An old Fort in Lanao [column]

Title

Creator

Balquiedra, Fructuoso M.

Identifier

Social Science Section

Language

English

Source

The Young Citizen : the magazine for young people 6 (5) May 1940

Year

1940

Subject

Philippines--Mindanao--History

Lanao del Norte--History

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

Built during the 1850s on the north of Lake Lanao, the fort was named after General Pedro Almonte, who led a campaign into the Lanao interior in 1639. During World War II, it was occupied by the Japanese.

Fulltext

THE YOUNG CITIZEN May, 1940 SOCIAL SCIENCE SECTION AN OLD FORT IN LANAO By FRUCTUOSO M. BALQUIEDRA • Ruins of Fort Almonte Courttsy of Mr. J. Srott McCormiclr. HISTORY tells us that Magellan, sailing under a commission from the king of Spain, discovered the Philippines in 1521. Then for more than three hundred years Spain tried to establish in this country a government which would make the people peaceful and law-abiding citiu:ns. Some historians say that the cross and the sword which Magellan planted were significant: the cross was the symbol of the triumph of Christianity and the sword signified power and strength. Simultaneously with the spread of the teach.ings of the · Catholic ch~rch in the Islands, forts were built in many places, especially in those places where peace and order were most needed. . Many forts were built in Mindanao. One of these was Fort Almonte, erected during the latter part of the 19th century. • Academic Supervisor for Lanao Public Schools. soldiers. As there are no written records of Fort Almonte to be obtained iii. the povince of Laitao·; the writer interviewed personally several o 1 d · natives of the province.' These were Moro Ba'. randia o f Causuagan, Datu Ande of Liangan, and Martin Gagara of lligan. The 'two Marana_os actually witnessed the building of Fort Almonte, as well as other activities of the· Spanish If you will look at the map o·f Lanao, you will find Liangan, a barrio of the Municipality of Kolambugan, 36 kilo" meters west of lligan. Seventy years ago Liangan was almost inaccessible to Christian people. Maranaos controlled all the territory from lligan to Kolambugan and beyond. Liangan was very , much like a hidden place in the hetrt of the unexplored jungle. A Cfilistian who would attempt to Jive in this plac· e would surely ~ncounter hunger and sickness, and perhaps death. There were no roads like those which we have at present, and of course no automobiles, no buses, a:nd no calesas. Wild pigs wandered in the forest, monkeys jumped from tree to tree, and a host of Maranao outlaws roamed from place to place. Water transportation was the only means of travel from lligan to various ·towns and barrios along the shores. May, 1940 rHE YOUNG CITIZEN Then Fort Almonte was built. What caused the Spaniards to build Fort All\!Onte? According to Martin Gagara of Iligan, Maranaos along the seashore were then engaged in salt making. But this industry ~as not the principal motive of the Maranaos for settling along the seashore. The principal motive was to capture the Christians who came sailing in vintas close to the shores. When these Maranaos sighted a vinta moving along close to the shore, they would sail out, seize the Christian vinta, and take ·it to the shore. Often the messengers of the government who carried messages and letters from Misamis Occidental to Iligan and return were captured hy these Maranaos. Because of such annoyances, the building of Fort Almonte was undertaken. As soon as it was decided to build a fort, the government lost no time in blazing a trail to Liangan. Then the Spanish soldiers came. Officers and soldiers left behind them their families and the comforts enjoyed in the civilized world. They came in vintas to Liangan. ·First they built a wooden fo.rt on the south bank of the Liangan river. The concrete well for supplying drinking water may still be seen there. Few in number, they suffered from lack of food and from skirmishes with the Maranaos. This fact is atteste<;l by Datu Ande of Liangan. The Maranaos ambushed and robbed the soldiers at night. Sometimes in broad daylight they attacked their fort. They committed many atrocities in order to discourage the Spaniards. Finally the soldiers decided to lnove to the north bank of the Liangan r iver to the site where the ruins of historical Fort Almonte now stand. · The reason for transferring the fort.from the south bank of the river to the north was because on the norih bank there was a more desirable position which would be difficult ·for the Maranaos to reach, since they would have to cross the river to. do so. At present Liangan is a small barrio of less than one hundred houses. It would be hard for a visitor to believe that once it was a very lively place where soldiers and officers and their senoras and· children lived and enjoyed life. But this was true according to Datu Ande and Moro Barandia. After years of fighting, the Maranaos and the Christians became friends. Amay Buaya, Amay Pago, and Datu Sangcayo were the peaceful Maranaos who in many instances "broke bread" with the soldiers. thoto9ral/1 by Court_e11 of Mr. J. Scott M~Cormici. "A Grou; of ProfJindal 0//icials of Lanao at the Ruins of Forth Almonte T he fort was abandoned by the Spaniards immediately after the downfall of 'the Spanish government in the Isl ands. According to (Please turn to page 192.) 192 THE YOUNG CITIZEN ·May, 1940 THE BEGGAR'S STORY (Continued from page 180) eye. It amused Ille very much to steal behind his back and slap him with anything I had at hand. Many times he tried to catch me, but how could he get hold of me when I had fast, strong legs, and he was already tottering with old age? Besides, his one good eye was becoming dim. Once, I made him so angry that, for the first time, he shouted, "0 boy, you will pay for your unkindness-some day." ''I only laughed in return and gave him another slap on h'is thin underpants. And then I ran away and joined my friends who were exchanging stories under a sampaloc tree. "Boys," I suggested, "let's climb the sampaloc tree and see which of us can 'Climb. the highest." Perhaps tired of telling and listening to uninteresting stories, the boys thought my suggestion was a good idea. And so climb the tree we did, each one trying to outdo the other. Pretty soon, by climbing on the back of one boy and stepping on the shoulder of another, I found myself ahead of the boys. Antl a few minutes later I was on the topmost branch, shouting triumphantly to my companions. "Just then, one-eyed Apiong was passing by. I hurriedly clambered_ down from my high perch to be in time to tease Apiong again. In my hurry, I stepped on a dead branch and down I fell to the ground with a frightful thud. My spinal column and three ribs were broken, and my eyes striking something b'ecame useless from then on. You can read the story of my life on how I look now," the old man concluded with a pathetic gesture of his thin, dirty hands. The children were silent as they looked at the ungainly figure of the old AN OLD FORT .... (Continued from page 183) Moro Barandia, the Spaniards loaded all the cannons on a · scow, took them out to sea, and sank them there. Then they feft the fort ·and sailed for lligan, pres_umably to sm;render' to the Americans. Tl)e ruin of Fort Almonte, as ft. is today, is not especially attractive,. as you see ln the photographs. It is just another ruin _in a forgotten place. But when one stands before it in meditation, or goes about and examines th:e m6at about th,e stone fort,, looks at the cells where Maranao prisoners were kept, sees the concrete' oven wheri: the soldiers baked bread, walks OV!fl' , the parade ground where the soldiers arilled, or climbs to the top of the small hill where the soldiers and ihe-"seiioras looked at the landscape, then one will be intensely interested in this once important but now forgotten fortification. Fort Almonte is now only a ruin, but this historic ruin still brings to mind the Spanish attempt to bring about peace and order in the Philippines. beggar. Carmen trembled with fear and misgiving, for she could see a clear picture of herself: an old, dirty, wrinkled woman, bent double, groping herself with a crooked stick because· her eyes were useless, begging from house to house . under the sun's heat and in the rain, dogs barking at her-and being teased and laughed at and molested by a young pretty girl ... SOME QUESTIONS I. What kind of girl was Carmen? 2. What was good in her? bad in her? 3. Did she listen to and obey her mother's advice?

pages

182-183+

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