The Philippines Today, Yesterday, and Tomorrow
The Real Monasterio de Santa Clara (The Royal Monastery of Santa Clara) The Monasterio de Santa Clara in Intramuros housed the oldest religious order for women in the Philippines. Its monastery once stood beside the hospital Militar, near Fort Santiago. The religious order is known as the Order of Saint Clare or the poor clares, … Read more
Simon de Anda and the Resistance Against the British When Manila was invaded by the British in 1762, the Spaniards were divided. The position of Governor-General was vacant so the Archbishop took over the government. He wanted to surrender to the British, but a lot of Spaniards did not like this. That was why the … Read more
Tabo / Dabu-dabu Tabo is a signaling instrument horizontally suspended in front of mosques. A standard rhythm calls people to prayer on Fridays, while a more intricate tempo is played during Ramadan (Otto 1976 and 1985). The azhan is the call marking the waktu, time for the salat (prayers) which begin at subuh (early dawn), … Read more
Andres Novales (Emperor Novales) Inspired by the events in Latin America, Andres Novales, an army captain, declared himself Emperor of the Philippines on June 1, 1823. He overthrew the government and took over the Palacio del Gobernador, the Cabildo, and the Manila Cathedral. However, in less than a day, he was captured and on the … Read more
Mexican Independence Spain had a lot of colonies, and Mexico was the biggest. Many Mexicans were not happy with the way they were treated by the Spaniards. As such, the Mexicans led a revolution. This was started in 1810 by Miguel Hidalgo and ended in 1821 when Mexico was finally freed and Agustín de Iturbide … Read more