LESSER KNOWN BATTLES

1. Cagayan Battles (1582).

Led by their chief Tay Fusa, the piratescomposed
of Chinese mercenaries, Japanese ronin
(masterless samurai) and other lawless elements
subjugated and oppressed the people of Cagayan,
compelling the Spanish to send a relief force of
forty men led by Capt. Juan Pable de Carrion
onboard six ships.
Set against this small expedition was an enemy
force composed of approximately 600 men and
more than a dozen ships. In the ensuing battles
(which included beach warfare and actual boarding
of ships) the Spanish utilized their superior
weaponry and military tactics to inflict hundreds of
casualties on the pirates with only a few deaths on
their side. In the end, Tay Fusa and his men were
forced to abandon their settlement.

2. Tamblot Uprising (1621 1622).

Tamblot, a babaylan from Bohol, was said to have
started the revolt after he challenged the Spanish
priest to see whose god could help them produce
rice and wine from a bamboo stalk. While Tamblot
won the challenge, the Spanish attributed his victory
either to demonic forces or plain trickery.
Nevertheless, Tamblot convinced 2,000 Boholanos
to abandon the Spanish and instead join his cause.
Due to the uprising, the Spanish had to call for
reinforcements from Cebu to defeat the rebels. As
for Tamblots fate, he was either killed in one of the
battles or was assassinated by some Spanish friars
who managed to infiltrate his camp.

3. Bancao Revolt (1621 1622).

As a young man, he had been one of those who
initially befriended Spanish conquistador Miguel
Lopez de Legaspi and converted to Catholicism.
However, during his dotage, he went back to his old
religion and teamed up with the local babaylan
Pagali to build a temple dedicated to a diwata.
Bancao and Pagali also attracted lots of followers
by saying they could turn the Spanish into stones or
clay by simply uttering the word bato or hurling
earth at them respectively. Unfortunately for the
followers, their incantations proved useless to the
might of superior Western technology as the
Spanish suppressed their movement soon enough
and burned their temple.
Afterwards, the Spanish beheaded Bancaos corpse
and placed his head on a stake as a warning to the
rest of the people.

4. Tapar Uprising (1663).

This revolt, which happened in the town of Oton,

Panay, was named after its chief instigator, a

babaylan named Tapar.
Renouncing his conversion to the Catholic faith,
Tapar founded a religion which mixed Christianity
and paganism. As its head priest, Tapar dressed in
womens clothes, claimed he could talk to a demon,
and formulated native versions of the Spanish
clergy, the Holy Trinity, and even the Virgin Mary.
When the local Spanish priest tried to intervene,
Tapar had him killed. As revenge, Spanish forces
hunted down Tapar and his followers and killed
them. To dissuade further revolts, they fastened
Tapar and his followers corpses to bamboo poles
and fed them to the crocodiles in full view of the
inhabitants. Not only that, they also impaled the
movements Virgin Mary and fed her to the crocs
as well.

5. Chinese Massacres (1603, 1639, 1663).

It sure was tough to be Chinese living in Spanishcontrolled Philippines, considering they had to
endure discrimination, violence, and whole-scale
massacres.
Thanks to the failed attempt by the Chinese pirate
Limahong to annex the country in 574, anti-Chinese
sentiment generally ran high among the Filipinos
and the Spanish. Distrust was a two-way street,
however, as most of the Chinese also viewed the
other side with suspicion. It didnt help that some of
them actually plotted to revolt against Spain.
In this atmosphere of paranoia, several bloody
revolts broke out in the 16th century and 17th
century. Among the most notable include the
Sangley (the archaic term for Chinese) Rebellion of
1603 in which a combined Spanish-FilipinoJapanese force massacred 23,000 Chinese after it
was feared the arrival of three high-ranking
mainland Chinese officers was a pretext for an
invasion.
Another, the 1639 Rebellion, involved an uprising
by Chinese workers in Laguna which later ended
with the deaths of an estimated 20,000 Chinese. The
third major rebellion happened in 1662 when the
powerful Chinese pirate Koxinga demanded the
annexation of the Philippines but abruptly died
afterwards. His death, however, sparked another
battle between the Spanish and the Chinese which
ultimately resulted in the latter suffering 22,000
deaths.
Unfortunately, no amount of bloodshed could
induce the two sides to seek a lasting peace, as there
would be more uprisings and rebellions as Spanish
rule dragged on.

6. Sultan Shaif ud-Din versus Sultan Kutai

(1701).
While a single combat to the death between two
monarchs might seem like something out of a
Hollywood movie, an event like this really took
place in 1701 between two Muslim sultans due to a
simple misunderstanding.
Wanting to pay a courtesy call to Kutai who was
Sultan of Maguindanao and the successor of
Kudarat, Sulu Sultan Shaif ud-Din sailed forth from
Jolo to Maguindanao with a huge fleet of native
sailboats. However, Kutai wrongly assumed the
vast armada to be an invasion force and denied it
permission to sail upriver.
Insulted by the gesture, ud-Din challenged Kutai to
single combat in front of their men. After both
killed each other during the duel, their men also
fought a bloody battle which was won in the end by
ud-Dins forces.

7. Agrarian Revolts (1745 1746).

Set in the areas of Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal,
and Bulacan, the roots of the Agrarian Revolts
stemmed from the usurpation of lands by several
religious orders, leaving the inhabitants poor and
desolate.
While Spanish forces eventually quelled the
uprisings, Pedro Calderon, an investigator for the
Royal Audiencia, found that the religious orders
with the collaboration of a corrupt surveyor named
Juan Monroyusurped the lands rightfully
belonging to the natives and ordered the lands to be
returned to their rightful owners.
The case eventually reached the court of Spanish
King Ferdinand VI who admonished the friars and
commanded them to return the ill-gotten lands back
to the inhabitants. Not only that, he also instructed
the religious orders to treat the Filipinos well.
Unfortunately, the kings decrees fell on deaf ears as
the friars managed to keep their vast haciendas and
estates until the Revolution broke out.

8. Revolt in Defence of the 1812

Constitution (1815).
One of the least-known revolts in the country
happened after the rescission of the 1812 Cadiz
Constitution. As can be recalled, that particular
constitutionpromulgated during a time when
Spain was embroiled in a bloody guerrilla war
known as the Peninsular War with the French
granted a wide range of rights which was afforded
to the different Spanish colonies including the
Philippines.
Among such rights included representation in the
Spanish assembly and Spanish citizenship to the

natives. Unfortunately, with the withdrawal of the

French and the reinstatement of the Spanish King
Ferdinand VII, the constitution was later abolished
in 1814. Naturally, this resulted in widespread
unrest in the Philippines.
Many of the lower classes blamed the upper-class
principales for the loss of their newly-minted
freedoms and suspected them of conspiring with the
Spanish to maintain the latters hegemony. Ilocandia
became the hotbed of the insurgency, with local
leader Simon Tomas leading his townmates to
ransack and pillage the homes and churches of the
Spanish and pro-Spanish Filipinos.
However, their revolt was short-lived as the Spanish
quickly suppressed Tomas and his followers.
MISCONCEPTIONS

1. Every Japanese Treated Our

Countrymen Harshly.
Probably the biggest reason why some Filipinos
especially those belonging to the older generation
still harbor feelings of hatred for the Japanese is
because of the brutality they suffered under their
rule. We dont blame them; after all, it is welldocumented that life was generally a living hell for
those who lived under the Japanese.
Contrary to popular belief however, not all the
Japanese acted like savage barbarians. In fact, there
were some who actually displayed kindness towards
the people. Chief Justice Abad Santos had fond
memories of a Christian Japanese Captain named
Watanabe who not only treated him and his son
kindly, but even delivered his letter to his wife.
Japanese officers, especially those who knew how
to speak English, and their men were quite wellbehaved and would even try to befriend the local
Filipino community. While it wont erase the stigma
of their compatriots brutality, its also equally
wrong to classify every single Japanese as a
mindless murderer.

2. They Controlled The Entire Philippines.

While the Japanese did wrest the country from the
Americans, a highly effective guerrilla force
prevented them from ever taking full control of the
country.
In fact, the Japanese controlled as much as only 40
percent; all the rest belonged to different guerrilla
groups. While the Japanese did control the major
urban centers, they were in fact confined mostly to
Luzon and Visayas, surrounded by the guerrillas
who operated in the countryside and in the
mountains.
One guerrilla movement in Mindanaothe island
farthest from the Japaneseeven installed its own

government which operated out in the open. These

groups non-stop destabilization and surveillance
campaign against the Japanese proved to be hugely
successful, and were invaluable to the eventual
return of the Americans.

3. The Guerrillas Were A United Front.

Propaganda poster depicting the Philippine
resistance movement. Via Wikimedia Commons.
In a way, the different guerrilla groups were united
primarily that they had to fight a common enemy.
However, the cause for unity ends there as these
groups hated each other almost as much as they
hated the Japanese. In fact, they often fought each
other either for territory and influence.
The Huks, for instance, despised American-led
guerrilla groups and would often engage them in
battle. The Moros also clashed with Filipino and
USAFFE guerrillas on a regular basis. So in
actuality, the conflict in the Philippines looked less
like a clear-cut duel between two people and more
like a barroom brawl among drunken customers.

4. The Guerrillas Were Composed Of

Filipinos And Americans Only.
Chinese-Filipino guerrillas with some captured
Japanese soldiers in Luzon. Source:
www.watawat.net
While we may think that only Filipinos and
Americans fought as guerrillas against the Japanese,
there was actually another nationality that fought
them here too: the Chinese.
Thats right, the Chinesebeing also on the
receiving end of Japanese aggression during the war
formed their own guerrilla group against the
invaders. Composed mainly of assimilated Chinese,
the Philippine Chinese Anti-Japanese Guerrilla
Force or Wah Chi operated in Central Luzon and
often conducted lightning raids and liquidations
against the Japanese and their collaborators.
They also fought together with the Huk. In fact,
Luis Taruc was said to have remarked that among
the guerrilla groups, the Wah Chi were among the
most courageous and ferocious. Speaking of
ferocity

5. The Guerrillas Fought A Good, Clean

Fight.
To think that only the Japanese were brutal is
misleading since various accounts have shown how
creatively cruel our guerrilla forefathers could be as
well. That Filipinos are an innately gentle and
hospitable people just goes to show how far the
Japanese actually forced them into becoming cruel
sadists as well.

Fulfilling the proverb of violence begets violence

and driven by revenge, the Filipino guerrillas struck
fear into the hearts of the invaders, mutilating and
decapitating captured Japanese soldiers whenever
they could. One Japanese officer in Mindanao
related how they would go back to sleep on their
ships at night for fear of being ambushed by Moro
juramentados. When the Americans finally
returned, their cigarettes were often bartered with
by the guerrillas using the severed heads of
Japanese soldiers.
The guerrillas also often ignored American orders to
treat captured enemy soldiers well, killing and
decapitating them the moment they could lay their
hands on them. Even the Americans themselves
were frightened at the behavior and appearance of
the guerrillas, some of whom vowed not to shave or
cut their hair until theyve wiped out the enemy.

6. The American Liberation Campaign Was

Unstoppable.
Believe it or not, General Douglas MacArthur
almost didnt get to keep his promise of returning to
the Philippines in 1944, and its all thanks to some
very critical mistakes the Americans made during
the decisive Battle of Leyte Gulf. Luckily for them
though, the Japanese made far more mistakes.
At this point, the Japanese were getting desperate
and banking on a last-ditch gambit to delay or even
possibly defeat the overwhelming American forces
poised to land on Leyte. To do this, they
consolidated what was left of their once-mighty
Navy and devised a plan wherein a sacrificial decoy
force would lure away the Americans most
powerful ships which was guarding the invasion
force. With those out of the way, the Japanese
would then swoop in with their own ships and
destroy the unguarded forces.
The plan, if it succeeded, would have slaughtered a
countless number of American soldiers as well as
set the liberation campaign schedule back by years.
And it nearly worked too.
Taking the bait, the powerful main fleet led by
Admiral William Halsey pursued the decoys and
allowed the Japanese Navy led by Vice-Admiral
Takeo Kurita to sail unopposed through the San
Bernardino Strait right into the unguarded American
forces off the coast of Samar. Up against this
overwhelming force of battleships which included
the Yamato (the largest of its kind in the world) and
heavy cruisers was a motley collection of American
support ships which consisted of slow-moving
escort carriers, transports, and small destroyer ships.
However, the Americans displayed ferocious
fighting skills in their engagement, their outgunned
ships going toe-to-toe with the powerful Japanese
battleships. In fact, Kurita lost his nerve and

sounded the retreat because he thought he had been

fighting the main American fleet.

expressed his surprise when he saw the American

planes like sitting ducks on the ground.

7. MacArthur Made His I Shall Return

Speech Here.

Without the much-needed planes, the Filipinos and

Americans found themselves at a huge disadvantage
against the Japanese.

Gen. Douglas MacArthur wades ashore during

initial landings at Leyte, Philippine Islands (1944).
Via Wikimedia Commons.
With all the legends surrounding MacArthur, its
probably no wonder if many Filipinos still think he
announced his famous promise here on Philippine
soil.
In reality however, MacArthur uttered that line only
after he had arrived in Terowie, South Australia
with the rest of the evacuees from Corregidor. He
also kept repeating that line in his subsequent
speeches.
Incidentally, his colleagues and officials at
Washington thought MacArthurs line was too
personal and asked him to change it to We shall
return, a request he ignored. Besides, his
supporters countered, MacArthur took the war
personally since he thought he had let the Filipino
people down and wanted to make amends.

8. The Japanese Completely Surprised Our

Forces When The War Began.
After the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor on
December 7, 1941, we were taught that the Japanese
quickly launched surprise air raids on several
bases across the Philippines.
One raid at Clark Airfieldwhich would be known
as our own version of Pearl Harborresulted in the
destruction of virtually the entire arsenal of
USAFFE airplanes. As a consequence, the Japanese
achieved air superiority at the onset of their
invasion of the country.
It was a complete tactical surprise, right? Not really.
Since the attack on Pearl Harbor, USAFFE forces in
the country had already been put on the alert for the
impending Japanese onslaught. In fact, General
Lewis Brereton, commander of the Far East Air
Force even proposed sending bomber planes to
destroy Japanese air bases in Formosa (Taiwan) to
pre-empt their raids when he heard the news about
Pearl Harbor. He also recommended that the planes
be kept off the ground in order to prevent their
destruction by the Japanese.
However, bureaucratic squabbling between him and
MacArthurs Chief-of-Staff General Sutherland
prevented the planes from launching the operation
in time, an incident which has come to be known as
the Far East Air Force Controversy. One Japanese
airman who took part in the first air raids even

9. The Death March Was Japanese

Brutality At Its Worst.
There is no question that the infamous Bataan Death
March was one of Japans worst atrocities
committed against the Filipinos and Americans. The
60-mile trek from Mariveles, Bataan in the south to
Camp O Donnell in the north resulted in the deaths
of tens of thousands of captured prisoners, many of
whom succumbed to the gruelling conditions of the
march.
Curiously enough, many misconceptions have been
attributed to such a well-documented event. For
one, some prisoners described the long walk as
relatively easy. According to them, their constant
rest stops was the reason why the march lasted for
at least three weeks.
And aside from the numerous accounts of Japanese
cruelty, there were also stories of kind Japanese
soldiers who helped out the prisoners, giving them
water and allowing them ample time to rest. A few
even allowed the weak ones to ride with them on
their jeepneys or trucks. Unfortunately, acts of
kindness like the aforementioned were the
exceptions rather than the norm.
Another misconception is the view that surrendered
personnel from Corregidor were transferred and
forced to join the Death March. On the contrary, at
the time of their surrender (May 6, 1942) the last of
the Death March participants had already reached
Camp O Donnell in Tarlac, their exodus having
begun after the fall of Bataan on April 9. Instead,
they were shipped to Manila and paraded on the
streets as the Japanese wanted to show off their
victory.
The Corregidor prisoners were also in far better
shape (they enjoyed better rations) than their
comrades who joined the Death March at the time
of their surrender.

10. Every Effect Of Japanese Occupation

Was Negative.
While a decimated population, a destroyed
economy, and a wrecked infrastructure would seem
to negate that notion, there were indeed a few silver
linings to be had during their occupation of the
country. For one, Tagalog and not English became

the national language. As a result, our culture

experienced a sort of renaissance during those years
especially when artists and writers re-discovered the
beauty of indigenous arts and literature.
As weve mentioned before, the presence of a
foreign invader also strengthened our national
identity. Even if the guerrilla groups squabbled
among themselves, they at least had the propensity
to recognize the Japanese as a common enemy.
Lastly, the occupation showcased the positive
qualities of Filipinos who not only had to be

resilient but also be extremely creative to stay alive.

Conclusively, the hardships of the war definitely
strengthened the Filipinos indomitable will to
survive.