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Geography
The city of Manila is located on the west coast of the Philippine main island of Luzon and surrounded by fertile plains. The city straddles at the delta of the Pasig river, a short navigable stream that connects the fresh water lake of Laguna de Bay with Manila Bay and the South China Sea. It occupies a total land area of 38.3 square kilometers.
Population:
The total population is
12,000,000
Political Subdivision
The city is composed of 897
Barangays (Districts) which are subdivided into six Congressional Districts. It has been classified as:
HUC (Highly Urbanized City).
Pre
20th Century History
Little
is known of the society and
history of the Philippines prior
to the arrival of Europeans.
Archaeological evidence shows a
rich pre-colonial culture
dominated by trade with Asian
neighbours and with the powerful
Hindu empires in Java and Sumatra.
Trade ties with China were
extensive by the 10th century,
while contact with Arab traders
reached its peak about the 12th
century. By the time the Spaniards
arrived in the 16th century, Islam
was well established in many parts
of the island group.
Upon
arrival, the Spanish really went
out of their way to make their
presence felt. They attempted
(with reasonable success) to
totally eradicate the terrible
'pagan' Filipino society. It
wasn't all sangria and skittles,
however, as the first attempt at
colonisation ended with the swift
death of explorer Ferdinand
Magellan in 1521. The Spanish
grabbed what they could and
high-tailed it out of there. Over
40 years later, with the Magellan
incident just a bad memory, Spain
headed in again. In 1565 Miguel de
Legaspi made a more determined -
and more successful - entry to the
country on Cebu Island. Six years
and innumerable skirmishes later,
the Spaniards shifted base to
Manila.
It
is thought that the port of
Manila, at the mouth of the Pasig
River, was founded around the 12th
century. The area along the river
was by this stage already the site
of exchange between local, Chinese
and Arab traders. When Legaspi's
Spaniards arrived, trade along the
river was being controlled by a
local leader named Sulayman. He
evidently wasn't too happy about
the arrival of the Europeans,
torching everything in sight
before fleeing to Tondo, across
the river, to prepare a fighting
force. The Battle of Bangkusay
Channel on 3 June 1571 was
fiercely fought, but the
defenders' spears and arrows were
no match for Castilian muskets and
cannons. Sulayman fell in combat
and his death marked the beginning
of Spain's 327-year rule. Right
after the Battle of Bangkusay
Channel, Legaspi set about
building Spanish Manila and
spreading the Good News - and
feudalism - far and wide. During
the first two centuries of their
occupation, trade was still the
priority, with the Spaniards using
the Philippines mainly as a
connecting point for their
China-Acapulco (Mexico) trade
route.
With
defeats in Europe adding to the
decline in Spanish power, the
Philippines became politically
unstable through the 18th and 19th
centuries. The 1896 execution of
Jose Rizal - a noted scholar,
doctor and passive supporter of
independence - sparked a huge
revolt that destabilised the
Spanish even further. The
Americans went to war with Spain
two years later, and Spanish rule
in the Philippines ended abruptly.
Modern
History
The
Americans took over from the
Spanish in 1899, using it as their
base for a newer form of cultural
imperialism - or 'tutelage' as
they quaintly called it. The
Philippines was quickly re-modelled
in America's own image. The
islands were occupied by the
Japanese throughout WWII, but at
the end of the war - with the
American presence re-established -
independence was granted.
Although
the Americans were more
enlightened than their Spanish
predecessors, there was still
considerable resistance to their
active presence in the country.
When independence was attained the
US imposed certain conditions,
including the establishment of
US-style political parties, the
retention of US military bases and
the signing of economic agreements
allowing the US continued control
over the Philippines economy.
The
Philippines obtained independence
from the U.S.A. becoming an
independent nation with Pres.
Manuel L. Quezon its first
president. Courtesy: LonelyPlanet.com
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