Fort Santiago

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Fort Santiago
Moog ng Santiago

The reconstructed main gate of Fort Santiago


Map of the Philippines
General information
Type Bastioned fort
Architectural
style
Italian-Spanish school of fortification
Location along Pasig River
Town or city Manila
Country Philippines
Coordinates
143542N 1205810ECoordinates:
143542N 1205810E
Construction
started
1590
Completed 1593
Renovated 1733
Technical details
Structural
system
Masonry
Other
dimensions
2,030 feet (620 m) perimeter
Design and construction
Architect Gmez Prez Dasmarias(1590)
Fernndo Valds y Tamon(1730s)
Structural
engineer
Leonardo Iturriano
Designations National Historical Landmark
Fort Santiago (Spanish: Fuerte de Santiago Tagalog: Moog ng Santiago) is a citadel first built by Spanish conquistador, Miguel Lpez
de Legazpi for the new established city of Manila in the Philippines. The defense fortress is part of the structures of the walled city of
Manila referred to as Intramuros ("within the walls").
The fort is one of the most important historical sites in Manila. Several lives were lost in its prisons during the Spanish Colonial
Period and World War II. Jos Rizal, the Philippines' national hero, was imprisoned here before his execution in 1896. The Rizal
Shrine museum displays memorabilia of the hero in their collection and the fort features, embedded onto the ground in bronze, his
footsteps representing his final walk from his cell to the location of the actual execution.
Contents
[hide]
1 Profile
2 History
o 2.1 American colonial period
o 2.2 World War II
3 The fort today
4 Preserving the fort
5 Around Fort Santiago
6 References
7 External links
Profile[edit]
Adornments of the gate

Image of Saint James(Santiago)
The lesser arms of the monarch of Spain

The fort was named after Saint James the Great (Santiago in Spanish), the patron saint of Spain, whose relief adorns the faade of the
front gate.
[1][2]
It is located at the mouth of the Pasig River and served as the premier defense fortress of the Spanish Government during
their rule of the country. It became a main fort for the spice trade to the Americas and Europe for 333 years. The Manila Galleon trade
to Acapulco, Mexico began from the Fuerte de Santiago.
[citation needed]

The fort has a perimeter of 2,030 feet (620 m), and it is of a nearly triangular form. The south front, which looks toward the city, is a
curtain with a terreplein, flanked by two demi-bastions - the Bastion of San Fernando, on the riverside, and the Bastion of San Miguel, by
the bayside. A moat connected with the river separates the fort from the city. Near the beginning of the north face, instead of a bastion,
a cavalier called Santa Barbara was built with three faces ofbatteries, one looking seaward over the anchorage place, one facing the
entrance, and the third looking upon the river. The latter is united with a tower of the same height as the walls, through which there is a
descent to the water battery placed upon a semicircular platform, thus completing the triangular form of the fort.
[3]

The 22-foot (6.7 m) high walls, with a thickness of 8 feet (2.4 m) are pierced for the necessary communications. The front
gateway faade measures 40 feet (12 m) high being in the south wall and facing the city. The communication with the river and the sea
was by an obscure postern gate - the Postigo de la Nuestra Seora del Soledad (Postern of Our Lady of Solitude). Inside the fort were
guard stations, together with the barracks of the troops of the garrison and quarters of the warden and his subalterns. Also inside the fort
were various storehouses, a chapel, the powder magazine, the sentry towers, the cisterns, etc.
[3]

History[edit]
The location of Fort Santiago was once the site of a palisaded fort, armed with bronze guns, of Rajah Sulaiman, a Muslim chieftain of
pre-Hispanic Manila. It was destroyed by maestre de campo (master-of-camp) Martin de Goiti who, upon arriving in 1570 from Cebu,
fought several battles with the Muslim natives. The Spaniards started building Fort Santiago (Fuerte de Santiago) after the establishment
of the city of Manila under Spanish rule on June 24, 1571, and made Manila the capital of the newly colonized islands.
[4]

The first fort was a structure of palm logs and earth. Most of it was destroyed when the city was invaded by Chinese pirates led
by Limahong. Martin de Goiti was killed during the siege. After a fierce conflict, the Spaniards under the leadership of Juan de Salcedo,
eventually drove the pirates out toPangasinan province to the north, and eventually out of the country.
[5](pp3244)

The construction of Fort Santiago with hard stone, together with the original fortified walls of Intramuros, commenced in 1590 and
finished in 1593 during the reign of Gmez Prez Dasmarias. The stones used were volcanic tuff quarried from Guadalupe (now
Guadalupe Viejo in Makati).
[6]
The fort as Dasmarias left it consisted of a castellated structure without towers, trapezoidal in trace, its
straight gray front projecting into the river mouth. Arches supported an open gun platform above, named the battery of Santa Barbara,
the patron saint of all good artillerymen. These arches formed casemates which afforded a lower tier of fire through embrasures. Curtain
walls of simplest character, without counter forts or interior buttresses, extended the flanks to a fourth front facing the city.
[7]



The original facade of Fort Santiago in 1880. The front edifice was destroyed by the earthquake of July 1880.
In 1714, the ornate gate of Fort Santiago was erected together with some military barracks.
[8]
The Luzon earthquakes of 1880, which
destroyed much of the city of Manila, destroyed the front edifice of the fort changing its character.
During the leadership of Fernndo Valds y Tamon in the 1730s, a large semicircular gun platform to the front called media naranja (half
orange) and another of lesser dimensions to the river flank were added to the Bastion of Santa Barbara. The casemates were then filled
in andembrasures closed. He also changed the curtain wall facing cityward to a bastioned front. A lower parapet, bordering the interior
moat, connects the two bastions.
[7]



The raising of the American Flag at Fort Santiago.
American colonial period[edit]
On August 13, 1898, the American flag was raised in Fort Santiago signifying the start of the American rule in the Philippines. The fort
served as the headquarters for the U.S. Army and several changes were made to the fort by the Americans.


The gate of Fort Santiago damaged during the liberation of Manila
World War II[edit]
During World War II, Fort Santiago was captured by the Japanese Imperial Army, and used its prisons and dungeons including the
storage cells andgunpowder magazines for hundreds of prisoners who were killed near the end of the war (see Manila massacre).
[9]
The
fort sustained heavy damage from American and Filipino military mortar shells during the Battle of Manila in February 1945. Also,
approximately 600 American prisoners of war died of suffocation or hunger after being held in extremely tight quarters in the dungeons at
Fort Santiago.
The fort today[edit]


The last steps of Jos Rizal before his execution
Fort Santiago, the 16th century military defense structure, stands witness to the valor and heroism of the Filipino through the centuries.
Today, the fort, its bastions, and the prison dungeons for criminals used by the Spanish officials, is now part of a historical park which
also includes the Plaza del Moriones (also called the Plaza de Armas) and several ruins. The park houses well-preserved legacies from
the Spanish Colonial Period including Jose Rizal memorabilia at the Rizal Shrine.
Adaptive use of this famous historical landmark makes certain areas ideal for open air theater, picnics, and as a promenade. The
Intramuros Visitors center gives an overview of the various attractions in the walled city.


National Historical Landmark marker of Fort Santiago
Preserving the fort[edit]
After its destruction during WWII, Fort Santiago was declared as a Shrine of Freedom in 1950. Its restoration by the Philippine
government did not begin till 1953 under the hands of the National Parks Development Committee. The Intramuros Administration now
manages the reconstruction, maintenance, and management of the fort since 1992.
[10]



Reducto de San Francisco Javier (Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe)

The old nails and the sentry overlooking the Shrine
One of the highlights of the visit I have had at the Fort Santiago, is the unassuming yet important landmark in modern-day
Philippines in terms of religion and the faith. Enter to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Heavenly Patroness of the
Philippine Islands as proclaimed by Pope Pius XI on the 16
th
of July 1935. Honestly, I would never have seen this shrine if I
have not been slowing down in my walk-about around the Walled City of Manila. Intramuros is such a wondrous place to
appreciate history, architecture, culture, and of course, religion in the Philippines.
The Philippines, being the predominantly Catholic nation and the first in Asia is deeply religious and such is courtesy of the
coming of the Spanish expedition bringing friars, faithful and the relics of saints. The one that has been ensconced at the
Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe is the replica of the Blessed Virgin Mary, brought from Mexico by Friar Urdaneta aboard
the famous Legazpi expedition.

The tunnel vision towards the altar of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe

the sentry and the tunnel from the gate of the Shrine
Make sure you navigate this shrine very well as it is inconspicuously protected around the walls of Fort Santiago. It is
located on your left side as you walk about towards Fort Santiagos famous and most photographed main entrance. It is
after the stretch of boutiques, art galleries, and resto dotting the walls from the entrance gate and the ticket booth.
Going towards the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, one passes through a tunnel, centuries old, built within the walled City
and to which leads to the shrine. As I took photos, I noticed the tunnel serves as the only passageway towards the entrance
of Fort Santiago, covered and protective from the seaside of Manila.

The wooden marker of the faithful at the Shrine
As was fascinated by architecture and religion while walking around the Walled City, the Shrine simply revealed a great
affinity towards Mexico, the Legazpi expedition, the faith and the Filipino and Mexican faithfuls. I asked the attendant at the
Shrine if the wooden marker was antiquated, his only reply: only the altar inside the shrine is antique and authentic. I took
photos of the wooden altar with carvings of Cherubs and flowers in vines adorning the altar. The image of the Blessed
Virgin of Guadalupe was installed at the altar, majestically protected and lighted. On top of the altar is a vassal carving and
on its peak is the crucified Jesus Christ. I immersed myself in the cold dampness of the Shrine and offered a silent prayer.
It was believed that the Reducto de San Francisco Javier was built in 1662. It was part of the seaside defense of the greater
Intramuros and an earthquake in 1645 destroyed it. It was restored back to its original state in 1773. This Reducto de San
Francisco Javier also serves as the storage chambers of the American Army. It was however, severely damaged during the
Battle of Manila in 1945. Consequently, it was all restored in 1950 and in 1983. It is believed to have been built to protect
the residence of the Governor which at that time was located at the esteemed business address called Fort Santiago.

The wooden carvings of the altar at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe

The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Intramuros
Travel Trivia:
Our Lady of Guadalupe, as the Patroness of the Philippine Islands is also the same Virgin of Guadalupe, the blessed
Patroness of Mexico. Also, the Reducto de San Francisco Javier was later converted in 1980, to hold the Shrine of Our
Lady of Guadalupe.
Travel Tips:
Walk towards the upper section of the Reducto to see the Shrine beautifully;
Reflect on your way to the tunnel, immersing yourself as you pass through it. Literally, on a gloomy or sunny day, you will
see the light at the end of the tunnel;
Pray at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The shrine is very small compared to its contemporaries in the Walled City
of Manila. You will have enough time to reflect, feel your spirituality and just being on your faith;
Check the cannon fodder guarding the shrine at its top wall in the Shrine. It can be accessed at the cobble stone stairs
on both sides of the Shrine.
Reducto de San Francisco Javier. This tunnel and ravelin were added in 1773 during renovations in Fort Santiago. This area
protected part of the riverside area and the seashore. Cannons were placed on platform on top. Gunpowder and ammunition were
stored in chambers below. This fortification was restored in the 1980s and has been converted into a shrine for the image of Our
Lady of Guadalupe
Enshrined herein is the replica of the image by Juan Diego wherein the tru image of the Blessed Mother was miraculously
imprinted before Bishop Zumaraa of Mexico in 1531 and occasioned the instant conversion of natives to Christianity. A replica
was brought to the Philippines in 1565 by Friar Urdaneta in the Legaspi expedition and also occasioned the same instant
conversion our Blessed Mother under the title Our Lady of Guadalupe was declared by Pope Pius XI on the 16th of July 1935 as the
Heavenly Patroness of the Philippine Islands.
Walk into one of the oldest Spanish stone fortresses in the country. Fort Santiago is located in the northwestern part of the
Walled City. In pre-Spanish times, this was the site of Rajah Sulayman's "kuta" or fort. The Spaniards under the term of
Governor General Gomez Perez Dasmarias fortified what was originally wooden structures. Other governors general
continued to modernize Fort Santiago's defenses. Which makes it probably the best laid-out portion of the walls.

FORT GROUNDS


Upon entering the fort, one will see the the Intramuros Visitors Center (IVC) located at the restored Baluartillo de San
Francisco Javier, where military supplies were stored when it was built in 1663. The Reducto de San Francisco Javier was
added in 1773.

The ten chambers of the fortification house an information center where tours can be scheduled and information on
Intramuros events and attractions can be obtained; a restaurant and souvenir shops showcasing Filipino craftsmanship.
On the right is the Plaza Moriones, named after Gov. Gen. Domingo Moriones (1877-1880). It was used as a public
promenade until the 1863 earthquake devastated the fort. The military fenced off the promenade area in 1864 when the
buildings around the plaza were used as soldiers' barracks.

Opposite Plaza Moriones is wall of the Almacenes Reales or Royal Warehouses. These were storehouses for goods
unloaded along the river wharfs, to supply the fort and other institutions in the city. Erected in 1591, these warehouses were
rebuilt as soldiers' quarters after Plaza Moriones was fenced off in 1864. The warehouse was moved to the wall adjacent to
the Puerta de Almacenes near Fort Santiago. This was to facilitate entry of goods to the city. The new warehouses were built
during the term of Gov. Gen. Fausto Cruzat y Gongora (1690-1701). These were continually renovated until completion
under the term of ad interim Gov. Jose de Torralba (1709-1717). It was during this period that the MAESTRANZA (the
foundry and arsenal) was also transferred nearby. In 1796, the area was demolished and a new riverfront was built and
called the Muelle de Almacenes. The gate and this section of the walls lasted until 1903 when it was leveled by American
military engineers for easy access to the river wharfs.

Next to the picnic area and refreshment kiosk is the archaeological excavation of Artilleria de Maestranza, a foundry
which cast cannons and ammunition during the Spanish period.
In front of the main gate of Fort Santiago is the Moat, the first line of defense surrounding the fortified city with water.
Guarding the fort on the bay and the river are the Baluarte de San Miguel and Medio Baluarte de San Francisco,
respectively. These ramparts were built in 1609 to fortify the defenses of the principal gate of Fort Santiago.


PLAZA DE ARMAS




The Plaza de Armas was the fort's main square, which was probably the site of the Tagalog settlement of Maynilad, the
palisaded kingdom of Rajah Soliman. Surrounding it are the ruins of buildings once used as military barracks and
storehouses. At the right is an 18th century adobe building which was converted into the Dulaang Raha
Sulayman (Rajah Sulayman Theater), where seasonal performances are staged by the Philippine Educational Theater
Association (PETA).

Used as soldiers' barracks, it also had a room for petty officers. This was used as a makeshift chapel-cell where Philippine
national hero Dr. Jose Rizal spent his last day on earth. The Rizal Shrine at the left was built in honor of the national hero.
It stands on the site of a brick barracks where Rizal was imprisoned from November 3 to December 30, 1896. A life-size wax
statue of the hero is one of the main attractions of the shrine.

Recessed in a corner of the fort is the Postigo de la Nstra. Sra. del Soledad(Postern of Our Lady of Solitude). This gate
was used by the fort occupants as a passage to the Pasig River. In 1762, Lieut. Gov. Gen. Simon de Anda escaped through
this gate as British soldiers captured the city. Bringing part of the city's treasury and official documents, Anda fled to
Pampanga and established himself as Gov. Gen. of the Philippines. He headed an underground Spanish government and led
a resistance movement against the British until the end of the occupation in 1764.

A terraced garden covers what was once the site of the Casa del Castillano or the residence of the Commander of the Fort.
Only the aljibe ( water cistern) which supplied fresh water from a well below remains of the structure. The aljibe itself was
used as a storage room during the American period. In 1904, this was the headquarters of the Philippine Division of the U.S.
Army. The building was renovated with a platform and tower extending to the Baluarte de Santa Barbara.

Baluarte de Santa Barbara began in 1593 as a wooden platform that protected the entrance to the Pasig River. It was rebuilt
in stone with storage vaults and a powder magazine in 1599. Renovations continued into the 18th century, including the
addition of a semi-circular platform (Media Naranja).

Stories of prisoners drowning in the dungeons during high tide abound. However, archaeological evidence proves otherwise.
The dungeons, which were the former storage vaults, were built way above the river level and it would be impossible for the
waters to flood the chambers even during high tide.

The chambers of the powder magazine were used as prison cells for hundreds of guerillas and civilians arrested
during World War II. Their remains were discovered after the Battle of Manila. The white marble cross marks the common
grave of these victims.

ajah Sulayman Theater (Dulaang Rajah Sulayman) is an open air theater under the grounds of Fort Santiago which was ruins of
a former Spanish military barracks. It had served as a highly atmospheric setting for contemporary theater-in-the-round
productions by PETA (Philippine Educational Theater Association). It was designed and conceptualized by Guidote. It was named
Rajah Sulayman in honor of the leader of the Mohammedan Malays who first inhabited the area.

The Plaza de Armas is a public square in Intramuros, Manila. It is one of two major plazas in Intramuros, the other being the
central Plaza de Roma (also called "Plaza de Armas" at one point in its history), and is the central plaza of Fort Santiago. It is
located north of Plaza Moriones (not to be confused with Plaza Moriones in Tondo), a larger plaza outside Fort Santiago which
was once a military promenade before it was closed in the 1863 earthquake that devastated Manila.
[1]
While Plaza Moriones in
Intramuros is outside the walls of Fort Santiago, both plazas are often construed for the other.
[2]

Historical evidence may suggest that the plaza is the site where the wooden palisade of Rajah Sulayman, on top of which Fort
Santiago was built, was located,
[1]
and was deliberately allocated by Miguel Lpez de Legazpi as the smaller of two open squares
in Intramuros, the other being the larger Plaza Mayor (today's Plaza de Roma).
[3]
Military barracks and storehouses surrounded
the plaza, the ruins of which stand today.
[1]

Currently, the plaza is an open green area surrounded by trees.
[4]
At the western side of the plaza is the Rizal Shrine, erected in
honor of Jos Rizal, who was imprisoned there prior to his execution in 1896, when the building was still being used as military
barracks. The Shrine includes a statue of Rizal which was erected at the center of the plaza. To the north is a cross erected in
memory of World War II victims who were buried in a mass grave underneath by the Imperial Japanese Army, while the eastern
side contains an eighteenth-century building which was converted into the Dulaang Raha Sulayman (Rajah Sulayman Theater),
the venue of seasonal performances by the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA).
[1]

The Fortress of Empire: Fort Santiago
The old fortress of the Spanish Empire, Fort Santiago was named after Santiago Matamoro (St. James Slayer of the Moors). Guarding the
entrance of the Pasig River from Manila Bay, this formidable fort was built on the site of Rajah Sulaymans original wooden fort.
Fort Santiago may not be as old as Cebus Fort San Pedro (the first and oldest colonial fort built in the country), but it had significantly
served as military headquarters of Spain, British, United States and Japan during different eras in our history.



The arched entrances, the silent moats, the dimly-lit tunnels and the solid walls of its dungeons stood witness to the Tales of Death from the
Dungeons and Jail Cells of Fort Santiago.


Plaza Moriones

Fort Santiago tour begins at Plaza Moriones, a public promenade until it was fenced off by the Spanish military in 1864. Located at the left side
of the park is the Baluartillo de San Francisco Javier. It was built by Governnor Sabiniano Manrique de Lara to protect the old postern gate
when the first Governors Palace was located inside the fort until 1654. Its chambers stored military supplies. Today, it houses the Intramuros
Visitors Center.

Baluartillo de San Francisco Javier is adjoined by a tunnel that leads to the Reducto de San Francisco Javier, which now enshrines the image of
the Nuestra Seora de Guadalupe.



Before crossing the other side of the plaza, we passed by the American barracks where Ferdinand Marcos was imprisoned.

Across the other side of Plaza Moriones is the ruins of the Almacenes Reales or the Royal Warehouse where the goods brought in by the
galleons were stored. A chapel dedicated to the Nuestra Seora de la Encarnacion used to stand at the far end of the Almacenes. It served as
chapel for the military and audencia. It was destroyed during a great fire and was never rebuilt.

Passing by the picnic ground is the Artelleria de Maestranza or royal foundry where the Spanish cast cannons and ammunitions. The bronze
statue of King Carlos IV at Plaza Roma was cast on the Maestranza.



Plaza Armas



A small bridge over the moat leads visitors to the main gate of the fort. The only original structures at the entrance are the two sentinels located
at the sides. The rest were blown up during the 1945 Liberation.

Guarding its flanks were the Medio Baluarte de San Francisco on the river side andBaluarte de San Miguel on the bay.



Plaza Armas was the forts main square. It is surrounded by military barracks. To the north side of the plaza was a barracks, which is the
probable site of the wooden fort ofRajah Sulayman. On south side are the ruins of a Spanish barracks and building that was reconstructed to
house the Rizal Shrine.



A postern leading to Pasig River located at the far north of the plaza called Postigo de la Nuestra Seora de Soledad was used by Governor
Simon de Anda to escape from the British when the city was breached.



Near the postern is the chapel cell where Jose Rizal spent the nigh before he was led to his execution.



Baluarte de Santa Barbara

At the far end of Plaza Armas was the residence of the forts commander or Casa del Castellano. The dungeon below was the cellar where food
supplies were kept. A terraced garden now occupies the site.


Strategically located to overlook the bay and the river, Baluarte de Sta. Barbara was initially built as a wooden platform in 1593. Storage
vaults and bomb-proof powder magazines were added in 1599.



A Rizaliana Exhibit featuring the furniture and personal effects of the Rizal family can be viewed from the upper floor of the bulwark.




The Falsabraga de Sta. Barbara and half-moon shaped Media Naranjan were falls walls which protected the main bulwark in case of heavy
bombardment form the river.

During World War II, Fort Santiago was renamed Hu Heiei by the Japanese Government. It became the headquarters of the
dreaded Kempeitai or Japanese military police who according to legend imprisoned, tortured, drowned and executed numerous Filipinos in
the forts notorious dungeons.



A memorial cross known as the Shrine of Freedom marks the common grave of approximately 600 bodies of guerillas and civilians found
inside the powder magazine ofBaluarte de Sta. Barbara.