READINGS I N

P HI L I P P I NE
HISTORY
C H A P T E R L 2E S S O N 7
R A I D E R S OF SULU SEA

B Y : A LV I N O . H O L O Y O H O
Y
R a id e r s
of t h e
S u lu
Sea
CONTRIBUTOR’
S
➢ S h e is on e of Z a m b o a n g a C i t y ’ s premiere
artist A t r u e Filipina p a i n t e r a n d
s c u l pt o r
S h e is c u r r e n t l y w o rk i n g a s a n e x e c u t i v e a s s i s t a n t in t h e
Office of the City Mayor, and
is o v erlo ok in g t h e C i t y Hall
restoration. She writes a
wee k ly arts column
A s h or t h is t or y
of R a i d e r s of
the Sulu S e a
⚔ A historiography documentary film depicting Southeast
the Asia flourishing free trading in the area.
⚔ Adverse effects/ retaliation when Spaniards wanted to
control the economy as well as to colonize and
Christianize

⚔ Depicting how the Spaniards defended the city with

the Fort Pilar

⚔ Showed what was claimed then as pirates of theSulu

sea from Mindanao, Philippines
⚔ The Spanish established their colony on the southern
tip of Mindanao in Zamboanga. Fort Pilar was
constructed with ten (10) meter-high wall fortification
all around. This was the base of the Spaniards to
facilitate their trade. Zamboanga is very close to
Basilan, the Tawi-tawi and Sulu group of islands and
the Maguindanao area where there we three
different tribes of seafaring Filipino Muslims. The
three tribes were known as Balangingi-Samal,
Ilanuns and Sultanate of Sulu, all which were
employing Taosogs who were excellent
 T H RE E
MU S L I M
1T. SRa mI aBl
□ R a idin g T r ib e
EB aSl a n g i g i
2. I l l a n u n

□ R a idin g T r ib e
3. Ta osu g
⚔ The three tribes are not really pirates during the times they
were plying their trade of capturing people and selling them as
slaves. Slave trading was a business then and they were not
raiding ships in high seas. What they did was go and land in
different shores posing as fishermen. Without any warning,
draw their 1-meter long swords and take as many slaves as they
can. Once captured, the slaves’ palms are punctured and
tied to each other. The slaves are loaded in their 25 to 27
meter by 6 meter boats that has 30 to 34 oarsmen and sails. It
was said that their boats were the fastest that Spanish
Galleons could not even give chase.
⚔ The History documentary was
actually focusing on how the tribes
were able to organize a flotilla of a
hundred ships or more with morethan
3,000 men. This happened when
the threetribes connived to raid Fort
Pilar. The Spanish were stricken with fearupon
seeing the number of boats and thearmy they
ANCIENT
MARI T I ME
VE S S E L S
 LANO
large outrigger w NarsGhpis used by the
Illanun and the Balanguingui people
specialized for naval battles

were prominently used for piracy and slave raids

from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century
in most of Southeast Asia
□ traditional A Y
nativ e w arships of the Balanguingui
the Philippines.
used for piracy by the Balanguingui and Illanun people in
people
against unarmed trading ships and raids on coastal
settlements in the regions surrounding the Sulu Sea.
□ the name means "scattered" or "wanderer" in

the Sama language of the Balanguingui.

were smaller, faster, and more maneuverable than

the Illanun lanong warships

 S AL I S
IPAN
□ auxiliary vessels
□ usually part of fleets with larger motherships like
pangajava, garay, or lanong warships.
Among Malays, this type of boat is used as a boat of war
or passenger boat
□ ofen used by the Illanun and Balanguingui people of
the Philippines for piracy and for raids on
coastal areas.
 An c ie n t
We a p on oft h e
Moro People
 MORO K RI S

• ⚔A weapon of warfare
and ceremony
•battlesThisbutarealso
⚔ not only carried by slave r aiders into
by nobles and high ranking officials
of the Southern Sultanate
•blades
⚔Double edged with either smooth or wa v y

•theThebone
⚔ curving is for easily slashing- it would penetrate
and would stick making it hard to pull
 K A MP I
LAN
⚔ longest the sword , used by the Illanuns

⚔ heavy single edged sword ofen adorned with hair to

make it look even intimidating

⚔ at the tip of the blade, a projecting blunt side was used

to pick up the head of a decapitated body
⚔ Deadly weapon sword used by the Taosug
warriors with single-edged leaf blade
made of thick tempered steel
⚔ Used to enclose hand-to-hand battle to cut

Spanish firearms down

B a r on
g
A rriv a l o f th e
Spanish
Colonist
☞The presence of the Spanish in the Visayas
and Southern Luzon disrupted the spread of
Islam
☞Opportunity to propagate Christianity in the
Philippines they landed in Luzon on the north
from here Christianity spread displacing
Islam and indigenous tribal beliefs.
☞When Europeans first came to this region, aside from
spices, woods, tin, and pepper that couldn’t be found
anywhere else are the products that attracted them.
☞They wanted to be part and control the process
in the exchange in trade.
☞For the Muslim Sultanates eradicating the
Christian-Spanish presence in Zamboanga was
one of their top priorities
☞The Spanish established their colony on the Southern
tip of Mindanao in Zamboanga. Fort Pilar was
constructed with ten (10) meter-high wall
fortification all around.
☞Spain’s last stronghold and bastion of defense and
economic expansion in the South of the Philippines .
☞Structure designed to withstand even the
destructive force of canon balls.
☞Defended by rows of Spanish artillery.
 MARI T I ME
VESSELS
□ were large, multi-decked sailing ships

□ Slower than the warships of Sulu raiders

 S P AN I S H

⚔
FIREARM
Had limitations and inaccurate

⚔ Took several steps to reload and only 3 shots per minute

 THE DESTRUCTION
OF BALANGUINGUI
freedom and
☞IStwEasTaTlsoLseEenMaEs
preservation of identity vs. oppression and subjugation. In
1848,
sTtruSpain
aN ,ggl1e with the acquisition
b8et4we8 ofenpowerful steamships from
Britain succeeded in gradually ending slave-raiding before
1898. They destroyed Balanguingui settlements in Tongkil
island (now Balanguingui municipality). Panglima Taupan
eventually surrenderd afer his wife and kins were taken
captives by Spanish forces: they were relocated to
Zamboanga.
 S tea m shi
ps
□ faster, easier to navigate and had variousarmaments to
take on the tribes.
 AD VE N T OF
AME RI C AN RU L E
• American rule adopted the same policy towards the
Muslim communities. Armed resistance to US
force in Sulu and Mindanao were considered
banditry and lawlessness and were met with deadlier
ferocity through the “ pacification” campaigns of US
Generals Leonard Wood and John Pershing who both
served of Governors of the American- established Moro
Province.
☞THE TAUSUGS WHO DARED LIKE JIKIRI AND
OTHER LOCAL DATUS (CHIEFTAINS) TO
CHALLENGE US RULE WERE RELENTLESSLY
PURSUED AND KILLED BY THE COMPOSITE
FORCES OF US ARMY, PHIL. CONSTABULARY
(PC) AND PHIL. SCOUTS.
 C E S S AT I O N OF S L A V E
RAIDING
• Despite Spanish efforts to eradicate the pirate threat,
piracy persisted until the early 1900s. Spain ceded the
Philippines to the United States as a result of the
Spanish – American War in 1898, afer which
American troops embarked on a pacification campaign
from 1903 to 1913 that extended American rule to
the southern Philippines and effectively suppressed piracy
TH A N K Y O
U