History of Cagayan Province
In the year 1581, with the order from Gonzalo Ronquillo de Peñaloza (4th Spanish Governor-General of the Philippines) one hundred fully-equipped soldiers with their families explore Cagayan Valley and enforce conversion of natives to Catholicism and established ecclesiastical missions and towns throughout the valley. The group was the first batch of Spanish settlers in the Cagayan Valley that introduced Spanish culture and Latin civilization.
It was Juan de Salcedo who traced the northern coastline of Luzon and set foot on the Massi (Pamplona), Tular and Aparri areas on June 29, 1583. The Spanish friars established mission posts in Camalaniugan and Lal-lo that became the seat of Nueva Segovia established on August 14, 1595. The spiritual and social welfare of the people as influenced by the Spaniards can still be seen in the massive churches and other buildings built by the Spaniards.
America took over the Philippines when the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1898 ending the Spanish-American War. The Americans influenced the culture, most notably in agriculture and education as well as in public works and communications. There were 29 municipalities remained in the province of Cagayan at the close of the 18th century from the 35 municipalities when Philippines came under American sovereignty in 1902. It was lessen due to centralization and shifting of population as a result of the opening of roads and public agricultural lands.
The Japanese Imperial forces founded and entered Cagayan in 1942. It was in 1945 when the combined United States and Philippine Commonwealth ground troops together with recognized guerillas took in Cagayan from the Japanese in the Battle of Cagayan Valley during the Second World War.
December 05 2009 03:01 am | Philippines and Provinces and Region II and Regions and Travel
