The Person I Idmire Most Essay Example

the Portuguese, who wanted to maintain their dominance over East Asian trade, the Philippines served as Spain's outpost in the East Indies. The Philippines remained under the administration of New Spain (Mexico) until Mexican independence in 1821.

In 1574, Manilla successfully defended itself against an attack by Chinese pirate Limahong. Before the Spanish arrived, Filipinos had been trading with Chinese individuals for many years. However, it was only after the conquest that permanent settlements started to be established on the islands. The presence of Chinese trade and labor played a significant role in the early development of the Spanish colony. Nevertheless, as their population grew, so did fear and hostility towards them among the locals. In 1603, Spanish forces killed a large number of Chinese people, followed by smaller massacres.

The Spanish governor, who was appointed as a viceroy in 1589, governed with the advice of the influential royal audiencia. The Filipinos frequently rebelled against the encomienda system, which they disliked. By the late 16th century, Manila had emerged as a prominent commercial hub in East Asia, engaging in prosperous trade with China, India, and the East Indies. The Philippines contributed wealth, including gold, to Spain, and the heavily laden galleons that sailed between the islands and New Spain were frequently targeted by English pirates.

From 1600 to 1663, the Spanish encountered a range of obstacles. They confronted the Dutch, who were expanding their empire in the East Indies, and also faced challenges from Moro pirates. Dealing with the Moros posed a major challenge for the Spanish, resulting in unconventional campaigns against them. It wasn't until the mid-19th century that they achieved

decisive outcomes. As the power of the Spanish Empire weakened, the Jesuit orders gained increasing influence in the Philippines and acquired substantial property.

The islands were occupied with relatively minimal violence, as most of the population (excluding Muslims) did not put up much armed resistance at first. However, the Spanish encountered a significant problem when Muslims invaded Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago. In response to attacks from the Spanish and their native allies, the Muslims conducted raids on areas of Luzon and the Visayas that were under Spanish control. The Spanish carried out occasional military campaigns against the Muslims but did not achieve definitive results until around the mid-1800s.

In February 1899, Aguinaldo initiated a fresh rebellion against the United States. Nevertheless, instead of conventional warfare, the Filipinos resorted to guerrilla tactics after being defeated. This resulted in the Philippine-American War, which incurred greater expenses and casualties compared to the Spanish-American War. The conflict commenced on February 4, 1899, following an incident where two American privates fatally shot three Filipino soldiers during a patrol in San Juan, Metro Manila.

Around 126,000 American soldiers took part in the conflict, resulting in casualties for both sides. The losses included 4,234 Americans and 16,000 Filipinos who died, along with an unknown number of guerrilla fighters. Unfortunately, civilian deaths during the war are estimated to range from 250,000 to 1,000,000 individuals due to factors such as famine and disease. Both parties committed atrocities. While American forces easily defeated poorly equipped Filipino troops in direct combat, they faced formidable opponents in guerrilla warfare. On March 31, 1899, American forces captured Malolos—the revolution's capital.

Aguinaldo and his

government escaped their captors and created a new capital in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija. Sadly, Antonio Luna, Aguinaldo's skilled military commander, was murdered in June. As American forces advanced into northern Luzon, Aguinaldo's remaining troops faced continuous defeats. In November 1899, Aguinaldo disbanded the regular army and established decentralized guerrilla commands in various military zones. The general population endured great suffering as they became caught between the Americans and rebels. The capture of Aguinaldo by Gen. effectively marked the end of the revolution in 1901.

Frederick Funston was moved from Palanan, Isabela to Manila on March 23, 1901. However, the question of Philippine independence remained a disputed matter in both the United States and the islands. The situation became more intricate due to the growing economic connections between the two nations. Even though American investment in Philippine industries was relatively small, trade with the U.S. saw notable expansion, resulting in a strong reliance on the American market for the Philippines. The implementation of free trade in 1909 further expanded this dependence by 1913.

Acknowledging the futility of additional resistance, he declared his allegiance to the United States and released a proclamation calling for his compatriots to surrender, effectively signifying the formal conclusion of the war. Nonetheless, pockets of rebellious defiance endured in various parts of the Philippines, notably in the Muslim south, until 1913. In 1901, an American civil government was established under the leadership of William Howard Taft as its inaugural Governor-General. English was designated as the official language and six hundred American teachers were transported on board the USS Thomas.

The Catholic Church lost its establishment status and a considerable

amount of church land was purchased and distributed. Some forms of Filipino self-governance were allowed, and in 1907 an elected Filipino legislature was established. When Woodrow Wilson became president in 1913, the American approach towards the Philippines experienced a notable change. While previous Republican administrations saw the Philippines as a permanent colony of America, the Wilson administration chose to start a gradual process that would eventually lead to Philippine independence.

The U.S. administration in the Philippines during that time had a goal to establish institutions for a democratic government in the future, with a particular emphasis on public education and a robust legal system. As part of this effort, they also granted free trade status with the United States. In 1916, the U.S. Congress passed the Philippine Autonomy Act, which is popularly referred to as the Jones Law.The new constitution of the Philippines ensured that American policy would safeguard the country's ultimate independence, on the condition that a stable government was established. It granted executive authority to the Governor General of the Philippines, appointed by the President of the United States. Additionally, it established a bicameral Philippine Legislature to replace both the elected Philippine Assembly (lower house) and appointed Philippine Commission (upper house).

The Filipino House of Representatives would be entirely elected, while the new Philippine Senate would have a majority of members elected by senatorial district and senators representing non-Christian areas appointed by the Governor-General. Cooperation and confrontation with American governors-general occurred during the 1920s, depending on their use of power in relation to the Philippine legislature. The elected legislators promptly advocated for immediate and full independence from the United States.

Multiple missions

for independence were sent to Washington, D. C. Filipinos effectively gained control over the civil service by the end of World War I. However, when the Republicans regained power in 1921, Filipino involvement in the government was reduced as Gen. Leonard Wood, the appointed governor-general, implemented a semi military rule. Despite these changes, the Great Depression and Japan's aggressive moves in Asia led to a shift in U.S. sentiment towards granting immediate independence to the Philippines. Thus, in 1934, the United States Congress passed a new Philippine Independence Act called Tydings-McDuffie Act which mandated granting Philippine independence by 1946.

During U.S. rule, improvements were made to education and health systems of the Philippines with school enrollment rates increasing fivefold and literacy rates reaching 50% by the 1930s. Several diseases were also nearly eradicated. However, industrial development remained limited due to U.S trade policies favoring cash crop exports and manufactured goods imports while landlessness became a serious problem for peasants affected by Japanese occupation.

The Japanese occupation of the Philippines occurred from 1942 to 1945 during World War II, starting on December 8, 1941, just ten hours after the Pearl Harbor attack. Similar to Pearl Harbor, this initial Japanese assault caused significant damage to American aircraft. As a result, the American Asiatic Fleet in the Philippines retreated to Java on December 12, 1941. On the night of March 11, 1942, General Douglas MacArthur successfully escaped Corregidor and traveled approximately 4,000 km to reach Australia.

The 76,000 American and Filipino defenders on Bataan surrendered on April 9, 1942. They were starving and sick at the time. This surrender marked the start of the infamous Bataan Death

March. During this march, between 7,000 and 10,000 people died from starvation or murder. On May 6, the survivors on Corregidor also surrendered. Japan then took control of the Philippines for over three years until their own surrender. Despite this occupation, guerilla forces in the Philippines managed to control around sixty percent of the islands during a highly efficient campaign. These forces operated mainly in jungle and mountainous areas. MacArthur provided support to these resistance fighters by delivering supplies through submarines and deploying additional troops and officers.

The loyalty of Filipinos to the United States can be attributed to two primary factors: the commitment of America to grant independence and the mistreatment inflicted by the Japanese. The Japanese compelled numerous Filipinos to work in labor camps and subjected young Filipino women to engage in prostitution. On October 20, 1944, General MacArthur fulfilled his promise of returning to the Philippines with a formidable force consisting of 700 vessels and 174,000 men, successfully landing on Leyte Island. By December 1944, Japanese soldiers were expelled from both Leyte and Mindoro islands.

The Japanese military authorities promptly established a new government in the Philippines. Despite their initial promise of granting independence to the islands, they first set up a Council of State to handle civil affairs. This arrangement persisted until October 1943, when the Philippines was declared an independent republic by the Japanese. [13] With a few remarkable exceptions, a majority of the Philippine elite collaborated with the Japanese government. [14] President Jose P. led the Japanese-sponsored republic.

Laurel. [15] Philippine collaboration in Japanese-sponsored political institutions started with Jorge B. Vargas, who was initially appointed by

Quezon as the mayor of Greater Manila before Quezon left Manila. [16] The only political party permitted during the occupation was the Japanese-organized KALIBAPI. [17] Throughout the occupation, the majority of Filipinos remained faithful to the United States, and instances of war crimes committed by the Empire of Japan against surrendered Allied forces and civilians were recorded.

In the Philippines, Marcos believed that martial law would lead to a "New Society" based on new social and political principles. He contended that certain behaviors, associated with a colonial mindset, hindered progress towards modernization. These behaviors included prioritizing personal relationships above all else, as seen in utang na loob, and emphasizing harmony and unity within specific groups at the expense of the entire nation.

To match the accomplishments of Asian neighbors like Taiwan and South Korea, the country needed a new sense of self-sacrifice for the national welfare. However, despite Marcos's insightful criticisms of the previous society, he, along with his wife and a group called the crony group, started participating in massive corruption. This resulted in the creation of policies that aimed to undermine Marcos's rivals from the elite class in political, economic, and social aspects.

The old political system in early American colonial days, which had parties and rough-and-tumble election campaigns, was dominated by the elite and characterized by a press known as "the freest in the world," which was uninhibited in its vituperative and libelous nature. The elite, made up of local political dynasties, was not a homogeneous group. Their feuds and tensions, fueled by attacks on self-esteem as well as disagreements on ideology or issues, resulted in a pluralistic system.