LESSON 6.docx

## LESSON 6: PHILIPPINES UNDER SPANISH Seeking more territories and subjects during the fifteenth century "Age of Discovery," primary Western powers sailed through oceans to tierras incognitas (uncharted lands). Through the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494, the Spanish thalassocracy circled farther we...

## LESSON 6: PHILIPPINES UNDER SPANISH Seeking more territories and subjects during the fifteenth century "Age of Discovery," primary Western powers sailed through oceans to tierras incognitas (uncharted lands). Through the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494, the Spanish thalassocracy circled farther west to arrive in the Philippines in 1521 and colonize it in 1565. Upon contact and establishment of colonial rule, differences between Spanish and Philippine races, cultures, and "ways of doing things" amplified. Samuel Tan framed Filipino responses to Spanish colonization as indios, inhabitants who were Christianized; Moros, those who were Islamized in the late fourteenth century; and Lumads, those neither of the two and were mostly able to retain their traditions as they chose to move away from Spanish reducciones. The Spanish drastically changed the political, economic, and socio-cultural landscape of the archipelago. ### In this lesson, we are going to get a glimpse of early Filipino culture upon the Spanish arrival through Juan de Plasencia's Customs of the Tagalogs, how the Spanish imposed economic institutions in the Philippines and how they controlled trade and commerce as recounted by Antonio de Morga in *Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas*, and realize how the Spanish expeditions attempted to colonize the Maguindanao and Sulu Sultanates through a letter of instruction to conquest. ### Juan de Plasencia's Customs of the Tagalog Upon the arrival of the Spaniards in 1521, colonization in 1565, and establishment by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the Manila area as the capital of the Spanish colony in the Philippines, the practical move was to study the subjects of this new colony. Hence, several Spanish writers wrote about the Filipinos during that mid-millennium. Foremost of them belonged to religious orders such as the Franciscan missionary Juan de Plasencia. This same priest authored the first book ever printed in the archipelago in 1593, the *Doctrina Cristiana*. He was known to have lived modestly and was concerned with the welfare of the Filipino, even suggesting that aside from the Christian doctrine, reading and writing Spanish should also be taught to Filipinos. Plasencia asserted that in the process of compiling the Customs, he had to "obtain the simple truth by weeding out much of the foolishness, in regard government, administration of justice, inheritances, slaves, and dowries." Plasencia's **Customs of the Tagalog** (1589) was the earliest descriptive written work on early Filipino society, giving us the witness view of our ancestors' customs and traditions. He used "Tagalog" because Tagalogs inhabited Manila, the established capital. His work had no particular order elaborating on certain aspects of early Filipino life. The socio-political structure of early Tagalogs, according to Plasencia, was led by revered chiefs referred to as *dato*, who served as war captains. They ruled as many as a hundred houses, a "tribal" gathering called a *barangay*. Plasencia also identified three "castes" or classes: the nobles or the *maharlica*; the commoners or the *aliping namamahay* who served their master; and the slaves called *aliping sa guiguilir* (saguiguilid) who also served their master, but they could be sold. We have to understand that Plasencia was writing from a Spaniard's view and assigned terms to the Filipinos that were otherwise actually foreign such as "knights" and "castes." Springing from the previous lesson on the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, we read that Plasencia also mentions in a frustrating voice his distress regarding: In what concerns loans, there was formerly, and is today, an excess of usury, which is a great hindrance to baptism as well as to confession; for it turns out in the same way as I have showed in the case of the one under judgment, who gives half of his cultivated lands and profits until he pays the debt. The debtor is condemned to a life of toil; and thus borrowers become slaves, and after the death of the father the children pay the debt. Not doing so, double the amount must be paid. This system should and can be reformed. Plasencia continues with paragraphs on marriage and constitution of the family, giving scenarios of couples who divorced and matters concerning inheritance and dowry. He also relates how disputes in the community were settled: Investigations made and sentences passed by the dato must take place in the presence of those of his barangay. If any of the litigants felt himself aggrieved, an arbiter was unanimously named from another village or barangay, whether he were a dato or not; since they had for this purpose some persons, known as fair and just men, who were said to give true judgment according to their customs. If the controversy lay between two chiefs, when they wished to avoid war, they also convoked judges to act as arbiters; they did the same if the disputants belonged to two different barangays. In this ceremony they always had to drink, the plaintiff inviting the others. Regarding the elaborate belief system of the Filipinos, Plasencia explained: In all the villages, or in other parts of the Filipinas Islands, there are no temples consecrated to the performing of sacrifices, the adoration of their idols, or the general practice of idolatry. It is true that they have the name *simbahan*, which means a temple or place of adoration; but this is because, formerly, when they wished to celebrate a festival, which they called *pandot*, or "worship," they celebrated it in the large house of a chief.... During this time the whole barangay, or family, united and joined in the worship which they call *nagaanitos*.... Among their many idols there was one called *Badhala*, whom they especially worshiped. The title seems to signify "all powerful," or "maker of all things." They also worshiped the sun, which, on account of its beauty, is almost universally respected and honored by heathens. They worshiped, too, the moon, especially when it was new, at which time they held great rejoicings, adoring it and bidding it welcome. Some of them also adored the stars, although they did not know them by their names, as the Spaniards and other nations know the planets-with the one exception of the morning star, which they called *Tala*. They knew, too, the "seven little goats" [the Pleiades] as we call them-and, consequently, the change of seasons, which they call *Mapolon*; and *Balatic*, which is our Greater Bear. They possessed many idols called *lic-ha*, which were images with different shapes; and at times they worshiped any little trifle, in which they adored. These infidels said that they knew that there was another life of rest which they called *maca*, just as if we should say "paradise," or, in other words, "village of rest." They say that those who go to this place are the just, and the valiant, and those who lived without doing harm, or who possessed other moral virtues. They said also that in the other life and mortality, there was a place of punishment, grief, and affliction, called *casanaan*, which was "a place of anguish;" they said that all the wicked went to that place, and there dwelt the demons, whom they called *sitan*. He closed his letter with the following: Others, perchance, may offer a more extended and narrative, but leaving aside irrelevant matters concerning government and justice among them, a summary of the whole truth is contained in the above. I am sending the account in this clear and concise form because I had received no orders to pursue the work further. Whatever may be decided upon, it is certainly important that it should be given to the alcaldes-mayor, accompanied by an explanation.... ### Analysis of the Customs of the Tagalogs The Spanish government commissioned Plasencia's work to identify the best strategy to organize their newly founded colony. Compared with the Chinese annals that spoke mostly of trade matters, the Spanish were more interested in the socio-political structure of the early Filipinos (whom they called indios). Although recognizing the datus, the Spanish looked at the structures as weak and segmented, reflecting other Southeast Asian forms of political organization based on alliance networks over territorial expansion. The title holds that Plasencia's work is a lengthy treatise on Tagalog customs covering several topics, from marriage to burial. It was evidence that the early Filipinos had a system of governance, customs, and beliefs. Notably, Plasencia narrated that Filipinos would enslave each other because of unpaid debts and how this created a slave status that is inherited by children unless the debt is paid. But he looked at these systems from the European perspective. For example, referring to Filipino astrology, he said, "they adore the stars although they don't know their names (only a few)." He labeled spiritual practitioners as "priests of the devil" to include the *catalonan*, *mangcocolam*, etc., but acknowledged that they did believe in a special being called *Badhala* and that there was an afterlife. His presentation of these both gives us a glimpse of but at the same time obscures us from understanding the true nature of these cultural practices. Through the centuries under Spanish rule, these practices were inherited, combining them with Catholic beliefs-labeled folk Catholicism. A simple example would be the crucifix being used by the Filipinos as a form of the indigenous concept of *anting-anting*. One of the most formative concepts that stemmed from Plasencia was the idea of the "barangay." An authority on pre-sixteenth century Philippines, William Henry Scott wrote that the word was misused to refer to the smallest social structure of the society as it merely meant a boat. But as the Spanish continued to write about the Filipinos, they replicated Plasencia's error. Plasencia, as well as those who succeeded him, may have chosen the wrong concept and construct, but more than a mistake, it was also an attempt to impose a Western structure to explain the Filipino political units. Scott said that in his studies, what appears to refer to early Filipino political structure was the word *bayan*. Unfortunately, Plasencia's work became the seed of scholarship on Filipino political structure that writers after him, whether Spanish, American, or Filipino, had enabled the concept of "barangay" to persist. The barangay is so embedded in Philippine history that probably all textbooks begin the discussion on pre-sixteenth century Philippines using this construct, a testimony to how the foreign lens or perspective shaped realities using misconstrued concepts in history. Imagine other indigenous concepts that had the same fate. Revisiting and reanalyzing primary sources allow us to contextualize the same concepts we use today. Ultimately, we have to understand that Plasencia's work was just a fraction of the whole and was not in any way representative of all the other indigenous peoples of the Philippine pre-sixteenth century. ### Antonio de Morga's *Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas* Antonio de Morga studied canon and civil law in Spain and was called to serve as assistant to the Governor-General in the Philippines in 1593, arriving in Manila in 1595. In 1598, he proposed and realized the reestablishment of the Audiencia, the highest tribunal in the colony, which he led until 1603 when he was reassigned to Mexico. It was in Mexico that he published his experiences and observations in *Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas* (Events in the Philippine Islands) in 1609. The book has eight chapters, the last of which talks lengthily about all his observations in the places that he had known. He mentioned foremost provinces in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, describing their location, trade products, flora and fauna, food, houses, clothing, weapons, and language, among others. Morga described in length the socio-cultural and political aspects of early Filipino society. He explained in this chapter the barangay and some of their justice system: There were no kings or lords throughout these islands who ruled over them as in the manner of our kingdoms and provinces.... Some chiefs had friendship and communication with others, and at times wars and quarrels. When some natives had suits or disputes with others over matters of property and interest, or over personal injuries and wrongs received, they appointed old men of the same district, to try them, the parties being present. If they had to present proofs, they brought their witnesses there, and the case was immediately judged according to what was found, according to the usages of their ancestors on like occasions; and that sentence was observed and executed without any further objection or delay. The natives' laws throughout the islands were made in the same manner, and they followed the traditions and customs of their ancestors, without anything being written. Some provinces had different customs than others in some respects. However, they agreed in most, and in all the islands generally the same usages were followed. He described the "natives throughout the islands can write excellently with certain characters, almost like the Greek or Arabic." He explained on chiefs, slaves marriage, inheritance, loans, crimes, religion, the coming of Islam, and the arrival of Spaniards and the foundation of Manila: The arrival of the Spaniards in these Filipinas Islands, since the year 1564, the pacification and conversion that has been made therein, their mode of governing, and the provisions of his Majesty during these years for their welfare, have caused innovations in many things, such as are usual to kingdoms and provinces that change their religion and sovereign. The foremost has been that, besides the name of Filipinas which all the islands took and received from the beginning of their conquest, they belong to a new kingdom and seigniory.... The city of Manila was founded by the adelantado Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, first governor of the Filipinas, in the island of Luzon. It occupies the same site where Rajamora had his settlement and fort... The whole site was occupied by this new settlement, and Legazpi apportioned it to the Spaniards in equal building-lots. It was laid out with well-arranged streets and squares, straight and level. A sufficiently large main square [Plaza mayor] was left, fronting which were erected the cathedral church and municipal buildings. He left another square, that of arms [Plaza de armas], fronting which was built the fort, as well as the royal buildings. He gave sites for the monasteries, hospital, and chapels which were to be built, as being a city which was to grow and increase continually as already it has done; for, in the course of the time that has passed, that city has flourished as much as the best of all the cities in those regions. He also described with pride this new settlement of handsome edifices and passageways and that all vessels sail from Manila. He explained the new political arrangement under the Spanish: The chiefs, who formerly held the other natives in subjection, now have no power over them in the tyrannical manner of former days. This was not the least benefit received by these natives in having been freed from such servitude. However, it is true that matters touching the slavery of former days have remained on the same footing as before. The king our sovereign has ordered by his decrees that the honors of the chiefs be preserved to them as such; and that the other natives recognize them and assist them with certain of the labors that they used to give when pagans. This is done with the lords and possessors of barangays, and those belonging to such and such a barangay are under that chief's control. When he harvests his rice, they go one day to help him; and the same if he builds a house, or rebuilds one. This chief lord of a barangay collects tribute from his adherents, and takes charge of these collections, to pay them to the encomendero. The datus became the *cabezas de barangay* whose job is to collect taxes to be paid to the encomendero, a Spaniard who helped colonize the Philippines. The Filipinos paid the tribute in kind-gold, cloth, cotton, rice, bells, fowls, and what they may have or their harvests. Aside from the introduction of the tax or tributo, several economic policies were imposed by the Spanish to seize control of trade and commerce in the Philippines aggressively: The natives of these islands have also their personal services, which they are obliged to render-in some parts more than in others to the Spaniards. These are done in different ways, and are commonly called the polo. For, where there are alcaldes-mayor and justices, they assign and distribute certain natives by the week for the service of their houses. They pay these servants a moderate wage, which generally amounts to one-fourth real per day, and rice for their food. The same is done by the religious for the mission, and for their monasteries and churches, and for their works, and for public works The Indians also furnish rice, and food of all kinds, at the prices at which they are valued and sold among the natives. These prices are always very moderate. The datos, vilangos, and fiscals make the division, collect, and take these supplies from the natives; and in the same manner they supply their encomenderos when these go to make the collections The greatest service rendered by these natives is on occasions of war, when they act as rowers and crews for the vireys and vessels that go on the expeditions, and as pioneers for any service that arises in the course of the war, although their pay and wages are given them. In the same way natives are assigned and apportioned for the king's works, such as the building of ships, the cutting of wood, the trade of making the rigging, the work in the artillery foundry, and the service in the royal magazines, and they are paid their stipend and daily wage In other things pertaining to the service of the Spaniards and their expeditions, works, and any other service, performed by the natives, the service is voluntary, and paid by mutual agreement...; for, as hitherto, the Spaniards have worked no mines, nor have they given themselves to the gains to be derived from field labors, there is no occasion for employing the natives in anything of that sort. Early descriptions of the Filipinos reflected sizable gold ornaments that became one of the purposes of the Spanish colonization of the Philippines. But the coastal areas that became Hispanized cities were not anywhere near gold mines. So, the Spanish instituted the tax to fill the government coffers and the polo to build the government political and economic structures. A priority production was shipbuilding, as the Spaniards took advantage not just of skilled builders but also seafarers, and the Manila galleons were used for the lucrative galleon trade between Manila and Acapulco. The trade involved large sea vessels that carry a variety of merchandise to be sold in Nueva España (Mexico) which was then the viceroyalty of Spain: In the vessels and fleets of large vessels for the Nueva España line, the ships that are sent carry a general, admiral, masters, boatswains, commissaries, stewards, alguacils, sergeants of marine artillery [condestables], artilleryment, sailors, pilots and their assistants, common seamen, carpenters, calkers, and coopers, all in his Majesty's pay, on the account of Nueva España, from whose royal treasury they are paid. All that is necessary for this navigation is supplied there. Their provisions and appointments are made by the viceroy; and this has hitherto pertained to him, even though the ships may have been constructed in the Filipinas. They sail thence with their cargo of merchandise for Nueva España, and return thence to the Filipinas with the reinforcements of soldiers and supplies, and whatever else is necessary for the camp, besides passengers and religious, and the money proceeding from the investments and merchandise. The merchants and businessmen form the bulk of the residents of the islands, because of the great amount of merchandise brought there outside of native products-from China, Japon, Maluco, Malaca, Sian, Camboja, Borneo, and other districts. They invest in this merchandise and export it annually in the vessels that sail to Nueva España, and at times to Japon, where great profits are made from raw silk. Thence on the return to Manila are brought the proceeds, which hitherto have resulted in large and splendid profits. A considerable number of somas and junks (which are large vessels) generally come from Great China to Manila, laden with merchandise. Every year thirty or even forty ships are wont to come, and although they do not come together, in the form of a trading and war fleet, still they do come in groups with the monsoon and settled weather, which is generally at the new moon in March. They belong to the provinces of Canton, Chincheo, and Ucheo [Fo-Kien], and sail from those provinces. They make their voyage to the city of Manila in fifteen or twenty days, sell their merchandise, and return in good season... The merchandise that they generally bring and sell to the Spaniards consists of raw silk in bundles, of the fineness of two strands [dos cabecas], and other silk of poorer quality; fine untwisted silk, white and of all colors, wound in small skeins; quantities of velvets, some plain, and some embroidered in all sorts of figures, colors, and fashions others with body of gold, and embroidered with gold; woven stuffs and brocades, of gold and silver upon silk of various colors and patterns; quantities of gold and silver thread in skeins over thread and silk-but the glitter of all the gold and silver is false, and only on paper; damasks, satins, taffetans, gorvaranes, picotes, and other cloths of all colors, some finer and better than others; a quantity of linen made from grass, called lencesuelo [handkerchief, made from piña cloth]; and white cotton cloth of different kinds and qualities, for all uses. As soon as the ship reaches the mouth of the bay of Manila, the watchman stationed at the island of Miraveles goes out to it in a light vessel. Having examined the ship When the vessel has arrived and anchored, the royal officials go to inspect it and the register of the merchandise aboard it. At the same time the valuation of the cargo is made according to law, of what it is worth in Manila; for the vessel immediately pays three per cent on everything to his Majesty. After the register has been inspected and the valuation made, then the merchandise is immediately unloaded by another official into champans, and taken to the Parian, or to other houses and magazines, outside of the city. There the goods are freely sold. In these classes of merchandise, and in the products of the islands-namely, gold, cotton cloth, mendrinaque, and cakes of white and yellow wax-do the Spaniards effect their purchases, investments, and exports for Nueva España They value and register these goods, for they pay into the royal treasury of Manila, before the voyage, the two per cent royal duties on exports, besides the freight charges of the vessel, which amount to forty Castilian ducados per tonelada. This latter is paid at the port of Acapulco in Nueva España, into the royal treasury of the said port, in addition to the ten per cent duties for entrance and first sale in Nueva España. ### The trans-Pacific trade was profitable enough that the Spanish sought more goods abundant in Ternate of the Moluccas area: They found Governor Don Pedro de Acuña in Manila, and presented the matter to him, making use of the Audiencia and of the orders, and making many boasts of the Portuguese fleet and the illustrious men who were in it, and of the valor and renown of its general in whatever he undertook. They asserted at the same time the success of the capture of Terrenate at that time, especially if they received from Manila the succor and help for which they had come, and which, in justice, should be given them, as it was given from the Filipinas whenever the king of Tidore and the chief captain of that fort requested it, and as his Majesty had ordered and with more good reason and foundation on such an occasion. Morga described some of the Philippine islands that have gold (and other commodities) that the Spaniards wanted to extract and sell: All these islands are, in many districts, rich in placers and mines of gold, a metal which the native dig and work. However, since the advent of the Spaniards in the land, the natives proceed more slowly in this, and content themselves with what they already possess in jewels and gold ingots, handed down from antiquity and inherited from their ancestors. This is considerable, for he must be poor and wretched who has no gold chains, calombigas [bracelets], and earrings Some placers and mines were worked at Paracali in the province of Camarines, where there is good gold mixed with copper. This commodity is also traded in the Ylocos.... On the slopes of these mountains, in the interior, live many natives, as yet unsubdued, and among whom no incursion has been made, who are called Ygolotes. These natives possess rich mines, many of gold and silver mixed There are also many gold mines and placers in the other islands, especially among the Pintados, on the Botuan River in Mindanao, and in Sebu, where a mine of good gold is. Quite near this large island of Luzon, many other islands, large and small, are located; they are inhabited by the same natives as Luzon, who have gold placers, sowed fields, and their trading. Such are Marinduque, Tablas Island, Mazbate, Burias, Banton, Bantonillo, and others of less importance. The nearest of them to Manila is the island of Mindoro.... All of the settlements abound in rice, food, and gold-placers, and all kinds of game and timber. Morga also elaborated on the economic activities in the Philippines and how Spain's revenue from the Philippines is low, compared to its other colonies: Consequently, since his Majesty's revenues in these islands are so limited and his expenses so great, the royal treasury falls short, and suffers poverty and need.... Consequently, the king our sovereign derives as yet no profit from any revenues of the Filipinas, but rather an expenditure, by no means small, from his revenues in Nueva España. He sustains the Filipinas only for the Christianization and conversion of the natives, and for the hopes of greater fruits in other kingdoms and provinces of Asia, which are expected through this gateway, at God's good pleasure. ### Analysis of the Spanish Source and Filipino Annotation Being the auditor of the Audiencia and having taken part in the galleon trade, Morga became an actor in that historical era of the beginnings of globalization through the trans-Pacific exchange of goods between Manila and Acapulco. He observes and writes about the many Philippine islands and other Asian products that are loaded in galleons at Manila to be sold in Mexico. From his writings, we deduce the monetary and labor costs that built this trade to the benefit only of the merchants and Spanish government. Reading through the Sucesos, we see a shift in political, economic, and cultural practices of the Filipinos-datus became cabezas de barangay, taxes and forced labor replaced communal production of basic needs, and the Christian doctrine was adopted by the Filipinos who believed in anitos and nature spirits. These brought about creolization or a group of people who blended elements of different cultures that eventually became the norm and inherited by succeeding generations. The Spanish arrival can be seen as an interruption to the trade relations that had been flourishing in Southeast Asia in the pre-sixteenth century. The choice by Legazpi to establish Manila as the colonial capital spelled out how much the Spanish aimed to take over and immensely profit from this trade. Not only did they take over the trade, but they also established a steady source of income through the tax and labor through the polo by which they were able to build and man the galleons. They sourced merchandise from neighboring lands like China, Japan, Borneo, and Indonesia, assembled these goods, loaded them in galleons at Manila, and sailed to Mexico to sell the products there. This galleon trade was the beginning of more extensive trade between continents, the precursor of global trade where Manila was at the center of not only the exchange of goods, but also of meeting peoples and ideas. Morga's Sucesos is a significant source on Philippine history as it described Philippine life and society at the turn of the seventeenth century. Morga's Sucesos was probably the earliest historically grounded work relating to the events that occurred in the Philippines as well as those he was able to observe. His work touched on the political, social, and cultural aspects of the Filipinos, providing an extensive depiction of life at the turn of the seventeenth century. Even Jose Rizal took an interest in Morga's work when he annotated it in 1890 at the British Library and Museum. Rizal's annotations exposed the Western bias employed by Morga in looking at the Filipinos. Nonetheless, Rizal praised Morga's work. It was a primary historical account written by a layman, who Rizal deemed more objective. ### Francisco de Sande's Letter to Estevan Rodriguez de Figueroa Early Spanish texts in the Philippines always recounted the presence of what they called "Moros" in the islands. Most describe not only the Moro people (sometimes called Mahometan), but also their religion as unfavorable and that the Spanish arrival stopped the spread of Islam. It must be noted, however, that these Moros were indigenous inhabitants who adopted the religion of Islam, which flourished and arrived in the Philippines by way of trade in the fourteenth century. Since the Spanish had the most challenging time in subduing Mindanao, the foreigner almost made their mantra the promise to crush these Moros of the south throughout their 333 years in the country. Some Spanish successes were won, but mostly the victories belonged to the skilled Moro fighters in defending their lands and belief. Primary sources on the Moros have not been explored much as there are also problems of accessibility. But there are enough to get a glimpse of at least bits of their story in mainstream Philippine history. The Spanish were determined to subdue Jolo and Mindanao for their strategic location for trade as well as natural materials that could be developed to become expensive trade products. The following is a letter from Governor Sande instructing Captain Figueroa to subdue the islands of Jolo, an island known for extraordinary pearls, dated 23 May 1578. I certify thereto: That which you, Captain Estevan Rodriguez de Figueroa shall observe on the expedition which you are about to make, God our Lord helping, is as follows: ...you shall go to the islands of Xolo (Sulu), where you shall endeavor to reduce that chief and his people to the obedience of his Majesty. You shall bargain with them as to what tribute they shall pay, which shall be in pearls, as they are wont to give to the king of Borney. You shall exercise great care and, if possible, much mildness; for it is of importance that those islands should not become depopulated; therefore, in case they receive you peaceably, you shall treat them well. And, in addition to the above, you must order that, besides the tribute that they are to pay in pearls, they shall obtain as many of them as possible, so that we, the Spaniards or Castilians, may buy them; that they must trade with us from now on; that every year Castilians will go to their lands with cloths and merchandise from China, of whatever they shall declare that they may need. You shall inform yourself of their needs; and if they wish to come to our settlements you shall give them permission to go freely to Manila and to come to Borney, although not to steal. You shall keep close watch over the artillery, ammunition, vessels, sails, and other like things pertaining to the armed fleet; and you shall deprive them of those supplies, for it is notorious that those people are common marauders. And, as I have said, this must be done if possible gently, in order that no people may be killed. You shall tell them that it will be to their advantage to be vassals of his Majesty, and our allies. If they do not act respectfully, and it shall be necessary to punish them in another manner, you shall do so. And inasmuch as the Joloans, as is well known, are open pirates, whose only ambition is to steal, and to assault men in order to sell them elsewhere especially as they go annually for plunder among all the Pintados Islands, which are under his Majesty's dominion-you shall try to ascertain the Pintados slaves among them, in order to return such to their homes, especially those who are Christians... and you shall command them expressly to settle down in their land, to cultivate, sow, and harvest, develop the pearl industry, and cease to be pirates ates. You shall order them to raise fowls and cattle. You shall try to ascertain their number, and bring it to me in writing, in order that I may see it, together with the distance from these islands to the Jolo Islands, information regarding the food, water, and healthfulness of that land, and other things that may occur to you... After having finished affairs in Xolo, if time permits you shall, God willing, go to the island of Mindanao. There you shall try, by the most convenient methods and with friendliness, to reduce the chief of the river of Bindinao, and the other chiefs of that island, and of those nearby, to the obedience of his Majesty-giving him to understand what they will gain in becoming his Majesty's vassals and our allies, and in having trade with us. You shall also tell them that the gain therefrom affects them chiefly, since we come to teach them our civilization, and most of all the service of God, our Lord, who created and redeemed them, and of whom they are ignorant; and how to live in accord with natural law, as is their obligation. For this purpose you shall tell them that you are going to their land for two principal reasons. The first is that they should cease to be pirates... and that they must cease to commit other like cruelties and thefts, and must become good and virtuous men You shall give them to understand that they are ignorant of God, our Lord, who created and redeemed them, so that when they know him they may serve him and become good.... Item: You shall order them not to admit any more preachers of the doctrine of Mahoma (Mohammed), since it is evil and false, and that of the Christians alone is good.... Item: You shall order that the Indians shall not go outside of their island to trade; and you shall seize those vessels used for plundering excursions, leaving them those used for trade and fishing. You shall take also what artillery and ammunition they have. You shall ascertain the harvest, seasons, and products of the land; the gold mines, and the places where they wash gold; the number of inhabitants, and their settlements; and their customs.... In order that we may allot in encomiendas whatever people are found in these districts, you shall bring me a signed notarial writ. Thus, as those lands have no other owner, the natives thereof may be reduced to the obedience of his Majesty, according to his will-and by war, if the natives begin it, so that war on our part may be just, and that the same justice may continue, so that we can compel them to obey, and impose tributes upon them. You shall exercise much diligence in this and see to it that these orders be carried out carefully and intelligently. If the natives of Mindanao or of any other place shall give tribute according to the above, you shall act according to the usual custom in these islands- namely, you shall take one-half and place it to the account of his Majesty, while the other half shall be distributed among the soldiers. ### Analysis of the Letter The purpose of Governor-General Sande was to further the Spanish hold into Mindanao for potential revenues to add to Spanish coffers. Through the centuries, the Spaniards sustained efforts and resources to colonize the Moros. The letter in 1578 was just seven years after they established Manila as the colonial capital, knowing that Philippine's gateway to the Southeast Asian neighbors was Jolo. But as readers of the letter, we must read between the lines and look at the bigger scenario. The first thing to ask is, what was the mandate of the Spaniards in colonizing Mindanao? In the letter, Sande spells out that the Moros' belief (Islam) is evil, and Christianity alone is good. Thus, the Spaniards had the moral ascendancy to stop the spread of Islam and convert the inhabitants to Christianity. The problem with this kind of "othering" is that it becomes a basis for justified acts for both sides, thinking that each one is serving a higher purpose; notice that the letter begins and ends with this purpose. Although the letter instructs "great care, mildness" or gentleness, the Spanish expeditions against the Moros were brutal. Reading carefully, we see that the Spanish goal was mainly economic: to collect taxes from Jolo, to make them cultivate their lands and produce raw materials, to make them more serious in diving for pearls and selling those to the Spaniards, that they should not trade with neighboring countries but only with the Spaniards. The Spaniards would later send more expeditions to Mindanao. The Corcuera expedition in the 1630s was the first of many small advancements made by the Spaniards. In 1635, they built the Fort Pilar in Zamboanga, originally Real Fuerza de San José, which became the first Spanish hold in Mindanao. From there, they attacked other areas, especially Sulu and Maguindanao. Governor- General Corcuera even had Visayan reinforcements to help attack Jolo and later other parts of Mindanao. Toward the turn of the seventeenth century, when the Spanish had most coastal settlements in Luzon and Visayas under the colonial government, they used Filipino men and resources to subdue Mindanao. The Moros would fight back as bravely as the Spaniards attacked to defend their right to their lands, belief, property, lives, and freedom. This defense would come in many forms through centuries that would be labeled as the "Moro Wars"-leaving behind a lasting split between the Christianized and the Islamized peoples of the archipelago.