"SIGLO DE ORO" in Manila's Streets and Plazas

SPANISH HISTORY AND CULTURE BEHIND SOME OF MANILA'S STREETS AND PLAZAS

 Lope de Vega (1562-1635)

In Rizal Avenue (Avenida area in Manila)  there is a street called LOPE DE VEGA named after the famous Spanish playwright of the Baroque period, Felix Lope de Vega y Carpio (1562-1635). Because we are separated now from the Spanish language, we hardly read or even know him, instead we read Shakespeare. Some of us gets only that chance to see or hear something about Lope de Vega, say if Instituto Cervantes, Manila would feature something about him. 

Looking at the street names and plazas of Manila you will also find Zurbaran, Cervantes and Calderon de la Barca, it does not only tells of our Spanish heritage but also Spanish history itself. For those names were representative of a period when Spanish arts and literature flourished unrivaled up to now. The period known in Spanish history as "SIGLO DE ORO" or the golden age.

Francisco de Zurbarán  (1598-1664) Probable self-portrait of Francisco Zurbarán as Saint Luke. Known mainly for his works with religious themes, Zurbarán represents a high point in Spanish Baroque art. If the name Zurbarán sounds familiar to Filipinos particularly in Metro Manila, it is because a street in Santa Cruz, Manila was named after him (now changed to Valeriano Fugoso Street), that's also the place many of us knows as Zurbaran, where a central market is located. Why do we change the names of our old streets?

"Agnus Dei" by celebrated Spanish painter Francisco de Zurbarán 

Pedro Calderón de la Barca (1600-1681)  Spanish playwright , another leading figure of the "Siglo de Oro" in Spanish literature. If Lope De Vega defined Spanish Baroque theater that time, De la Barca was the one who developed in further. A plaza in Binondo used to be called "Plaza Calderon de la Barca", but now it carries the name of  San Lorenzo Ruiz, the first Filipino saint.

Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616). The greatest Spanish playwright. His opus "Don  Quixote" is  a classic in world literature. He was a soldier in the famous "Battle of Lepanto", where he was wounded and lost the use of his left arm. Thus he was also knowns as "el manco de Lepanto". A  plaza also in Binondo, Manila  is named after him.

Ang Plano Ni Quezon Na Isama Ang Pilipinas Sa British Commonwealth 1937

Larawan ni Manuel L Quezon at Anthony Eden

ISANG NAKA PLANONG MEETING NOONG PEBRERO 19. 1937 SA LONDON. Sa pagitan ng Presidente ng Philippine Commonwealth Manuel L. Quezon at British Foreign Minister Anthony Eden. Ang tatalakayin ay ang posibilidad na pagsama ng Pilipinas sa British Commonwealth. Napaka radical ng plano ni Quezon na umalis sa poder ng Amerikano at lumapit sa pangangalaga ng mga British. Ang dahilan ay nakikita nyang kakulangan ng Amerika sa paghahanda at pag aarmas laban sa lumalakas na banta ng bansang Hapon noong panahon na iyon. Sa totoo nito bagamat kolonya nga ng Amerika ang Pilipinas, wala naman ito sa prioridad ng Amerika upang ipagtangol ito ng lubusan. Sa katunayan ilan beses din kinausap ni Quezon si Dwight Eisenhower (ang dati noong naninilbihan sa ilalim ni Mc Arthur) tungkol sa kahandaan ng Pilipinas. At ang sagot na nakukuha nito kay Eisenhower ay nakabahala: Hindi handa ang Pilipinas!

Ng malaman ng Washington ang napipintong meeting nila Quezon at Eden, agad nilang na "censure" si Quezon. Hanggang sa nawala na ang balak at ang usapan sa takbo ng pangyayari. Ang Kasaysayan ang naghusga kung tama ang balak ni Quezon. Makalipas ang ilang taon, sumiklab ang digmaan sa Asia. Nakita nga ang kakulangan ng Amerika. Subalit hindi lamang Amerika, pati rin pala ang mga British at mga Holandes (Dutch) ay hindi handa. Noong 1942, ang Singapore, na kinikilalang "mighty fortress"ng British Empire sa Asia ang isa sa unang ciudad na bumagsak sa kamay ng mga Hapon.

Subalit hindi pa rin matutumbasan ang tunay na pagmamalasakit ni Quezon sa Pilipinas. Naka handang layasan ang poder ng Amerika masiguro lamang ang kaligtasan ng milyun milyun nyang kababayan.

Rizal's favorite- "THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO"

Alexander Dumas (1802-1870)

In his youth, Jose Rizal read and admired the novel "The Count of Monte-Cristo" by French 
author Alexander Dumas. Quite often people who read Rizal and this work of Dumas, relay the character of Edmond Dantes with that of Simoun (El Filibusterismo). The plot of revenge and the lonely figure of an avenging hero is too similar to be ignored. The difference came in the ending of the two novels. While Edmond Dantes found fulfillment in his life, Rizal gave a tragic end for Simoun (Ibarra). The ever present themes of 19th Century "Romanticism" are found not only in the works of Rizal but also even in the way he conducted his life. "Canto del Viajero" (poem of Rizal) reminds one of the many adventures of Edmond Dantes. Is there really an Edmond Dantes in Jose Rizal?


  

Spanish Edition-"El Conde de Monte-Cristo"  (circa 1860's-todocoleccion)

The young Rizal at the Ateneo Municipal. The time he read Dumas' well loved opus

  

CHARLES II OF SPAIN- "El Hechizado"

Charles II of Spain by Juan Miranda Carreon)

Believe it or not... this monarch once ruled a vast empire that includes the Philippines. This is Carlos II (reigned 1665-1700) also known as Carlos "el Hechizado" (the Hexed). A Hapsburg monarch. Scientists and historians of today believes his strange physical features was the result of excessive inbreeding,  since it was a common practice among the monarchs like the Hapsburg to match cousins to cousins and even uncles to nieces. Carlos II was born physically and mentally disabled, and disfigured. He died without an heir, thereby ending the Hapsburg line and ushering in the reign of the house of Bourbon in Spain and its colonies. 

  

SPICE TRADE- Ang Papel Nito Kasaysayan Ng Pilipinas

Ng marating ng mga Griego sa pamumuno ni "Alexander the   Great" ang Persia, Palestina, Arabia at India (circa 300 BC). Namangha sila sa mga eksotikong pamamaraan ng paghahanda at pag preserba ng mga lutuin at pagkain ng mga bansang nasakop nila gamit ang mga kilalang "Spices". Ang mga Romano (Romans) naman ay pinilit alamin ang ruta o "trade routes" ng nasabing kalakal. Subalit noong pa man panahong iyon, kontrolado na ng mga Arabians o Arabo at ilang ilang nasyon sa silangan (east) ang pangangalakal ng mga eksotikong produkto tulad ng "Spices". Ang tanong ng mga Europeo..."Saan nangagaling ito?" Sa kadahilanang mahirap at tila malayo ang pinagkukuhanan, naging mahal ang presyo ng nasabing spices sa mercado ng Europa. Kadalasan mga hari at mga royalty o yung mga dugong bughaw lamang ang nakakabili at nakakagamit nito. Halimbawa, noong panahong medieval,  ang "Piper Nigrum" o black pepper (paminta) ay tinawag na "black gold" dahil sa taas ng halaga nito, na kadalasa'y ginagamit pa na pang regalo sa mga hari. Marami din ang nagsasabi na ang isang malaking dahilan kung bakit pinilit mabawi ng mga "Crusaders" ang Holy Land ay ang nakatago nitong hangarin ma kontrol ang mga eksotikong kalakal tulad ng Spice Trade. 

 

Ang ruta o "trade routes" ng mga spices. 100-1500 AD

  

   

Ilustrasyon ng pag ani ng "paminta" sa  Coilum sa India. Ika 14 na Siglo

Noong 1453, sa pagbagsak nga ng kristiyanong Constantinople sa kamay ng mga muslim na Ottoman at sa patuloy na monopolya ng ilang Italyano sa spice trade ng region, tuluyan ng nahirapan ang nakararaming Europeo pumapel sa nasabing kalakal. Kaya napilitan silang maglayag sa karagatan upang humanap ng bagong ruta papuntang silangan kung saan pinaniniwalaan nilang nagmumula ang nga Spices. Nang marating ng mga Portuges ang India, nalaman din nila na ang isa sa pangunahing lugar na pinagkukuhanan ng Spices ay isang lugar sa Timog-Silangan Asya na tinatawag na  Moluccas. Ang Moluccas ay nasa ibaba lamang ng isla ng Mindanao, parte ngayon ng Indonesia. Nalaman din ng mga Portuges na malaki ang papel ng mga Chinese at mga Malays sa Spice trade dahil sila ang kumakalakal nito mula Moluccas papuntang India.

 

Siege of Constantinople mula sa "Chronique de Charles VII"- obra ni Jean Chartier

Noong 1519 dahil sa pag iwas sa karibal nitong Portugal, naglayag ang isang flotilla ng mga Galleon ng Espanya sa pamumuno ni Magellan patungo kanluran (pabaligtad) upang humanap ng ibang daan patungo sa Moluccas. At noong 1521, narating ni Magellan ang mga islang tatawaging balang araw na Pilipinas. Dahil malapit ito sa Moluccas, noong una ay inakala ni Magellan na maraming "Spices" dito. Talo. Wala gaano spices at hindi rin ugali ng mga tao sa isla na magtanim nito. Ng sakupin ng mga Kastila ang Pilipinas,  ginamit lamang nilang "outpost" ang bansa sa pangangalakal ng produktong Chino, (galleon trade) at ang pagpapalawig ng Katolicismo. 




                                Ilang Kilalang "Spices"   

Black Pepper (Piper Nigrum), "Paminta"- Kilala bilang "King Of Spices",  ginagamit  na noong araw  pa sa Egipto at sa Roma . Ang Black Pepper ay nagmula sa Timog-Silangan Asia kinakalakal ito papunta sa Europa noong unang panahon sa pamamagitan ng mga kilalang trade routes gaya ng "silk road" at sea routes na karaniwa'y kontrolado ng mga Arabian at Indian merchants.  Napakamahal noon ng presyo ng paminta, katunayan ginamit din ito bilang "currency "  o pera sa ilang lugar sa Europa.

  
   

Nutmeg  (Mystrica fragrans)- Ang giniling na buto ng nutmeg ay karaniwang ginagamit na sangkap sa ilang lutuing noong panahon "Medieval" sa Europa. Mahalaga din ito sa mga kulturang Muslim para sa kanilang lutuin at ginagamit din bilang gamot. Ang "Mace" naman , ang outer lining o ang nakabalot sa buto ng nutmeg na may kulay pula (nasa ilustrasyon) ay ginagamit din pampalasa sa ilang delicacy sa Europa at Arabia. Ang pinaka kilalang puno ng Nutmeg (Mytstrica fragrans) ay nagmula sa isla ng Banda, Indonesia, parte ng Moluccas, taal na matatagpuan lamang ito sa nasabing lugar noong unang panahon kaya inilihim ng mga nangangalakal nito ang lugar at ito din ang dahilan sa mataas na presyo nito.

 

Cloves (Syzygium aromaticum)- Ang bulaklak ng cloves ang siyang inaani at pinapatuyo, isa rin ito mahalagang sangkap sa mga lutuing "Middle Eastern" kaya naman  ito ay nakagawian din ng mga Europeo. Karaniwan gamit ito sa mga fruit cakes at pastries. Ang cloves ay mula din sa isla ng Moluccas.

  

Cinnamon- Ang balat ng puno o  "tree bark" ng Cinammon ay siyang inaani upang  gamiting pampalasa at aromatic. Maraming specie ng Cinnamon ang matatagpuan sa mundo. Matagal at kalat na din ang pag gamit ng Cinammon noong araw pa. Sa Indonesia ito ay kilala sa tawag na "kayu manis" (sweet wood).

Jose Rizal's Exploding Lamp Plot

The Plot


Long before suicide bombers and bomb couriers were adapted by international terrorist in their campaign of blood and vengeance, our national hero Jose Rizal thought of a plot in his novel that involves blowing a whole town to start a revolution. 

Victorian lamp

In "El Filibusterismo" (Chapters 34-35), Simoun brought along a lamp in the wedding reception of Juanito Pelaez and Paulita Gomez. It is his gift to the newly weds and it has an explosive liquid compound known as "Nitroglycerin" in it. The reception takes place at the former home of the late Captain Tiago, which was filled with other explosives planted by Simoun. According to Simoun, the lamp will stay lighted for only 20 minutes before it flickers; if someone attempts to turn the wick, it will explode and kill everyone—important members of civil society and the Church hierarchy—inside the house. The explosion will be the signal to start a revolt in Manila. 

Reading this chapters of the "El Filibusterismo" somehow  gives me the idea of relating it with the planed attack on Manila by the Katipuneros. They were waiting for that signal which Bonifacio failed to give. Was Bonifacio using this plot as a strategy?

                     

SIMOUN'S LAMP-Actor Pancho Magalona playing the role of Simoun with the 
"lamp" in the movie adaptation of El Filibusterismo. 
(Photo courtesy of Video 48)   

Enter Bonifacio's Plan

The prime target of Andres Bonifacio's attack at San Juan, 29. August 1896 was the water reservoir. Part of the plan was to deny Manila (Intramuros) with fresh water supply making the stand of the would be defenders and the Spaniards inside the wall difficult. The strategy was , once the place was secured, "balloons would be release or fire a cannonade to signal the beginning of a coordinated uprising". It was already 4am (30th of August) when Bonifacio realized he has to make the signal, four hours late of the appointed time...too late. Meanwhile some Katipuneros (as far as Cavite) were waiting for the signal in the skies above Manila. It never came.

Postcard featuring of the water tube that runs from San Juan water reservoir towards Manila.

Both fiction and reality failed. Rizal ended the plot of the explosive lamp into a failure for Simoun.(Rizal wanted a bloodless change?)  Bonifacio's planed attacked on Manila was called off. Badly beaten by the reinforcement troops of the colonial government,  the Supremo and his men retreated to the hills of Balara. The Katipuneros of Cavite, (who waited and never got the signal), went back to their homes wondering whatever happened to the Supremo and the revolution.

GERMANY'S COLONIAL AMBITION IN THE PHILIPPINES 1898

Following the defeat of the Spanish fleet at the hands of Dewey's American squadron in Manila Bay, Berlin then dispatched its "Ostasiatische Kreuzergeschwader" (East Asia Squadron) under the command of Admiral Otto von Diedrichs to the Philippines, the instruction: to protect German interests, and if possible, seize a colonial concession in the Philippines. 

It took a while before Diedrichs was able to assemble his fleet , but by mid June 1898, the German squadron numbering to 5 ships (consisting of SMS Kaiser,SMS Irene,SMS Cormoran,SMS Kaiserin Augusta and SMS Prinzess Wilhelm) were at the entrance of Manila Bay, enough to post a serious challenge against the American fleet. This led Dewey to imposed a naval blockade not only against the Germans but also against the other foreign warships (of Great Britain, France, and Japan) lurking at Manila Bay. But the provoking actions and presence of the German fleet did not end there, the Germans violated Dewey’s blockade of Manila by bringing in supply of flour to the trapped and beleaguered Spaniards and even treating the Spanish residents aboard the German vessels.

The breaking point came when the German gunboat Cormoran refused to acknowledge signals from the Americans to be boarded for inspection. The gunboat had to be stopped by firing a shot across its bow. Von Diederichs then sent an officer to complain about Dewey’s provocative acts. The incident almost got the Americans and Germans to an exchange of fire. Finally, realizing that Spain would not sell the Philippines to her and with the arrival of the American expeditionary forces, Germany abandoned her colonial ambition in the country. Few weeks later, the Treaty of Paris was signed.

                                                           

Admiral Otto von Diedrichs  (1843-1818). Commander of the "Ostasiatische Kreuzergeschwader"  or East Asia Squadron that was sent to Manila Bay 1898 (Photo -"Das Bundesarchiv")

     

The cruiser SMS Kaiserin Augusta- Became the temporary flagship of von Diedrichs fleet due to the unavailability  of the "SMS Prinzess Wilhelm" and the "SMS Kaiser" at the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, May 1898.  
(Photo US Library of Congress)

            

  

SMS Kaiser 1874 later renamed "Uranus"
(Photo courtesy www.kaiserliche.marine.de)

  

SMS Irene

    

SMS Cormoran  

    

SMS Prinzess Wilhelm
After the fall of the Manila, most of the German ships departed the Philippines; only Prinzess Wilhelm remained on station to protect German nationals in the islands. She was replaced by Arcona in October. In mid-November, Kaiser ran aground and had to go into drydock for repairs; Diederichs therefore made Prinzess Wilhelm his flagship. The ship remained in Asia for only a few more months and returned to Europe in July 1899.

  

Menu on board the "SMS Prinzess Wilhelm" in Manila Bay January 27, 1899. In celebration of the 40th birthday of Kaiser Wilhelm II, the “Ostasiatische Kreuzergeschwader" (German East Asia Squadron) treated its officers and crew with a sumptuous meal. Starter: Asparagus soup, then comes “fish with potato”, “braised ham in burgundy sauce” with sauerkraut , “fried beef tenderloin w/ vegetables, “goose with salad”. For dessert, choice of cheese, fruits and pastries-cakes. Of course coffee in the end. Looking at the menu, one can say that it was really typically German. One could ask whether the German fleet was really sent to Manila to try to seize it or they were just there for a holiday cruise? (laden with those German gourmet delights.)

Deutsche Marine Schiffpost. Postcard featuring Malacañang Palace sent by a sailor from the German fleet in Manila 1898.