About this episode

This episode explores the turbulent history of Manila in the late 1500s as various powers vied for control over the region.

In the late 1500s, sultans, kings, and outlaws alike all wanted a little slice of Manila. And over two turbulent decades, everyone from faraway Spain to neighboring Brunei asserted their claims over the rajahs and datus that lived there. This is the turbulent origin story of the city that we know today. Follow us on IG: @thecolonialdept Follow us on TikTok: @thecolonialdept Email us: thecolonialdept@gmail.com Cover photo from “Ataque de Li-ma-hong a Manila en 1574” by Juan Caro y Mora References: Patanne, E.P. (1993-1996). “Old Tondo and the Lakandula Revolt of 1574.” Historic Manila: Commemorative Lectures. Manila Historical Commission. Majul, Cesar Adib (1999). Muslims in the Philippines (third edition). University of the Philippines Press. Elsa Clavé, Arlo Griffiths (2022). “The Laguna Copperplate Inscription: Tenth-Century Luzon, Java, and the Malay World.” Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints, 70 (2), pp.167-242. Postma, Antoon (1992). “The Laguna Copper-Plate Inscription: Text and Commentary.” Philippine Studies, 40 (2), pp. 183–203. “Paghinumdom: Retrospection of the Hindu-Buddhist Cultural Influences Based on Tangible Finds in the Caraga Region.”…

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