5 Historic Lies You Were Taught In School

We’ve all heard about history textbooks in public schools being rife with typographical
errors and grammar mistakes. But that pales in comparison with historical myths that
have been taught in primary schools as if they actually existed.

Calling them  ‘historical lies’ may be a bit too harsh, but I can’t think of any word to
describe seemingly historical errors that have been blown out of proportion.
Perhaps you still believe them. Or maybe your old elementary teacher still does. Either
way, it’s time to separate myth from fact once and for all.

Here are 5 of the most ridiculous Philippine historical myths you thought were true:
 

1. Ferdinand Magellan was the first person to

circumnavigate the world

Ferdinand Magellan (1480 – 1521)

 

The story you heard:

After conquering Malacca, Sumatra in 1511, Portuguese explorer Fernão de Magalhães
(Anglicized as Ferdinand Magellan) once again reached Southeast Asia in 1521 in
search of the Maluku (Spice Islands). And that made him the first person to travel
around the world. Or so we thought.

The truth:
We all know that after intervening in the conflict between Raja Humabon and Lapu
Lapu, Magellan was butchered to death by the latter and didn’t live to be the “first
person to circumnavigate the world”. Now, if Magellan was not the first person to
circumnavigate the world, who did?
Historical evidences show us two stronger candidates: Sebastian Elcano and Magellan’s
nameless slave-cum-interpreter who was later baptized as  Enrique de Malacca, or
“Henry of Malacca.”
Obviously, Elcano was the one who got the fame and fortune. Recognized by King
Charles I as the first person to circle the Earth, Elcano received a yearly pension as well
as a coat of arms featuring a globe that has the Latin inscription Primus circumdedisti
me  or “you went around me first.”
However, several historians argue that if Enrique, Magellan’s slave, originally came
from Sumatra as what records show, then he would have already circumnavigated the
world by the time the Portuguese fleet reached the Philippine shores.

Magellan’s last will indicated that Enrique was bought from Malacca and reportedly
spoke the Malay language, making him an invaluable part of Magellan’s journey to the
Southeast.

On the other hand, the expedition’s chronicler, Antonio Pigafetta, wrote that Enrique
was actually a native of Sumatra. Another witness, Gines de Mafra, also proved that
Enrique indeed spoke Malay to the Filipino islanders–a claim which led to a theory that
the first person who circled the world could actually be a Filipino.

However, it’s interesting to note that at that time, Malay was a common language of
trade in most Southeast Asia, and not a dialect exclusive to the Philippines.

After Magellan’s death, Enrique remained in the Philippines after a conflict between him
and the new leaders of the voyage. Whether or not he returned to his hometown–which
would only take roughly two months of island-hopping–is still unverified.
But if he was able to return to Sumatra less than 15 months before Pigafetta and other
expedition survivors reached Spain, then Enrique is undoubtedly the first person to
travel around the world.
 

2. Princess Urduja and the legendary kingdom

ofTawalisi

A portrait of Princess Urduja (Source: Jaime Carlos de Veyra. 1951. Quien fue Urduja? un ser mitologico:
estudio historico. manila: Nueva Eva Press)
 

The story you heard:

Urduja (ca. 1350–1400 AD) is a legendary princess who first appeared in the
book Rihlah(Travels) by Ibn Batuta (1304 – 1378), an Arab traveler who was also a
contemporary of Marco Polo.
According to his accounts, he reached the land of Tawalisi (present-day
Pangasinan) after 71 days in the sea and while on his way to China. In this island
kingdom, Ibn Batuta allegedly met a brave amazon named Urduja who would only
marry the man who could beat her in fistfights.
Legend has it that the warrior princess later prepared a lavish banquet for Ibn Batuta
and even gave him gifts of a lifetime which included silk, expensive spices, buffaloes ,
truckloads of rice and sheep among others.

The truth:
Although the story of Urduja was commonly featured in comics, movies, TV shows and
even history books, several scholars declared Urduja as a myth and her story a
mere“illusory creation.”
Aside from the lack of archaeological evidence to prove the existence of Urduja’s Shri-
Visayan Empire, scholars also failed to discover any reference to Urduja in Spanish
documents that chronicled the pre-Hispanic Philippines. In fact, Urduja never appeared
in the Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas (1609) of Antonio de Morga, considered by many–
Rizal included–as the most reliable source of pre-Hispanic accounts.
Dr. Rosario Cortes, a UP professor who was also the first person to write a
comprehensive history of Pangasinan, concluded that Urduja’s story is more of a
“fakelore” than history. Although he translated Ibn Batuta’s account from Arabic to
English, Professor Charles Beckingham of London University described the story as too
far from being “a genuine account of real journeys.”
 

3. Fernando Poe Sr. served as a model for the

U.P. Oblation
 

The story you heard: 

The Oblation (or “Pahinungod” in Filipino) is a concrete statue that has become the
iconic symbol of the University of the Philippines and the promise of its students to
offer themselves to the country.
Measuring 3.5 meters in height, the original Oblation statue was first conceived during
Rafael Palma’s presidency. It is said that Palma commissioned National Artist
Guillermo Tolentino, then a professor at the UP School of Fine Arts, to complete the
project.
Tolentino allegedly convinced the late actor Fernando Poe Sr., who was a UP student at
that time, to model for the Oblation. Soon, people started to believe that FPJ’s late
father was indeed the man behind University of the Philippines’ famous sculpture.

The truth:
University literature, specifically the book by the late UP Diliman College of Fine Arts
Professor Rodolfo Paras-Perez, revealed that it was not Fernando Poe Sr. who
inspired the Oblation.
More surprising is the fact that not only one but two people actually modeled for the
iconic statue: Anastacio Caedo, Tolentino’s student and assistant, and Virgilio
Raymundo, Caedo’s brother-in-law. To create the Oblation, Tolentino used Caedo’s
physique and Raymundo’s proportion.
 
4. The first blood compact was between Rajah
Sikatuna and Miguel López de Legazpi

“El Pacto de Sangre” by Juan Luna (1886) shows the blood compact between Rajah Sikatuna of Bohol and
Miguel López de Legazpi.
 

The story you heard:

The first treaty between the Philippines and another country happened on  March 16,
1565 when Rajah Sikatuna made a blood compact (“Sanduguan”) with Miguel López de
Legazpi in the presence of other conquistadors.
In honor of this landmark event, The Order of Sikatuna was created in 1953 by
Executive Order No. 571 signed by Pres. Elpidio Quirino. A monument in Tagbilaran
City, Bohol named “The Sandugo Blood Compact Site” was also built to commemorate
the said historic pact.
 

The truth:
Although largely believed as true, the blood compact between Miguel López de Legazpi
and Rajah Sikatuna was not the first in the country. The notion that it was the first
treaty was soon refuted by the accounts of Antonio Pigafetta, an Italian chronicler who
joined Magellan in his bloody voyage.

If we are going to believe Pigafetta, the first blood compact was actually

between Raia Siaiu, king of Mazaua, and Ferdinand Magellan. This event
happened on March 28, 1521 or almost 44 years before the event depicted in Juan
Luna’s famous painting (see photo above).
The first recorded treaty between Philippines and a foreign country, on the other hand,
was between Magellan and Rajah Humabon’s nephew who was assisted by Raia Siaiu
and 11 other men. The historic event happened on Tuesday,  April 9, 1521.
 

5. Datu Puti and the legend of The Ten Bornean

Datus

“Arrival of the 10 Bornean datus” by Ilonggo historical painter Art Geroche (source: www.thenewstoday.info)
 

The story you heard:

According to a prehistoric document we now know as Maragtas, ten Bornean datus led
byDatu Puti left their kingdom around 1250 A.D. to escape the wrath of their heartless
ruler, Sultan Makatunaw.
Legend has it that the ten Bornean datus landed in the island of Panay, then inhabited
by the Atis  governed by a king named Marikudo. Although the natives initially
suspected them of evil intention, the Bornean datus eventually bought the lowlands
in exchange for a gold saduk or salakot (native hat) and a gold necklace for Queen
Maningwantiwan.
In the end, Datu Puti returned to Borneo while Datus Dumangsil and Balensusa settled
with their families in the northern regions of Luzon, now known as Laguna and Bicol
Peninsula.

The other seven datus, on the other hand, remained in Panay and eventually divided
the island into three regions. One of these datus was Datu Sumakwel who led the
formation of a political organization called Confederation of Madjaas as well as a body
of laws known as Maragtas.

The Maragtas Code was previously known as the “oldest known written body of
laws in the Philippines”, predating Code of Kalantiaw which was officially declared
by the National Historical Commission as a hoax.

The truth:
In his doctoral dissertation at UST, William Henry Scott (the same person who
disproved the Code of Kalantiaw) revealed that Maragtas is not a actual prehistoric
source. Instead, it is just a book written by a historian in Panay named Pedro
Monteclaro.
The author himself noted that his manuscripts were “rotten and hardly legible”. The
book’s publisher, on the other hand, noted in 1907 that Maragtas should never be
considered as facts.