A Brief History of the Philippines

How has power been distributed, shared and limited in the Philippines?

Ancient times
At least 30,000 years ago, settlers started arriving from what is now

Indonesia and Malaysia.

They were followed by waves of Chinese traders from the north,

some of whom also settled.

A tribal social hierarchy developed: 1. Datu (chief) 2. Nobles 3. Freemen 4. Poor Farmers 5. Slaves
Fun Fact: The word barangay comes from the Malay word for

boat.

Islamic influence
Muslim traders introduced Islam to the southern islands in

the late-1200s and early-1300s.

Many Filipinos converted from their tribal religions to Islam.

Islam also influenced architecture, law and government.

By 1500s, Islam had spread north to Manila, but by then, a

new group was ready to take power

The Spaniards arrive

In 1521, Ferdinand Magellan arrived near what is now Cebu and

claimed the Philippines for Spain.

He was promptly killed by a local chief (named Lapu-Lapu)

interrupting the first round-the-world journey (later completed by his shipmates).

The Spanish kept coming and established the first permanent

settlement in Cebu in 1565.

In 1571, they overthrew the Muslim ruler and set up their capital in

Manila.
Fun Fact: The Philippines is named after King Philip II of Spain.

Spanish influence
Catholicism with a capital C
Language, architecture and other aspects of culture Using the traditional hierarchy, Spaniards got local leaders to

rule for them.

Muslims and indigenous people (e.g., Aetas, Mangyan)

marginalized

Fun Fact: The Spanish term for Muslim was Moro

Brief British occupation

During the Seven Years War (1756-63), the British East India

Company captured Manila.

The British occupation gave resistance groups the

opportunity to organize. Examples:

The Chinese community, upset with the way they were treated

by the Spaniards, became allied with the British Moros from the south pushed north while the Spanish were busy fighting the Brits.
After the war, Spain got the Philippines back, but they

instituted some reforms and reduced exploitation.

Rise of nationalism
In the late 1800s, a new class of educated Filipinos began to

call for independence. Some key figures:

Jose Rizal: a poet, physician, scientist, and writer. He led a

nonviolent movement for independence. His books were banned and he was eventually tried and executed for his role in the unrest. Andres Bonifacio founded Katipunan, a more military-minded group of revolutionaries. He led a revolt in 1896. Emilio Aguinaldo was president of the rebel group. After the Spanish defeated the rebels, he was exiled to Hong Kong, but dont worry, he returns to the story later

American rule
In 1898, the Spanish-American war broke out. The war was

initially over Cuba, but the US attacked Manila.

Aguinaldo returned from his vaca in HK and helped the

Americans take Spain having been promised independence by the US.

However, even as the war was ending, Filipinos and

Americans began struggling for control. Aguinaldo was declared president by the Filipino revolutionaries, but the Treaty of Paris (which ended the Span-Am War) gave control to the US. Aguinaldo was eventually jailed and the US ruled until World War II.

WWII and Japanese occupation

Although the US had forcefully gained control of the

Philippines, they began working with Filipinos on a transition to independence.

In 1934 they became a Commonwealth (a territory with some

independence) and Manual Quezon was elected the first president.

In late 1941, Japan invaded the Philippines and took Manila

from the Americans.

Famously, MacArthur returned in 1945 to retake the

Philippines.

Independence
A year later (1946), the Philippines was granted full

sovereignty and Manuel Roxas was elected the first president.

Thats when the real fun began.

To be continued