History

Further information: History of Luzon, Tondo (historical polity), Namayan, and Rajahnate of Maynila
Luzon was originally inhabited by Negrito people before Austronesians from Taiwan displaced them. The
Austronesian groups were divided further into two types of nations; coastal maritime states or
highlander civilizations based on the mountains and which had built up plutocracies based on
agriculture, plutocracies such as the Igorot Society which is responsible for building the Banaue Rice
Terraces. Meanwhile, the maritime states were split among Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms, Muslim
principalities, and ethnoreligious tribes, who had trading connections with Borneo, Malaya, Java,
Indochina, India, Okinawa, Korea, Japan and China before the Spanish established their rule. From just
before the first millennium, the Tagalog and Kapampangan peoples of south and central Luzon had
established several major coastal polities, most notable among them those of Maynila, Tondo and
Namayan. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription, the first Philippine document written in 900AD, names
places in and around Manila Bay as well as Medan in Indonesia.[6] These kingdoms were based on
leases between village rulers (Datu) and landlords (Lakan) or Rajahs, to whom tributes and taxes were
levied. These kingdoms were coastal thalassocracies based on trade with neighboring Asian political
entities at that time. There was also a Sino-Buddhist country in nearby Mindoro called the country of
Ma-i.

According to sources at the time, the trade in large native Ruson-tsukuri (literally Luzon made, Japanese:
呂宋製) clay jars used for storing green tea and rice wine with Japan flourished in the 12th century, and
local Tagalog, Kapampangan and Pangasinense potters had marked each jar with Baybayin letters
denoting the particular urn used and the kiln the jars were manufactured in. Certain kilns were
renowned over others and prices depended on the reputation of the kiln.[7][8] Of this flourishing trade,
the Burnay jars of Ilocos are the only large clay jar manufactured in Luzon today with origins from this
time.

During the 1300s, the Javanese-centered Hindu empire of Majapahit briefly ruled over Luzon as
recorded in the epic poem Nagarakretagama, which stated that they had colonies in the Philippines at
Saludong (Manila) and Solot (Sulu). Eventually, the kingdoms of Luzon regained independence from
Majapahit during the Battle of Manila (1365) and Sulu also reestablished independence and in
vengeance, assaulted the Majapahit province of Poni (Brunei) before a fleet from the capital drove them
out.[9]

The Yongle Emperor instituted a Chinese Governor on Luzon during Zheng He's voyages and appointed
Ko Ch'a-lao to that position in 1405.[10][11] China also had vassals among the leaders in the
archipelago.[12][13] China attained ascendancy in trade with the area in Yongle's reign.[14]

Afterwards, some parts of Luzon were Islamized when the former Majapahit province of Poni broke
free, converted to Islam, imported an Arab prince from Saudi Arabia, in the person of Sharif Ali, and
became the Sultanate of Brunei, a nation that then expanded its realms from Borneo to the Philippines
and set up the Kingdom of Maynila as its puppet-state[15] as well as incorporate the newly converted
Sultanate of Sulu by a royal marriage. However, other kingdoms resisted Islam, like the Wangdom of
Pangasinan which had remained a tributary state to China and was a largely Sinified kingdom which
maintained trade with Japan.[16]

In the 1500s, people from Luzon were called Lucoes and they established many overseas communities
within the Indo-Pacific and were actively employed in trading, seafaring and military campaigns across
Southeast Asia.
The Portuguese were the first European explorers who recorded it in their charts as Luçonia or Luçon
and inhabitants were called Luçoes.[17] Edmund Roberts, who visited Luzon in the early 19th century,
wrote that Luzon was "discovered" in 1521.[5] Many people from Luzon had active-employment in
Portuguese Malacca. Lucoes such as the Luzon spice magnate Regimo de Raja, based in Malacca, was
highly influential and the Portuguese appointed him as Temenggong (Sea Lord) or a governor and chief
general responsible for overseeing of maritime trade, at Malacca. As Temenggung, he was also the head
of an armada which traded and protected commerce between the Indian Ocean, the Strait of Malacca,
the South China Sea,[18] and the medieval maritime principalities of the Philippines.[19][20] His father
and wife carried on his maritime trading business after his death. Another important Malacca trader was
Curia de Raja who also hailed from Luzon. The "surname" of "de Raja" or "diraja" could indicate that
Regimo and Curia, and their families, were of noble or royal descent as the term is an abbreviation of
Sanskrit adiraja.[21]

Pinto noted that there were a number of Lucoes in the Islamic fleets that went to battle with the
Portuguese in the Philippines during the 16th century. The Sultan of Aceh gave one of them (Sapetu
Diraja) the task of holding Aru (northeast Sumatra) in 1540. Pinto also says one was named leader of the
Malays remaining in the Moluccas Islands after the Portuguese conquest in 1511.[22] Pigafetta notes
that one of them was in command of the Brunei fleet in 1521.[23]

However, the Luções did not only fight on the side of the Muslims. Pinto says they were also apparently
among the natives of the Philippines who fought the Muslims in 1538.[22]

On Mainland Southeast Asia, Lusung/Lucoes warriors aided the Burmese king in his invasion of Siam in
1547 AD. At the same time, Lusung warriors fought alongside the Siamese king and faced the same
elephant army of the Burmese king in the defence of the Siamese capital at Ayuthaya.[24]

Scholars have thus suggested that they could be mercenaries valued by all sides.[25][26][27]

The Spanish arrival in the 16th century saw the incorporation of the Lucoes people and the breaking up
of their kingdoms and the establishment of the Las Islas Filipinas with its capital Cebu, which was moved
to Manila following the defeat of the local Rajah Sulayman in 1570. Under Spain, Luzon also came to be
known as the Nueva Castilla or the New Castile. In Spanish times, Luzon became the focal point for trade
between the Americas and Asia. The Manila Galleons constructed in the Bicol region, brought silver
mined from Peru and Mexico to Manila, which was used to purchase Asian commercial goods like
Chinese silk, Indian gems and Indonesian spices which were exported to the Americas. Luzon then
became a focal point for global migration. The walled city of Intramuros was initially founded by 1200
Spanish families.[28] The nearby district of Binondo became the center of business and transformed into
the world's oldest Chinatown.[29] There was also a smaller district reserved for Japanese migrants in
Dilao. Cavite City also served as the main port for Luzon and many Mexican soldiers and sailors were
stationed in the naval garrisons there.[30][31] When the Spanish evacuated from Ternate, Indonesia;
they settled the Papuan refugees in Ternate, Cavite which was named after their evacuated homeland.
After the short British Occupation of Manila, the Indian Sepoy soldiers that mutinied against their British
commanders and joined the Spanish, then settled in Cainta, Rizal.

After many years of Spanish corruption and resistance to reform, the Philippine Revolution against Spain
erupted in Cavite and spread all throughout Luzon and the Philippines. Consequently, the First Philippine
Republic was established in Malolos, Bulacan. In the meantime, Spain sold the Philippines to the United
States and the First Philippine Republic resisted the new American colonizers in the Philippine-American
War which the Republic lost due to its diplomatic isolation (No nation recognized the First Republic) as
well as due to the numerical superiority of the American army. The Americans then set up the cool
mountain city of Baguio as a summer retreat for its officials. The Americans also rebuilt the capital,
Manila, and established American military bases in Olongapo and Angeles.[32]

Further information: Spanish East Indies

U.S. Navy ships under attack while entering Lingayen Gulf, January 1945
In World War II, the Philippines were considered to be of great strategic importance because their
capture by Japan would pose a significant threat to the U.S. As a result, 135,000 troops and 227 aircraft
were stationed in the Philippines by October 1941. Luzon was captured by Imperial Japanese forces in
1942 during their campaign to capture the Philippines. General Douglas MacArthur—who was in charge
of the defense of the Philippines at the time—was ordered to Australia, and the remaining U.S. forces
retreated to the Bataan Peninsula.[33]

A few months after this, MacArthur expressed his belief that an attempt to recapture the Philippines
was necessary. The U.S. Pacific Commander Admiral Chester Nimitz and Chief of Naval Operations
Admiral Ernest King both opposed this idea, arguing that it must wait until victory was certain.
MacArthur had to wait two years for his wish; it was 1944 before a campaign to recapture the
Philippines was launched. The island of Leyte was the first objective of the campaign, which was
captured by the end of December 1944. This was followed by the attack on Mindoro and later,
Luzon.[33]

Further information: Battle of Luzon

The end of the World War necessitated decolonization due to rising nationalist movements across the
world's many empires. Subsequently, the Philippines gained independence from the United States.
Luzon then arose to become the most developed island in the Philippines. However, the lingering
poverty and inequality caused by the long dictatorship of US-supported dictator, Ferdinand Marcos,
gave rise to the Philippine diaspora and many people from Luzon have migrated elsewhere and had
established large overseas communities; mainly in the United States, Hong Kong, Singapore and Saudi
Arabia. Eventually, the People Power Revolution led by Corazon Aquino and Cardinal Jaime Sin, removed
Marcos and his cronies from power and they fled to Hawaii where the US granted them asylum. The
following administrations are subsequently managing the political and economic recovery of the
Philippines with the particular aim of spreading development outside of Luzon and into the more iso