Everything about Miguel L Pez De Legazpi totally explained
Miguel López de Legazpi (
1502 -
August 20,
1572,
Manila), also known as
El Adelantado (The Governor) and
El Viejo (The Elder), was a
Spanish conquistador who established the first colony in the
Philippine Islands in 1565.
Early years
Born in 1502, Miguel López de Legazpi was the youngest son of Don Juan Martínez López de Legazpi and Elvira de Gurruchátegui. He was born to a
noble family and lived in the small town of
Zumárraga, in the
Basque province of
Guipúzcoa in
Spain.
Between 1526 and 1527, López de Legazpi worked as a councilor in the municipal government of his home town. In 1528, after
Hernán Cortés had established settlements in Mexico, López de Legazpi went to
Mexico (
New Spain) to start a new life. This was due to the death of his parents and his dissatisfaction with his eldest sibling, who inherited all of the family fortune. In
Tlaxcala, he worked with Juan Garcés and Juan's sister, Isabel Garcés. López de Legazpi would go on to marry Isabel and have nine children with her. Isabel died in the mid
1550s.
Between the periods of 1528 and 1559, he worked as a leader of the financial department council and as the civil governor of
Mexico City. He was later commissioned by the viceroy,
Luis de Velasco, in early 1564, to lead an expedition in the Pacific Ocean, to find the
Spice Islands where the previous explorers
Ferdinand Magellan and
Ruy López de Villalobos had landed in 1521 and 1543, respectively. The expedition was ordered by
King Philip II, after whom the islands were eventually named. The viceroy died in July of that year, but the
Audiencia and Legazpi completed the preparations for the expedition. On the early morning of
November 21,
1564, armed with five ships and 500 soldiers, he sailed from the port of
Barra de Navidad,
New Spain, in what is now
Jalisco state,
Mexico.
Arrival in the Philippine Islands
López de Legazpi and his men sailed the
Pacific Ocean for 93 days. In early 1565, they landed in the
Mariana Islands, where they briefly anchored and replenished their supplies. They fought with
Chamorro tribes and left several huts burned to the ground.
López de Legazpi's troops arrived in the Philippine archipelago and landed in the shores of
Cebu on
February 13,
1565. After a brief struggle with the natives, they left the island for the nearby islands of
Leyte and
Camiguin. His ships drifted to the coast of
Bohol on
March 16,
1565. There, he and his crew obtained spices and gold after convincing the natives that they were not Portuguese. He made a blood compact with the chieftain,
Datu Sikatuna, as a sign of friendship between the two peoples.
On
April 27,
1565, López de Legazpi and his men went back to Cebu, attacking and destroying the village of
Rajah Tupas. There, he founded the first Spanish settlements, naming it
Villa del Santisimo Nombre de Jesús (Town of the Most Holy Name of Jesus) and
Villa de San Miguel (Saint Michael's Town).
In 1567, 2100 Spanish, Mexican soldiers and labourers arrived in Cebu under orders of the Spanish King. They established a city and built the port of
Fuerza de San Pedro which became their outpost for trade with Mexico and protection from hostile native revolts.
In 1568, López de Legazpi sent one of his men back to Spain to report on his progress. He himself remained in Cebu and didn't accompany his men during the conquest of Manila because of health problems and advanced age. Having heard of the rich resources of Manila, he dispatched two of his Lieutenant-commanders,
Martín de Goiti and
Juan de Salcedo, to explore the northern region.
Conquest of Manila
In late 1569, a force of 300 Spanish soldiers, cavalrymen, and several local natives, led by
Martín de Goiti, left Cebu and began exploring the Northern regions of the
Visayas. They found the islands of
Panay and
Mindoro, where they encountered
Chinese sea-traders in the area. Goiti and Salcedo fought with Chinese pirates on the Eastern coastline of Mindoro and defeated them off the island. The Spaniards later established settlements in the area.
On
May 8,
1570, they arrived in Manila and entered
Manila Bay. The Spaniards were overwhelmed by the size of the harbour. There, they were welcomed by the
Muslim natives. Goiti's soldiers camped there for a few weeks, while pretending to form an alliance with the Muslim king,
Rajah Suliman. However, the Spaniards had other plans. They tricked the natives into believing that they were only visiting and staying for a short period.
On
May 24,
1570, after quarrels had erupted between the two groups, they marched to the Muslim settlements in
Tondo and the city of Manila, where a battle was fought against Suliman's warriors. The heavily armed Spanish soldiers defeated the natives and conquered the area.
In the same year, more reinforcements arrived in the Philippines, prompting López de Legazpi to leave Cebu. He took 250 soldiers and 600 native warriors to explore the regions of
Leyte and Panay. He followed Goiti and Salcedo to Manila the following year, after hearing the city had been conquered.
In Manila, López de Legazpi formed a peace pact with the native Muslim councils,
Rajahs Suliman, Matanda, and
Lakandula. Both groups agreed to organize a city council, consisting of two mayors, twelve councilors and a secretary. López de Legazpi finally established a permanent settlement there on
June 24,
1571, and he also ordered the construction of the walled city of
Intramuros. He proclaimed the town as the island's capital and permanent seat of the Spanish colonial government in the western
Pacific Ocean.
With the help of
Augustinian and
Franciscan friars, he established a government on the islands. He became the first Spanish
governor of the Philippines and worked to convert the natives to the
Catholic religion. Those who opposed his rule were tortured and executed, while those who supported him were awarded with
encomiendas.
Last years
López de Legazpi governed the colony for a year before dying of
heart failure in Manila in
1572. He died poor and bankrupt, leaving only a few
pesos behind, due to having spent most of his personal fortune during the conquest. He was later laid to rest in
San Agustin Church,
Intramuros. He didn't live to see the commemoration of
Manila in
1574, where the city was given the title
Distinguished and ever loyal city of Spain (Insigne y Siempre Leal Ciudad de España) by the king of Spain.
By the time of López de Legazpi's death, the regions of
Luzon,
Visayas and parts of northern
Mindanao had already passed to Spanish rule. For the next 256 years, the Philippines was administered by New Spain as a Spanish colony.
Letters to the Spanish King
During his last years, López de Legazpi wrote several letters to
Philip II about his journey to the
East Indies and the conquest he'd achieved. These were collectively known as the
Cartas al Rey Don Felipe II: sobre la expedicion, conquistas y progresos de las islas Felipinas (Letters to the King Philip II: on the expedition, conquests and progress of the Philippine Islands). The letters are still preserved today at the archives of the indies in
Seville, Spain.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Miguel L Pez De Legazpi'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://miguel_l__pez_de_legazpi.totallyexplained.com">Miguel López de Legazpi Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
