The first Spaniard to OFFICIALLY visit Mindanao was Esteban Rodriguez de Figueroa.Figueroa did so as the leader of a military expedition under the Administration of Don Luis Dasmarimas,who had succeeded his murdered father in 1593.Figueroa had been sorely disappointed after the death of the elder Dasmarinas.Like a fair number of men in the colony he had been led to believe by Dasmarinas himself that he had been handpicked to succeed the Governor-General in the event of his untimely passing.Whether or not Don Luis was actually his father's chosen successor is an issue still debated by historians.
What is known as that when the document supposedly naming this successor was actually found in a monastery almost 7 weeks after the elder Dasmarina's murder,his son Don Luis' name was on it.Locked out of Manila's hierarchy the ambitious Figueroa finally hatched what he felt was a sure fire scheme,having gotten permission for it before Dasmarina's murder.Bankrolling a military campaign he himself would lead,he would gain the Governorship over the entire island of Mindanao.Newly installed Governor-General Don Luis Dasmarinas was beset by the proverbial host of problems.As we will see in the following entry,both Japan AND China are breathing down his back,constantly probing for weaknesses.The fact that Manila had very large Chinese and Japanese communities didn't help things at all.
At the same time Siam,today's Thailand,and Cambodia were trying to use the Spanish colony against each other.Then,even more pressing,the many ambiitious military men who all imagined themselves his father's successor would for the most past not take his ascencion lying down.Figueroa was the front runner from among all these prospective threats to his rule.Having Figueroa saddled with the large,unconquered island would be a blessing in disguise.Not only did Governor-General Dasmarinas green light the plan,he went one better.IF Figueroa could pacifiy the large southern island it would remain under Figueroa's total control for two generations and he proposed as much to the King of Spain.
The World Around Mindanao:
A Cambodian embassy under the Portugese adventurer Diego Belloso,perhaps best described as the Marco Polo of the 16th Century,failed to secure badly needed military aid from the Spanish at Manila and as a result,Belloso returned to Cambodia to find it once again under Siamese domination,Siam of course being today's Thailand.Belloso was captured by the Siamese Army and while prisoner,via intemediaries,convinced the King of Siam to re-deploy him to Manila but as a Siamese Embassy.Obstensibly it would also be an intelligence gathering mission because after capturing Cambodia,the King had dispatched a treasure-laden junk by sea to carry booty and foreign prisoners.The foreign prisoners,3 Spaniards and 2 Portugese conspired with some of the Chinese crewmen of the junk to overtake the small Siamese contingent while at sea in the Gulf of Siam.Successful,they made a beeline south into the China Sea and onward to Manila.
The King of Siam was at a loss as to what had transpired and was convinced by Belloso's entreaties to deploy a junk to Manila in embassy.Though Belloso would be Ambassador he was placed under control of a Siamese member of court named Aconsi.Putting into Mallacca,then controlled by the Portugese,Aconsi learned that the junk in question had put into Manila and was now highly dubious about Belloso's intentions.Aconsi had the valuable gifts being sent to the Spanish at Manila off loaded in Mallacca and was considering whether to return to Siam.In the morning he was found murdered which put Belloso in charge.Belloso of course had everything re-loaded and left for Manila.
Governor Gomez Perez Dasmarinas had died in 1593,not long after Belloso had returned to Cambodia,while at anchor off of Southern Luzon,killed by a mutinous Chinese crew at the start of what was to be a strong military campaign to capture Ternate and establish a presence in what is today Indonesia.Dasmarinas had not only NOT appointed a successor as he had been ordered to do by the King when dispatched from Spain in 1590,he had very stupidly tried to maintain control amongst extremely ambitious subordinates by strongly inferring that each one was his chosen successor.In the end it was his son,Don Luis Dasmarinas whom the Administration in Manila cajoled into assuming the position after a 40 day interval in which an underling of the elder Dasmarinas had attempted to impose himself upon the office.
As both Japan and China seemed to be pressing Manila in a powerplay a competitor of the new Governor,named Estebean Rodriguez Figueroa finally resigned himself to never sitting as Governor in Manila.A favourite of the elder Dasmarinas he had been waiting at a southerly position to link up with the fleet for the attack on Ternate.When he found that the Governor had been murdered he rushed to Manila like many hopefuls,having believed that Dasmarinas had named him as successor.Upon his arrival though it soon became apparent that Dasmarinas' son,Don Luis Dasmarinas had grabbed the brass ring.
Newly installed Don Luis Dasmarinas faced competitors like Figueroa,threatening Chinese and Japanese and now Belloso speaking for the King of Siam.Belloso though had an ulterior motive.With the Portugese prisoners who had overtaken the Siamese treasure laden-junk he resolved to enlist the new Governor's aid against his new employer,the King of Siam.Though the young Dasmarinas was harshly advised against any intervention he was seduced by Belloso's plan and dispatched 1 ship,2 junks,120 Spanish soldiers and a full complement of Filipinos with a smattering of Japanese.Leaving at the start of 1596.Dasmarinas began playing a dangerous game.The Siamese Embassy that had brought Belloso was still in Manila.Graciously accepting its lavish gifts he sent gifts of his own but with a non-committal response to the King of Siam's entreaties for friendship.Meanwhile,Belloso's expedition to Cambodia to support the vanquished king of that country AGAINST the King of Siam ran headlong into a storm that split the small convoy.The expedition's flagship,the 1 ship in the group,captained by Juan Suarez Gallinato took safe harbour in the Strait of Singapore at the bottom of the Malay Peninsula while Belloso and the other junk slowly made their way to the coast of Cambodia.As Belloso hovered off the coast the other junk,under Blas Ruiz,entered the Mekong Delta.Reaching the city of Chordemuko they were very suprised to learn that the petty rulers of Cambodia had managed to unite and throw the Siamese yoke off.More suprisingly,one of the petty rulers,Anakaparan,had seized power from amongst all his competitors and for the time being at least,was King of Cambodia.
Belloso soon followed and joined Ruiz in Chordemuko.As they waited for what they still believed would be the arrival of their flag ship they bided their time.As they did so 6 Chinese junks put into the river port.In short order the Spaniard had seized all 6 junks,their cargo and whatever crew members hadn't already been killed.The Spanish version is that the Chinese arrogantly disrespected them and they felt the need to avenge their honour.The reality probably is that much different given the tumultuous relationship between the Spaniards and Chinese back in Manila.Of course it is also worth noting that the murder of the elder Governor Dosmarinas was still less than three years old and so that very well may have been a factor.
The new Cambodian"King"was absolutely livid.Sitting at court 9 leagues away,at Sistor,was on the verge of having the foreigners arrested and killed.Belloso tried to smoothe things over by sending the official correspondance he'd been given back in Manila so as to communicate that the group was in Cambodia on official business and to aid the Cambodians against their Siamese oppressors.Diplomatic Protocol dictated that the King should respond with at least a royal audience.Instead he sent word that if they didn't return the ships and their cargoes post haste they themselves would be killed post haste.
Kept under virtual house arrest in a pension outside the city the party finally grew so anxious over their predicament that they infiltrated the King's capitol at Sistor and began setting buildings on fire in a haphazard fashion to sow panic.In doing so they were able to infiltrate the palace and murdered King Anacaparan.Making their way to their impounded ships they had just liberated them when the long awaited flagship under Gallinato entered Chordemuco,near their ships.Gallinato was furious at what had transpired and argued for immediately departing for Manila.Belloso et al were more inclined to stay as is and try to restore the crown to the actual King of Cambodia,Langara.As a compromise they agreed instead to sail for Cochinchina where rumor held that the flagship of the late Governor-General Gomez Perez Dasmarinas had been taken by the Chinese mutineers after they had killed him.The objective was to recover the ship and with it their collectively besmirched honour.
Gallinato departed and upon dropping anchor deployed Gregorio de Vargas as an embassy to the King of Tongking (Tunquin),the strongest of the principalities outside of Champa.The objective was to at least recover the Spanish Standard (Flag) and the artillery which was invaluable,if not the ship itself.As the ship sat at anchor Belloso and Blas Ruiz managed to convince Gallinato into to agreeing to their plan to restore King Langara.Landing on shore Belloso and his companions set off overland to the Kingdom of Lao where the deposed King had first taken refuge at the start of the Siamese Invasion.
Belloso and Blas Ruis first made their way to the King of Sinua,son of the King of Tongking and sought his assistance in their endeavour.Granting their request,he provided all that was needed for the long trip.Directly they made their way to Alanchan,the capitol of Lao.Though they were warmly received by the King of Lao,they were shocked to discover that not only had King Langara died,but so had his eldest son and heir apparent.One son did survive,Prince Prauncar,and through him Belloso and Blas Ruiz learned that since the murder of Anacaparan (by Belloso et al),the pretender's son Chupinanu had seized power and was ruling as King.
Belloso and Blas Ruiz were able to convince Prince Prauncar that were he to only re-appear in the Kingdom his people would flock to his cause and readily restore him to power.Fortuitously,after Prauncar agreed to take part in Belloso's scheme,one of Cambodia's many petty lords made his way to Lao seeking out the prince,speaking as the representative of a powerful faction wanting to restore the Kingdom to its rightful heir.The representative,Ocuna de Chu,brought with him 10 medium watercraft well appointed with artillery and other capable weaponry.Prince Prauncar departed Lao with Ocuna de Chu,Blas Ruiz and Belloso by his side.Sailing down the Mekong they found the Northern Cambodian provinces in disarray but just as Blas Ruiz and Belloso had suggested,the people rallied around the rightful heir to the throne.Among those flocking to his cause were 2 Malay adventurers,Acuna Lacasamana and and the epononymously named Cancona who were there on the orders of a Malay sultan.the two Malays sat at the head of a well equipped force that included war elephants and artillery.
As the force moved south their progress slowed,with resistance growing as they approached the pretender Chupinanu's seat of power.Finally the self-appointed "King"fell in battle with most of his supporters and so Prince Prauncar was made master of all but a handful of fringe districts.Beholden to Blas Ruiz and Belloso he made the pair Ministers of War and when finally they conquered even those few districts holding out on the fringe,the two were made lords of the kingdom.Each was given a province but they felt that the young king had failed to reward them sufficiently.According to the Spaniards,it was the Malay Acuna Lacasamana who they believed had had undue influence with the King's stepmother,the Queen Dowager.In fact,one famuous history has the Malay having an afair with the Queen.
All the while Gallinato had been hovering off of Tongking in negotiations for that which he sought.He was warned by a native woman at court that the King of Tongking planned to not only never return the Spanish property,but to rob Gallinato of his small fleet.Gallinato then issued orders forbidding all unofficial shore excursions.Disobeying this order,Father Alonso Jimenez,a Dominican Friar,and 2 men who accompanied him were captured almost as soon as they went ashore and the Tonkgking Navy proceeded to move against the Spanish.Because of his vigiliance Gallinato was able to fend off the attack,incurring significant casualties against the assailants before immediately weighing anchor and leaving the obstinate priest and his two companions behind on a direct heading for Manila.
It was during Gallinato's beeline back to the Philippines that orders arrived from Spain commanding the younger Dasmarinas,who had succeeded his father as Governor-General of the colony,to conclude the deal on the expedition to Mindanao that his father had made with Esteban Rodriguez de Figueroa.Figueroa would conquer Mindanao at his own expense and in exchange he would be granted its governorship for two lives.Simply put,in exchange for Figueroa funding the campaign to capture the island,he and one of his children would get to rule the island until that child died.At that point the Crown would decide whom to appoint.
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