RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

Spaniards
Raiders

Group 7 Presentation
Daniel, Buhia
Gustilo, Mark
Butawan, Carlos Rommel
A historical documentary (2008) that depicts the slave-raiding activities perpetrated by the
Samal-Balanguingui and the Illanun/Iranun under direction of the Sultanate of Sulu which
was headed by the Tausug clan at the time
KEY INFORMANTS
• Dr. Margarita Conjuanco – Author
• Icelle Gloria Estrada – Art Historian
• Dr. Samuel Tan – Historian
• Barbara Watson Andaya – Historian
• Dr. Julius Bautista – Historian
• Halman Abubakar – Taosug Descendant

SUMMARY / IMPORTANT DETAILS

• In the 16th century, Spaniards colonized Zamboanga because of its geographical advantage that made it valuable to the
catholic Spaniards. To protect their interests, the Spanish built forts to discourage potential invaders.

Fort Del Pilar

- a 10 meter high fortress that sprawled over 2 acres.
- one of the most celebrated attacks on Fort Pilar is the 1720
attack by the Maguindanao King Dalasi.
*the king of Bulig in Maguindanao at the time.
 Rajah Dalasi was planning to attack Zamboanga city together with the joint force of the Sulu
sultanate.
- Sulu and Maguindanao Sultanates –the two main kingdoms which control the Muslim colonies of the Southern
Philippines.
 On December 8, 1720, together with Rajah Dalasi, they launched a bloody attack on Fort Pilar,
located in Zamboanga City. They attacked Zamboanga, burned the town around the fort, cut
down the lines of provisions for the Spaniards, and began a war against the soldiers inside the
fort.
- Taking the fort wouldn’t be easy for Rajah Dalasi and his fighters. The fort has a structure designed to withstand
even the destructive force of cannonballs. Spanish artillery rows defended every possible approach to the fort, but
Spanish soldiers are vastly outnumbered even with these defenses and weaponry.
- Together with his army, Rajah Dalasi held only their sword to fight against the Spaniards’ cannon and firearms.
Spaniards are desperate to defend the fort that they even use rocks and boiling water against the raiders as they
scaled the fort’s walls. Rajah Dalasi’s fighters fight with the desire to rid Zamboanga against the Spanish. The
Fort Pilar is the checking point on slave-raiding going to the North and coming back. That’s why raiders are
desperate to suppress the Spaniard’s presence.
 The arrival of the Spanish and their desire to dominate trade in the region triggered an
escalation in slave raiding.
 The people of the Southern Sultanate defied a self-proclaim Spanish Masters by targeting
Christian communities in the North.
 The Spanish referred to the slave raiders as Moro.
 Three different Muslim tribes who challenged Spanish authority throughout its occupancy and
reigned during the 17th century / Raiders of the Sulu Sea

Samal Balanguingui/Balangingi Illanuns Tausug

( Raiding Tribe ) ( Raiding Tribe ) ( Warriors )

- They occupied the chain of the
islands between Basilan and Sulu
island.
-Very important in the piracy history.
- Known as fierce in marine force in the
sultanate
- They are nothing but barbaric for the
Western Colonist
- Known for its fierce warriors and
widespread political powers.
- Controls the Sulu Sultanate in the
South
- Lineage of Rajahs
 The Illanuns and Samal Balanguingui were both long-standing seafaring communities. They
often join forces with the Tausug, a tribe without maritime experience but known for its fierce
warriors and widespread political power.
- When Illanuns captured people, they would bore a hole through their palm of their victim and string through
each person’s palm.
 These Philippine Moros, the raids to the North, and the Spanish force’s attack were an act of
retaliation against the foreign occupier.
 The sultanate also sanctioned most of these raids in the name of an even higher course, Islam.
- For the Muslim Sultanates, eradicating the presence of Christian-Spanish in Zamboanga was one of their top
priorities. Both sides used their ideology to spread its influence.
 In 1977, they found evidence of maritime civilization in a pond. Carbon dating of artifacts
found point to a maritime culture that existed in the 4th century. Seafarers inherited their
navigational skills from the early Southern Filipino seafarers, which helped them build a
flourishing trade in sea’s bounty.
 The mid-1700s, the ships evolved into a sturdier, more seaworthy craft.
 THREE VESSELS THAT RAIDERS USED
Joanga / Lanong
- Large wide keel for stability and
three large cloth sails.
- 24 to 27 meters long with 6-meter
width, and each had cannon mounted
at the bow with three mainsails, and
34 oars rowed each side by captured
slaves.
- Each vessel carried between 100 to
150 men.
Garay
- 25 meters long and 6 meters across, a
smaller, faster, and more
manoeuvrable form of raiding boat.
- They were the fast attack boat for
the Samal raiding tribes.
- Its Glass of vessels was built from
bamboo, wood, and the nipa palm,
and could carry more than 100
sails.
Salisipan
- Small coats designed for coastal
raids.
- the smallest (mostly use in checking
or monitoring coastal areas)
- used by the raiders when they are
near in the shore and pretend to be a
harmless fisherman.
 The Illanuns used compasses and telescopes; they were also knowledgeable about the monsoon
winds of the region and used them to travel extensity during the months between August and
October, and the period called The Pirate Season.
 Unlike the ships of the raiding tribes, Spanish galleons were slow and ungainly, while they
were heavily armed, their deep keels prevented them from chasing raiding tribe into the
shallows. Behind the religious doctrine war, the Spanish want to stop the raiders for the spoils
of trades with orient something the Spanish wanted complete control.
- As the Spanish seized control of the Philippines, the influence of the Muslim South waived, the new western
masters sought to dominate trades in Jolo, the seat of power of the Sulu Sultanate. Today, Jolois a mere shadow of
the great commercial and political power it once was. While the seafaring warriors salve raiders evolved along
gone, their proud descendants still live here.
 Ancient Tausug Weapons
Barong
- Thick blade used by the Tausug
warriors to cut off an M-14, a
carbine.
- Single-edged leaf-shaped blade made
of thick tempered steel.
- One-meter weapon used in close
combat battle to cut the Spanish
firearms down.
Kris / Kalis
- Measuring up to 1.2 meters in length. - The longest sword used by the
- Was built a weapon of warfare and
ceremony.
- It was not only carried by slave
raiders but also but also by nobles
and high-ranking officials of the
Sultan Sultanate.
- Double-edged with a wavy blade.
Kampilan
raiders, primarily the Illanun.
- heavy single-edge sword that was
often adorned with hair to make it
look more intimidating, to indicate
the number of lives it killed.
- At the tip of the blade are two horn
projecting from the blunt side which
is used to pick up the head of a
decapitated body.
 - The wealthier raiders also protected themselves in battle with armor, this heavy armor made from Carabao
horn or steel plates, was molded to fit the body and held together with chainmail.
 The battle between the slave raiders and Spanish were clashes of ideology, Islam against
Christianity. The indigenous way of life against the enforced values of the occupiers.
- In December 8, 1720, Rajah Dalasi led a 3000 strong coalition of warriors against 600 Spanish soldiers at
Fort Pilar, Zamboanga City. The slave raiders attack on Fort Pillar was poorly conceived, as Musket fire cut
through their ranks, there were no reinforcements to lend the raiders support.
- Another factor that led to Rajah Dalasi’s eventual failure and his demise was the betrayal of his own
brother. His betrayal would seal the fate of Dalasi’s raiders.
- There was no element of surprise in Rajah Dalasi’s assault on Fort Pilar, as they were warned, they were
prepared for the attack. In the heat of battle, Rajah Dalasi was heavily wounded. Without a leader, their attack was
in shambles as subsequent raiders were dispelled.
 But the Spanish victory was not the end of hostilities. As an act of defiance, the raiders sought
for more slaves in Southeast Asia. The Spanish were now hell-bent on ridding themselves of
these people they called pirates.
 In the early 19th century, raids to the north were so commonplace that even the Catholic friars
would stand up to protect their flock. But these Christian communities were far from the main
Spanish stronghold in Manila. They faced the brunt of an increasing demand for slaves.
 - To meet the growing demand for slaves, the raiders would disguise themselves harmless fisherman, enter
a village, then round up of unsuspecting villagers for bondage into slavery. Over time, the slave raiders
journeyed beyond the waters of the Philippines to neighboring Borneo, Java, and into the Straits of Malacca. They
peddled their human bounty at slave markets that dotted the archipelago, where the slave trade was booming.
 In the Southern Sulu region, Jolo was a thriving center for the slave trade, it was sanctioned by
the Sultan himself who used slaves as farmhands or in his fisheries and even concubines.
Slaves would be displayed like produce like prodigious. The going rate for a slave was
between 10 to 100 pesos depending on age and ability.
- Amongst those who made a tidy sum in the slave trade was a notorious and prolific from the Samal tribe
called Taupan, a Paglima or tribal leader and a close ally of the Sultan Sultanate.
- Paglima Taupan would launch his raids from a small island base of Balangingi. The Spaniards tried in vain
to capture him. Taupan not only eluded them but continued to be a major provider of slaves for the Southern
Sultanates and beyond.
 This rampant slave raiding was about to change. In 1845, an anti-slavery treaty was finally
enforced in the Philippines and a colonial governor, General Narciso Claveria, Paglima
Taupan’s arch enemy, was charged with the task of destroying slave raiding bases.
 - Paglima Taupan’s Balangingi Island had repelled Spanish attacks in the past.
 In 1848, after two years of reconnaissance, Governor General Claveria decides it is time to put
an end to Paglima Taupan’s Balangingi stronghold.
- At Claveria’s disposal were three British-built steamships, the Magallanes, Elcano, and Reina Castilla. He
used the ships’ artillery to bombard the forts of Balangingi Island. The usually stoic raiders were shaken. Taking
advantage of the damage done by the barrage of artillery fire, the Spanish stormed the forts. This time, it was the
raiders who were outnumbered.
- But what the Spanish found awaiting them inside the fort was not what they were expecting. Faced with
certain capture, the raiders resorted to an unthinkable act.
 450 Samal died in battle. All four of Balangingi’s forts and 150 raiding ships were destroyed.
The Spaniards granted mercy to the 350 Samal men and women who were captured alive.
Paglima Taupan was not among them, but they did capture his pregnant wife, Noila. After
years of failed attempts, the Spanish had finally succeeded in destroying the raiding base of
Balangingi Island.
 - With most of their fleet destroyed and their bases of operation dismantled, the slave raiding activities
decreases. They were now at the mercy of the Spaniards. Governor General Claveriaused this advantageous
position and his fleet of steamships to deal one final blow to the slave raiders.
- The slave raiders, however, would go down fighting. Even with their fleet of ships destroyed, some among
them continued to resist the rule of the Spanish, but it would be in vain
 The Spanish American War in the late 19th century saw the Philippines shift from one colonial
power to another. The Americans not only got control of the Philippines but also inherited their
predecessors’ problem with the raiders, even though on a much smaller scale. The thorn in the
Americans’ was a Tausug raider called Jikiri. Jikiri and his men killed Americans in the area.
This madden the new colonial master and they responded with a vengeance.
-The Americans ruthlessly hunted and killed Jikiri and other raiders. To the Americans, like the Spanish
before them, the raiders were mere pirated and robber. Jikiri would eventually meet the same fate as his
predecessors Rajah Dalasi and Paglima Taupan, defeat. The days of raiding in the Philippines were over.
 The Sultanate eventually lost their political and economic hold in Sulu, and it was gradually
identified into the jurisdiction of the Philippines government, but it retained its autonomy.
 Today, the once wealthy and powerful sultanates are a distant memory. This southern region of
the Philippines faces new challenges, social, economic, ad cultural. But some thing seems like
did not change. 600 years on, and there are still conflicts in this region.
 Whether these tribes are considered pirates, bandits, or freedom fighters is a question of
perspective, but they were excellent mariners, builders of the most superior seagoing vessels of
their time, fearless warriors, and skilled fighters, and there’s little doubt they’ve earned their
identity in history as the Raiders of the Sulu Sea.
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING