THE HISTORY OF THE PHILIPPINES

Some 50 million years ago, the archipelago was formed by volcanic eruptions. About
30,000 years ago the earliest inhabitants had arrived from the Asian mainland, perhaps
over land bridges built during the ice ages. By the tenth century A.D. coastal villagers
welcomed Chinese commerce and settlers, followed by Muslim traders from Borneo.
The early inhabitants of the Philippines were Mongoloid descent which are predominant
today. The gradual spread of Islam from Borneo into the central and northern islands
was interrupted by the arrival of the Spanish Christians.

The Philippines was claimed in the name of Spain in 1521 by Ferdinand Magellan, a
Portuguese explorer sailing for Spain, who named the islands after King Philip II of
Spain. They were then called Las Felipinas. By the 1830's Spanish culture and thought
had penetrated into Filipino culture to the extent that the Filipino people began thinking
about liberation from Spain. The government of Spain developed Filipino agriculture to
the point that it was self-sufficient. After some attempts at independence, and an equal
number of atrocities on the part of Spain, Filipino Nationalists began to speak out. One
of the most famous of the time was Jose Rizal. He studied medicine at the University of
Santo Tomas in the Philippines and the University of Madrid. Rizal wrote two important
novels that portrayed the abuses of Spanish rule. Although the books were banned,
they were smuggled into the Philippines and widely read. On the night of his execution,
on December 30, 1896, Rizal proclaimed the Philippines "the Pearl of the Oriental
Seas". His death is annually commemorated on December 30.

At the same time, that the Philippines were fighting for independence, Cuba, also a
colony of Spain, was trying to liberate itself from Spanish rule. Cuba, however, had the
backing of the United States. When the American battleship, USS Maine, sank in the
Havana harbor, war between the United States and Spain became imminent. On April
25, 1898, the United States declared war on Spain and the commander of the U.S.
Asiatic Squadron, Commodore George Dewey was sent to engage the Spanish navy in
the Philippines. Dewey attacked the Spanish fleet on the morning of May 1, 1898 from
his ship USS Olympia. The battle lasted only a few hours resulting in the complete
destruction of the Spanish fleet at Manila Bay. The American fleet suffered only minor
damage.