, hog, or any other animal and attacks wayfarers at night.

12. Witches such as the mangkukulam and manggagamod, which made their victims ill by magically inserting various sharp objects into their bodies.

Most of the early Filipinos believed that the souls are immortal and there is life after death. Many of them believed that after death, the souls traveled to the next world to receive their punishment or reward according to what they did while on earth. The souls of the brave and good men were believed to go to heaven, known as kaluwalhatian among the Tagalogs. On the other hand, the souls of the unjust, the cruel, and the evil went to hell, called kasamaan . The

Bontoks of today still believe that the soul of the dead will live in huts and villages in the future world like those they left on earth.

Finally, in keeping the memory of their departed relatives, the early Filipinos carved idols made of gold, stone, wood, or ivory. Among the Tagalogs, these idols were called larawan or likha .

Burial

Because Filipinos believed in life after death and in lasting relationships between the living and the dead, the ancient Filipinos took great care in burying their dead. The corpse was embalmed with the use of certain herbs and native perfumes and the placed in a burial jar or wooden coffin. Amidst deep lamentation, the corpse was buried right under the house, inside a cave, or on a cliff overlooking the sea. Clothes, food, weapons, gold, and sometimes even slaves were buried with the dead. Skeletons recently discovered in ancient Philippine burial sites such as those in Bolinao, Pangasinan, show that the eyes of our ancient dead were covered with beaten gold before burial. Their teeth were filled with gold too.

During the period of mourning, the family and immediate relatives of the dead wore white clothes and rattan bands around their necks, arms, and legs. They also refrained from eating meat or from drinking wine at this time. To show their deep sorrow over their loss, the relatives of the dead hired professional mourners, as the Chinese still do, to chant the good deeds and achievements of the dead.

Mourning for an ordinary dead man was called maglahi, and mourning for an ordinary woamn was called marotal. Mourning for a dead chief, however, was called laraw. Bright lights around the corpse burned all day and all night. Fires were built under and around the bereaved home. Then, as now, the mourners played parlor games and sang all night till daybreak. Indeed, in some areas in the country today, the house where a death has just occurred is burned down and the family leaves and builds their home elsewhere. When a chieftain died, any war and petty quarrels were suspended or stopped altogether. All warriors carried their spears pointed to the ground and their daggers with hilts reversed.

Singing in boats was prohibited and the wearing of bright colored clothes was forbidden. If the deceased died by violent means like murder, the relatives appeased their sorrow by killing the guilty party.

Divination and Magic Charms

The ancient Filipinos had many interesting folk beliefs. Some of these are the following;

1. When a dog howls near midnight, a neighbor will die2. When a comet flashes in the sky, there will be pestilence, famine, or

war3. When a person dreams that one of his teeth falls out or when a black

butterfly flits around him, a relative had died4. When a young girl sings before a stove while she is cooking supper, she

will marry an old widower–although one study has shown that the widower is said to be a matanda sa punso who comes near homes after sunset to listen to nice voices of girls who he then tries to seduce.

On the other hand, to acquire magical powers, the early Filipinos used various charms and amulets. These were believed to protect them from danger. The anting-anting or agimat , made its possessor invulnerable iron weapons; the gayuma, a love potion, made a man romantically irresistible to ladies; the tagabulag made its possessor invisible to the human eye; and the uiga enabled any man to cross a river without getting wet.

Economic Life

There were no schools as we know them in the pre-Spanish Philippines. The children studied in their own homes with their parents as the teachers or tutors. The parents taught their children a mix of academic and vocational courses. Both the boys and the girls were taught reading, writing, arithmetic, music, religion, and tribal customs. In addition, the boys were trained to be warriors, hunters, farmers, fishermen, boat-builders, miners, and blacksmiths. The girls, on the other hand, were taught cooking, sewing, weaving, and stock rising.

Agriculture was the main industry in the pre-Spanish Philippines. Rice, hemp, coconut, cotton, sugarcane, camotes, bananas, oranges, and many kinds of fruits and vegetables were raised. There were two methods of cultivation;

1. Kaingin System – shrubs, bushes and trees were burned to clear the land, after which holes were bored in the ground with pointed sticks and seeds were then planted there.

2. Tillage System – wooden plows and harrows drawn by carabaos (buffalo) were used to cultivate the soil. In some regions, irrigation was extensively used to increase farm production.

The system of landholding of the early Filipinos was both public and private. The mountain slopes and other less arable land were considered the property of the entire barangay. Anybody could cultivate the land there. The richer areas, however, were owned by the datu or by private individuals. These private lands were acquired by occupation, purchase, or inheritance.

Aside from agriculture, the ancient Filipinos also raised chickens, carabaos and swine, and fish. They engaged in mining, lumbering, weaving, wine manufacture, weapon making, and boat building.

Fishing prospered because most of the settlements of the early Filipinos lived along rivers and on the seashores. Mining was also an important early Philippine industry. Gold, which was obtained from rivers and mines, was the principal mineral and was used in making rings, bracelets, armlets and necklaces. The abundance of forest trees led the early Filipinos to produce lumbers and build fine outrigger sailboats.Weaving was a home industry. With wooden looms, the women wove fine textiles such as sinamay,medriñaque cotton, linen, and silk.

Some of the minor industries of the early Filipinos were jewelry making, tanning of animal hide, and hunting of edible birds’ nests, making mats and baskets, and making ornaments from carabao horn.

Coming of the Spaniards

Contrary to public view, the Spaniards were not the first Europeans to arrive in the Philippines but were just the first well documented arrival of western Europeans. The Spanish expedition led by Portuguese Ferdinand Magellan first sighted the mountains of Samar at dawn on 16 March 1521, making landfall the following day at the small, uninhabited island of Homonhon at the mouth of the Leyte Gulf.

Note: Magellan had abandoned his Portuguese citizenship and became a Spanish subject prior to his contract with Spain.

On Easter Sunday, 31 March 1521 , at Masao, Butuan, (now in Agusan Del Norte), he solemnly planted a cross on the summit of a hill overlooking the sea and claimed possession of the islands he had seen for Spain, naming them Archipelago of Saint Lazarus.

Magellan sought friendship among the natives beginning with Rajah Humabon, the chieftain of Sugbu (now Cebu), and took special pride in converting them to Catholicism. Magellan got involved with political rivalries among the Cebuano natives and took part in a battle against Lapu-Lapu, chieftain of Mactan island and a mortal enemy of Humabon. At dawn on 27 April 1521, Magellan invaded Mactan Island with 60 armed men and 1,000 Cebuano warriors, but had great difficulty landing his men on the rocky shore. Lapu-Lapu had an army of 1,500 on land. Magellan waded ashore with his soldiers and attacked the Mactan defenders, ordering Humabon and his warriors to remain aboard the ships and watch. Magellan seriously underestimated the Lapu-Lapu and his men, and grossly outnumbered, Magellan and 14 of his soldiers were killed. The rest managed to reboard the ships.

The battle left the Spanish too few to man three ships so they abandoned the "Concepción". The remaining ships - "Trinidad" and "Victoria" - sailed to the Spice Islands in present-day Indonesia. From there, the expedition split into two groups.

The Trinidad, commanded by Gonzalo Gómez de Espinoza tried to sail eastward across the Pacific Ocean to the Isthmus of Panama. Disease and shipwreck

disrupted Espinoza's voyage and most of the crew died. Survivors of the Trinidad returned to the Spice Islands, where the Portuguese imprisoned them.

The Victoria continued sailing westward, commanded by Juan Sebastián de El Cano, and managed to return to Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain in 1522.

In 1529, Charles I of Spain relinquished all claims to the Spice Islands to Portugal in the treaty of Zaragoza. However, the treaty did not stop the colonization of the Philippine archipelago from New Spain.

After Magellan's voyage, subsequent expeditions were dispatched to the islands. Four expeditions were sent:

1. Loaisa (1525)2. Cabot (1526)3. Saavedra (1527)4. Villalobos (1542)5. Legazpi (1564), was the most successful as it resulted in the discovery

of the tornaviaje or return trip to Mexico across the Pacific by Andres de Urdaneta. This discovery started the trade of the famous Manila Galleons which lasted two and a half centuries.

In 1543, Ruy López de Villalobos named the islands of Leyte and Samar Las Islas Filipinas after Philip II of Spain. Philip II became King of Spain on January 16, 1556, when his father, Charles I of Spain, abdicated the Spanish throne. Philip was in Brussels at the time and his return to Spain was delayed until 1559 because of European politics and wars in northern Europe. Shortly after his return to Spain, Philip ordered an expedition mounted to the Spice Islands, stating that its purpose was "to discover the islands to the west". In reality its task was to conquer the Philippines for Spain.

On April 27, 1565, a Spanish expedition of a mere 500 men led by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi landed in Bohol and made a blood compact with Raja Katuna and Raja Gala. He and his men then proceeded to the nearby island of Cebu.Where they were attacked by the defiant Tupas, who had succeeded Humabon as king of Cebu. Tupas was defeated and requested to sign an agreement which placed his people and the entire island of Cebu under Spain. On that same day, the first permanent Spanish settlement of San Miguel was founded in Cebu.

In 1570, Juan de Salcedo, in the service of Legazpi, conquered the Kingdom of Maynila (now Manila). Legazpi then made Maynila the capital of the Philippines and simplified its spelling to Manila. His expedition also renamed Luzon Nueva Castilla. Legazpi became the country's first governor-general. With time, Cebu's importance fell as power shifted north to Luzon. The archipelago was Spain's outpost in the orient and Manila became the capital of the entire Spanish East Indies. The colony was administered through the Viceroyalty of New Spain (now Mexico) until 1821 when Mexico achieved independence from Spain. After 1821, the colony was governed directly from Spain.

The European population in the archipelago steadily grew although natives remained the majority. They depended on the Galleon Trade for a living. In the later years of the 18th century, Governor-General Basco introduced economic reforms that gave the colony its first significant internal source income from the production of tobacco and other agricultural exports. In this later period, agriculture was finally opened to the European population, which before was reserved only for the natives. During Spain’s 333 year rule in the Philippines, the colonists had to fight off the Chinese pirates (who lay siege to Manila, the most famous of which was Limahong in 1574), Dutch forces, Portuguese forces, and indigenous revolts. Moros from western Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago also raided the coastal Christian areas of Luzon and the Visayas and occasionally captured men and women to be sold as slaves. Some Japanese ships visited the Philippines in the 1570s in order to export Japanese silver and import Philippine gold. Later, increasing imports of silver from New World sources resulted in Japanese exports to the Philippines shifting from silver to consumer goods. In the 1580s, the Spanish traders were troubled to some extent by Japanese pirates, but peaceful trading relations were established between the Philippines and Japan by 1590. Japan's kampaku (regent), Toyotomi Hideyoshi, demanded unsuccessfully on several occasions that the Philippines submit to Japan's suzerainty.

On February 8, 1597, King Philip II, near the end of his 42-year reign, issued a Royal Cedula instructing Francisco de Tello de Guzmán, then Governor-General

of the Philippines to fulfill the laws of tributes and to provide for restitution of ill-gotten taxes taken from the natives. The decree was published in Manila on August 5, 1598. King Philip died on 13 September, just forty days after the publication of the decree, but his death was not known in the Philippines until middle of 1599, by which time a referendum by which the natives would acknowledge Spanish rule was underway. With the completion of the Philippine referendum of 1599, Spain could be said to have established legitimate sovereignty over the Philippines.

Spanish Rule

Political System

The Spanish quickly organized their new colony according to their model. The first task was the reduction, or relocation of native inhabitants into settlements. The earliest political system used during the conquista period was the encomienda system, which resembled the feudal system in medieval Europe. The conquistadores, friars and native nobles were granted estates, in exchange for their services to the King, and was given the privilege to collect tribute from its inhabitants. In return, the person granted the encomienda, known as an encomendero, was tasked to provide military protection to the inhabitants, justice and governance. In times of war, the encomendero was duty bound to provide soldiers for the King, in particular, for the complete defense of the colony from invaders such as the Dutch, British and Chinese. The encomienda system was abused by encomenderos and by 1700 was largely replaced by administrative provinces, each headed by an alcalde mayor (provincial governor) The most prominent feature of Spanish cities was the plaza, a central area for town activities such as the fiesta, and where government buildings, the church, a market area and other infrastructures were located. Residential areas lay around the plaza. During the conquista, the first task of colonization was the reduction, or relocation of the indigenous population into settlements surrounding the plaza.

As in Europe, the church always had control over the state affairs of the colony. The friars controlled the sentiments of the native population and were more powerful than the governor-general himself. Among the issues that resulted to

the Philippine revolution of 1898 that ended Spanish rule was the abuse of power by the religious orders.

A. National Government

On the national level, the King of Spain, through his Council of the Indies (Consejo de Indias), governed through his sole representative in the Philippines: the Governor-General (Gobernador y Capitán General). With the seat of power in Intramuros, Manila, the Governor-General was given several duties: he headed the Supreme Court (Real Audiencia), was Commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and was the economic planner of the country. All known executive power of the local government stemmed from him and as vice-regal patron, he had the right to supervise mission work and oversee ecclesiastical appointments. His yearly salary was P40,000. For obvious reasons, the Governor-General was usually a Peninsular (Spaniard born in Spain) to ensure loyalty of the colony to the crown.

B. Provincial Government.

On the provincial level, heading the pacified provinces (alcaldia), was the provincial governor (alcalde mayor). The unpacified military zones (corregidor), such as Mariveles and Mindoro, were headed by the corregidores. City governments (ayuntamientos), were also headed by an alcalde mayor. Alcalde mayors and corregidores exercised multiple prerogatives as judge, inspector of encomiendas, chief of police, tribute collector, capitan-general of the province and even vice-regal patron. His annual salary ranged from P300 to P2000 before 1847 and P1500 to P1600 after it. But this can be augmented through the special privilege of "indulto de commercio" where all people were forced to do business with him. The alcalde mayor was usually an Insulares (Spaniard born in the Philippines). In the 19th century, the Peninsulares began to displace the Insulares which resulted in the political unrests of 1872, notably the execution of GOMBURZA, Novales Revolt and mutiny of the Cavite fort under La Madrid.

C. Municipal Government

The pueblo or town is headed by the Gobernadorcillo or little governor. Among his administrative duties were the preparation of the tribute list (padron), recruitment and distribution of men for draft labor, communal public work and military conscription (quinto), postal clerk and judge in minor civil suits. He intervened in all administrative cases pertaining to his town: lands, justice, finance and the municipal police. His annual salary, however, was only P24 but he was exempted from taxation. Any native or Chinese mestizo, 25 years old, literate in oral or written Spanish and has been a Cabeza de Barangay of 4 years can be a Gobernadorcillo. Among those prominent are Emilio Aguinaldo, a Chinese Mestizo and who was the Gobernadorcillo of Cavite El Viejo (now Kawit). The officials of the pueblo were taken from the Principalía, the noble class of pre-colonial origin. Their names are survived by prominent families in contemporary Philippine society such as Lindo, Tupas, Gatmaitan, Liwanag, Pangilinan, Panganiban, Balderas, and Agbayani to name a few.

D. Barrio Government Barrio government (village or district) rested on the barrio administrator (cabeza de barangay). He was responsible for peace and order and recruited men for communal public works. Cabezas should be literate in Spanish and have good moral character and property. Cabezas who served for 25 years were exempted from forced labor. In addition, this is where the sentiment heard as, "Mi Barrio", first came from.

E. The Residencia and The Visita To check the abuse of power of royal officials, two ancient castilian institutions were brought to the Philippines. The Residencia, dating back to the 5th century and the Visita differed from the residencia in that it was conducted clandestinely by a visitador-general sent from Spain and might occur anytime within the official’s term, without any previous notice. Visitas may be specific or general.

F. Maura Law The legal foundation for municipal governments in the country was laid with the promulgation of the Maura Law on May 19, 1893. Named after its author, Don Antonio Maura, the Spanish Minister of Colonies at the time, the law reorganized town governments in the Philippines with the aim of making them more effective and autonomous. This law created the municipal organization that was later adopted, revised, and further strengthened by the American and Filipino governments that succeeded Spanish.

Economy

A. Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade The Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade was the main source of income for the colony during its early years. Service was inaugurated in 1565 and continued into the early 19th century. The Galleon trade brought silver from New Spain, which was used to purchase Asian goods such as silk from China, spices from the Moluccas, lacquer ware from Japan and Philippine cotton textiles.[13] These goods were then exported to New Spain and ultimately Europe by way of Manila. Thus, the Philippines earned its income through the trade of the Manila-Acapulco Galleon. The trade was very prosperous and attracted many merchants to Manila, especially the Chinese. However, initially it neglected the development of the colony's local industries which affected the Indios since agriculture was their main source of income. In addition, the building and operation of galleons put too much burden on the colonists' annual polo y servicio. However, it resulted in cultural and commercial exchanges between Asia and the Americas that led to the introduction of new crops and animals to the Philippines such as corn, potato, tomato, cotton and tobacco among others, that gave the colony its first real income. The trade lasted for over two hundred years, and ceased in 1815 just before the secession of American colonies from Spain.

B. Taxation To support the colony, several forms of taxes and monopolies were imposed. The buwis (tribute), which could be paid in cash or kind (tobacco,chickens, produce, gold, blankets, cotton, rice, etc., depending on the region of the country), was initially was fixed at 8 reales (one real being 8 centavos) and later increased to 15 reales, apportioned as follows: ten reales buwis, one real diezmos prediales (tithes), one real to the town community chest, one real sanctorum tax, and three reales for church support. Also collected was the bandalâ (from the Tagalog word mandalâ, a round stack of rice stalks to be threshed), an annual enforced sale and requisitioning of goods such as rice. Custom duties and income tax were also collected. By 1884, the tribute was replaced by the Cedula personal, wherein colonists were required to pay for personal identification. Everyone over the age of 18 was obliged to pay. The local gobernadorcillos had been responsible for collection of the tribute. Under the cedula system, however, taxpayers were individually responsible to Spanish authorities for payment of the tax, and were subject to summary arrest for failure to show a cedula receipt.

C. Forced Labor (Polo y servicios) The system of forced or corvée labor known as polo y servicios evolved from the encomienda system, introduced into the Latin American colonies by the Conquistadores and Catholic priests who accompanied them. Polo y servicios is the forced labor for 40 days of men ranging from 16 to 60 years of age who were obligated to give personal services to community projects. One could be exempted from polo by paying the falla (a corruption of the Spanish falta, meaning "absence"), a daily fine of one and a half real. In 1884, labor was reduced to 15 days. The polo system was patterned after the Mexican repartimento, selection for forced labor.

Culture

By the 19th century, the Philippines had become an important

possession. The early small number of European settlers, soldiers and missionaries brought with them aspects of European life, i.e. the Spanish menu, religious festivals, stone houses, manner of clothing and fashion. The colonists used the Gregorian calendar, the Latin script and used theocentric art, music, literature. Likewise, the European settlers and their descendants: known as Insulares (lit. "Islanders"), also adapted to oriental culture learning to eat rice as their staple and use soy sauce, coconut vinegar, coconut oil and ginger. Today, Filipino culture is a blend of many different cultures.

British Interlude

In August 1759, Charles III ascended the Spanish throne. At the time, Britain and France were at war, in what was later called the Seven Years War. France successfully negotiated a treaty with Spain known as the Family Compact which was signed on 15 August 1761. By an ancillary secret convention, Spain was committed to making preparations for war against Britain.

On 24 September 1762, a small but technically proficient force of British Army regulars and British East India Company soldiers, supported by the ships and men of the East Indies Squadron of the British Royal Navy, sailed into Manila Bay from Madras in India.

The expedition, led by Brigadier General William Draper and Rear-Admiral Samuel Cornish, captured Manila, "the greatest Spanish fortress in the western Pacific", and attempted to establish free trade with China.

The Spanish defeat was not really surprising. The Royal Governor, Don Pedro Manuel de Arandia had died in 1759 and his replacement Brigadier Don Francisco de la Torre had not arrived because of the British attack on Havana, Cuba. Spanish policy was for the Archbishop of Manila to be Lieutenant Governor. Because the garrison was commanded by the Archbishop Don Manuel Rojo del Rio y Vieyra, instead of by a military expert, many mistakes were made by the Spanish forces.

Under Spanish rule, the Philippines never paid its own way, but survived on an annual subsidy paid by the Spanish Crown. As a cost saving measure and

because the Spanish authorities never really contemplated a serious expedition against Manila by a European power, the 200 year old fortifications at Manila had not been improved much since first built by the Spanish.

Early success by the British in Manila did not enable them to expand their control over all parts of the Spanish-Philippines. In reality they only controlled Manila and Cavite, and parts of Ilocos and Cagayan. But Manila was the capital, and key, to the Spanish-Philippines, and the British accepted the written surrender of the Spanish government in the Philippines from Archbishop Rojo and the Real Audiencia on 30 October 1762.

The terms of surrender proposed by the Real Audencia and agreed to by the British leaders, secured private property, guaranteed the Roman Catholic religion and its episcopal government, and granted the citizens of the former Spanish colony the rights of peaceful travel and of trade 'as British subjects'. Under superior British control, the Philippines would continue to be governed by the Real Audencia, the expenses of which were to be paid by Spain.The Seven Years War was ended by the Peace of Paris signed on 10 February 1763. At the time of signing the treaty, the signatories were not aware that the Philippines had been taken by the British and was being administered as a British colony. Consequently no specific provision was made for the Philippines. Instead they fell under the general provision that all other lands not otherwise provided for be returned to the Spanish Crown.

The British rule ended with them embarking from Manila and Cavite in the first week of April 1764, and sailing out of Manila Bay for Batavia, India and England. The conflict over payment by Spain of the outstanding part of the ransom promised by Rojo in the terms of surrender, and compensation by Britain for excesses committed by Governor Drake against residents of Manila, continued in Europe for years afterwards.

Resistance against Spanish Rule

The road to Philippine nationhood was difficult with continuous threats to Spanish domination brought about by invasions from the Dutch, British, Chinese, Japanese, and indigenous rebellions.

Throughout the period of Spanish rule, previously dominant and independent groups resisted Spanish overlordship, refusing to pay Spanish taxes, and rejecting Spanish excesses.

The 19th century was a period of global change under the banner of liberty, equality and brotherhood brought about by the patriotisms of the French and American Revolutions.

In 1898, Filipino patriots seceded from the Spanish Empire and formally declared independence under the First Philippine Republic.

A. Early resistance Resistance against Spain did not immediately cease upon the conquest of the Austronesian cities. After Tupas of Cebu, random native nobles resisted Spanish rule. The longest recorded native rebellion was that of Francisco Dagohoy which lasted a century.

During the British rule in the 1760s, Diego Silang was appointed governor of Ilocos and after his assassination by fellow natives, his wife Gabriela continued to lead the Ilocanos. Resistance against Spanish rule was regional in character, based on ethnolinguistic groups.

Hispanization of sorts, did not spread to the mountainous center of northern Luzon, nor to the inland communities of Mindanao. The highlanders were more able to resist the Spanish invaders than the lowlanders.

The Moros, most notably the sultanates, had a more advanced political system than their counterparts in the Visayas and Luzon. Spanish cities in Mindanao were limited to the coastal areas of Zamboanga and Cagayan de Oro.

B. The Opening of the Philippines to World Trade The 19th century was a period of global change. The world had entered its first phase of globalization under the British Empire. In Europe, the Industrial Revolution had spread from Great Britain which had entered its Pax Britannica

known as the Victorian Age. The rapid industrialization of Europe were seeking new markets and found them in the colonies. The colonies prospered with the production of raw materials for the mother countries. It was during this period that Governor-General Basco opened the Philippines to world trade. The economy of the Philippines rose rapidly and its local industries developed to satisfy the rising industrialization of Europe. European immigration increased with the opening of the Suez Canal which cut the travel time between Europe and the Philippines by half. New ideas, which the friars and colonial authorities found dangerous, found their way into the Philippines notably Freemasonry and ideals of the French and American Revolutions and of Spanish liberalism.

C. Rise of Filipino nationalism The opening of the Philippines to world trade rapidly developed the Philippine economy. Many Filipinos prospered overnight. Everyday Filipinos also benefited from the new economy with the rapid increase in demand for labor and availability of business opportunities. Some Europeans immigrated to the Philippines to join the wealth wagon, among them Jacobo Zobel, patriarch of today's Zobel de Ayala family and prominent figures in the rise of Filipino nationalism. Their scions studied in the best universities of Europe where they learned the ideals of liberty from the French and American Revolutions. The new economy gave rise to a new middle class in the Philippines, usually not ethnic Filipinos.

In the early 19th century, the Suez Canal was opened which made the Philippines easier to reach from Spain. The small increase of Peninsulares from the Iberian Peninsula threatened the secularization of the Philippine churches. In state affairs, the Criollos, known locally as Insulares (lit. "Islanders"). were displaced from government positions by the Peninsulares, whom the native Insulares regarded as foreigners. The Insulares had become increasingly Filipino and called themselves Los hijos del país (lit. "sons of the country"). Among the early proponents of Filipino nationalism were the Insulares Padre Pedro Peláez, archbishop of Manila, who fought for the secularization of Philippine churches and expulsion of the friars; Padre José Burgos whose execution influenced the national hero José Rizal; and Joaquín Pardo de Tavera who fought for retention of government positions by natives, regardless of race. In retaliation to the rise of Filipino nationalism, the friars called the Indios (possibly referring to

Insulares and mestizos as well) indolent and unfit for government and church positions. In response, the Insulares came out with Indios agraviados, a manifesto defending the Filipino against discriminatory remarks. The tension between the Insulares and Peninsulares erupted into the failed revolts of Novales and the Cavite Mutiny of 1872 which resulted to the deportation of prominent Filipino nationalists to the Marianas and Europe who would continue the fight for liberty through the Propaganda Movement. The Cavite Mutiny implicated the priests Mariano Gómez, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora (see Gomburza) whose executions would influence the subversive activities of the next generation of Filipino nationalists, in particular Paciano Rizal, elder brother of José Rizal, who then dedicated his novel, El filibusterismo to the these priests.

D. Rise of Spanish liberalism The Liberals won the Spanish Revolution of 1869. Carlos María de la Torre was sent to the Philippines to serve as governor-general (1869–1871). He was one of the most loved governors-general in the Philippines having implemented reforms in the colony. At one time, his supporters serenaded him in front of the Malacañang Palace. Among those who serenaded were Padre Burgos and Joaquín Pardo de Tavera. When the Reactionaries regained power in Spain, de la Torre was recalled and replaced by Governor-General Izquierdo who vowed to rule with an iron fist.

E. Freemasonry Freemasonry had gained a generous following in Europe and the Americas during the 19th century and found its way to the Philippines. The Western World was quickly changing and sought less political control from the Roman Catholic Church.

The first Filipino Masonic lodge was Revoluccion. It was established by Graciano Lopez Jaena in Barcelona and was recognized in April 1889. It did not last long after he resigned from being its worshipful master on November 29, 1889.In December 1889, Marcelo H. del Pilar established, with the help of Julio Llorente, the Solidaridad in Madrid. Its first worshipful master was Llorente. A short time later, the Solidaridad grew. Some its members included José Rizal,

Pedro Serrano Laktaw, Baldomero Roxas, and Galicano Apacible.In 1891, Del Pilar sent Laktaw to the Philippines to establish a Masonic lodge. Laktaw established on January 6, 1892, the Nilad, the first Masonic lodge in the Philippines. It is estimated that there were 35 masonic lodges in the Philippines in 1893 of which nine were in Manila. The first Filipina freemason was Rosario Villaruel. Trinidad and Josefa Rizal, Marina Dizon, Romualda Lanuza, Purificacion Leyva, and many others join the masonic lodge.eemasonry was important during the time of the Philippine Revolution. It pushed the reform movement and carried out the propaganda work. In the Philippines, many of those who pushed for a revolution were member of freemasonry like Andrés Bonifacio. In fact, the organization used by Bonifacio in establishing the Katipunan was derived from the Masonic society. It may be said that joining masonry was one activity that both the reformists and the Katipuneros shared.

F. Revolution The mass deportation of nationalists to the Marianas and Europe in 1872 led to a Filipino expatriate community of reformers in Europe. The community grew with the next generation of Ilustrados taking graduate studies in European universities. They allied themselves with Spanish liberals, notably a certain Spanish senator named Morayta and formed the La Solidaridad. Among the reformers was José Rizal, who wrote his two famous novels while in Europe. Among the manuscripts of the reformers, his novels were considered the most influential causing further unrest in the islands particularly the founding of the Katipunan. A rivalry developed between himself and Marcelo del Pilar for the leadership of La solidaridad and the reform movement in Europe. Majority of the expatriates supported the leadership of Marcelo Del Pilar.

Rizal then returned to the Philippines to organize La Liga Filipina and bring the reform movement to Philippine soil. He was arrested just a few days after founding the league. In 1892, Radical members of the La Liga Filipina, which included Bonifacio and Deodato Arellano, founded the Kataastaasang Kagalanggalang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK), called simply the Katipunan, which had the bold objective of having the Philippines seceding from the Spanish Empire. From the Insular uprisings of the early 19th century of

Fathers Peláez and Burgos, the Filipino discontent eventually escalated to a full-blown armed revolution in August 1896.

G. The Philippine Revolution By 1896 the Katipunan had a membership by the thousands. That same year, the existence of the Katipunan was discovered by the colonial authorities. In late August Katipuneros gathered in Caloocan and declared the start of the revolution. The event is now known as the Cry of Balintawak or Cry of Pugad Lawin, due to conflicting historical traditions and official government positions.

Andrés Bonifacio called for a general offensive on Manila and was defeated in battle at the town of San Juan del Monte. He regrouped his forces and was able to briefly capture the towns of Marikina, San Mateo and Montalban. Spanish counterattacks drove him back and he retreated to the mountains of Balara and Morong and from there engaged in guerrilla warfare. By August 30, the revolt had spread to eight provinces. On that date, Governor-General Ramon Blanco declared a state of war in these provinces and placed them under martial law. These were Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Pampanga, Tarlac, Laguna, Batangas, and Nueva Ecija. They would later be represented in the eight rays of the sun in the Filipino flag. Emilio Aguinaldo and the Katipuneros of Cavite were the most successful of the rebels and they controlled most of their province by September–October. They defended their territories with trenches designed by Edilberto Evangelista.

Many of the educated ilustrado class such as Antonio Luna and Apolinario Mabini did not initially favor an armed revolution. Rizal himself, whom the rebels took inspiration from and had consulted beforehand, disapproved of a premature revolution. He was arrested, tried and executed for treason, sedition and conspiracy on December 30, 1896. Before his arrest he had issued a statement disavowing the revolution, but in his swan song poem Mi último adiós he wrote that dying in battle for the sake of one's country was just as patriotic as his own impending death.

While the revolution spread throughout the provinces, Aguinaldo's Katipuneros declared the existence of an insurgent government in October regardless of Bonifacio's Katipunan, which he had already converted into an insurgent

government with him as president in August. Bonifacio was invited to Cavite to mediate between Aguinaldo's rebels, the Magdalo, and their rivals the Magdiwang, both chapters of the Katipunan. There he became embroiled in discussions whether to replace the Katipunan with an insurgent government of the Cavite rebels' design. To this end, the Tejeros Convention was convened, where Aguinaldo was elected president of the new insurgent government. Bonifacio refused to recognize this and he was executed for treason in May 1897. By December 1897, the revolution had resulted to a stalemate between the colonial government and rebels. Pedro Paterno mediated between the two sides for the signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato. The conditions of the armistice included the self-exile of Aguinaldo and his officers in exchange for $800,000 to be paid by the colonial government. Aguinaldo then sailed to Hong Kong for self exile.

In 1898, the Spanish-American War broke out. Emilio Aguinaldo returned to the Philippines with American aid; that is the blockading of Manila Bay from Spanish reinforcements. However, this aid was unnecessary as the Spanish reinforcements wouldn't have made it anyway as their Cazadores were tied down in Cuba both quelling a similar revolt and fighting the Spanish-American War there, and later the Americans turning against the Filipino patriots in the end after all. By 1898, the patriots have liberated much of the country from colonial rule. They declared independence in 1898 and established the First Philippine Republic, and then laid siege to Manila and prepared to invade the city. Aguinaldo however failed to conclude the revolution by invading Manila. The United States had promised to recognize Philippine independence and the Americans requested Aguinaldo to wait for American reinforcements so that they could enter the city together. The Americans had asked Aguinaldo to turn over vital entries to the capital city over to the Americans, which he did in good faith to their alliance. In a sudden twist of fate, the Americans secretly entered into a pact with the Spanish governor-general in which the latter agreed to fight a mock battle before surrendering Manila to the Americans. In Paris, the Spanish reluctantly agreed to sell the Philippines to the United States for $20 million and turn over Guam and Puerto Rico (see Treaty of Paris (1898)). With this action, Spanish rule in the Philippines formally ended. With Manila taken,

the Americans waited for reinforcements until hostilities opened up between them and the declared Philippine Republic

Chapter 2The Philippines under Spain

The Magellan Expedition (1518-1521)

Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese serving the Spanish royalty, saw action for his country in the east, first in India with Alfonso de Almeida in 1505, and with distinction, in the fall of Malacca in 1511. In 1518 he convinced Charles V that he could find a shorter way to Maluku by sailing via the Americas. Magellan received royal instruction to sail directly to the Maluku and bring back a cargo of the priceless spices. Thus began “the greatest of all epics of human discovery” when he sailed from San Lucar, Spain in 1519, on board five every antiquated ships with a crew of 235 men. Skirting unknown and uncharted lands, he sailed around the southern tip of South America, across the vast Pacific Ocean after 98 days of sailing northwestward. Magellan finally reached the Philippines on March 17, 1521. In mactan, he was defeated and killed in battle in April 1521 as a consequence of his dispute between Lapulapu and Zula, chieftains of Mactan. Only one ship, in fact the smallest of them, the Victoria, completed the voyage back to Spain in 1522, arriving in Seville, led by Juan Sebastian del Cano. Magellan did not live to see the final completion of the “first – known voyage in history to circumnavigate the globe” it was through this trip that the Europeans first learned of the existence of the Philippines. It also proved that the earth was round; it established the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. it proved that the East Indies could be reached by crossing the pacific, and finally it showed that the Americas was really a land mass entirely separate from Asia.

Maluku and the Philippines

Three Spanish expeditions followed Magellan’s, this time sailing from Mexico , which had become a Spanish colony- the Saavedra(1527-1529), the Villalobos(1541-46), and the most successful of all, Legazpi expedition(1564). As

a sequel to the Magellan voyage, a large fleet of seven ships, with a crew of 450 under the joint command of Garcia Jofre de Loaisa and Juan Sebastian del Cano, left La Coruna, Spain, in July 1525, to claim Maluku for the Spanish crown. By October 1526, the expedition reached Mindanao where they bartered rice, fruits, chicken and coconut wine with the Filipinos. however, both commanders met death in the Pacific, and the ill- fated expedition led by Hernando de la Torre, waited for the necessary assistance from Spain.Saavedra reached what is probably now known as Lanuza Bay, overlooking Tandag (Surigao del Sur) by February 1528, following Magellan's sea route. The Spaniards vividly reported that "Maluarbuco" in northeastern Mindanao was rich in gold, chickens wild pigs and coconuts; the women were described as beautiful and the men fair-complexioned. All of them sported long hair, used weapons such as iron cutlasses, cannons, long arrows and blow guns tipped with poisoned herbs and wore cotton corselets in war. They performed blood-brotherhood ceremonies with their new friends and allegedly sacrificed, sometimes, humans, and offered food and drink to their anitos. They recognized Catunao as their chief. Saavedra never returned to Mexico as he died on the high seas.

Villalobos Expedition (1524-1546)

Under the table command of Roy Lopez de Villalobos, six ships and some 370 men, departed from Juan Gallego (Natividad) Mexico, in November, 1542. By early 1543, they reached the eastern coast of Mindanao. At Sarangani Island, Villalobos essayed to set up a colony and even ordered his men to plow the land to plant corn- the first time on Philippine soil. Extreme hunger due to absence of enough food supply forced his men to eat all the available dogs, cats and rats they could find, along with grubs, some unknown plants, lizards and poisonous crabs.

Forced to leave Sarangani, Villalobos surrendered to the Portuguese at Amboina in the Maluku, however , probably the greatest contribution of the Villalobos expedition was the naming of Tandaya or Kandaya (Leyte) in 1543 as Las Phelipinas in honor of then crown - prince Philip II, by Bernardo de la Torre (Capitan Calabaza), commander of the ship San Juan de Letran.

Legazpi- Urdaneta Expedition (1564)

By February 1565, Legazpi reached Cebu and contracted blood compacts with Katunaw and Gala at Bohol. In April of the same year, Villa de San Miguel,later changed to Ciudad del Santisimo Nombre de Jesus, after the discovered Santo Nino of Cebu, became “ the first Spanish town established in the Archipelago” and the pioneer permanent settlement in the Philippines.Legazpi was specifically instructed to bring back to Mexico samples of Philippines – grown spices; to discover the return route to Mexico.Fr. Andres de Urdaneta, Legazpi’s chief pilot, whose expertise of the seasonal winds he had acquired while with Loaisa expedition, discovered the “Urdaneta Passage” on his return to Navidad via the Pacific.

This was the most important mission of the Legazpi- Urdaneta expedition.

The Making of the Spanish "Indio"

It was very easy, indeed, for Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, who was granted by King Philip II, the peerless and single title of "Adelantado de Filipinas” to accomplish an almost "bloodless" conquest of the Philippines considering its physical and human geography. Filipino society split into numerous disunities barangay units, it was impossible to put up an effective armed resistance against the well-equipped and prepared conquistadores. Not only did the sword help in the pacification of the indios, but above all, the Cross, represented by the different regular missions that came from 1565 to 1606, also helped to mould the natives in the Hispanic image. " En cada fraile tenia el rey en Filipinas un capitan general y un ejercito enero" ("In each friar in the Philippines, they had a captain and whole army"), as one Mexican Viceroy put it. Thus, with the permanent colonization by Legazpi, the indios lost the freedom they earlier enjoyed.

Political Institutions

From 1565 to 1821, the Philippines were a captaincy- general administered by the Spanish king through the viceroyalty of Nueva España (Mexico). All Spanish possessions were governed by the Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias established in 1524 by Charles V.

Bureaucracy in the colonial Philippines may be divided into different levels of administration, from the central or national, provincial, city, municipal and barrio levels. On the national level with its seat of power in Manila, (Intramuros), the King, through the Consejo de las Indias, governed through his sole spokesman and representative in the Philippines, the gobernador y capitan-general. On the provincial level, heading the alcadia (previously the encomienda), provincia or hukuman (used by Bonifacio’s Katipunan, and later called lalawigan) was the alcalde mayor (provincial governor) for the pacified provinces and districts. Not only did the alcalde mayor exercise executive and judicial powers, but he also had the special privilege of engaging in trade through the indulto de commercio (a privilege of alcaldes enjoyed between 1751 to 1844, when it was finally abolished) except in the provinces of Tondo, Cavite and Zamboanga to name only a few. In 1840, it was reported that some of the alcaldes mayores positions were valued at P50, 000 per annum. All the complaints of the Filipinos against the abuses of the alcaldes mayores were somewhat relaxed by the Reform Decree of 1886 when the civil governor became the executive provincial official and the alcalde was reduced to a municipal judge, thus transforming the provincial governor from a “ merchant- governor” to a “judge- governor”.

By the end of the seventeenth century, there were only six cities or villas established in Luzon and the Visayas; Manila, Villa Fernandina (Vigan), Nueva Segovia (Lal-lo, Cagayan), Nueva Caceres (Naga), Cebu and Arevalo ( also called Villa, Iloilo).Cities were governed by ayumiento or city government formed in 1889. In 1894, there were eight ayumientos : Manila, Iloilo, Cebu, Jaro, Batangas, Albay, Nueva Caceres, and Vigan.

The Residencia (1501-1799) and the Visita (1499-ca. 18th Century)

To check the abuse of power of royal officials, two ancient Castillian institutions, the residencia and the visita, were transplanted into Philippine soil. The residencia, dating back to the fifteenth century in Spain, was first resorted to in Indies (Spanish possessions in in Amerasia including the Philippines) in 1501. It was the judicial review of a residencio (one judged) conducted at the end of his term of office, supervised publicly by a juez de residencia. Imposed on a residenciado found guilty of public misconduct were

heavy fines, sequestration of properties, or imprisonment or a combination of all three penalties. The residencia continued until 1799 when it was officially abolished in the colonies.

The visita differed from the residencia in that it was conducted clandestinely by a visitador- general sent from Spain and might notice. Visitas may be specific or general. A specific visita meant an investigation of the whole viceroyalty like Mexico or captaincy- general like the Philippines. First applied in the Indies in 1499, the visita had the same objectives as the residencia, that is, to ensure faithful anf efficient service on the past of government authorities. Wrongdoers were either fined, dismissed from office or expelled from the colony or received a combination of all punishments.

The Filipino Bureaucrats

On the municipal level, the “little governor” or gobernadorcillo ( later replaced by the capitan municipal in 1894), headed the pueblo or municipio. Any Filipino or Chinese mestizo, 25 years old, literate in oral or written Spanish, and who had been a cabeza de barangay (barrio administrator) for four years, could be a gobernadorcillo. This was the highest government position a Filipino a could attain during the Spanish regime, and together with the parish priest, his role was considered highly significant in a town. Among his multifarious administrative duties was preparation of the padron (tribute list), recruitment and distribution of men for the draft labor, communal public work ( as in the construction and repair of minor bridges) and the quinto (military conscription), postal clerk, judge in civil suits involving P44.00 or less. Indeed, he intervened in all administrative cases pertaining to his town; lands, justice, finance and the armed forces. For all these, his yearly salary was P24.00. The gobernadorcillo was assisted by three supernumeraries or inspectors (tenientes de justicia) who supervised matters such as boundaries of cultivated fields ( sementeras),branding of livestock (ganado) and police (policia); constable (alguacilles); four tenientes segundos; lieutenants of districts ( tenientes del barrio), and a secretary (directorcillo).Barrio government rested on the cabeza de barangay whose main role was as tax and contributions collector for the gobernadorcillo. Like the latter, the cabezas were exempted from taxation. It was Philip II who conferred upon trhe barangay chiefs the title of cabezas de barangay to “show them good treatment

and entrust them, in our name, with the government of the Indians, of whom they were formerly the lords.” Like the gobernadorcillo, he was responsible for peace and order in his own barrio and recruited polistas for communal public works. The Manuel Del Cabeza de barangay (1874) required literacy in Spanish, good moral character, and property- ownership as qualifications for Cabezas who served for three year terms. By the mid- nineteenth century, Cabezas who had served for twenty- five years were exempted from forced labor.

The Amalgamation of Church and State

It was in the exercise of political and economic powers of the Spanish clergy that we can perceive very clearly the disunity between the Church and State. The disgusting features such as church meddling in civil government and press censorship were succinctly pointed out by Filipino laborantes (reformers) as well as revolucionarios in the nineteenth century. In fact, the separation of Church and State became one of the outstanding innovations of the Malolos Constitution in 1898. Ten years before, probably the first and only open anti- friar demonstration against the intolerable church abuses took place in Manila in March 1, 1888, led by Doroteo Cortes, aided secretly by Marcelo H. Del Pilar and Jose Ramos Ishiwaka. Encouraged by Article 218 of the newly- passed Penal Code vouching for the right of petition and assembly, a group of influential gobernadorcillos, principales and residents of Manila boldly marched through the streets of the city to the ayuntamiento (city hall) demanding the expulsion of friars in the Philippines, including Archbishop Pedro Payo himself, demonstrators’ manifesto declared “Long Live the Queen! Long Live the Army! Down with the Friars!”

The high influence of the church on the state was exposed by the Filipinos, among them Marcelo H. Del Pilar who derisively called the situation in the Philippines la soberania monacal (monastic supremacy) or frailocracia (friacrocy), because the Spanish friars or monastic orders ruled supreme, even over governmental matters. Nowhere was the greatest influence and complete control of the clergy felt than in the lowest Filipino bureaucratic level-. The municipio or pueblo, The parish priest more often than not the only Caucasian and the most important official dominating the town during the entire of the

colonial period. “The friars were not only the parish priest or spiritual guides” as one Filipino put it, “but in effect were rulers of the municipalities; in fact, the whole government of the islands rested on them. Consequently, every abuse of the many which led to the revolution of 1896-1898 was charged to them by the people.”

In the national level, the influence was exercised through the vast networks of parishes. By the end of the Spanish regime, there were 967 regulars (priests who belonged to a religious order) administered parishes in 1896-1898.Probably the most persistent complaint leveled by the Filipinos against the church was its economic role as landowners, in particular the Dominincans, Augustinians and the Recollects. It was, therefore, not surprising that the Philippine Revolution centered in the areas where the vast haciendas (friar estates) thrived: Cavite, Laguna, Morong and Manila province.

INSTITUTIONAL IMPACT OF SPANISH RULE

When the Spaniards settled permanently in the Philippines in 1565, they found the Filipinos living in either lineal or nucleated barangay settlements scattered along water routes and river banks (in pattern of ilaya or upstream and ibaba or downstream and mountain ridges.

One of the first tasks, and probably the most difficult, imposed on the missionaries and the encomenderos was to collect all the scattered Filipinos together in a reduccion (resettlement) bajo el sonde la campana (under the sound of the bell) or bajo el toque de la campana (under the peal of the bell).As early as 1580, the Franciscans, who arrived two years earlier, proceed “to establish pueblos”, ordering the missionary to reside there (instead of going around chasing souls),”where the church and convent would be constructed. All the new Christian converts were required to construct their houses around the church and the unbaptized were invited to do the same. This was approved without hesitation by no less than the then Governor General of the Philippines himself. The reduccion plan presented by Franciscan Fr. Juan de Placencia to the synod of Manila (1582) was approved unanimously by missionaries of all the religious order.

The reduccion, to the Spaniards, was, no doubt, a “civilizing” device to make the Filipinos law abiding citizens of the Spanish crown, and, in the long run, to make them ultimate “little brown Spaniards,” adopting Hispanic culture and civilization.

As part of the strategy of enticing the unwilling unbaptized indios, the Spanish friars utilized the novel sights, sounds, and even, smell of Christian rites and rituals—colorful and pompous processions, songs, candle- lights, saints dressed in elaborate gold and silver costumes during the May festivals of Flores de Mayo or the Santa Cruzan, the lighting of firecrackers even as the Host was elevated, the sinakulo (passion play) and the Christian vs. Muslim conflict drama (moro-moro). Other attractions included medals, scapularies, cords and rosaries. All these “hypnotized” the spirit of the indios. Upon of the feast day of the saint when he was born or baptized, this facilitated identification and recording of population for tax collecting purposes.

ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS:

A. “Taxation Without Representation”, Income generating mechanisms were introduced by the Spanish colonial government in the Philippines consisting of direct (personal tribute and income tax) and indirect (customs duties and bandala) taxes, monopolies (rentas encancadas) of special crops and items as spirituous liquors (1712-1864), betel nut (1764), tobacco (1782-1882), explosives (1805-1864), and opium (1847).

The buwis (tribute) may be paid in cash or kind, partly or wholly, as palay or tobacco, chickens, textiles, or even wax and special regional produce, depending on the area of the country.

Aside from the tribute, a special tax of ½ real or rice was collected called samboangan or donativo de Zamboanga to crush the Moro raids (collected since 1635 until the mid-19th century) and vinta (gathered since 1781 till 1851, with some interruptions) to equip vintas to shield the coastal areas of Bulacan and Pampanga. The vinta’s counterpart was the falua, collected in Camarines Sur, Cebu, Misamis and other littoral provinces.

Another tax collected was the bandala. Coming from the Tagalog word mandala (a round stack of the rice stalks to be threshed), bandala assumed the meaning of the annual enforced sale or requisitioning of goods, particularly of rice or coconut oil, in the case of Tayabas. Pampanga and the Tagalog regions, then the rice bowl of the Philippines, bore the greatest brunt of what amounted to outright confiscation since payment was only in promissory notes. The Spaniards debt to the Kapampangans , for instance, reached some P70,000 between 1610 and 1616,spiraling up to P200,000 in 1610, thus sparking a revolt in 1660-61.

The bandala was abolished in the provinces of Tondo, Bulacan, Pampanga, Laguna, Batangas, Tayabas, and Cavite in November 1782. By 1884, the tribute was replaced by the cedula personal or personal identity paper, equivalent to the present residence tax. Everyone, whether Filipino or other nationalities over eighteen years of age was required to pay cedula personal.

B. Polo y Servicio Personal or Prestacion Personal.— Polo actually is a corruption of the Tagalog, pulong, originally meaning “meeting of persons and things” or “community labor.” Drafted laborers (polistas) were either Filipino or Chinese male mestizos ranging from 16 to 60 years old, who were obligated to give personal service to community projects, like construction and repair of infrastructure, church construction, or cutting logs in forests, for forty days until 1884, when labor was reduced to fifteen days. However, one could be exempted by paying the falla (corruption of the Spanish falta, “absence,” corrupted in to the contemporary playa, “absencefrom work,”) which the polista paid daily at 1 ½ real during the 40-day period he was expected to work. The polo system was patterned after the Mexican repartmiento or selection for forced labor.Some of the negative effects of the polo on the Filipino included the upsetting of the village economy because labor drafts usually coincided with the planting and harvesting seasons; forced separation from the family and relocation to different places, sometimes outside the Philippines; and dissemination of the male population as they were compelled at times, to escape to the mountains instead of working in the labor pool.

C. Encomiendas: Royal and Private.— the encomienda, from the word encomendar, meaning to “entrust,” was another revenue-getting Hispanic institution introduced to the Philippines via Mexico. Strictly speaking, it was a grant from the Spanish crown to a meritorious Spaniard to exercise control over a specific place including its inhabitants. It was not a land grant as most earlier scholars believed. The encomendero was duty-bound to defend his escomienda from external incursions, to keep peace and order, and to assist the missionaries in teaching the Christian gospel to the residents within his sphere of influence.

In return the encomendero was granted the right of imposing tribute according to the limit and kind set by higher authorities. For instance, Silang, in upland Cavite, was an encomienda of Captain Diego Jorge de Villalobos of Lisbon and his wife, Magdalena da Illescas. He settled personal feuds within his community. Villalobos contributed P100 in cash and 180 fanegas of rice for parish assistance when he became encomendero.

Two kinds of encomiendas existed in the Philippines:1. The royal or crown (realenga or encomienda de la real corona)2. the private (encomienda de particulars)

The former were lands reserved for the crown and included the principal towns and ports, like Bagumbayan (now Luneta), Lagyo (approximately the site of the present Plaza military, between Malate and Ermita), Santa Ana de Sapa, Tonodo, Navotas and Malabon in Manila; and Lubao and Betis in Pampanga.The private encomiendas were granted to individuals who were either the king’s protégés or men who served with merit during the conquest and pacification campaigns. Examples of these were Pandakan, Sampalok and Macabebe, privately owned by one Pedro de Chaves; Bataan by Juan Esguerra; and Batangas owned personally by Francisco Rodriguez.

There was much confusion as a result of the lack systematic tribute collection. Each encomendero collected according to his personal whim. When gold was abundant and money was scarce, there was scarcity of gold, they asked for gold, even when the poor Filipinos were coerced to by

them during bumper harvest, they demanded products like rice, tobacco or even all the Filipino possessions, and they were forced “to travel great distances” to try to by them at high rates. Sometimes, the Filipinos bought back at very exorbitant prices the same items (rice, especially during lean harvest) they sold for a very low price. Encomenderos sometimes seized “the entire quantity of his rice’’ from the Filipino “without leaving him a grain to eat.”

Many Filipinos died of starvation, especially during famines and drought due to the scarcity of rice and they were force to eat coconut and banana shoots.

D. The Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade (1565-1815). – Running the only regular fleet service in the huge stretch of the Pacific ocean for two hundred fifty years was the Acapulco galleon (known as galleon de Manila or nao de China). With two vessels making the journey yearly – one out going, the other incoming –between Manila and Acapulco de Juarez, reaching as far as Callao in Peru.

The galleon trade benefitted only a very small coterie of privileged Spaniards- the Spanish governor, members of the consulado (merchants with consular duties and rights) usually insulares, and Spanish residents in Manila. The few Spaniards who relied heavily on the trade became affluent, but when the trade declined in the eighteenth century, an economic depression resulted which arrested the normal population growth.

The moro-moro, Moriones and the image of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo, were also of Mexican origins. A considerable number of Nahunta (Aztec) elements crept into the Philippines languages, such as tiyangge (tianquiztli),kakaw (cacahault),tsokolate (xoco-alt), tamales (tamali), kamatsili (quauhmochitl), sayote (chayotli), singkamas (xicama) and tocayo (tocaitl). The Mexicans, on the other hand, borrowed the Filipino words tuba (coconut toddy), hilanhilan (ilang-ilang) and Parian.

E. Royal Economic Society of Friends of the country (1780-ca.1895)— A mere frigate captain before he assumed governorship, Jose de Basco y Vargas

represented the true examples of Spain’s despotismo illustrado, who for nine years revamped the then existing antiquated economic system which stagnated progress in the Philippines. Following the royal order to form a society of learned and competent persons capable of producing useful ideas, “he formally organized, in 1780, the Real sociedad Economica de Amigos del Pais composed of leading men in business, industry and the profession, whom he himself prodded to exploit the Island’s natural bounties. The society antedated the Royal Philippine Company. Both economic agencies acted as effective media and instruments of Spanish colonization.

F. Royal Philippine Company (1785-1814)— On March 10, 1785, Charles III created the Royal Philippine Company with a 25-year charter for the main purpose of uniting American and Asian commerce. It was granted exclusive monopoly of bringing to Manila, not only Philippine but also Chinese and Indian goods, and shipping them directly to Spain via the Cape of Good Hope.

Modeled after the Royal Guipuzcoana de Caracas Company in South America, it was vehemently opposed by Dutch and English interests who saw it as a direct attract on their trade in Asian goods. It also met stiff opposition from the Spanish-Manila traders of the Consulado y Comercio de Manila who saw it as a strong competitor of the Manila –Acapulco trade. A royal decree assigning 3,000 shares of stocks (out of the 32,000) for the Manila merchants and religious corporations partially mollified the galleon traders even as some refused the subscription.

For the Spaniards, the Company helped the early growth of agriculture, especially of Philippines grown products like indigo, sugar coffee, spic, dye wood (sibucao) and textiles. To the Filipinos, the effect was more untold misery, as they were forced to plant much-prized cash exports crops from which they did not have any direct benefit at all.

G. Infrastructure , Telecommunications and Public Utilities Development.—Modern ways of telecommunication developed in the nineteenth century. The ferrocarril de Manila extended 120 miles long up to Dagupan (Pangasinan) and it was the only railway line in the Archipelago,

constructed using mainly Filipino labor and operated regularly four years before the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution in 1896.The Compania de los Tranvias de Filipinas was established in Manila in 1885 by Jacobo Zobel de Zangroniz and Adolfo Bayo. By 1892 there were five street car service lines connecting the primate city with the suburbs: for horse-drawn in Intramuros, Malate, Sampalok and Tondo,and one tranvia de vapor (steam-powered) between Malabon and Binondo since 1888. An animal pulled tramcar service ran between Talisay (Negros Occidental) and Dos Hermanas from 1895-1896 owned privately by Esteban de la Rama.

To avoid traffic jams in Arroceceros and Quiapo, the Puente Colgante (now Quezon Bridge), the first suspension bridge in the Far East, was built. Measuring 110 meters long and seven meters wide and designed by Gustave Eiffel of the famous tower in Paris, it was two-lined for carriages, with the raised middle portion reserved for foot –travelers. Pedestrians were charged a toll fee each of one kusing (un cuarto or ½ centavo), while each horse cost three curators 9about 2 centavos). Tolls for carriages depended on the number of wheels; the more wheels the higher the rates. II. EDUCATIONAL TRANSFORMATION

A. “La Letra Con Sangre Entra” (“Spare the Rod, Spoil the child’’).

The earliest schools in the Philippines were in compliance with Charles V’s decree of July 17, 1550, which provided that Indios in all the Spanish dominions were to be taught the conqueror’s language. As part of conversion, the Spanish missionaries in the Philippines used children in the belief that they “would learn our alphabet, language, Christian doctrine and customs, policies and transmit them in the towns afterwards.” The Society of Jesus, as the teaching order, specifically believed that their hope of a “brilliant” Christianity came from children. “The Christian doctrine was the milk they sucked” and from their tender youth in the

Jesuit residences, they were taught and instructed in all virtues.” In fact, associated with the policy of attracting the Filipino chiefly class to conversion was the founding of a secondary school for “the sons of native ruling families” in preparation not only for Christianizing but also as future gobernadorcillos and cabezas de barangay.

Thus, the Colegio de Ninos was founded in 1596, an annex of the Jesuit Colegio de Manila established a year before. After 5 years the Colegio de Ninos folded up, due to lack of funds. Here, sons of chiefs were taught Christian doctrine, the rudiments of the three R’s, vocal and instrumental music, and handicrafts. 1. Boy’s Colleges and Secondary Schools.—The earliest colleges exclusively for sons of Spaniards were established in the Philippines by the Society of Jesus: Colegio Maximo de San Ignacio (1589) which later became a University (1612); the College of San Ildefonso (now the University of San Carlos), the sole secondary school outside of Manila,

In college of san Ignacio, there were two kinds of training:1. Priesthood2. Education

The curriculum included Latin, philosophy, Cano and civil law, and rhetoric. The college of the Immaculate Conception (now Ateneo de Manila University) grew out the Escuela Pia for poor boys in 1817 and was founded by the Jesuits upon their return from expulsion in1859.

As order of Preachers, the Dominicans also offered tertiary education for boys and girls. The present university of Santo Tomas, originally called the Colegio de Nuestra Senora del Santisimo Rosario, in 1611, was converted into a Dominican University in 1645.

2. Girl’s Schools.—The first boarding school for Spanish girl’s in the Philippines were the Colegios (secondary schools) of Santa Potenciana (1591-1864) and Santa Isabel (1632), now considered the oldest school for girls in the archipelago. They were originally founded for the benefit of orphan Spanish girls.

Besides these, exclusive Colegios for the daughters of upper class Spaniards were called beaterios, established for young girls called beatas who led a secluded life.

III. Social Transformation

Probably one of the indelible marks left by the Spanish conquest on the Filipinos was the adoption of Hispanic names, as decreed by Governor Narciso Claveria in 1849. Based on compiled names of saints, indigenous and Chinese patronymics, flora and fauna, geographical names, and the arts, Filipinos were obligated to adopt surnames like Rizal, Del Pilar or Luna, although some indigenous surnames like Mabini, Malantic, Dandan and Panganiban were retained. However, the Catalogo alfabetico de Apellidos contained some derogatory names “Utut”, “Unggoy” and even “Casillas”. Not only were Filipinos given family names as bases for census and statistics, but the surnames also guaranteed exact tax collection, regular performance of polos y servicios personales, and control of population movement, thereby avoiding unauthorized migration, tax evasion, and other abuses in the eyes of the Spaniards. Although strictly imposed in Bikolandia, some parts of Ilocandia and Panay, the change of family names was almost completely ignored in some areas of Laguna and Pampanga.

The bahay- kubo for the clase pobre of Filipinos persisted even as the more affluent ones went to the extent of refining, developing, expanding and metamorphosing this autochthonous dwelling into bahay na bato with a wide azoeta (from the original batalan) and sometimes retaining the banguerhan and providing an aljibe or a well for the much- needed water supply. Foreign cuisine, both Spanish and Chinese influenced the Filipino table, smartly indigenized or mixed with the Filipino sinigang or pinangat. Filipino ingenuity is still reflected in the Spanish introduced but already indigenized dishes as the adobo, menudo, sarciado, puchero or mechado

and the Chinese – derived noodle preparations which have been Filipinized into pancit Malabon and pancit luglog.

The precolonial mode of dressing changed gradually with the permanent settlement of the Spanish conquistadores. Thus, the kanggan and bahag were transformed into the barong tagalong or camisa chino and trousers, respectively. Hats replaced the putong and shoes and slippers became part of men’s fashion. The baro and saya for women continued to be worn except that it eventually developed into the mestiza dress. Precolonial fondness for jewelry and body ornaments was continued using the Spanish style tambourine, the gold and tortoise peineta, and the earings of different sizes and shapes.

With the conversion of the Filipinos, fiestas honoring the saints were introduced. From January to December, there were fiestas from the town to the barrio level all over the lowland Christianized Philippines. The births or anniversaries of members of the Spanish royalty were also occasions for festive merry- making. The Filipinos released their tension through the pomp and pageantry of the religious dramas of the sinakulo and the komedya or moro moro. The confradias and sodalities of Filipino laymen and honoring the Virgin Mary awakened in them a Christian community consciousness which helped in stamping out pre- colonial practices and even discouraging ritual drinking. Compadrazgos (ritual co- parenthood) came with baptism, and marriages and further strengthened existing extended kinship relations.

IV. Cultural Transformation

The potent appendages of education were the printing press, books and libraries. When the Spanish friars introduced the art of printing in the Philippines, their primary purpose was to facilitate their work of converting of the Filipinos. Religion constituted the bulk of filipianiana put out during the Spanish regime. In May 1596, Governor Francisco Tello was instructed by the crown that in order to make reduccion successful, the Filipinos “should learn the language of the Indians whom they are to teach and instruct”. For instance, in 1972, Filipinos were strictly forbidden to speak

their own dialects in convents, monasteries and courts, where only Spanish should be the medium of communication. The Spanish were, however, uncooperative with regards to Spanish. They considered an uneducated Filipino who knew Spanish a future “filibustero”. Having an idioma general or lingua franca meant national unity in a country like the Philippines, with diversity of languages. Theo centric literature appeared as soon as the Spaniards settled permanently in the Philippines in the form of awit, corridor and metrical romances, written by early poets such as Ananias Zorilla, Jose Dela Cruz and Francisco Baltazar the dramatic versions of these forms were the anti –Muslim melodramas based on the “Moro Wars” – moro- moro or komedya, a European form of “comedias de capa y espada”, modeled after the Spanish obras cabillerescas introduced via Mexico. Zarzuela was the latest dramatic form introduced by the Spaniards by the end of the 1870s, which were used effectively as anti –American protest plays during the so called “era of suppressed nationalism” T.H. Padro de Tavera blamed the corridos “which consisted their profane reading,” the pasyanos and novenas “which consisted their religious reading.” As the roots of “ignorantism” left by the Spaniards to the upper and lower classes of the Philippines society. Folk as well as colonial art, persisted with Spanish colonization. Christianity produced the variegated forms of Filipino arts and crafts surrounding the religious fiestas. The visual arts, like the making of imagenes, santoses and jewelry, bloomed during this time. Folk art observe d during fiestas are seen up to this day in the whittled bamboo arch decorations (kaluskos) , moriones, rosaries, combs, the palaspas, the Christmas parols, pastillas wrappers, and colorful art presentation in foods served, as pan de San Nicolas, atsara or sapin- sapin. Painting was already secularized, according to the Synod of Calasiao in 1773, even as the painters were allowed freely to practice their art outside the church a decade later. Filipinos also figured prominently in printmaking, engraving and typography, among who were Nicolas de la Cruz Bagay, who was considered the first Filipino engraver, Cipriano Romualdo Bagay, Francisco Suarez, Laureano Atlas, Felipe Sevilla and Candido Lopez. Juan de los Santos from San Pablo de los Montes (San Pablo city, Laguna), sculpted the baroque altar of the San Agustin Church in the walled city during the early part of the eighteenth century. Paete woodcarvers stood out as among the most famous during the nineteenth century, among who were Mariano Madrinan and Aurelio Buhay. The early missionaries facilitated Filipino

conversion by using Hispanic music along with the introduction of Western instruments such as the organ, harp, guitar and piano. The Franciscan friars were the most zealous in utilizing music in Christianization, using children in teaching both Gregorian and Figurado chants. A school of music in Lumbang (Laguna) in 1606 taught not only the latest in music but also dancers as the fandango, seguidilla and the jota. By the nineteenth century, some Filipinos were already composing both religious and secular music; among them Marcelo Adonay, Simplicio Solis, Julian Felipe, Julio Nakpil and Dolores Paterno who composed “Flor de Manila” (“sampaguita”).

V. Filipinos Not Totally Hispanized

In spite of more than three hundred years of Spanish domination using the Sword and the Cross, Spain was not successful in completely Hispanizing the indios. It may observed that Phelan and Rizal’s keen observations apply only to the Christianized Filipinos, for “the cultural patterns of the Muslims and other minorities,” according to Samuel K. Tan, “had remained generally unchanged, however persistent were the Spanish efforts to convert them, simply because they resisted or avoided conversation”By the end of the Spanish rule, the transformation of the Philippine colony had created a blending of the native and Spanish cultures which became the bases of Filipinism or nationalism.

Thus, when the Filipinos passed to another colonial era it was the synthesis of foreign and native which more or less guided their behavior and response to the next century.

Chapter 3The Filipino-American War

When Intramuros was already completely surrounded by the U.S. naval and land troops, diplomatic negotiations were secretly conducted by Admiral Dewey and the Spanish governor-general through the Belgian consul. These negotiations led to the agreement of stating a mock battle to justify the turnover of Manila to the U.S. imperialists by the Spanish colonialists and were parallel to negotiations being held abroad towards

the general settlement of the Spanish-American War through the mediation of the French government.

On August 13, 1898, the mock battle of Manila was staged by the U.S. imperialists and the Spanish colonialists. After a few token shots were fired, the latter surrendered to the former. The U.S. imperialists made it a point to prevent Filipino troops from entering Intramuros. It was thus that the Filipino revolutionary forces were conclusively deprived of the victory that was rightfully theirs. From then on, however, hatred of the U.S. imperialism became more widespread among the Filipino masses and their patriotic troops.

The Philippine revolutionary government shifted its headquarters from Cavite to Malolos, Bulacan in September in anticipation of further U.S. imperialist aggression. Here the Malolos Congress was held to put out a constitution that had for its models bourgeois-democratic constitutions. During the same period, the U.S. imperialists kept on insisting in diplomatic terms that Filipino troops withdraw further from where they had been pushed. The U.S. aggressors maneuvered to occupy more territory around Manila.

Attempts of the Aguinaldo government at diplomacy abroad to assert the sovereign rights of the Filipino people proved to be futile. On December 10, 1898, the Treaty of Paris was signed by the United States and Spain ceding the entire Philippines to the former at the price of $20 million and guaranteeing the property and business rights of Spanish citizens in the archipelago. On December 21, U.S. President McKinley issued the "Proclamation of Benevolent Assimilation" to declare in sugar-coated terms a war of aggression against the Filipino people.On February 4, 1899, the U.S. troops made a surprise attack on the Filipino revolutionary forces in the vicinity of Manila. In the ensuing battles in the city, at least 3,000 Filipino were butchered while only 250 U.S. troops fell. Thus, armed hostilities between U.S. imperialism and the Filipino people began. The Filipino people heroically stood up to wage a revolutionary war of national liberation.

Before the Filipino-American War was decisively won by U.S. imperialism in 1902, 126,468 U.S. troops had been unleashed against the 7,000,000 Filipino people. These foreign aggressors suffered a casualty of at least 4,000 killed and almost 3,000 wounded. Close to 200,000 Filipino combatants and noncombatants were slain. In short, for every U.S. trooper killed, 50 Filipinos were in turn killed. More than a quarter of a million Filipinos died as a direct and indirect result of hostilities. However, an estimate of a U.S. general would even put the Filipino death casualty to as high as 600,000 or one-sixth of the population in Luzon then.The U.S. imperialist aggressors practiced genocide of monstrous proportions. They committed various forms of atrocities such as the massacres of captured troops and innocent civilians; pillage on women, homes and property; and ruthless employment of torture, such as dismemberment, the water cure and the rope torture. Zoning and concentration camps were resorted to in order to put civilians and combatants at their mercy.

As U.S. imperialism forced the Aguinaldo government to retreat, it played on the weaknesses in the ranks of the ilustrado leadership of the revolution. The imperialist chieftain McKinley dispatched the Schurman Commission in 1899 and then the Taft Commission in 1900 and issued to them instructions for the "pacification" of the country and cajolement of capitulationist traitors.

The liberal-bourgeois leadership of the old democratic revolution once more proved to be inadequate, flabby and compromising. Aguinaldo failed to lead the revolution effectively. He turned against such anti-imperialists as Mabini and Luna and increasingly relied on such capitulationists as Paterno and Buencamino. These two traitors who in previous years were notorious for their puppetry to Spanish colonialism had sneaked into the revolutionary government and usurped authority therein. They headed a pack of traitors who were deeply attracted to the siren song of "peace," "autonomy" and "benevolent assimilation" which the U.S. imperialists sang as they butchered the people.

In every town occupied by the U.S. imperialist troops, puppet municipal elections were held and dominated by the old principalia. These puppet

elections excluded the masses who could not comply with the property and literacy requirements. These sham elections were used mainly to break off the principalia from the revolution and to attract its members into becoming running dogs in the same way that the Spanish colonialists had done.

As soon as traitors led by Paterno and Buencamino were in the hands of the U.S. imperialists, they were used to serve imperialist propaganda, chiefly to call on the people to lay down their arms. Under the instigation of the aggressors, particularly the U.S. army intelligence, Trinidad Pardo de Tavera organized the Partido Federal in 1900 to advocate the annexation of the Philippines by the United States. At the same time, the imperialists promulgated laws to punish those who would advocate independence.The people and their revolutionary leaders who refused to take the oath of allegiance to the U.S. flag were persecuted, imprisoned or banished to Guam. Mass organizations, especially among the workers and peasants, were suppressed every time they surfaced.

In 1901, Aguinaldo himself was captured by the imperialists with the help of Filipino mercenaries. From then on, the treacherous counterrevolutionary forefathers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines were systematically organized and employed to help complete the imperialist conquest of the Filipino people. The first puppet constabulary men were used extensively in "mopping up" operations against persistent revolutionary fighters in Luzon and Visayas as well as in the subjugation of Mindanao.

Even when the main detachments of the Aguinaldo government had been defeated, armed resistance against U.S. imperialism still persisted in practically every town of the entire archipelago. The people of Bicol continued to wage armed struggle until 1903 when their leader Simeon Ola betrayed them by surrendering. In the Visayas, particularly Cebu, Samar, Leyte and Panay, the Pulahanes fought fierce battles against the U.S. aggressor troops and the puppet constabulary. So did the masses of Cavite, Batangas, Laguna and Quezon even after a general amnesty was issued. In Central Luzon, a religious organization, the Santa Iglesia, also waged armed

resistance. In the Ilocos, associations that proclaimed themselves as the New Katipunan conducted a guerrilla war for national independence against U.S. imperialism. As late as 1907, puppet elections could not be held in Isabela because of the people's resistance. The most prominent of the final efforts to continue the revolutionary struggle in Luzon was led by Macario Sakay, from 1902 to 1906 in Bulacan, Pampanga, Laguna, Nueva Ecija and Rizal. It was only in 1911 that guerrilla war completely ceased in Luzon. However, the fiercest armed resistance after 1902 was waged by the people of Mindanao until as late as 1916.For some time, U.S. imperialists succeeded in deceiving the Sultan of Sulu that his feudal sovereignty would be respected under the Bates Treaty of 1899 which he signed. When the foreign aggressors begun to put what they called the "Moro Province" under their administrative control, they had to contend with the Hassan uprising of 1903-1904; Usap rebellion of 1905; Pala revolt of 1905; Bud Dajo uprising of 1906; Bud Bagsak battle of 1913 and many others. This heroic resistance of the people was quelled with extreme atrocity.

The Sedition Law of 1901, the Brigandage Act of 1902 and the Reconcentration Act of 1903 were passed by U.S. imperialism to sanction military operations against the people as mere police operations against "common criminals." Patriots were called bandits. People in extensive areas were herded into military camps in order to separate them from the patriotic guerrillas.

The war expenditures of U.S. imperialism in the conquest of the Philippines were paid for by the Filipino people themselves. They were compelled to pay taxes to the U.S. colonial regime to defray a major part of the expenditures and the interest on bonds floated in the name of the Philippine government through the Wall Street banking houses. Of course, the super profits derived from the protracted exploitation of the Filipino people would constitute the basic gains of U.S. imperialism. TRANSITION TO INDEPENDENCE: THE COMMONWEALTH

May 1, 1932 - The Philippine legislature unanimously accepted the Tydings-McDuffie Act.

THE FRAMING OF THE CONSTITUTION

July 10, 1934 - In accordance with the provisions of the independence act, the Filipinos elected 202 delegations to a constitutional convention tasked with the drafting of a Philippine constitution.

July 30 - The following were elected as officials of the constitutional convention:

President: Claro M. RectoFirst Vice- President: Ruperto MontinolaSecond Vice-President: Teodoro SandikoSecretary: Narciso Pimentel

Seven wise men (a committee of seven who prepared a draft of the constitution.)

Chairman: Filemon Sotto+ Norberto Romualdez+ Manuel Roxas+ Vicente Singson Encarnacion+ Manuel C. Briones+ Miguel Cuaderno+ Conrado Benitez (replaced Jose P. Laurel)

The Philippine Constitution followed the American model in structure and formal appearance, except for a unicameral legislature and a unitary system of government. The framers of the constitution were beneficiaries of the American system of education and were familiar with American political concepts of democracy and government. The Constitution reflected cultural values unique in the Philippine tradition, such as the principle of state supremacy over the individual and the exaltation of authority. The Constitution vested extraordinary constitutional powers in

the president, including an item veto over appropriation, revenue, and tariff bills and conditional powers over trade and tariff.

February 8, 1935 - The constitutional convention approved the constitution.March 23 - President Roosevelt approved the constitution.May 14, 1935 - A pebliscite ratified the constitution ratified the constitution.September 1935 - Nacionalista Party won overwhelmingly over its rivals.November 15, 1935 - The commonwealth of the Philippines was inaugurated with Manuel L. Quezon as President and Sergio Osmeña as Vice-President, at a time when the Italians were bombing Ethiopia, the Japanese were invading China, and Hitler had risen to power with the Third Reich.- Manuel L. Quezon and Sergio Osmeña, along with 98 members of the unicameral National Assembly, was sworn into office amidst a crowd of about half a million people packed at the Sunken Garden.In Quezon’s iaugural address he predicted that the commonwealth’s life could be one “of hardships and sacrifices,” but he hoped this would not be the case.

THE SAKDAL UPRISING

May 2-3, 1935 - 65,000 partially armed peasants shattered the tranquility of the countryside surrounding Manila. Between sunset and sunrise, peasant bands seized 3 communities and threatened ten others in Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, and Cavite.

- Hard-pressed constabulary units from the provinces and Manila fought with Sakdalistas equipped with a motley array of weapons. There were persistent reports of an impending attack on Manila and recurrent and disturbing rumors of Japanese aircraft bringing in arms and ammunition for rebels.- Starting as anti-quezon, anti-nacionalista crusade, the Skdalistas’ fiery leader, Benigno Ramos, became the persecuted spokesman for the oppressed masses.

The Sakdalistas accused the Nacionalistas of hypocrisy on the issue of independence and promised that Ramos would acquire “complete and absolute” independence for the Philippines by December 31, 1935. The Sakdalistas also promised that the Sakdal party would abolish all taxes when it acquired control of the government. The Sakdalistas called for equal or common ownership of land and proclaimed that all large holdings would be divided and distributed to the poor. The Sakdalistas also attacked the religious orders for operating vast estates and amassing wealth “through dishonest means.” The Sakdal uprising demonstrated the extent of discontent in the provinces and the effectiveness of Sakdal appeal to address grievances which had plagued the common tao for generations. Movements led by self-styled messiahs, secret societies in the revolutionary tradition, and old organizations such as the pulanes and colorums erupted not only in Luzon but also in the Visayas and in Mindanao.

1923 - The colorums of Surigao.1927 - Florencio Intrencherado in the Visayas.1931 - The colorums in Tayug, Pangasinan.November 7, 1930 - The Communist Party of the Philippines was formally established.1930 - The Communist Party of the Philippines had been declared an illegal organization, thus ending the legal life of the CPP.Quezon’s primary concern as the first president of his country experimenting with a transition period of self-rule prior to complete independence in 1946, was to lay a secure foundation for a new Philippines. He sought the formulation of policies to ensure the security and well-being of all Filipinos, as well as the adjustment of the national economy to face the challenge of independence.

NATIONAL SECURITY AND NATIONAL DEFENSE

The National Assembly enacted Commonwealth Act No. 1 – The National Defense Act to underscore the urgency of providing an adequate defense system for an independent Philippines. To set up the Philippine defense

system President Quezon secured the services of General Douglas McArthur, retired Chief of Staff of the US Army, on whom he conferred the title of Field Marshal of the Philippine Army. The defense plan envisioned organization of a citizen army to consist of 2 components:1. A regular force of about 10,000 men, including the Philippine

Constabulary.2. A reserve force to number 400,000 by the end of the 10-year period

through a continuous program of training 21-year old able-bodied men for a period of 5 ½ months.

The preparatory military training (PMT) would be given in the elementary, high school and college levels to supplement the regular training program. The defense plan also included the establishment of a modest Philippine navy to consist of 50-100 torpedo boats to be used primarily for off-shore patrol. An Army Air Corps would be composed of a fleet of fast bomber planes. Budgetary Constraints and the urgency of other important concerns, such as education, health and public works, necessarily limited the capacity of General Mac Arthur to see his program through.