Long
before the coming of the Spaniards, there already existed an
extensive region (consisting of the present provinces of Ilocos
Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra and La Union) which was renowned for
its gold mines. Merchants from Japan and China would often visit
the area to trade gold with bead, ceramics and silk. The inhabitants
of the region, believed to be of Malay origin, called their
place "samtoy", from "sao mi toy", which
literally meant "our language".
In 1571, when the Spanish conquistadors had established the
Spanish City of Manila, they began looking for new centers of
administration to conquer. Legaspi's grandson, Juan De Salcedo,
volunteered to lead one of these expeditions. Together with
8 armed boats and 45 men, the 22 year old voyager headed toward
the north.
On
June 13, 1572, Salcedo and his men landed in Vigan and then
proceeded towards Laoag, Currimao and Badoc. As they sailed
along the cost, they were surprised to see numerous sheltered
coves ("loac") where the locals lived in harmony.
Consequently, they named the region "Ylocos" and its
people "Ylocanos".
As the Christianization of the region
grew, so did the landscape of the area. Vast tracks of land
were utilized for churches and bell towers in line with the
Spanish mission of "bajo las campanas". In the town
plaza, it was not uncommon to see garrisons under the church
bells. The colonization process was slowly being carried out.
The Spanish colonization of the
region, however, was never completely successful. Owing to the
abusive practices of many Augustinian friars, many Ilocanos
revolted against their colonizers. Noteworthy of these were
the Dingras uprising (1589) and Pedro Almasan revolt (San Nicolas,
1660). In 1762, Diego Silang led a series of battles aimed at
freeing the Ilocanos from the Spanish yoke. When he died from
an assassin's bullet, his widow Gabriela continued the cause.
Unfortunately, she too was captured and hanged. In 1897, the
sugar cane ("basi") brewers of Piddig rose up in arms
to protest the government's monopoly of the wine industry. In
1898, the church excommunicated Gregorio Aglipay for refusing
to cut off ties with the revolutionary forces of Gen. Emilio
Aguinaldo. Unperturbed, he established the "Iglesia Filipina
Independiente". Aglipay's movement and the nationalist
sentiment is espoused helped restore the self-respect of many
Filipinos.
In an effort to gain more political
control as a result of the increasing population of the region,
a Royal Decree was signed on February 2, 1818 splitting Ilocos
into two provinces: Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur. Soon thereafter,
the provinces of La Union and Abra likewise became independent. |
