A Plan for the Fort Santiago

Title

Creator

Brillantes, Ben

Language

English

Year

1950

Subject

Fort Santiago (Manila)

Philippines – History.

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

Pag~.6 TIIE MANILA GUARDIAN • November,· 19~ A PLAN FOR FORT SANTIAGO By F. Ben Brillantes WHEN I was ·m the United States last year in the interest dom, a shrine in which J;ias been pte-:served all that is ~~ar .. - of the- Philippine Ex-Political Prisoners' Associ,tion, I to lovers of Democracy. Beneath its s~ace are buned made it a· point to visit as many monuments and memorials hundreds ~political prisoners whose on1y crime was that they . as my crowded. days allOwed. By so doing, I would not only loved the democratic way of life ·mud~ more than the lift!: s~tisfy a cl}erished desire but at the same time get ideas . tl\e Japanes_e conquerors promised them for their collab.01:~\ which mii;i:ll;t be useful in future plans ·Of the Association for tion. , . _ -l honoring the numberless unknOwn heroes who died resisl- That Fort Santiago should b_e pres~rved for its historif. i'ng the enemy during the occupation. backgrowid no one '\YOµld contradict. For more than 400 One of. the memorials that struck me -not only for ~ts. years and wider the flags of fiye. nations, --it has occupied beauty but also for its "efficient achn"nistratio:q was Mowit a prominent place in the history of Manila. - In fact it i~ Vernon. former home of Geor~e Washington. The place, fl still one of the most__ interesting" spots in the city regardless sprawling 475-jlcre estate in Virginia, has been rest~red ani:l 'o_f ~hat it stood for during ~e.· Japanese occupation. ·1D ls maintained by the Mowit Vernon Ladies' Associ~ti.on, an world bisiory.it has been to the Philippines wha~ _the Bastile organization founded by Miss Ann Pamela Cunningham; of was to -France, the '~ower to England and the Morro Castle South- Carolina, apd chart~red by the state of Virginia .. The to Cuba. Like all such famous fortresses", it has been the submembers of the Association . sf!rve withoat remuneration. ject o~ many weird and often terrifying tales of brutality Funds were· raised by individual subscription and the estate a:nd hatred. was acquired in 1858. In May, 1945, the fort was occupied by the United States · For the lll8:intenance of the estate, the .A§sociation de- Army Transportation Corps and was designated as the T.C. rives its income from admission fees. This income has made General Depot. This orp;anjzatiQn ..was respons-ible for dear-.:i possible the maintenance of, the property and the introduction ing away the debris and giving the bodie"s of hundreds· o~ of all proper means of p~tection. During the, early years, Filipinos and foreign ele~ents who were killed there by the when income was . small, progressive 11estaraiion Was made Japanese decent burial. possible by ctmtributions from members of the Association The American forces returned the fort ~o the PhiliJ)p_ine and other interestec:l individuals or patriotic groups. Republic in 1949,.· and since th~, administration of the place After visiting Mount Vernon, I began thinking of Fort , has been placed under the Dep•rtment of Public Works and Santiai:;l'o and how it could be restored tO its original grandeul- Corrlllmni'cations. and splendor and as a fitting memorial to the hun~reds of Fort Santiago acquired fame as early as 1480 when ,a martyi-s who died in the hands of the Japanese during the strongly palisaded earlhwork was built by the grandfath~ occupation. I -asked myself, '~Wh.y not !3- similar. plan for of Rajah SoFman, who appreciated. the strategic ·value of _t~~ <F~ Santiago?'~ _ position of. the mouth of the Pasig river which c9mmanded ~ ·NO dbubt the government' in its long-r,ange program of and still commarldS traffic on Manila Bay. reconstruction has in mind the ultimate restoration of this Twielve bronze cannons were installed in the fort arid· historic landmark. But while its immediate· attentioD. is fo- these enabled Soliman to rule and cOhsolidate the fierce tribeS.J ~~ed. 01:1 ·the more pressing .:Public ~rk~ j~~s l.f~ce roads, until 1570 when an expedition ~rom the Spa:iish ·settleme~ bndges, hydro-elec~c plants, waterways, imgat1on dams, on the southern island of Cebu under the conµnand of Mar.;.' school bUildings, public edifices and other projects, it could tin de Goiti and Juan de Salcedo, captured the fort and lea:ve projects like Fort Santiago reconstruction which has_ a sacked the city. On May 19,_1571, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, universal appeal to freedom-loving peoples of the world, in first governor of the Philippines founded the city of Manila the Ji.ands 'of private organ~tio¥5 ·like for example t~e Phil- arid work was begun to strenghten the walls of the ~Qrt. · ippjp.e Ex-Political ·Prisoners' Association. . · '· In 1584, Santiago 'de Vera, sixth gpvernor general. cleAred I had talked this matter over with individual members the ground of. all the 0riginal pali,ades and laid the fim, of ·the Association including its ·substantial supporters ·and stones of the fort that was later to be named after him.. ·: _. t?ey have enthusiastically endorsed a !'l~n whereby Fo_rt San· _. In 1i62, 16. Briiish warships with a force of nearly 7,000 b~go _could be rec?n~tructed a~d admin~stered under the aus· sailed into Manila Bay and laid siege on the fort. The Aichp1ces of the _A~socrati~n,_foll?wmg the _lines _set by ·the Mount ·bishop of Manila, as acting govemor,·after a _token defense. yern~ Ladies _Assocratlon m connection with George Wash- su1Tendered the city to the British admiral in OctoQer of that., mgton s memonal. . , year. The British forces pillaged the city and partially .~ The PEPPA makes no pretenses that "it could do better mantled the for( during their year and a half of occupation{ than any other organization with similar aimS in this regard. When peace Wa·s re~tored~ reco~struction of the fott started." But to the members 9f the PEPPA, Fort Santiago is very dear. That wits in t 778:• It is their symbol of sacrifice for the cause of universal free- (Continued Qn page 33) '· November, 1950 THE MANILA GUARDIAN Page 33 -~~·\:{~ ~;"'-~?' - .-:?" ;::- ,, Gineh!i San!lltguel URlll to Paso uul Toto In .. Bdonl Mapansuap.•• a La Ton• llena. lne. pruentatlon over DZl'll •WUJ' ruUClq from 8:09 .. lsao--..a. LA TONDENA, INC. • 818-U2 Echague, Manila-Tel. 8-2&-10 --··· ' 'Cable Address: .. MOVE" AGAPITO A. FU~RTE Importer-Exporter-Ind.en tor General Merchant MODERN VENETIAN BWNDS ' 902 Oroq~ta cor; Lope de Vega Tel: 2·91·02 Manila ·- -- .. -- - . Dr. Antonio Paz Dental Surgeon !555 Nueva St. Blnondo Manila A Plan For Fort ••• (Continued from page 6) On -May 1, 1898, Admiral Dewey destroyed the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay and on August tJ of the same year, the city of Manila and the fort·were peacefully s\Irrendered to the American forces tinder General Wesley M~itt. During the American occupation, the In.Oat which had \ com,Pletely encircled the ~alls, was filled and transformed ' into a sunken garden. Many of the old cannons, roundshot and other militarjr equipment were carefully preserved for their_ ornamental value. · The Japanese invader~ raised their flag over the fort on January 3, 1942. The rest of the story since the Japanese .. occupied it is now a matter of conunon knowledge. The history of Fort Santiago, is not complete without meneion of the fact that jt was in one of its cells, now partially restored, where Dr. Jose Rizal spent his last days before .his execution and where he wrote some of his memorials including his famous ''Mi Ultimo Adios". , A place with a history like Fort Santiag6 is worth preserving for posterity. · I I TORREFIEL TRANSPORTATION, INC. Cldtolils Broker-Forwarding Agent a: Tramportatlon Contractor Offif!e: PACIFICO .. TORREFIE"L R·401 Maritima Bldr President Tel. No. 2· 76·69 Licensed Custom1 Broker· Compl!ments of: AGENCIA DE EMPEiq-os DE LORENZO LERMA 2!61 Ave. Rizal Manila INVESTMENT • REAL ESTATE e MORTGAGES COZY HOMES PA SAY REAL TY SZ Eacolta, Mallila Bagalo Brandl Session Rd., Bagalo Member, Manila Realty Boord " buy and sell lots and buildings t: negotiate mortgages " help plan future homes "lr give legal counsel and assistance along zeal estate lines

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