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US returns 3 disputed bells taken from Philippines in 1901

For over a century, the Bells of Balangiga have not rung in the Philippines, a silence that the president last year called “painful.” Now, the revered bells will once again be heard in the country.

Hundreds of Filipino villagers in 1901, armed with bolos and disguised as women, used one of Balangiga town’s church bells to signal the start of a massive attack that wrought one of the bloodiest single-battle losses of American occupation forces in the Philippines. The U.S. Army brutally retaliated, reportedly killing thousands of villagers, as the Philippine-American War raged.

Balangiga bells, taken by US troops from burning town after 1901 clash, arrive back in the Philippines on Tuesday, December 11, 2018

President Rodrigo Duterte, bluntly called on Washington in a 2017 speech to “Give us back those Balangiga bells. They are not yours,” as he rattled his nation’s close alliance with the US.

Within months of winning the presidency in mid-2016 he signalled his intention to split from the Philippines’ former colonial master and end a stand-off with Beijing over the disputed South China Sea. Duterte’s supporters have claimed his willingness to stand up to American influence was key to the bells’ return, but experts cautioned the process was much more complicated.

U.S. soldiers of Company C, 9th Infantry Regiment who survived the Balangiga massacre pose with one of the Balangiga bells. Photo taken in Calbayog, Samar, in April 1902

Philippine Air Force personnel unload three church bells seized by American troops as war trophies more than a century ago, as they arrive to be handed back to the Philippines Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018

MALACANANG  FULL LIST OF RESOURCES
BATTLE OF KWAJALEIN

Philippine Coins

Tribes in the Philippines:

AETA
BADJAO
B' LAAN
BAGOBO
NEGRITOS
MANGYANS
MATIGSALUG
SAMA TRIBE
TASADAY
TAUSOG
T'BOLI

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Philippines

7,107 Islands of the Philippines

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It's More Fun In The Philippines, indeed! With a total of 7,107 islands in the archipelago, it's easy to get that off the-beaten-track feeling, something that's getting harder to find in most other parts of Southeast Asia.

Ronald E. Dolan, ed. Philippines: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1991. Acknowledgments PrefaceHistory EARLY HISTORY THE EARLY SPANISH PERIOD THE DECLINE OF SPANISH RULE Trade with Europe and America Chinese and Chinese Mestizos The Friarocracy The Development of a National Consciousness José Rizal and the Propaganda Movement The Katipunan The 1896 Uprising and Rizal's Execution SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR Outbreak of War, 1898 The Malolos Constitution and the Treaty of Paris War of Resistance UNITED STATES RULE A Collaborative Philippine Leadership The Jones Act Economic and Social Developments THE COMMONWEALTH Commonwealth Politics, 1935-41 World War II INDEPENDENCE Economic Relations with the United States Security Agreements The Huk Rebellion The Magsaysay, Garcia, and Macapagal Administrations Marcos and the Road to Martial Law, 1965-72 Proclamation 1081 and Martial Law From Aquino's Assassination to People's Power Geography Climate The Society POPULATION ETHNICITY, REGIONALISM, AND LANGUAGE Historical Development of Ethnic Identities Language Diversity and Uniformity The Lowland Christian Population Muslim Filipinos Upland Tribal Groups The Chinese SOCIAL VALUES AND ORGANIZATION RURAL SOCIAL PATTERNS URBAN SOCIAL PATTERNS THE ROLE AND STATUS WOMEN RELIGION Historical Background Roman Catholicism Indigenous Christian Churches Protestantism Islam Ecumenical Developments Church and State EDUCATION HEALTH The Economy POLITICAL ECONOMY OF DEVELOPMENT Economic Development Until 1970 Martial Law and its Aftermath, (1972-86) The Aquino Government ECONOMIC PLANNING AND POLICY AGRICULTURE Agricultural Geography Agricultural Production and Government Policy Rice and the Green Revolution Coconut Industry Sugar Land Tenancy and Land Reform Livestock Forestry Fishing INDUSTRY Manufacturing Mining Energy Tourism EMPLOYMENT AND LABOR RELATIONS POVERTY AND WELFARE INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC RELATIONS International Trade Foreign Investment Political Economy of United States Military Bases Government GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE Constitutional Framework National Government Local Government POLITICS Marcos Corazon Aquino Political Parties Voting and Elections Return of Old-Style Politics in the Countryside Church-State Relations Civil-Military Relations The Media FOREIGN AFFAIRS Filipino Nationalism Relations with the United States Relations with Asian Neighbors Bibliography Back to Main Page