Philippines Historical Timeline

c.40,000 BC
Migrants cross land bridge from Asian mainland and settle in the archipelago.
AD 900
Chinese establish coastal trading posts over the next 300 years.
late 14th century
Muslim clergy start to bring Islam to the Philippines from Indonesia and Malaya.
1521
Explorer Ferdinand Magellan lands on Cebu and claims the region for Spain. Lapu Lapu
(Rajah Cilapulapu), in defending his island of Mactan, slays Magellan.
1543
Next Spanish expedition led by Ruy de Villalobos lands in Mindanao. He names the
archipelago “Filipinas,” after Crown Prince Felipe II.
1872
Uprising in Cavite, south of Manila. Spain executes Filipino priests Jose Burgos,
Mariano Gomez, and Jacinto Zamora, martyrs to the cause of nationalism.
1892
Jose Rizal founds La Liga Filipina, is arrested and exiled to Dapitan, Mindanao. Andres
Bonifacio founds the Katipunan with aim to revolt.
1896
Spanish colonists imprison and kill hundreds of Filipinos in Manila. Bonifacio and the
Katipunan launch the Philippine revolution. Rizal is executed.
1898
The United States defeats Spain in war. Treaty between the United States and Spain
grants the US authority over the Philippines.
1941-2
Japanese land on Luzon, overrun Manila. Roosevelt rejects Philippine neutrality. 
1944
MacArthur and Osmeña land in Leyte and begin the Allied effort to retake the
archipelago.
1945
Allies recapture Manila, which is subject to intense bombardment. Much of the city is
destroyed.
1946
On July 4, the Philippines is granted independence. 
1972–81
Martial law imposed. President Marcos accumulates a vast fortune. His wife, Imelda,
dominates Manila government.
1984
“Parliament of the street” holds frequent anti-Marcos demonstrations. Spiraling
economic crises.
1986
Violence escalates before elections, at least 30 are killed on election day. Election
rigging enrages Filipinos and millions join in uprising against Marcos regime. On
February 26, Marcoses flee. Corazon Aquino elected to presidency. New constitution
drafted. 
1991
Dramatic eruption of Mt Pinatubo. Americans pack up and leave the Philippines.
1992
Fidel Ramos, Aquino’s defense secretary and a strong ally who backed her during coup
attempts, wins presidential election. His pragmatic leadership defies traditional
perceptions of inept Filipino government. Foreign investors return.
2002
US military joins the Philippines in large-scale exercises in the southern Philippines to
rescue kidnapped American tourists.
2010
Benigno Aquino III, son of former president Corazon Aquino, wins the presidential race;
a year later his government holds landmark talks with Muslim rebels.
2012
China and the Philippines clash over Scarborough Shoal in the contested South China
Sea, seeding a high-level diplomatic dispute. Breakthrough ceasefire and agreement in
the long-running dispute with separatists in the south.