Research

Paper
about the
Spanish Colonial
Period
in the
Philippines

Submitted By: Lam, Phoebe Kate M.

Harriet, Hora
Sanchez, Alpha
Aczon, Keith
San Juan, Ella
Submitted
to: Sir Ian Torres

When the Spaniards arrived in the

Philippines,
the Filipino culture was already
enriched by their
Asian neighbors. The Philippines
became the
Spanish colony for more than 300

years. Within
those years, they influenced the
Filipinos in
their political, cultural, economic
and social
life.

Spanish Government in the

Philippines
After setting up settlements in the Philippines, the Spaniards
established their colonial government. Until 1821, when the
Mexicans revolted and won their independence from Spain,
the Philippines was a dependency of Mexico, being
administered by the Mexican viceroy in the name of the
Spanish king. From 1821 to 1898, the Philippines has a
distinct governmental unit under the direct control of Spain.
The king as sovereign issued cedulas (decrees) for the
administration of the Philippines and appointed the Governor-

General, the members of the royal Audiencia and other high

colonial officials.

Spanish Colonial Government in the

Philippines central Government
On the national level, the government was headed by a
Governor/captain General with its seat in Manila (Intramuros)
as representative of the King of Spain. He was appointed and
removed from office by the king. He exercised great powers
as executive, military, judicial and religious. As governor, he
had the right to control and supervise all administrative
offices, and to appoint colonial officials not named by the
king. As captain-general, he was commander-in-chief of all
armed forces, with the special duty of providing for the
national defense of the Philippines. He served also as
president of the Royal Audiencia (Supreme Court), the
highest judicial body of the colony. Until 1861 he had a hand
in dispensation of justice. He acted as vice-real patron and as
such had the power over ecclesiastical appointments in the
church and even the right to supervise missionary work. He
was the source of civil powers for the various levels of
administration, like the collection and administration of
public revenues, the promulgation of regulations for the
observance of local officials, the pardoning of criminal
offenders, and the supervision of trade and industries. One
great power of the governor was the cumplase by which he
could suspend or disregard any royal decrees or law from
Spain.
The first Governor-General of the Philippines was Miguel

Lopez de Legazpi. He served from 1565-1572. He was also an

adelantado and the only one to have been given two titles.
There were many governor-generals sent to the colony after
Governor-General Legazpi but they served only from one to
three years. Among the famous governor-general of the
Philippines were Simon de Anda, Jose Basco and Maria Carlos
de la Torre. Diego de los Rios was the last Spanish governorgeneral of the Philippines.
In case of vacancy in the governorship due to the
incumbents sickness, or absence, the Audiencia (Spanish
Supreme Court) took charge of the civil and political
functions, with the senior oidor (Justice) assuming the
military affairs as captain-general. There were eight
instances when the Audiencia took charge of the government
in Lieu of the governor. After the British invasion in 1762,
another change was made in the law of succession. The
office of lieutenant governor was created. But later it was
also abolished and succession was made in such a way that
when the governor was absent the general second in
command succeeded him, or in absence, the admiral of the
navy.

Advisory bodies
Board of Authorities (Junta de Autoridades). It was the
cabinet established by the royal decree of April 16, 1850.
This body was composed of the governor-general as
president, the archbishop of Manila, the general second in
command, the admiral of the navy, the intendant of the
treasury, the director-general of the civil administration, the
president of the Audiencia, and the attorney-general. Its chief

function was to advise the governor-general on questions of

unusual importance.

Council of Administration
It was a consultative body created by the Royal order of July
4, 1861 and had a larger representation. It was composed of
the governor-general as president, the archbishop of manila,
the general second in command, the admiral of the navy, the
president of the Audiencia, the intendant of the treasury, the
director-general of the Civil administration, the Father
superior of the religious orders, the president of the Manila
chamber of commerce, the president of the Economic Society
of Friends of the Country, three delegated members from
Luzon, three delegated members from the Visayas and four
other members appointed by the Crown. Its functions were to
deliberate on the government budgets, the questions of royal
patronage and other matters which the governor might
submit for opinion.

Checks On Gubernatorial Powers

The King of Spain formed bodies to check the Spanish
officials assigned in the Philippines.
The Royal Audiencia- In order to check the powers of the
governor-general and as protection to the Filipinos from the
abuses of the Spanish officials, a royal decree of May 5, 1583
was promulgated creating the first Royal Audiencia in Manila.
It was composed of a president (governor-general), three
oidores (justices), a fiscal (prosecuting attorney), and other
necessary officials.

The Residencia- The Residencia wa a special court presided

by the incoming governor-general which investigated the
conduct of the outgoing governor-general at the end of his
term.
Visitador- The visitador differed from the residencia in that
it was conducted by a visiting investigator sent from Spain.
The objective was to check the abuse of power of royal
officials to ensure that the government officials perform
efficiently.

Local Governments
The Provinces
The Philippines was divided into provinces and districts to
facilitate internal government and administration. On the
provincial level, the provinces were classified into two:
pacified and unpacified provinces. Pacified provinces were
those whose inhabitants had accepted Spanish rule and
where general peace and order existed.They called these
these as alcaldias, headed by an alcalde mayos or governor.
The unpacified provinces were known as corregimientos.
These provinces were still at war with Spain or the people
refused to recognize the Spanish rule. They were governed
by military officers known as corregidores.

City Government
Several large pueblos in the Philippines were organized
into cities and were given a special form of government
called ayuntamiento. The city council (cabildo) consisted of

one or more alcaldes, several regidores, one registrar, and

one alguacil-mayor. The regidores were elected annually by
the householders of the city, while the other offices were
proprietory abd could be bought, sold, or inherited.
The Municipal Government
The pueblo or municipio were headed by a
gobernadorcillo or little governor. It is the highest position a
Filipino could attain during the Spanish regime. Among his
administrative duties were the preparation od the pardon
(tribute list), recruitment and distribution of men for the draft
labor, communal public work, quinto (military conscription),
postal clerk, and judge in civil suits.
Barrio Government
A barrio was headed by the Cabeza de Barangay whose
main role was to be a tax and contributions collector for the
gobernadorcillo. He was exempted from paying taxes. He
was responsible for peace and order in his own barrio ad
recruited polistas for communal public works. The Cabeza de
Barangay was required to know how to read and write
Spanish, with good moral character and with properties. They
served for three years.

Ecclesiastical Administration
for purpose of administration, the Philippines was divided
into dioceses (bishoprics), parishes, and missions the whole
colony was classified as an archdiocese. The head of the
ecclesiastical administration was the Archbishop of Manila
appointed by the Pope upon the recommendation of the king
of Spain.

The church exercised religious, political, and judicial

functions. Its religious functions were those pertaining to the
propaganation and preservation of the Christian religion.

Philippine Economy
Under Spain
The Filipinos, during the early period of Spanish regime, were
living in scattered barangays, either along water routes or
river banks and mountain ridges.
The First move taken by the Spaniards was to gather the
Filipinos in one place. This task was assigned to missionaries
and encomenderos. The missionaries found out that
establishing new pueblos was easier instead of them going
around chasing Filipinos. When they constructed churches
they required Christian converts to construct their houses
around the church. Unbaptized Filipinos were also invited to
do the same.
By establishing new settlements they made the Filipinos law
abiding citizens of the Spanish crown. The unbelievers
decided to go to the hills and were known as cimarrones or
tulisanes.
Gradually, the Spaniards introduces many changes in the

country which affected the daily lives of the Filipinos, most

especially their economic life.

The Encomienda
Encomienda refers to a grant from the Spanish crown to a
Spaniard to exercise control over a specific place, including
its inhabitants. There are three kinds of encomienda in the
Philippines: The royal or crown; the ecclesiastical, and the
private.
Royal encomienda were lands reserved for the crown and
included here were principal towns, cities and ports.The
ecclesiastical encomiendas were those given for the church.
The private encomiendas were granted to individual or
private institutions.

The Tribute
The paying of tribute was started by Governor-General
Miguel Lopez de Legazpi wherein many Filipinos suffered.

Tobacco Monopoly
Governor-General Jose Basco Y Vargas introduced the
tobacco monopoly to try to improve the economic condition
of the Philippines. In this system, the tobacco industry was
managed by the government from planting to production to
marketing. The Tobacco monopoly was beneficial on the part
of the government as their income increased. It also made
the Philippines the biggest producer of tobacco in the world
and as a result, it was able to meet some of the financial
needs of the colony.

Bandala System
The Spanish officials, in their desire to increase the
government income, introduced the bandala system. In the
bandala system, the Filipinos were given the quota for the
products they produce. The government bought the goods at
a lower price and oftentimes took them with a promise to pay
later but failed to do so. If they failed to produce the quota,
they were forced to buy from others. The Bandala brought
sufferings to many Filipinos.

The Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade

(1565-1815)
The Manila-Acapulco galleon trade lasted for two hundred
fifty years with two levels- one outgoing and one incoming.
The route was from Manila to Acapulco. The goods brought to
America were spices, silk, gold, and other products of Asian
neighbors.
The only people who benefitted were the Spanish governor,
members of the consulado usually insulares, and Spanish
residents in Manila. Because of the Lucrative trade, the
Chinese converged at the Parian or Alcaiceria of Manila in
Binondo as early as 1637. Binondo became the business
center of the Chinese.

Good effects of the galleon trade:

1. Intercultural exchange between the Philippines and the
Americans. The Mexican-made Virgin of Antipolo was chosen
as the patroness of the sailors.

2. From the Philippines, the following were brought to

America; mongo de Manila, use of nipa palm, raincoats,
fireworks display, chinaware, and tuba-making.
3. From Mexico, the brought to the Philippines avocado,
guava, papaya, pineapple, horses, and cattle. They learned
the Moromoro and Moriones from Mexico and brought here
the image of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo.

Bad effects of the galleon trade:

1. Spaniards neglected our agricultural production.
2. Filipinos were involved only in the construction of ships
and this resulted in the strict implementation of forced labor.
3. Filipinos were forced by the alcalde mayor to plant crops
which they themselves exported like coconuts and abaca and
if they fail to meet the needs, they were fined heavily.
4. Some priests and government officials became rich and
oftentimes, these government officials neglected their work.

Obras Pias
Obras Pias were funds intended for social works but
because of the clergy;s desire to earn more they lent the
money to businessmen with big interests most especially
those who involved in the galleon trade.

Polo Y Servicio Personal

The polo system was patterned after the Mexican
repartimiento or selection for forced labor. Filipinos or
Chinese whose age was from 16 to 60 years old were obliged
to give personal service to community projects like
construction or cutting logs in the forests.

Real Compania De Filipinas

Real Compania de Filipinas was organized on March 10,
1785 with a 25 year charter. Its objective was to consolidate
commerce and business between Asia and the Americas.
They expected that the profit from business will be used to
support industries and agricultural projects in the Philippines.

Trade and Industries

The Spaniards try to improve the economic conditions of
the Philippine by introducing some agricultural plants such
as coffee, cabbage, cacao, corn, and others. Decrees were
issued for the continuous production of some products like
coconut, abaca, banana, and pepper. Some industries
introduced were candle making; wine production; soap
making; resin and others.

Transportation and Communication

It was in the nineteenth century that transportation and
communications in the Philippines began to developed. Many
roads and bridges were constructed. The only railroad
company known was Ferrocaril de Manila and the travel route
available then was from Manila to Dagupan, Pangasinan.

Banking System
with the growth of trade and industries banks were
established. In 1841, there was already Obra Pias which was
not a bank but lent money to those who participated in the
galleon trade.

The first bank in the Philippines was organized by Francisco

Rodriquez in 1830.

Cultural Growth Under

Spain
When the Spaniards arrived in the Philippines, Filipino culture
was already influenced by their Asian neighbors like the

Chinese, the Hindus, and the Arabs. The mixtures of these

influences were later enriched by the coming of the
Spaniards. With the more than three hundred years of
Spanish rule in the Philippines, all aspects of Filipino life were
touched by the changes they introduced.

Educational System under Spain

The first teachers of the Filipinos during the Spanish
regime were the Spanish missionaries. The Filipinos were
taught reading, writing, and arithmetic, the use of musical
instruments and memorizing the prayers.

School For Girls

The first school established by the Spaniards was intended
for the orphan Spanish girls. This was Colegio de Santa
Potenciana which was founded in 1591. After some time a
change in the Spanish educational system was made in the
Philippines when the Educational Decree of 1863 was
promulgated. As provided for, they offered free compulsory
public education to all Filipinos and established a normal
school for men to prepare them for school work.
They established two schools for each town, one for the girls
and another one for the boys. All Filipinos aged six to
fourteen were required to attend to school. Free education
was only for the poor but wealthy parents were required to
pay.

Education For The boys

The first school for boys were founded by the Society of
Jesus and exclusively for the sons of the Spaniards. The first

to be established was Colegio Maximo de San Ignacio.

From the schools founded by the Spaniards, some Filipinos
were able to study. The Filipinos were later included or
classified as ilustrados. With the learning they gained, they
led the nationalistic movement in the country.

Social Aspects of Spanish Influences

Society
During the Spanish period, Filipinos were classified based
on their economic status and position held. There were the
principalia, ilustrado, cacique, businessman, farmers and
laborers. Those who belong to the principalia were the head
of the town, landowners and the rich sector who pay taxes.
Ilustrados were the rich and educated group. The cacique
were appointed by the rich landowners, the government or
the priest to supervise their land.
Religion
The introduction of Christianity is the most important
legacy of the Spaniards to the Filipinos. It influenced much of
the Filipinos family wherein Catholic doctrines served as
their guidance. Religion became a part of their life, both in
school and home. Many Filipinos were converted into the
Catholic religion. Family solidarity was strengthened through
sacraments like wedding and baptism.

Filipino Family Name

In 1849, during the time of Governor Narciso Claveria,

Filipinos were ordered to adopt Spanish Family names and

names after the saints, flora and fauna or geographical
names. They were instructed to use the Catalogo Alfabetico
de Appellidos.
These Family names were used not only for census purposes
but also as a reference for the tax collector, the regular
performance of polo to control the movement of population.

Dressing
The Filipino mode of dressing was changed during the
Spanish period. The kanggan and bahag were replaced by
the barong-tagalog and camisa de Chino and trousers. Hats
were used instead of putong. The women continued to wear
baro and saya but some modifications developed it into
mestiza dress.

House and Food

Some Filipinos during the Spanish regime still dwelt in the
original bahay-kubo. Others who became economically stable
had their houses built into bahay na bato with a wide azotea
and an aljibe or a well to provide water supply.
Filipino ingenuity is still reflected in Spanish dishes such as
menudo, mechado, adobo as well as in Chinese noodle
preparations like pancit malabon and pancit luglog.

Printing Press

The art of printing was introduced by the friars in the

Philippines to facilitate their work of converting the Filipinos.

Literature
Literature during the Spanish period were God-centered.
There were in the form of awit, corridor and material
romances written by early poets like Anania Zorilla, Jose de la
Cruz and Francisco Baltazar.

Sculpturing
Nicolas de la Cruz Bagay was considered the first Filipino
engraver.

At the end of the Spanish rule, there

was a
blending of the native and Spanish
cultures.
The Spaniards ruled the Philippines for
more than
three hundred years yet they failed to
completely
Hispanize the Filipinos, especially the
Muslims in
the southern part of the Philippines.

Sources:
Book of Philippine History and Government (Author:
Erlinda G. Dejarme)