Fort Santiago, Manila, Philippines
The area which is now occupied by Fort Santiago is a natural defensive position that has been used for centuries. Fort Santiago is a ruined old Spanish fort, now used as a park. There is a collection of rusting cars which belonged to previous Presidents dot the park. The fort is part of the structures of the walled city of Intramuros, in Manila, Philippines. The climb to the top of Fort Santiago is worth the view of the Pasig River.
Originally, the fort was the site of Rajah Sulayman’s settlement prior to Spanish occupation and rule. The Spanish defeated the Muslim-Filipino leader, Rajah Sulayman in the 1500’s. He was the last ruler, of the now Metro Manila area, before the Spanish took control. The Spaniards destroyed the native settlements and erected Fuerza de Santiago in 1571.
The first fort was made out of log structures and earth. Most of it was destroyed in the Spanish-Chinese War of (1574-1575), by invaders of Chinese pirates who besieged the area. The Spaniards fought a fierce conflict and eventually drove the pirates out. In 1589 the fort was constructed with hard stone and finished in 1592. It became the main fort for travels and spice trade to the Americas and Europe for 333 years. The very popular Manila Galleon trade to Acapulco, Mexico started sailing from Fuerza de Santiago.
During World War II, the Japanese used the fort as a prison. The dungeons are below the high-tide level and sometimes prisoners drowned here. Right at the end of the war the Japanese started on a wholesale massacre of prisoners, and in one small cell the bodies of 600 people were later found.
Today, the fort serves as a museum which houses well-preserved legacies of the Spanish government. The Rizal Shrine Museum is probably the most interesting part of the fort. It is filled with items that were used or made by the Filipino martyr, Jose Rizal, including a farewell poem he wrote on the eve of his execution. The rooms where he was held before his execution can be visited. He was imprisoned in the fort before his execution in 1896; the site features, embedded onto the ground in bronze, his final footsteps representing the walk from his cell to the location of the actual execution.
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