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Luzon Empire (呂宋國) (1279-1571 AD) was an ancient empire once located
around the Manila Bay region of the Philippines. Its capital was Tondo
(東都). Its territories covered most of what is now Central Luzon,
extending from the delta region that surrounds Manila Bay, all the way
into the interior along head waters of the surrounding rivers in the
provinces of Pampanga and Bulacan.
ORIGINS
======
The
History of the Song Dynasty (宋史) was compiled under Mongol Prime
Minister Toktoghan (脫脫) in 1345 AD. In it, the Mongols recount the
* The Mongol Fleet crushed the Nan Song Navy at the Naval Battle of Yamen (崖門戰
役).
*
The loyal Minister of the Left Liu Xiufu (陸秀夫) committed suicide with
last Nan Song Emperor, the child Songdi Bing (宋帝 ) rather than be
captured by the Mongols.
* The Grand Admiral Zhang Shijie (張世傑)
escaped with his grand armada but were later annihilated by a typhoon
while crossing the seas.
The Ming
chroniclers added the character for "kingdom" or "empire" (國, pinyin:
GOLDEN AGE
========
The Luzon Empire
flourished during the latter half of the Ming Dynasty when China closed
its doors to foreign trade. Foreigners were forbidden to send trade
missions to China. Chinese merchants were likewise forbidden to trade
beyond the borders of the Ming Empire. Yet clandestinely, merchants
from Guangzhou and Quanzhou regularly delivered trade goods to Tondo.
Luzon merchants then traded them all across Southeast Asia and were
considered "Chinese" by the people they encountered.
The
Portuguese who came to Asia much earlier than the Spaniards recorded
their encounter with the inhabitants of the Luzon Empire and called
them Lucoes. The Portuguese records that the Luzon Empire played an
active role in the politics and economy of 16th century Southeast Asia,
especially in controlling the trade traffic at the Straits of Malacca.
The
Luzon Empire's powerful presence in the trade of Chinese goods in 16th
century East Asia was felt strongly by Japan, whose merchants had to
resort to piracy in order to obtain much sought after Chinese products
such as silk and porcelain. Famous 16th century Japanese merchants and
tea connoisseurs like Shimai Soushitsu (島井宗室) and Kamiya Soutan (神屋宗湛)
established their branches here. One famous Japanese merchant, Luzon
Sukezaemon (呂宋助左衛門), went as far as to change his surname from Naya
DECLINE
=====
Tondo (東都, Cantonese:
Tūngdū) or the "Eastern Capital" has always been the traditional
capital of the Luzon Empire. Its traditional rulers were the Lakandúlâ
(Kapampangan: “Lord of the Palace”). During the reign of Paduka Sri
Baginda Rajah dan yang di Pertuan Bulkiah (1485-1521) the Kingdom of
Brunei decided to break the Luzon Empire's monopoly in the China trade
by attacking Tondo and establishing the city state of Mainílâ as a
Burneian satellite. A new dynasty under the Salalila was established in
Manila to challenge the House of Lakandúlâ in Tondo.
When the
Spaniards arrived in 1571, the unity of the Luzon Empire was already
threatened by the uneasy alliance of the Three Kings of Luzon: the
Rajah Matanda of Sapa, the Lakandula of Tondo, and Rajah Suliman III,
the rajah muda or "crown prince" of Mainílâ and laxamana or "grand
admiral" of the Macabebe Armada. Powerful states like Lubao, Betis and
Macabebe became bold enough to challenge the traditional leadership of
Tondo and Mainílâ. The Spaniards took advantage of the chaos, played
favourites with one ruler and pitted them against the other.
THE FALL
======
Rumour
has it that the Spaniards had poisoned the Rajah Matanda of Mainílâ so
as to win the support of the Lakandula of Tondo. Disregarding the
legitimacy of Rajah Suliman III as rajah muda, the Spaniards installed
the child Rajah Bago as the new king of Mainílâ.
In 1571, Rajah
Suliman III, the rajah muda of Mainílâ and laxamana of the Macabebe
armada, challenged the Spaniards to a naval battle at the estuary of
Bangkusay. The Spaniards were able to crush Rajah Suliman III and his
Macabebe armada due to the lack of support from the other rulers of the
empire. The Luzon Empire was quickly overtaken by the Spaniards. Its
territories were carved out and distributed as spoils among themselves.
The province of Pampanga was the first Spanish colonial province carved
out of the Luzon Empire and the people who spoke one language from
Tondo to the rest of Pampanga are now called Kapampangan.
After
the collapse of the Luzon Empire, the Spaniards were finally able to
create their first colony in Asia, the Philippines, named in honor of
the Spanish King Philip II of Spain. The name Luzon was given to the
entire northern Philippine island, in memory of the former Luzon Empire.
AFTERSHOCKS
=========
The
Luzon Empire was said to have finally ended in 1571 according to
Spanish records. Yet the fortified cities of Lubao and Betis continued
to thrive as independent principalities of the Luzon Empire till 1572.
In
1575, the Spaniards executed the child king Rajah Bago and his cousin
Lumanlan. The Lakandula of Tondo also died in the same year.
In
1586, the Spaniards crushed the revolt of former nobles of the Luzon
Empire in the province of Pampanga. The revolt was based in Candaba
under the leadership of Don Nicolas Mananguete and Don Juan de Manila.
In
1588, the Spaniards crushed the revolt of the nobles of the Luzon
Empire in Tondo. It was led by the descendants of the Lakandula and
their kinsmen with the assistance of Japanese merchants. Many of them
were executed or exiled and their properties confiscated.
In
1590, the King Sattha of Cambodia sent two elephants to the "King of
Luzon" through his Portuguese ambassador and requested the Luzon
Empire's assistance in their battle against Siam. In the same year, the
"lords" of the Luzon Empire were said to have been corresponding with
the Taikou-sama of Japan, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, begging for assistance to
help liberate the Luzon Empire from the Spaniards. Hideyoshi responded
by sending a letter to the Spanish governor of Manila, demanding that
the Spaniards leave Luzon quietly or else face a full scale invasion
that would force them out. Ill prepared for a Japanese invasion, the
Spanish governor of Manila decided to appease Hideyoshi by sending
gifts from the Americas, including the two elephants sent by the King
of Cambodia.
The rulers of the old Luzon Empire who cooperated
with the Spanish overlords became the principalia of the new Spanish
colony. To this day, their descendants still play an influential role
in Philippine society.
REFERENCES
========
宋史 (History of the Song) original Chinese text: http://www.yifan. net/yihe/
novels/history/ songshiytt/ sshi.html
東西洋考 (A study of the Eastern and Western Oceans) original Chinese texts at the
Kobe University Library Website: http://www.lib. kobe-u.ac. jp/directory/
sumita/5A- 161/index. html
Henson, Mariano A. 1965. The Province of Pampanga and Its Towns: A.D. 1300-1965.
4th ed. revised. Angeles City: By the author.
Licuanan,
Virginia Benitez & Jose Llavador Mira, The Philippines Under Spain:
a compilation and translation of original documents, Book IV
(1583-1590), The National Trust for Historical and Cultural
Preservation of the Philippines, Quezon City, 1993.
Loarca, Miguel de, Relacion de las Yslas Filipinas, Blair and Robertson volume 5,
page 34 - 187.
Morga,
Antonio de, Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas, obra publicada en Mejico el
año de 1609 nuevamente sacada a luz y anotada por Jose Rizal y
precedida de un prologo del Prof. Fernando Blumentritt, Impresion al
offset de la Edicion Anotada por Rizal, Paris 1890. Manila: Historico
Nacional, 1991.
Miyamoto, Kazuo, Vikings of the Far East, New York: Vantage Press, 1975. pp. 88-
89. See also: http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Luzon_Sukezaemon
San
Agustin, Gaspar de, Conquistas de las Islas Philipinas 1565-1615,
Translated by Luis Antonio Mañeru, 1st bilingual ed. [Spanish and
English], published by Pedro Galende, OSA: Intramuros, Manila, 1998.
Santiago,
Luciano P.R., The Houses of Lakandula, Matanda, and Soliman
[1571-1898]: Genealogy and Group Identity, Philippine Quarterly of
Culture and Society 18 [1990].
Yule, Henry {ed.}, The Travels of Marco Polo, Dover Publications, New York, 1983.