Module 8: The Site of the First Mass in ship "Victoria" back to Spain.

He and his

the Philippines men earned the distinction of being the

first to circumnavigate the world in
Spanish Expeditions to the Philippines
one full journey.
 Historians describe the motivation for  After the Spain had celebrated Elcano’s
European overseas exploration, return, King Charles I decided that Spain
expansion, and conquests with the should conquer the Philippines. Five
phrase, “Gold, God, and Glory” (3Gs). subsequent expeditions were then sent
 Five hundred years ago, five ships set to the Islands. Only the expeditions led
sail on Ferdinand Magellan's expedition by Rudy Lopez de Villalobos (1542) and
in search of a new route to the Maluku Miguel Lopez de Legazpi (1564) reached
Islands and their highly prized spices. the Philippines; but only Legazpi
 The ships' names were Trinidad, succeeded in colonizing the Islands.
Santiago, Victoria, Concepción, and
The Villalobos Expedition
San Antonio.
 Ruy Lopez de Villalobos set sail for
The Magellan Expedition
the Philippines from Navidad, Mexico on
 On March 16, 1521, Magellan's November 1, 1542.
expedition landed on Homonhon  Villalobos is remembered for naming the
Island in the Philippines, making him Philippines “Las Islas Filipinas,” in
the first European to reach the islands. honor of King Charles’ son, Prince Philip
He then named the region "The II, who later became king of Spain.
Archipelago of Saint Lazarus," as it
The Legazpi Expedition
was discovered on the Sabbath of St.
Lazarus.  When Philip II succeeded his father to

 Rajah Humabon of Cebu was friendly the throne in 1556, he instructed Luis de

with Magellan and embraced Velasco, the viceroy of Mexico, to

Christianity, but their enemy, Lapu-Lapu prepare a new expedition – to be headed

was not. Humabon wanted Magellan to by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, who

kill Lapu-Lapu while Magellan wanted to would be accompanied by Andres de

convert Lapu-Lapu into Christianity. Urdaneta, a priest who had survived the

 On April 17, 1521, Magellan sailed to Loaisa mission.

Mactan and ensuing battle killed  On February 13, 1565, Legaspi's

Magellan by the natives lead by Lapu- expedition landed in Cebu island. After a

Lapu (by Sampong Baha). short struggle with the natives, he

 Out of the five ships and more than 300 proceeded to Leyte, then to Camiguin

men who left on the Magellan expedition and to Bohol.

in 1519, only one ship (the Victoria) and There Legaspi made a blood compact

18 men returned to Seville, Spain on (Pacto de Sangre/Sanduguan) with

September 6, 1522. the chieftain, Datu Sikatuna as a sign

 Juan Sebastian de Elcano, the master of friendship.

of ship "Concepcion" took over the  Miguel Lopez de Legazpi served as

command of the expedition after the the first Governor-General of the

death of Magellan and captained the Philippines from 1565 until his death.
On March 28, 1521, Rajah Colambu, the Rajah Filipino Natives’ Appearance
of Limasawa, and his brother, Rajah Siagu,
 They live in liberty and according to their
welcomed Ferdinand Magellan to the island of
will as they have no lord or superior.
Limasawa. Rajah Siagu and Rajah Colambu
 They go quite naked; some of them wear
were among the first Filipino native leaders
beards or have their hair down to their
Magellan met, and they were among the first
waist.
Filipinos to accept Christianity and attend the
 They wear small hats made of palm
first Catholic Mass, which took place on March
leaves after the fashion of the Albanians.
31, 1521, an Easter Sunday.
 They were as tall as the crew and ‘well-
The First Catholic Mass in the Philippines made’
 They were born white, later becoming
 Took place on March 31, 1521 in
brown, and have their teeth black and
Limasawa, Southern Leyte.
red.
 Celebrated by Spanish Explorer
 The women also go naked, except they
Ferdinand Magellan and his team,
cover their nature with a thin bark.
with Father Pedro de Valderrama
 They are beautiful and delicate, and
leading the service.
whiter than the men, and have black and
 According to Antonio Pigafetta’s
very long hair.
account of the event, the Mass was held
on the beach of a small island called Filipino Natives’ Lifestyle
“Mazaua,” which is located near the
 The women do not work in the fields nor
southern tip of Cebu.
stir from their houses, making cloth and
 The indigenous people in the area
baskets of palm leaves.
assisted in the celebration, helping the
 Their provisions are certain fruits called
Spanish explorers establish friendly
Cochi, Battate; there are also birds, figs,
relations with the local tribes.
sweet canes, and flying fish.
 The spot where the Mass was held is now
 The women anoint their body with oil of
known as “The Blood Compact
concho and giongioli (sesame)
Shrine” and remains a pilgrimage site
 Their houses are made of wood, covered
for Catholics.
with planks and fig leaves and only have
The First Voyage Around the World one floor. Their rooms and beds are
furnished with mats made of palm
Antonio Pigafetta
leaves. They also lie down on soft and
 An Italian explorer and writer known for fine palm straw.
being a member of the expedition led by  They are poor, but ingenious and great
Portuguese explorer Ferdinand thieves, thus the three islands were
Magellan. called the Ladrone Islands.
 He served as a chronicler of the  The pastime of both men and women is
[Spanish] expedition and wrote the first to go with their little boats to catch flying
comprehensive account of the voyage, fish, with hooks made of fish bones.
which was published in Italian in 1525 as
Other Filipino Natives
“Primo Viaggio intorno al mondo”
(The First Voyage Around the World).  The lord of the natives [of Zuluam] was
old and had his face painted, and had
 gold rings (Schione) suspended to his
ears. The others wore bracelets and
rings of gold on their arms, with a
wrapper of linen around their head.
 Near the isle is another where there are
a kind of people (Caphre/Gentiles) who
wear large holes in the ears. They also
go naked; except they wear cloth made
of tree bark around their middles. The
more remarkable of them wore cotton
stuff, with some silk done with a needle
at the end of it.
 The people were tawny, fat, and painted,
and they anoint themselves with coconut
oil and sesame to protect themselves
from the sun and wind.
 Their hair was very black and long, up to
the waist, and they carry small daggers
and knives ornamented with gold, as
well as many other things, such as darts
harpoons, and fish nets. Their boats
were also the same as the crew’s.