Between the sixteenth and eighteenth century, Spain emerged as a dominant trading empire with the establishment of the Manila Galleon Trade. Galleons transported valuable commodities such as porcelain, silver and spices between Manila, Philippines and Acapulco, Mexico. The decision to establish a Spanish trading base in Manila was due to a number of favorable factors, including the existing trade network in Asia, the cheap labor provided by the natives, and the numerous resources that supported the Manila Galleon trade. This paper aims to highlight what the Philippines contributed to the Spanish empire and the Manila Galleon trade, and what they sacrificed to make those contributions. In addition, the paper will discuss the impacts of the Spanish colonization to the Philippine seafaring identity. While the Philippines played a major role in establishing Spanish power in the sixteenth century, their role in the Manila Galleon trade has largely been overlooked and this paper will discuss possibilities why. It is important to recognize that without the help of the Philippines, Spain would not have had the same powerful empire between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries.
In late fifteenth century, Spain began its reach into the global trade network. In 1492, Spain sent explorers such as Christopher Columbus to claim the Americas (Fisher 2011:18). In 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas split the world between Spain and Portugal, with Spain owning all territories 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands and Portugal owning all territories east of the division line (Giráldez 2015:48). With their new territories, Spain established an Atlantic trade network that operated from Spain to the Americas, or also known as the New World (Fisher 2011:18).However, Spain was not the only one engaging in a profitable trade market.
In Asia, there was a trans-Pacific trade network between China, Japan, the Philippines and Southeast Asia. Since the eleventh century, the Philippines have been engaged in the trade network (Min 2014:43-44). There were Chinese and Japanese maritime enterprises located in northern Philippines, while Muslim trading enterprises were in southern Philippines (Min 2014:48). In addition, the Philippines engaged in interisland trade with areas like Brunei (Min 2014:48). Some of the foreign goods traded in the Philippines included glass beads, silk, iron implements, lead net sinkers, iron needles and ceramics. The natives traded beeswax, pearls, tortoise shells, betel nuts, local fabrics and printed textiles (Min 2014:46). After the thirteenth century, porcelain and silk became major trade goods as the Chinese produced and exported them in large quantities for cheap prices, which led to competition among indigenous populations (Min 2014:46). Over time, there was a greater demand for spices including pepper, cloves and nutmeg coming from the Moluccas, located south of the Philippines (Orillaneda 2014:2; Giráldez 2015:38). In the start of the fifteenth century, in the era called the Age of Commerce, the Philippines experienced a surge in trade in the region. This prompted a reorganization of chiefdoms into political entities that could better deal with increased trade and power, which led to the creation of better defenses and organization of more raids (Giráldez 2015:15-16). At this time, the natives traded goods like gold, cowry shells, carabao horns, slaves, animal skins, fish, food, mats, cotton, and betel nuts (Giráldez 2015:22-23;27). With trade, the Philippines established itself as a rising economic power in the Asia-Pacific region.
News of a thriving trans-Pacific trade network reached Spain. The desire to enjoy the spoils of the Asian trade led the Spanish to send explorers to the Pacific to claim and establish territories in the region (Pigafetta 1969). However, they first needed a base in Asia to get access to the trade. The Spanish had difficulty establishing a trading route to the Pacific from Europe because the voyage was too long and too distant (Peterson 2014:58). In 1521, Spain established a base in Mexico, also known as New Spain (Peterson 2014: 145-146). A voyage to the Pacific from Mexico was much more manageable than one from Europe (Peterson 2014:58). In Mexico, they attempted to build galleons to use for their trips. However, there was a lack of raw materials to build items necessary for the ships, including sailcloth, arms, nails, chains, anchors and woodworking tools (Peterson 2014:149). The materials that were there were sparse and of poor quality (Peterson 2014:148). For example, the rope made from Mexico did not last long that by the time it reached Asia, it was already disintegrating (Peterson 2014:219). The lack of materials meant that Spain had to import goods to Mexico from other areas, which was costly and dangerous (Peterson 2014:149). For example, much of the timber necessary to build vessels had to be imported from the Netherlands, where it was abundant but costly to purchase and transport to Mexico (Peterson 2014:209). In addition, Mexico had a shortage of people to build and sail the ships (Peterson 2014:148-150). The lack of materials and the lack of people made it a difficult and slow process to build galleons in Mexico and engage successfully in global trade (Peterson 2014:154). In other words, Spain simply did not have enough resources to further develop their trade network. Attempts to engage in the prosperous trans-Pacific trade were futile without a base in Asia.
In the early sixteenth century, Spain sent explorers to the Pacific. Their voyages were met with varying degrees of success (Giráldez 2015:41-57). As documented by Italian traveler Antonio Pigafetta, in 1518, Ferdinand Magellan and his fleet set out to travel from Spain to the spice islands of Moluccas, where valuable nutmeg and cloves originated (Pigafetta 1969). Even though the voyage was accompanied by disasters, mutinies and a lack of supplies, the crew was able to claim the Philippines, and eventually arrived in the Moluccas in 1522 (Pigafetta 1969). Despite losing four ships, many men, and Magellan himself, the Spanish sent even more explorers to the Pacific region afterwards to exploit the goods there (Pigafetta 1969). In 1526, Garcia Jofre de Loaisa and Juan Sebastian Elcano set out in the second expedition but lost three out of seven ships even before crossing the Pacific. More ships were lost after crossing, and both de Loaisa and Elcano died from scurvy (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:3). In 1527, Alvaro de Saavedra Ceron attempted the voyage with better provisions and more favorable winds. However, the Spanish fleet was not prepared to encounter the extreme storms and weather in Southeast Asia. In 1529, de Saavedra Ceron embarked on a second voyage back to the Moluccas, but the Portuguese captured his crew and forced their return back to Spain (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:3-4).In 1542,Ruy Lopez de Villalobos voyaged to the Pacific with the help of detailed ship logs, but he lacked the proper knowledge of wind and sea currents to navigate the oceans (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:4). There were also numerous problems that hindered his expedition, including the lack of water, leakage, and harsh weather (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:4). Finally in 1564, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Andrés de Urdaneta successfully made the voyage to the Pacific and back. Urdaneta had the skills and experience from the previous expeditions, and timed the voyage to get favorable winds and currents (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:5). In 1565, Urdaneta successfully navigated a route from Manila, Philippines to Acapulco, Mexico, officially establishing the Manila to Acapulco trade network, known as the Manila Galleon Trade (De Leon-Bolinao 2014:5). While many ships and men were lost during exploratory voyages to the Pacific, the establishment of a trade route between the Philippines and Mexico paved the way for the Spanish empire to grow.
Eager to profit from the Philippines’ trade goods and network, Spain sent troops and Christian priests to colonize the Philippines (Giráldez 2015). Spain reorganized the political, religious, and agricultural structure of the islands to better serve their goals. For example, they attempted to reorganize scattered settlements into concentrated communities that they could transform and Christianize in a consolidated manner (Giráldez 2015:41-57). In addition, with the increase of Spanish populations in the Philippines, there was a need for more agricultural output to feed the people (Giráldez 2015:78). King Phillip II of Spain encouraged the domestication of animals for labor and the introduction of new agricultural methods, which aimed to increase productivity (Giráldez 2015:78). Spain also sent priests and clergies to Christianize, educate and consolidate the natives (Giráldez 2015:75-79). Their main goal was to facilitate the colonization of the Philippines with the help of religion. The natives eventually adopted many Christian practices and items, such as baptism, coparenthood, rosaries and crosses (Giráldez 2015:78). The Philippines slowly transitioned into a Spanish colony.
In 1572, the conquest of Manila led to an increase in Spain’s foothold in the Philippines. Previously, Spain’s colonial center was in Cebu, Visayas, located in central Philippines (Peterson 2014:7). Cebu was small, sparsely populated and had limited supplies. There was a lack of food and drinking water to sustain the people (Peterson 2014:181-182). Because the Spanish people traveled to the Philippines mainly to get gold and profits, they did not want to waste their time growing food in the region when their focus was money (Peterson 2014:181-183). With the inability to sustain a colonial base in Cebu, Spain moved its center to Manila in northern Philippines, where resources were more readily available and abundant (Peterson 2014:7-8). Unlike Mexico, Manila was able to provide the cheap labor and the resources necessary to support the new colonial center and the shipbuilding industry of the Spanish galleons (Peterson 2014:7-8). The new location was ideal because it was near the agricultural province of Pampanga, located along the Pampanga River. Pampanga was able to produce the large volume of rice necessary to sustain a growing population. In addition, the river made it easy to transport these rice shipments throughout the region (Peterson 2014:95). Most importantly, Manila was already a developed port and trade center in the region (Peterson 2014:58). Manila gave the Spanish direct access to the trans-Pacific trade network that already existed. The Spanish were then able to connect the Asian trade network to the markets in the Americas and Europe, leading to more trade activities and profits internationally (Orillaneda 2014:2). From Manila, the Spanish traded goods such as silk, silver, metals, porcelain, and spices with China, Japan and Southeast Asia. Maritime archaeologist Bobby Orillaneda from the National Museum of the Philippines argues, “the arrival of the Europeans in Southeast Asia created new market opportunities and reoriented maritime network circuits as the region accommodated the new players” (Orillaneda 2014:2). With a foothold established, the Spanish began taking advantage of the Philippines.
Along with using the existing trade network in the Philippines, Spain exploited people and resources in order to benefit their goals and increase their power. Spain realized the advantages of the manpower and resources that the Philippines could contribute to support their empire. The natives were familiar with the waters in the region, and knew the best resources and techniques to build ships and sail them (Stead 2014). For example, they knew the best types of vessels, building techniques, materials and fertile lands in the region (Peterson 2014:67). The Spanish greatly exploited the natives’ skills and knowledge for their gain.
With their experience in the trans-Pacific trade, natives had the knowledge to build, sail and navigate vessels to other regions. Spain used natives, or Indios, as they identified them, for labor to construct and sail the ships that powered the Manila Galleon trade. The term Indio was used to identify natives who were subjugated workers obligated to serve the Spanish, but also was used to identify them as Christian members of Spain (Peterson 2014:22-23). Indios were conscripted to work as part of the polo y servicios, a system where they had to work for the Spanish for a fixed amount of time per year (Peterson 2014:7-8; Giráldez 2015:80). Their jobs were targeted to support colonial efforts (Peterson 2014:7-8). Thousands of Indios were organized into woodcutting gangs that embarked on expeditions in the Luzon region to fell and transport timber to the main shipyard in Cavite (Peterson 2014:13-14). While many toiled in forests, some worked in the seas. Because few people volunteered to embark on the dangerous voyages between Manila and Acapulco, Indios were taken to work on the galleons (Peterson 2014:8). They were used as guides, pilots, sailors, and mercenary fighters onboard the vessels (Peterson 2014:18). They made good sailors because they were agile, and learned sailing and navigation onboard quickly (Giráldez 2015:140). Onboard ships, they were also used for naval engagements against enemies such as the Dutch and the Muslims, or Moros, who were often raiding and attacking Spanish galleons at sea. Indios were seen as better soldiers because they were quicker and more nimble. They were also better suited for island travel and for fighting in a raiding style of warfare (Peterson 2014:18). Because of their usefulness and knowledge, Spain conscripted thousands of natives to perform physical labor.
Not only did the Spanish use the manpower in the Philippines, they also took advantage of the resources in the islands. The Philippines had plenty of raw materials including timber,abacá, and fibrous materials, to build the necessary items for galleons. The Spanish targeted large amounts of forests to get timbers appropriate for shipbuilding. One Manila galleon could require up to 2,000 oak trees, which was equivalent to approximately 50 acres of woodland (Peterson 2014:210). The Spanish also used native fibers such as Manila hemp, or abacá. Abacá was strong, plentiful and able to withstand saltwater corrosion, which made it the ideal material for ropes and sailcloth (Peterson 2014:10). The ropes, sailcloth and rigging made in the Philippines were superior and cheaper than those made in Mexico (Peterson 2014:118). Spain also took advantage of the agriculture in the Philippines to feed a growing colony. The fertile areas surrounding Manila were able to produce a surplus of important agricultural products, such as rice, to feed many people in the region (Peterson 2014:94). In addition, the Spanish used the local watercrafts of the Philippines. Because galleons were slow, overloaded, and cumbersome in Philippine waters, they had to be assisted by local vessels that acted as guides or as tugs (Peterson 2014:84). Local vessels were also more suitable for the waters than Spanish ones, so the Spanish modified their vessels to be similar to the Philippine ones, but befitting their purposes. For example, the Spanish changed the balangay, which was a light, slender and fast general-purpose vessel, into a larger and faster military vessel called the caracoa (Stead 2014:7-8). The caracoa was heavier and a better fit for defense against raiding, for carrying dispatches, and for major assaults against pirate bases (Stead 2014:8). Unlike in the developing Spanish colony of Mexico, the resources found in the Philippines were ideal to build and support galleons, and sustain a growing Spanish colony.
The contributions of physical labor and resources were not enough to the Spanish empire: the natives had to pay Spain with tributes and food.Tributes were taxes paid using money or valuable commodities to Spain for use in defense, salaries and transportation (Giráldez 2015:79-80). Some commodities used as tributes included produce and animals (Giráldez 2015:79). The tributes “constituted the largest sources of income” to the Spanish empire, which meant that the natives funded the Manila Galleon trade for the most part (Giráldez 2015:79). In addition, the vandala was used as a “system of force purchases,” where the natives had to sell their vital goods such as rice and chickens to the Spanish for a low amount of money, below fair market price (Peterson 2014:195). These goods were used to provide for Spanish communities (Giráldez 2015:80). The system was a “critical means of supporting the Spanish colony…when food was scare and/or too expensive” (Peterson 2014:205). Ultimately, the vandala was a system that cheated the natives of the true value of their goods, but was used in order to feed the population (Peterson 2014:195). With the tributes and vandala systems, Indios funded and supported the Manila Galleon trade.
While some natives were obligated to serve as Indios, there were other natives who contributed to the Spanish empire in another way. Some natives had more power, secured land and tributes for themselves, and showed upward mobility, unlike Indios (Peterson 2014:24). They acted as the intermediary, or principalía, class between the Spanish colonial power and the Philippine colonized population. Members of the principalía class included datus, also known as the cabezas de barangay, who were the leaders of indigenous communities(Peterson 2014:25). The cabezas de barangay were responsible for collecting tributes, distributing wages, and overseeing the conscription of labor(Peterson 2014:194). Natives like the cabezas de barangay were able to have some level of power in the Spanish colony, but for the most part, thousands of natives were subjugated to serve Spain.
The subjugated natives in the Philippines were building the Spanish empire with all that they had: their bodies, resources, food, and money.In his dissertation Andrew Peterson argues, “the galleon trade was built upon the toils of indigenous laborers and natural resources of the Philippine archipelago” (Peterson 2014:1). He adds, “Manila galleons were sustained only via the exploitation of indigenous populations in the Philippines and that the dependent, exploitative systems introduced by the Spanish were imposed largely for the maintenance and constructions of sailing vessels” (Peterson 2014:44). The Philippines sacrificed their money, labor and resources to power the Manila Galleon trade.
By 1573, nearly a decade after the establishment of the trade route, many galleons regularly voyaged across the Pacific to engage in trade (Min 2014:51). Goods from the Pacific region such as spices, silk, porcelain, cotton, gold, tea, opium, textiles and other precious items were carried across to the Americas (Giráldez 2015:145-173). These goods were loaded onto mule trains and other ships to disperse them throughout the Americas, and eventually to Europe (Min 2014:51). From Europe and the Americas, goods like silver were loaded back into the galleons destined for the Pacific (Min 2014:51). The Spanish empire benefitted greatly from their access to and engagement in the trans-Pacific trade network.
While the Manila Galleon trade brought in profits for the Spanish empire, the Philippines suffered at their expense. Natives suffered from diseases and maltreatment, both on land and at sea, due to the Spanish. The Spanish introduced diseases, such as smallpox, measles, and syphilis, to the natives, whose immunities could not fight them off. The result was a massive decrease in the native population, from 20-60% in different communities (Giráldez 2015:72). Disease was not the only cause of death. During the Hispano-Dutch war and Moro Wars, the natives experienced abductions, raids and attacks on settlements and shipyards (Peterson 2014:247). The conflicts led to thousands of deaths in the native population (Peterson 2014:247). The Spanish pulled many natives to their deaths because of their introduction of foreign diseases and their conflicts.
Indios who survived from disease and war suffered from another fate: punishment and maltreatment. For example, there were reported abuses on natives. A worthy reason for punishment included the refusal to convert to Christianity. Some natives who did not follow Christian practices were punished with corporal mistreatment like whipping (Giráldez 2015:78). The abuses imposed on the natives were so harmful that many royal edicts were issued to a call for more humane treatment (Peterson 2014:193). While natives could be punished for the rejection of Spanish ways, physical abuse was worse when it came to labor conditions.
Many Indios suffered in the shipbuilding industry. The woodcutting gangs worked arduously to fell and transport timber for the galleons. Their expeditions could last up to three months, where they worked for long hours, had little time to rest or eat, had little shelter, and were exposed to the sun and the wind (Peterson 2014:203). Conditions were so bad in the shipbuilding industry that being sent to the shipyard was a form of punishment. Being conscripted to a woodcutting gang was seen as a death sentence (Peterson 2014: 203). However, the shipyards and forests were not the only places where demanding labor was performed.
After galleons were built, natives had to work onboard them and suffer from difficult voyages on them. During voyages, the conditions were unpleasant and grueling. People were subject to many dangers at sea, including storms, hurricanes, wrecks, accidents, and enemy attacks (Pérez-Mallaína 1998:177-185). In addition, there was a lack of water, food, and space, which led to numerous problems including malnourishment, colds, lung conditions, scurvy, and overcrowding (Luque-Talaván 2014:3). Even if there was food and water, they could be spoiled or be of poor quality (Pérez-Mallaína 1998: 143-145). In addition, there was a lack of hygienic practices, so the combination of poor diets, overcrowding and limited health treatments meant that the galleons were a breeding ground for infestations, diseases, and death (Luque-Talaván 2014:4; Giráldez 2015:134). Life onboard a Manila galleon was less than ideal.
To make matters worse, the Indios were cheated out of their wages. Indio shipbuilders were supposed to receive a ration of four pesos of rice per month (Peterson 2014:88). Onboard galleons, they were supposed to receive half the rations that Spanish sailors received (Giráldez 2015:140). However, native workers were underpaid or not paid at all (Peterson 2014:203). The lack of money and rations made it difficult for Indios to buy food or pay tributes (Peterson 2014:88).While this technique saved Spain money, they owed people thousands of pesos (Peterson 2014:203-205). For example, by 1660, Spain owed the Indios in Pampanga 220,000 pesos (Peterson 2014:205). In one report, a Spaniard documented that Manila shipbuilders had not been paid in five years (Peterson 2014:205). Spain was not the only one responsible for the lack of payment. The cabezas de barangay, who were responsible for distributing wages, often kept the wages for themselves, and even called for more laborers simply to get more money for themselves (Peterson 2014:194-202).The natives did not receive their wages, but were still expected to pay tributes and rations to Spain.
Poor treatment in working conditions and lack of pay led many natives to desert or revolt (Giráldez 2015:140). While they did not leave written records about the maltreatment, they showed their disapproval of the Spanish colonization through their actions. For example, they attempted to pay off the obligation of the polo y servicios in order to escape (Peterson 2014:202). In another example, upon arrival to the Americas, many natives deserted, married local women, and created families in the region. The growing Indio population encouraged other natives to stay as well, leading to the establishment of a mixed-race people with “Oriental heritage” in Mexican colonial society (Aguilar 2012:367). To slow down the shipbuilding industry, natives burned a forest to deplete timber resources and prevent a shipyard from being built in Pangasinan, a province located north of Manila (Peterson 2014:203). In response to the unfair conditions, natives let the Spanish know that they did not approve of their colonization.
Fortunately for the Philippines, Spain waned in power starting in the eighteenth century and into the nineteenth century. Other regions such as the Netherlands and Britain recognized the profitable market in the trans-Pacific trade network and wanted a piece of it themselves. They attempt to pull Spain away from their foothold in the Philippines in order to do so (Giráldez 2015). The Dutch in the Netherlands attempted to create a monopoly in the trade by blockade, in other words, by cutting off the Spanish empire at its throat by attacking their economy (Min 2014:52; Giráldez 2015:92-99). They seized and raided galleons and Chinese junks, attacked shipyards, and imposed embargos in Philippine and Chinese ports, all in an attempt to hinder Spanish trade (Min 2014:52). In addition, the Dutch supported the Muslims, or Moro, in southern Philippines, to attack the Spanish. With Dutch resources, the Moro impeded the development of the Spanish colony through raids. They constantly attacked galleons and settlements, which resulted in a depletion of Spanish’s resources and manpower to deal with those attacks (Giráldez 2015:99-102). Another nation that invaded the Philippines was Britain between 1762 and 1764 (Fisher 2011:466). The British captured galleons, confiscated cargo, attacked and looted Manila (Fisher 2011:466). An endless amount of invasions and raids greatly hindered the development of the Spanish trading empire and decreased Spanish control in the Philippines.
Another blow to the Spanish empire was the establishment of the Royal Philippine Company in 1785. By royal decree from King Charles III, the company was established to encourage trade between the Americas, Spain and the Philippines (Fisher 2011:476; Giráldez 2015:188-190). While the intentions were to increase trade and to regain control of the monopoly, it backfired. The company limited trade with other regions to prevent competition, leading to a decline in trade (Giráldez 2015:189). Chinese merchants, who provided valuable commodities of porcelain and silk, had limited access to the trade network, which led them to take their business, and goods, elsewhere (Fisher 2011:487). After the company’s foundation, only a few galleons traveled to Acapulco but were unable to sell their cargo for much profit due to a variety of accumulating factors, including shipwrecks, contraband, market collapses, conflicts, and competing trade powers (Giráldez 2015:189).With decreasing profits, Ferdinand VII issued the Royal Decree of April 13, 1815, which ended the Manila Galleon trade (Fisher 2011:482). The last galleon from Manila sailed to Acapulco in 1811 and returned to Manila in 1815 (Steele 1925:84; Aguilar 2012:366).
Even though the Manila Galleon trade ended, the work of the natives did not. The involvement in the global maritime theater from the Manila Galleon trade led the Philippines to engage in other industries. Many natives were seen as experienced seamen who provided cheap labor, therefore were hired for work in different industries throughout the world (Aguilar 2012:366-367). Towards the end of the Manila Galleon trade network, some natives worked in the fur and sea otter skin trade in Alaska (Aguilar 2012:368). In the 1840s, there were some Filipinos who worked in the whaling industry in the Pacific coast and the Alaskan coast (Aguilar 2012:370). In the nineteenth century, some were employed as mercenaries in the southern China coast to defend the port of Shanghai and deal with rebellions (Aguilar 2012:374-377). In the later half of the nineteenth century, some Filipinos were engaged in pearl-shell fishing in the Australian coast (Aguilar 2012:379-383). By the end of the nineteenth century, men from Philippine port towns were recruited for work in oceans all over the world (Aguilar 2012:371). By the twentieth century, they were recruited into the United States Navy (Aguilar 2012:384). Filipino seamen proved to be reliable workers in many industries, not just in the Manila Galleon trade.
Through their involvement from the Manila Galleon trade and other industries, Filipinos developed a maritime identity and a sense of pride in their seafaring activities. As one Filipino seaman argued, “We’re a seafaring people…but during the galleon times, that is when we proved ourselves as seamen” (Aguilar 2012:365). Another Filipino said, “Just imagine, the native sailor did not have modern instruments during the galleon times like we have now. The native sailor was a real sailor. Their life was hard. Our life is hard to but their life was harder” (Aguilar 2012:365). Filipinos are proud of their history, especially because they realize how difficult sailing must have been before with less advanced technologies and worse living conditions. One seaman shared, “The history of Filipino seafaring is long…now we are just carrying on that tradition” (Aguilar 2012:365). The Filipinos are proud of their history as seafaring people, and it is up to others to appreciate them as well.
While many historians focus on the rise and fall of the Spanish empire as the colonizer, few discuss the native, or Filipino, perspective as the colonized during the Manila Galleon trade. Peterson argues, “the central role the native Indios of the Philippines played in the creation and maintenance of the galleon trade has…been overlooked” (Peterson 2014:1). While there is an endless amount of written documents discussing the empire from the Spanish perspective, there is a lack of written records from Indio populations, which makes it difficult, but not impossible, to share their perspectives (Peterson 2014:1). Peterson argues, “historians must work through the Spanish sources as best as they can to get at experiences of the subjugated” (Peterson 2014:285). Even if there is a lack of primary Filipino sources, it does not mean their perspective should not get shared.
There have been more recent works from historians and archaeologists that reveal the complexities of the Manila Galleon Trade, including from Peterson in his dissertation called Making the First Global Trade Route: The Southeast Asian Foundations of the Acapulco-Manila Galleon Trade, 1519-1650, and Arturo Giráldez with his book The Age of Trade (Peterson 2014; Giráldez 2015). Throughout Peterson’s dissertation, he highlights the Philippines’ contribution to the Manila Galleon trade, giving them more credit for their part in the Spanish empire (Peterson 2014). In The Age of Trade, Giráldez discusses the origin and development of the global economy during the Manila Galleon trade, but also focuses on the Philippines’ role in the global economy (Giráldez 2015). As a Spanish historian, Giráldez utilized many primary Spanish sources such as journals and letters written by Jesuits, friars, travelers, and government officials, to share a variety of first-person accounts. However, there was a lack of sources from the Filipino perspective. In his book, Giráldez briefly mentions that Filipinos had literacy, so it is possible that they wrote about their personal experiences (Giráldez 2015:18). However, these writings may not have survived or may not have been read by historians like Giráldez who are not familiar with the Filipino language. Including the Filipino perspective would shed light on the colonized view the Manila Galleon trade. While authors such as Peterson and Giráldez give more credit to the Philippines as a key player in the Spanish empire, there is still much to learn from the Manila Galleon trade in the Philippines.
Aside from the lack of primary sources, there is another obstacle to sharing information about the Philippines’ role in the Manila Galleon trade. From November 27-30, 2017, the 3rd Annual Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage was held in Hong Kong (Jeffrey 2017). During the conference, there were various sessions where authors from the National Museum of the Philippines were slated to present their recent archaeological research regarding the Philippine maritime history. Some topics that would have been covered include seventeenth century Fujian ceramics from China, porcelain found on the Spanish galleon Santa Cruz, and a study on sixteenth century Spanish colonial towns along the Bicol River (Jeffrey 2017). These topics provide more insight to the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines. However, the authors were not able to attend the conference, possibly due to government or administrative restrictions (Jeffrey 2017). One can only speculate why. The absence of presenters from the National Museum of the Philippines limited the ability to disseminate information about archaeological sites and objects involved in the Manila Galleon trade. Even if there might be more work conducted by Philippine archaeologists about the trade route, there are restrictions to sharing that information with others. Despite obstacles to further research and share information regarding the Manila Galleon trade, it is crucial for scholars and the general audience to learn more about the contributions of the Philippines to the Spanish empire.
For about 300 years, the Manila Galleon trade route operated and carried valuable goods across the Pacific. As the ones subjugated by Spain, the Philippines receive little recognition for powering the Manila Galleon trade through their own labor, resources, and money. Spain exploited the Philippines for their advantage at the cost of the natives’ lives. Thousands of natives toiled or died to build and sail the galleons across the Pacific. Filipinos today recognize the importance of their ancestors’ contributions to the Manila Galleon trade and the seafaring community. There are obstacles that impede research and publication to share the story about the Philippines’ role in the Spanish empire, but it does not mean research should not be pursued or shared. Without the Philippines, Spain would not have achieved the same level of success in their trade empire.
References
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2014 All Our Vessels Are Rowed From Within, These Are Paddled From Without, Spanish and European Colonial Reception of Philippine Indigenous Crafts. Paper presented at the 2nd Asia-Pacific Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage, Hawaii.
Steele, Martha
1925 The Manila Galleon and Trade Relations Between the Philippines and New Spain, 1521-1811. Master’s thesis, Department of History, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA.
Aleck Tan 