May 31, 1764, the Spaniards led by Spanish Governor-General Simon de Anda y Salazar and his troops took back Manila from the British following the signing of peace treaty at Paris, ending the British occupation of Manila.
Spain and England, two traditional rivals in global colonization in the 18th century, came to be involved in the raging Seven Years’ War in Europe. In the course of this massive conflict which also involved other powers (Austria, France, Prussia, Holland, Hungary, and Czarist Russia), Charles III, Bourbon king of Spain signed a dynamic alliance at Versailles on August 25, 1761, known as the “Family Compact,” in which he agreed to help his kinsman, Louis XV, Bourbon king of France in the war against England. In retaliation, the King of the United Kingdom, King George III, an enemy of France, declared war on Spain on January 2, 1762, and prepared the British expeditionary forces to attack the Spanish colonies in the Americas and the Orient.
Thus, war erupted between Spain and England. This war was a part of the Seven Years’ War in Europe, which also spread to North America, where the British under Robert Clive clashed with the French led by Marquis Joseph Dupleix.
Upon King George III’s orders, a British Expeditionary Force was prepared by the East India Company at Madras, India. The troops numbered 6,830 consisting of 1,500 European soldiers, 3,000 European seamen and marines, two artillery companies, 600 Sepoys, and 1,400 Indian laborers. The commander of the fleet was Admiral Samuel Cornish, while Lieutenant General William Draper was in command of the troops.
On the evening of September 22, 1762, the British fleet entered Manila bay. The Spanish authorities and city residents saw through the early night darkness the strange ships entering Manila Bay and mistook them for Chinese trade junks. They were woefully unaware that war had come between Spain and England, for they had not received any war news from Madrid due to the difficulty of overseas communications in those days.
The following morning (September 23, 1762), two British officers were sent ashore under a white flag or truce carrying an ultimatum to the Spanish authorities demanding the surrender of Manila.
The Mexican Archbishop of Manila, Manuel Antonio Rojo, who was then acting governor general of the Philippines, was both surprised and alarmed to read the ultimatum message. Upon the advice of the council of war which he hurriedly convoked, he rejected the invaders’ ultimatum with a proud reply that the “Spaniards know how to die like true men for their God, for their king, and their fatherland, and they never surrender in the face of danger.”
By nightfall, despite the lashing rain and howling wind, the British forces landed and occupied the powder works outside the city walls and the stone churches of Malate, Ermita, and Bagumbayan (Luneta). The city defenders offered no resistance.
The following morning, September 24, 1762, the siege of Manila began. The British batteries shelled the city. The Spanish guns fired in retaliation, a strong Spanish-Filipino force under the command of Cesar Fallet (Fayette), a French soldier of fortune in Spain’s service, sallied out of the city gates and assaulted the British lines. The fight raged furiously all night. The British and their Sepoy allies stood their ground and repulsed the attack.
On September 25, 1762, General Draper repeated his demand for surrender, and again Archbishop Rojo turned it down. Within the city walls, Filipinos and Spaniards rushed the construction of defense works. Notwithstanding their inadequate arms, they were determined to resist the invaders.
Rising in response to Spain’s cry for aid, thousands of Filipino warriors from Pampanga, Bulacan, and Laguna reinforced the city garrison. On the rainy dawn of October 3, 1762, they audaciously assaulted the British posts at Bagumbayan and Malate. They enraged the invaders in a bloody hand-to-hand fight, almost annihilating the enemy. The timely arrival of fresh troops, hurriedly dispatched by General Draper, saved the day for England. Outnumbered and outarmed, the Filipinos were forced to fall back to the city.
The Filipino sorties, although foiled, were highly significant. It proved the loyalty of the Filipinos to Spain and to Catholicism. It demonstrated their fighting prowess and indomitable spirit.
Realizing the grave situation, Archbishop Rojo called a council of war; the council discussed the course of action that they should follow. The military officers, mostly Mexicans, favored surrender because of the fatality of further resistance. To put a stop to the horrible slaughter of the city defenders and residents, Archbishop Rojo hoisted the white flag at Fort Santiago, as the signal of the surrender of the city. Thus, Manila fell into British hands on October 5, 1762.
Simón de Anda y Salazar (officially became Governor-General 1770–1776 died while in office), escaped from Manila with much of the treasury and documents, assumed full authority on behalf of the Real Audiencia of Manila, established the provisional government and raised an army in Bulacan (later Pampanga), and re-continued the military campaign against the British. Anda continued the government, with himself as the governor general. He organized an army of Filipinos and Spaniards, and dispatched swift couriers to all parts of the country, urging the people to resist the invaders in the name of God and of the Spanish king. Later, Anda’s army grew in number of fighting men because hundreds of Filipino warriors rallied around his war banner.
On November 2, 1762, less than a month after occupying Manila, the East India Company (based in Madras, India) established a civil government in Manila, headed by Governor-General Dawsonne Drake (1st British Governor-General of the Philippines; Governor of Manila, November 2, 1762–May 31, 1764) and assisted by the Manila Council (composed of British men). As British Governor of Manila, Drake exercised the executive power, and the Manila Council, the legislative powers. Shortly after the organization of the civil government, General Draper and Admiral Cornish returned to Madras, leaving the British land and sea forces behind to support the rule of the East India Company in the Philippines. Governor Drake tried to crush Anda’s resistance, but failed. With the loyalty and support of the Filipino people. Anda remained victorious in the provinces. Unable to liquidate Anda by arms, Governor Drake and the Manila Council issued a proclamation on January 23, 1763, declaring Anda a rebel and offered a reward on his head, dead or alive. In reply, Anda issued a counter edict offering a reward for each of the heads of Drake and the members of the Manila Council.
While Anda and the British were fighting in the Philippines, the Seven Years’ War in Europe came to a close. The Treaty of Paris, which concluded the war, was signed on February 10, 1763. By this treaty, England restored the Philippines to Spain. Owing to the poor means of communication during that time, the news reached Manila at a much later date. Archbishop Rojo had died in the meantime, on January 30, 1764. Four months later, May 31, 1764, Anda and his troops made their triumphal entry into Manila amidst the vivas of the populace, the salutes of guns, and the strains of music. Shortly afterward, the British sailed away, ending an occupation of one year and a half.
Sources and References:
1. Gregorio F. Zaide, Sonia M. Zaide, History of the Republic of the Philippines, National Bookstore Inc., Metro Manila, 1983, 1987, pp. 132–139
2. Philippine Almanac Book of Facts, 1986 Edition, Aurora Publications, p. 30
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