Old House

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Buddhist Temple

BUDDHIST TEMPLE -A temple at V. Gullas Street in the old dowtown of Cebu City dedicated to Guan Yu, a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han ...

Guan Yu was given a posthumous title of Zhuangchou Hou (Marquis of Zhuangchou). His son Guan Xing succeeded him. Guan Xing, styled Anguo, was one who seldom questioned commands, was very well favored by the Lieutenant Chancellor Zhuge Liang. Guan Xing was appointed as Shizhong (Palace Attendant) and Zhongjianjun (Superintendent of the Central Army) when his health failed. A few years later, he passed away. His son Guan Tong succeeded him and had a post of Huben Zhonglang Jiang (General of the Tiger Swiftness) and he died without a son.

Baluarte

The Baluarte (Spanish for watchtower) of Oslob was built in 1788. Its main purpose was to provide a safe place wherein guards could observe the surrounding area. It was a part of the defense system in dispelling the Moro raiders of the past, which included 6 other watchtowers along the coastline of Oslob. Just near the cuartel, one can immediately see ruins of an ancient watchtower. So effective was this system that in 1815, the townspeople of Oslob were able to repel one such attack and remain at peace ever since. This prompted them to relocate the town to its present site from their fortified settlement in Daanglungsod which is now in ruins but still breathtaking.

Balay na Tisa

Don Sarmiento’s manor which is popularly known in Cebu as Balay na Tisa named after the material used for its construction, limestone blocks or tisa. Built in 1859, Balay na Tisa along Sta. Catalina Street is one of the best and painstakingly restored ancestral houses in Carcar. This well preserved house showcases original pieces of furniture used by four generations of the Sarmiento family which are still intact and functional. Its interior is furnished with priceless antiques from silver and ceramic dinnerware to the wooden poster beds, cabinets, tables and chairs.

Bahay na Bato

The Heritage and Ancestral Houses of Taal, Batangas  With the town’s history tracing back to 1572, it was only but natural to see Spanish culture deeply entrenched in the place. Perhaps the most salient are the ancestral houses which line most of the streets in the town proper. Although the assertion that bahay na bato was passed on  by the Spaniards is debatable (as they are seen as simply improvements of the bahay kubo), it would be quite naive to deny the huge influence of the Spaniards on the style and architecture of these ancestral houses.

At the heart of downtown San Fernando, Pampanga is the historic poblacion, replete with remnants of the city's rich architectural heritage and history. These architectural legacies, together with the intangible culture of the city, are the focus of the urban renewal program of the City of San Fernando called Preserving Heritage for Progress. In fact, the program was recognized as one of the Top 10 Best Practices of the League of Cities of the Philippines, and a Trailblazing Program of the Galing Pook Awards both in 2004

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Bahay na Bato - Juban, Sorsogon - The town center of Juban, there are several old houses, known as bahay na bato, still relatively well-preserved and intact although their groundfloors have, long ago, been turned into commercial establishments, such as stores, barber shops and beauty salons, etc. These old houses still have their original tall, sliding windows made of capiz, including carved wooden balustrades just below the window sills. Inside, one can still find original, well-preserved antique furnitures, including other antiquities. Private historical or heritage collections can also be found inside these houses.

Yap-Sandiego

The Yap-Sandiego Ancestral House located in Parian District is one of the oldest, residential houses in the country. This “Balay nga Bato ug Kahoy” (house of stones and wood) was constructed out of coral stones,“balayong” and “tugas” (molave) wood, egg whites served as glue and “tisa” (clay) for the roof. It was a home built by Don Juan Yap (a Chinese merchant) and his wife, Doña Maria Florido, between 1675 and 1700. The couple had three children namely, Maria, Eleuterio and Consolacion Yap. In the 1880s, Don Juan’s eldest daughter Maria married Mariano Avendano Sandiego, who is originally from Obando, Bulacan and at that time, was the cabeza de barangay (District Head) of Parian. At present, the ancestral home was turned over in 2008 to Doña Maria’s great great grandson, Val Mancao Sandiego and his wife Ofelia and was later converted to a museum. Val Sandiego is known in Cebu as a heritage icon, renowned choreographer and art collector. To date, he and his family still find time to spend their weekends there.

Bahay ni Tana Dicang

Balay ni Tana Dicang is at 36 Rizal Street, Talisay City, Negros Occidental. Built c. 1872, it's a huge classical balay-nga-bato or house-of-stone that has maintained its original structure. Its contents, too, are authentic. It stands on a 6,000-square meter property.
The Balay ni Tana Dicang is the ancestral home of Don Efigenio Lizares and Doña Enrica Alunan.After her husband died, Doña Enrica took over raising her big brood, managing the hacienda, and serving as Kapitana, thus her being called Tana Dicang.
Much is learned from the house itself -- history, cultural heritage, architecture, human relationships, love for hearth and home, family.
Historically, the house represents the lifestyle of the sugar barons during the late 19th century.

Casa Comunidad de Tayabas

The Casa Comunidad de Tayabas,  It is where the controversial Hermano Pule (Apolinario de la Cruz) was sentenced to death in 1841 after he was found guilty of instigating a mutiny based on his own spiritual convictions. Referred to as “ang símbolo ng Tayabas”, this splendid executive edifice was constructed utilizing community funds from the once prosperous town called La Muy Noble Villa de Tayabas. One could only imagine how Tayabeño life in those days must have been. The town naturally was a showcase of the colonial state, and it has called the attention of many illustrious Castilas like Don Enrique de Borbón, a descendant of King Philip who once stayed in Tayabas as a regal executive.


Quema House

The Quema House is the ancestral home of the Quema family in the Philippines. Built in the 1820s, it is a historic landmark in the town of Vigan, Ilocos Sur in the Philippines. The town itself was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.
In pre-Hispanic times up to the early 16th century, Vigan was a major commercial center in the region, trading directly with China. This commerce resulted to Chinese migration into the area with subsequent intermarriage between the native inhabitants and the Chinese immigrants. During the Spanish colonial period (1521-1898), Vigan became an important supplier of goods for the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade, which led to the rise of a new merchant class whose members are of mixed Chinese, native and Spanish ancestry - the Filipino mestizos. With their increasing affluence, they built their residential houses (bahay-na-bato) in the eastern district of the town, previously the Kasanglayan or old Chinese quarters. It is here that Chinese trader Don Enrique Quema built his ancestral house in the early 19th century.

Ciudad ti Bigan

The City of Vigan (Ilokano: Ciudad ti Bigan; Tagalog: Lungsod ng Vīgân) is a fourth class city and capital of the province of Ilocos Sur in the Philippines. The city is located on the western coast of the large island of Luzon, facing the South China Sea. According to the 2010 Philippines census, it has a population of 49,747 people.
It is a World Heritage Site in that it is one of the few Hispanic towns left in the Philippines where its structures remained intact, and is well known for its cobblestone streets, and a unique architecture that fuses Philippine and Oriental building designs and construction, with colonial European architecture. Because of this, Vigan City was officially recognized as one of the New7Wonders Cities together with Beirut, Doha, Durban, Havana, Kuala Lumpur, and La Paz.

Calle Crisologo

Calle Crisologo  city of Vigan in Ilocos Sur, Philippines makes it to the New 7 Wonder Cities of the World. Its well-preserved  boasts of surviving Spanish colonial aura with stately homes, tiled roof mansions with capiz shell windows, cobblestone streets and horse-drawn carriages called “calesa”. Calle Crisologo is also closed to traffic.

Some of these huge houses have ground floor souvenir shops and the second floor is used as dwelling. Antique shops and pottery abound the place much as the aroma of freshly baked empanadas. Walking in the streets of Vigan remind you of the notes from Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.


Pamintuan Mansion

The Pamintuan Mansion once had Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo as its resident. It was here on 12 June 1899 that the first anniversary of Philippine independence was marked, with Pres. Aguinaldo, Del Pilar and other military heroes in attendance. Yearly, the city stages a re-enactment of that historic celebration.
One of the signature landmarks of the city of Angeles is a residential home, a house of memory and history that stands along Sto. Entierro Street, just 2 blocks away from the ancient Sto. Rosario Church, itself a revered structure with a many storied past. This is the Pamintuan House, built sometime in the 1880s by the patriarch, Don Florentino Torres Pamintuan (1868-1925), a successful haciendero who earned his fabulous fortune from his vast agricultural lands.
In a prime location in the town’s residential district, he constructed one of the biggest and most beautiful houses in Angeles for his first wife, Mancia Sandico Pamintuan (1865-1905) and his family of four children: Jose Ma., Mariano, Paz, Caridad and Natividad. (Don Florentino would marry a second time after his wife’s death, to Tomasa Centeno, who would give him 11 more offesprings.)

Villa Escudero

Villa Escudero Plantations is 800 hectares (2,000 acres) of working coconut plantation and hacienda located 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of the city of San Pablo, Laguna province on the border with Quezon province in the Philippines
A self-contained working coconut plantation, It was founded in the 1880s by Don Placido Escudero and his wife Dona Claudia Marasigan. Originally planted to sugarcane, the crop was converted to coconut by their son Don Arsenio Escudero in the early 1900s. A pioneering agro-industrialist, he built the country's first working hydroelectric plant to supply his dessicated coconut factory and Villa Escudero, where he and his wife Dona Rosario Adap built in 1929.
Their children opened the estate to the public in 1981. From its humble beginnings, the resort has become a prime tourist destination for locals, overseas Filipinos and a wide array of foreign visitors to the country. It has a worldwide reputation as a showcase for the Philippines' rich cultural heritage, offering a beguiling glimpse of its history, cuisine, dress, customs and natural beauty a mere two hours away from Manila.

House of Dakay

The House of Dakay is the oldest surviving house in the town of San Jose de Ivana in Batan Island,
A small house, the House of Dakay has been designed and constructed in the traditional style that is distinctive to the houses of Batanes, called vahay in Ivatan. The house is typical of the architectural style of Batanes that emerged with the coming of the Spanish missionaries around 1795, replacing the indigenous wooden huts of the natives. It features 2 stories, lime and stone walls that are as much as a meter thick, and cogon roofs that are about 1/3 of a meter thick. Stone cutters and masons and carpenters were imported from Cagayan to help in the construction of these houses. It is designed to be durable and to provide shelter from the strong winds of the island, which lies along a typhoon belt.
The House of Dakay was built by Luisa Estrella in 1887. On September 13, 1918, a strong earthquake hit the island. Most of the town of Ivana was leveled to the ground. The House of Dakay was one of the few houses that remained standing and one of the 5 that have survived to this day. Estrella eventually bequeathed the house to her favorite nephew, Jose Dakay Estrella, from whom the name of the house is taken. The house is now the residence of Florestida Estrella, known as Lola Ida, who is the only living descendant of the family.

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Philippines

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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

St. Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral, Cagayan de Oro City

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 San Agustin Cathedral Cagayan de Oro City

Door Entrance San Agustin Cathedral

NAVE  San Agustin Cathedral

Gaston Park and
 San Agustin Cathedral

Spanish Arrival

In 1622, two Augustinian Recollect missionaries first came to Huluga, then called Himologan. Here they met a mixed stock of Bukidnons and Visayas who lived in a settlement perched on a cliff, overlooking a river. The men had massive tattoos, like those of the Visayan pintados, and the women wore intricate jewelry, some made of gold.

The priests were Fray Juan de San Nicolas and Fray Francisco de la Madre de Dios. According to their journals, the natives were polytheistic animists, not Muslims. But they paid tributes to Sultan Kudarat through his emissaries.

Conversion to Christianity
In 1626, a 26-year old Augustinian Recollect friar arrived in Cagayan. His name was Fray Agustin de San Pedro, a Portuguese. Before his priesthood, he studied mathematics, architecture, gunnery, and military strategy at the University of Salamanca.

Fray Agustin persuaded the leader of Himologan, Datu Salangsang, to transfer his settlement down river, to the area of today's Gaston Park and San Agustin Cathedral. Here, Fray Agustin built a church of native materials. Inside, he baptized Datu Salangsang and his wife, and later his people.
Fortification of Cagayan
In response to the conversion, Sultan Kudarat sent a fleet of warriors to drive away the Spanish missionaries and to regain the lost tributes.

Kudarat's attacks prompted Fray Agustin to build a wooden fortress and watchtower in Cagayan to protect Salangsang's people. He called the fortress Fuerza Real de San Jose, and it occupied an area now filled with Gaston Park and San Agustin Cathedral. Fray Agustin's defense of Cagayan earned him the title "El Padre Capitan".

The fortress was rebuilt with stones in 1730. But Lt. Col. Jose Carvallo, the Spanish politico-military governor of Misamis, demolished it in 1875 and used the stones to pave the streets of the town.
Church Construction
The Recoletos made Cagayan their mission center in 1674. But only on August 28, 1780 did they declare San Agustin the patron saint of Cagayan.

In 1845, Fray Simon Loscos de Santa Catalina reconstructed the church, using marine stones from China. It had protruding buttresses and a single belfry. Inside were a magnificent altar and sanctuary with carved wooden niches and paintings.

This church was destroyed during the Japanese bombing of Cagayan in 1945, exactly a hundred years later.

Cagayan de Misamis
In 1818, the Manila Spanish divided Mindanao into politico-military districts, one of which was the Segundo Distrito de Misamis, the largest district in Mindanao. This area was composed of today's Misamis Oriental, Misamis Occidental, Camiguin, Bukidnon, Lanao, Zamboanga del Norte, and the northern part of Cotabato.

The capital was the town of Misamis, today called Ozamis City, where a fort and garrison bigger than those in Cagayan were constructed.

On February 27, 1872, the Spanish Governor General Carlos Maria de la Torre issued a decree declaring Cagayan the permanent capital of Segundo Distrito de Misamis. All Spanish politico-military governors of Misamis, who were all lieutenant colonels, lived at the Casa Real de Cagayan, built in 1831, the site of today's city hall of Cagayan de Oro. During this era, the name of the town was "Cagayan de Misamis". 

1. Old Churches in the Philippines

Malate Church

Malate Church (formally known as Our Lady of Remedies Parish Church) is a church in Manila, Philippines. It is a Baroque-style church fronted by Plaza Rajah Sulayman and, ultimately, Manila Bay. The church is dedicated to Nuestra Señora de los Remedios ("Our Lady of Remedies"), the patroness of childbirth. A revered statue of the Virgin Mary in her role as Our Lady of Remedies was brought from Spain in 1624 and stands at the altar.
Malate used to be known as Maalat due to the saline waters of the bay; and as Laguio or Lagunoi, the name of the street which separated it from Ermita. it is located by Manila Bay, very close to the sea. One main street crosses it at the center; it is wide and beautiful and leads up to Cavite. The numerous trees make this road a pleasant walk. It lies just three kilometers from the center of Manila.

In 1591, Malate had only one church and one convent. In 1645, the church and convent dedicated to the Nativity of Our Lady (Conception) were damaged by an earthquake. San Agustin describes the latter as "a magnificent work of arches and stone." Church and convent suffered heavily during the earthquake of 1645.Then in 1667, both structures were destroyed on orders of Gov. Sabiniano Manrique de Lara due to the threat posed by the pirate Koxinga.
In 1669, the father provincial placed the convent of Malate under his immediate care and authorized the prior to use the "repository of alms for the dead" for the construction of the buildings. Fr. Dionisio Suarez began the construction of a new church [the second one] and convent made of bricks and stone in 1677-1679. It was completed by Fr. Pedro de Mesa in 1680.
In 1721, the convent was in ruinous condition, and the coffers of the house empty. The father provincial sent a circular to the various ministries of the Tagalogs available. Furthermore, the convent was relieved of the obligation to pay rent to San Agustin Monastery. The money raised amounted only to 400 pesos, just enough to buy the materials. The construction work proceeded very slowly because the prior depended almost completely on funds of the provincial.
In 1762 during the British occupation of Manila, the British occupied the church and turned it into their headquarters. Serious damage was inflicted on the structure. There are no records as to who restored the buildings after the British had taken leave. A typhoon occurred on 3 June 1868 which destroyed the church.
Fr. Francisco Cuadrado constructed the third church, the present one in 1864 almost in its entirety except for the facade in 1864. Fr. Francisco Cuadrado, then the parish priest, started the reconstruction. The "just one," as he was called by his parishioners, toured the city and nearby provinces to raise the necessary funds. His efforts paid off. He apparently got more than what he needed. Thus, he was known for gathering the poor fishermen of his parish and sharing with them his "savings."
There were some restoration work which was headed by Fr. Nicolas Dulanto and was also responsible for the completion of the upper part of the facade between 1894 and 1898. The next decades saw the church attract more devotees. But when the holocaust of 1945 came, the church and convent ended up in complete ruins and the records were also burned to ashes.
During the Japanese occupation, both the church and the convent were burned down leaving only the walls, the Japanese had earlier taken away Fathers Kelly, Henaghan, Monaghan, and Fallon, plus other parishioners, never to be seen again.:145 Rebuilding of the church was undertaken by the Columban fathers during the 1950s. They rebuilt the roof, the altar, the dome and the transept while the interior was painted, and the bricks and the stone outside were returned to their pristine color in 1978.
The old convent was demolished in 1929. Fr. Gary Cogan built a new one in 1930. One of the remaining bells displayed at the entrance of the new convent has this inscription: "Nuestra Senora de los Remedios. Se fundio en 30 de Enero de 1879.

Saint James Parish in Dapitan City

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Saint James Parish in Dapitan City takes pride in being the oldest in the diocese. With the Jesuit priest Pedro Gutierez as its first superior, it was made a permanent mission of the Society of Jesus in 1631 but dependent on Cebu, then on Zamboanga (1639) and on Loboc, Bohol (1643). It became independent sometime near 1645 under the administration of Fr. Melchor Hurlado, S.J. The Jesuits ministered the flock in Dapitan until their expulsion in 1770. The Augustinian Recollects took charge of a century. In 1871, the Jesuits came back. It was not until 1946 that the Dapitanons received a fellow Filipino and a diocesan priest to be their pastor in the person of Fr. Epifanio Baleares. Two years later, a fellow Dapitanon became their shepherd, Fr. Antonio Hamak, who served them for twenty years. Those who succeeded him include Fr. Engracio Rivera, Msgr. Salvador Mora and Fr. Esteban Gaudicos, Fr. Ranulfo Suarez, Msgr. Emigdio T. Socias, Msgr. Wilson P. Cadano. At present, Fr. Virgilio Belleno, administers Saint James Parish with Fr. Bonifacio Alcantara and Fr. Noel Salderiega assisting him.

The laity has also participated prominently in the life and history of the parish. From Manook and his daughter, Maria Uray, to the present lay leaders, ministers, catechists, charismatic and mandated organization members, they have acted as lay evangelizers. As a consequence, the on-going parochial program focuses also on the enhancement of family life and the formation of the laity. With the support of various parish groups and chapels, the parish moves gradually to the establishment of basic ecclesial communities.

The Society of Jesus came to the Philippines in 1581. When the country was divided in 1598 among four religious congregations, the Jesuits were given the Diocese of Cebu which included Dapitan. At first, they were chaplains for the Spanish naval force, but in 1629, the Mexican Jesuit, Pedro Gutierez, was sent specifically to found the Dapitan mission. He established a permanent Jesuit residence there by 1671 and became its first superior. The Jesuits worked for the conversion of the Subanen, the original inhabitants of the peninsula, at times offering their lives as martyrs like Francisco Paliola 1648. Despite promising success, the Bourbon monarchs expelled them from Spanish lands in 1768 and from the Philippines shortly thereafter. Augustinian Recollects took over the Dapitan mission in 1770. The Royal Decree of 1852 allowed the Jesuits back. They returned to the Philippines, to their old Mindanao mission, and in 1870 to Dapitan. When it was established as a full fledged parish in 1896 Fr. Jose Vilaclara, spiritual advisor to the national hero Jose Rizal, was its first parish priest.

Dapitan is famous mostly for the four years which Rizal spent here in exile. Each Sunday he would attend Mass at the Church of St. James, which had been built by the Jesuits in 1883. Dapitan had been so harassed by pirates that the Jesuit missionaries chose James the Greater as their patron saint. James is said to have appeared during the legendary battle of Clavijo in 844, riding a white horse and brandishing a sword, to help the vastly outnumbered Christians beat the Islamic Moors led by the Emir of Cordoba. So it was hoped that he would help the people of Dapitan protect themselves from the Moro raiders. A statue of James astride a horse stands in the town square.

1. Old Churches in the Philippines