Philippine Cities: History of Naga City Naga City has roots from the early native settlers who

were able to establish a thriving community along two rivers. We'll take a look at the founding and early h istory of Naga City, one of the premiere cities of the Philippines. Naga City derives its name from the tough and robust narra trees that was abunda nt in the area before the city's establishment. The early local Filipino settlers established a trading village here. The place was well known for trade and the c ommunity's advanced weaponry and technology at the time. In 1573 Juan de Salcedo led the Spanish expedition to what we know now as Naga C ity. Captain Salcedo and the Spanish troops were quite surprised to find this fl ourishing village with such technology of the day. The culture of the village wa s quite different and a bit sophisticated and modern. About two years later, in 1575, a new city was founded in the said location. Cap tain Pedro de Chaves of Spain and commander of the Spanish garrison in Naga name d the city as Ciudad de Caceres. It is presently located on Naga City's business c enter. The name of the city was in honor of the current governor general who was a nati ve of Caceres City in Spain. It held the name for quite some time and was even m entioned at the 1595 papal bull. Life went on and the city and the town that the locals established became one co mmunity. The name Nueva Caceres was used to identify the now merged community an d became a city under Spanish law and became one of the first few Spanish cities in the Philippines. In 1898 Elias Angeles and Felix Plazo led a successful revolt which resulted in the Spanish forces retreating to Iloilo Province. This little victory wasn't meant to last long however. A couple of years later, American forces invaded Camarines Sur in 1900 and enter ed Naga City. The revolutionary soldiers of the Philippines in the area of Naga City were forced to surrender in 1901 due to sickness among their forces. In 1941 Naga City was invaded by the Japanese Imperial Army. But the Japanese oc cupation of Naga City didn't last long. In 1945 the Japanese forces in Naga City w as defeated by the American troops and the local guerilla fighters. Naga City wa s officially declared as a city in 1948. Naga City today remains as a great place to visit. Naga City has survived a lot of difficult times and will still remain a bright monument of the early beginnin gs of the Philippines.