In this, the seventh installment in "History of Mindanao, Part IV" I conclude my excerpting from William Dampier's "A New Voyage Around the World." Dampier was an upper class Englishman who while in Jamaica joined the crew of a privateer, liscenced pirates who attacked Spanish ships and split the profits with the English Monarchy. This excerpt addresses the crew's last two months on Mindanao during the reign of the ninth Sultan, Sultan Barahaman, and shows how they began to fight amongst themselves before finally culminating in a mutiny as the ship departs heading north with a quick stop in what is now Zamboanga City. The excerpt opens as the crewmen discover Captain Swan's journal in which he remarked quite negatively about most any crew member.
Chapter 13
"His Men Mutiny"
Therefore looking on what was written in the journal to be matter sufficient for them to accomplish their ends. Captain Teat, who as I said before, had been abused by Captain Swan, laid hold on this opportunity to be revenged for his injuries and aggravated the matter to the height, persuading the men to turn out Captain Swan from being commander in hopes to command the ship himself. As for the seamen they were easily persuaded to anything; for they were quite tired with this long and tedious voyage, and most of them despaired of ever getting home and therefore did not care what they did or wither they went. It was only want of being busied in some action that made them so uneasy; therefore they consented to what Teat proposed, and immediately all the ship bound themselves by oath to; therefore they concealed this design from those that were ashore until the ship was under sail which would have been presently if the surgeon or his mate had been aboard; but they were both ashore, and they thought it be prudence to go to sea without a surgeon; therefore the next morning they sent ashore one John Cookworthy to hasten off either the surgeon or his mate by pretending that one of the men in the night had broken a leg by falling into the hold. The surgeon told him that he intended to come aboard the next day with the Captain and would not come before; but sent his mate Herman Coppinger. The next day being the time appointed for Captain Swan and all his men to meet aboard, I went aboard with him neither of us distrusted what was designing by those aboard till' we came tither. Then we found it was only a trick to get the surgeon off, for now having obtained their desires, the canoe was sent ashore again to desire as many as they could meet to come aboard; but not to tell the reason lest Captain Swan should come to hear of it.
The 13th day in the morning they weighed and fired a gun; Captain Swan immediately sent aboard Mr.Nelly who was now his Chief Mate, to see what the matter was; to him they told all their grievances and showed him the journal. He persuaded them to stay till' the next day for an answer from Captain Swan and the merchants. So they came to an anchor again and the next morning. Mr.Harthop came aboard, he persuaded them to be reconciled again; or at least to stay and get more rice; but they were deaf to it and weighed again while he was aboard. Yet at Mr.Harthop's persuasion they promised to stay till' 2 o'clock in the afternoon for Captain Swan and the rest of the men, if they came aboard; but they suffered no man to go ashore except one Mr.William Williams that had a wooden leg and another that was a sawyer.
"The main part of the crew Go Away with the Ship, Leaving Captain Swan and Some of his Men; Several Others Poisoned There"
If Captain Swan had yet come aboard he might have dashed all their designs; but he neither came himself, as a Captain of any prudence and courage would have done, nor sent till' the time was expired. So we left Captain Swan and about thirty-six men ashore in the city and six or eight that ran away; and about sixteen we had buried there, the most of which died by poison. The natives are very expert at poisoning and do it upon small occasion; nor did our men want for giving offence through their general rogueries, and sometimes by dallying too familiarly with their women, even before their faces. Some of their poisons are slow and lingering for we had some now aboard who were poisoned there but died not till' some months later.
Chapter 14
"The Depart From the River of Mindanao"
The 14th day of January 1687 at 3 o'clock in the afternoon we sailed from the river of Mindanao, designing to cruise before Manila.
"Chambongo Town and Harbour with its Neighbouring Keys"
We coasted to the westward on the south side of the island of Mindanao, keeping within four or five leagues of the shore. The next day we were abreast of Chambongo, a town in this island; about thirty leagues from the river of Mindanao; Here is said to be a good harbour and a great settlment with plenty of beef and buffalo. It is reported that the Spaniards were formerly fortified here also; we sent our canoe ashore, thinking to find inhabitants but found no sign of any; but great tracts of hogs and great cattle; and close by the sea there are ruins of an old fort; the walls thereof were of a great height, built with stone and lime; and by the workmanship seemed to be Spanish. We weighed again on the 14th day and by the 22nd day we got about the western most point of Mindanao and stood to the northward.
"Two Proas of the Sologues Laden from Manila"
Here we met with two proas belonging to the Sologues, one of the Mindanayan nations before mentioned, they came from Manila laden with silks and calicoes.
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That concludes the excerpts but I will post a Part 9 as well in which I offer a full synopsis of these 8 parts.
Showing posts with label Sultanate of Maguindanao. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sultanate of Maguindanao. Show all posts
Thursday, September 22, 2011
History of Mindanao, Part IV: The Maguindanao Sultanate in the Late 17th Century, Part 8, a Synopsis of Dampier's Experience on Mindanao
In this, the eighth and final installment of "The History of Central Mindanao, Part IV" I thought it best to offer a relatively simple synopsis of all the installments after having concluded excerpting the book in the previous installment, Part 7, where I concluded William Dampier's "A New Voyage Around the World." Dampier and his crewmates sat out the Western Monsoon in the Sultanate of Maguindanao, then under its ninth Sultan, Barahaman, and offers us his perceptions about the six months he spent on the island. He shows us a people that have very little familiarity with the religion they had joined roughly 100 years before, Islam. Aside from the Sultan no other person utilised the sole mosque on Mainland Mindanao. Even the Sultan's family gets drunk and gambles, major sacroreligious actions within Islam.
The Sultanate, then at its apex, merely consisted of less than a kilometer long line of bamboo framed nipa palm leaf thatched huts, commonly known today as "nipas." Even the "palace" was merely a larger nipa. The Sultanate did trade and had received at least two British ships before Dampier's as Dampier found out during the audience given to the ship's commander, Captain Swan. At this audience before the Sultan the evening after their arrival, Captain Swan was formally presented with two letters. The first, posted from London on ornate stationary that contained gold patina was sent by a representative of the East India Company, a quasi-governmental mercantile corporation that combined trade with military and political expansionism. The author was responding to conversations that had been held between the Sultan and company representatives during a port call in recent years. It spoke of intentions to open an East India Company factory within the Sultanate of Maguindanao, or as it was known then, the Sultanate of Mindanao ("Maguindanao," or "People of the Flood Plain" is related etymologically to "Mindanao" which simply means "The Innundated Land," or "The Flooded Land" referring to the Pulangi River which lies at the centre of the Sultanate's existence and its annual flooding of the lands around it).
Far from its modern definition a "factory" was a small fort that served as a centre of commercial trade. The British, latecomers to the region were as keen as any other Europeans to cash in on the Spice Trade. In the days before electricity made refrigeration possible spices offered a way in which to preserve food as well as a way in which to season its taste. The trade had fueled European expansionism over the previous three centuries as European nations desperately sought faster routes to what Europeans generally referred to as the "East Indies" which were basically the lands that are today encompassed within Indonesia, Malaysia, East Timor, Singapore, and the Philippines though the latter served more as a logistical hub than a cog in the actual trade since the limited commodities it did offer, cinammon for example, was considered inferior in quality.
The second letter came from the commander of a merchant vessel, Captain Goodlud. Aside from commercial information such as weights and measures and agreed upon prices for staple commodities, the letter closed with a warning that the Maguindanowan Tribe were degenerate thieves. While in port Captain Goodlud's ship had been robbed by a Maguindanowan warrior who then escaped into the mountainous back country. As Dampier himself would soon find out there were indeed things afoot about which to be cautious. The man with whom the crew dealt the most was a younger brother of the Sultan, the Rajah Laut, or "Prince of the Seas," owing to his command of the Sultanate's naval forces as well as his oversight of its waterways for fishing and trading. Although inititaly this interaction went wonderfully well it soon soured.
From the moment they met the Rajah Laut had advised Captain Swan to leave his mooring in the bay and drive his ship up the river so as to protect it from the imminent monsoon. When, on the second day Captain Swan read the two English letters that of the East India Company in which it professed its intention to open a factory in the Sultanate completely overshadowed the warnings of Captain Goodlud. If the lauded East India Company had faith in the Sultanate than that was all Captain Swan needed to hear. On the third day, with Rajah Laut aboard and at least fifty Maguindanowans labouring the crew dragged the ship a half a kilometer upriver by block and tackle, an arduous task with such a large vessel in only three meters of water riddled with sand bars.
Arriving at an indentation that allowed proper mooring while always leaving the ship afloat the crew set about acclimaring itself to life on Mindanao. Dampier tells how the tribe had acquired a formal system of begging in which newly arriving foreigners were accosted and solicited to become good friends much like people might date in our age. The tribesman, asking if the sailor had a "comrade" (male friend) or "pagallie" (female platonic friend). If receptive the foreigner would be led to his "comrade" or "pagallie's" home where he would be offered food, a place to nap or even a bit of diversion via intoxicants like locally grown tobacco or betel nut. In exchange the foreigner was expected to regularly bestow gifts of considerably steeper value. Dampier mentions sailors, who had been considerably enriched by the crews depradations against Spanish shipping and at least one overland aTtack in Panama as bestowing gold rings weighing 14 grammes for the simple pleasure of spending a day or two with a local family and enjoying what little food and enjoyment they had to offer.
Something that any visitor to the Philippines today would easily recognise, the traders and craftsmen in the Sultanate vastly overcharged their foreign customers, a practice Dampier found repugnant almost as much as dud about his crewmates willingness to endure it. Dampier warns that his crewmates will cause any Englishmen that might follow them to pay dearly for even the most basic of commodities (now I know who to blame!).
As the crew set about scrubbing their ship's keel they noticed that there was a huge problem with marine worm infestation that had eaten nearly through their outer hull. Luckily the ship was double hulled and so the vessel was salvagable. Dampier later learned that a Dutch vessel had been convinced by the Rajah Laut to moor at that same spot; within two months the hull had been destroyed and the Rajah Laut was able to theb very cheaply acquire the ship's artillery. He later noted that when the Rajah Laut visited the ship and found it to be double hulled he became visibly distressed and that when, towards the new year the ship drove out again to the bay the Rajah Laut was nowhere to be found unlike when he had eagerly directed them to that site.
As New Year approached the Rajah Laut not only failed to keep his word about provisioning the ship (for a fee) but then connived with several of the young crew members to deceive Captain Swan in the matter. Likewise he assisted several crew members in absconding from the Sultanate so as to avoid having to sail.
Finally, the crew was getting ready to leave when a crewman inadvertently discovered Captain Swan's journal and found that the Captain had badly disparaged just about everybody in the crew. Already the crew had separated into cliques where those with means stayed ashore, several going so far as to have their own nipas built and lease a concubine from tribesmen so as to lead the semblabce of a stable life. The others without means were left aboard with little provisions and so they had begun stealing iron ingots stored aboard by two merchants who had taken passage. With the proceeds the crewmen purchased honey and other commodities and manufactured their own liquor. Already resentful the alcohol was like a spark to tinder so that when the journal was read it gave birth to a mutinous plot that left Captain Swan and 36 other crewmen at the Sultanate as the ship departed in mid-January of 1687. In addition, 16 had died during their six month sojourn and eight had run away before as re-provisioning began. Dampier attributes some of the deaths to deliberate posoining by tribesmen amd adds that some died long after they left from slower acting posions.
Traveling north they skirted the Zamboanga Peninsula, or as Dampier refers to it, "Chambonga." Landing where Zamboanga City sits today they inspected the ruined foundation of the Spanish fort which had been abandoned decades before. From there, intending to attack Spanish shipping in the sea lanes around Manila they land at Palawan and then a Visayan island near Cebu, and finally, Batanes which although unrelated to Mindanao of course still makes for a fascinating read.
The Sultanate, then at its apex, merely consisted of less than a kilometer long line of bamboo framed nipa palm leaf thatched huts, commonly known today as "nipas." Even the "palace" was merely a larger nipa. The Sultanate did trade and had received at least two British ships before Dampier's as Dampier found out during the audience given to the ship's commander, Captain Swan. At this audience before the Sultan the evening after their arrival, Captain Swan was formally presented with two letters. The first, posted from London on ornate stationary that contained gold patina was sent by a representative of the East India Company, a quasi-governmental mercantile corporation that combined trade with military and political expansionism. The author was responding to conversations that had been held between the Sultan and company representatives during a port call in recent years. It spoke of intentions to open an East India Company factory within the Sultanate of Maguindanao, or as it was known then, the Sultanate of Mindanao ("Maguindanao," or "People of the Flood Plain" is related etymologically to "Mindanao" which simply means "The Innundated Land," or "The Flooded Land" referring to the Pulangi River which lies at the centre of the Sultanate's existence and its annual flooding of the lands around it).
Far from its modern definition a "factory" was a small fort that served as a centre of commercial trade. The British, latecomers to the region were as keen as any other Europeans to cash in on the Spice Trade. In the days before electricity made refrigeration possible spices offered a way in which to preserve food as well as a way in which to season its taste. The trade had fueled European expansionism over the previous three centuries as European nations desperately sought faster routes to what Europeans generally referred to as the "East Indies" which were basically the lands that are today encompassed within Indonesia, Malaysia, East Timor, Singapore, and the Philippines though the latter served more as a logistical hub than a cog in the actual trade since the limited commodities it did offer, cinammon for example, was considered inferior in quality.
The second letter came from the commander of a merchant vessel, Captain Goodlud. Aside from commercial information such as weights and measures and agreed upon prices for staple commodities, the letter closed with a warning that the Maguindanowan Tribe were degenerate thieves. While in port Captain Goodlud's ship had been robbed by a Maguindanowan warrior who then escaped into the mountainous back country. As Dampier himself would soon find out there were indeed things afoot about which to be cautious. The man with whom the crew dealt the most was a younger brother of the Sultan, the Rajah Laut, or "Prince of the Seas," owing to his command of the Sultanate's naval forces as well as his oversight of its waterways for fishing and trading. Although inititaly this interaction went wonderfully well it soon soured.
From the moment they met the Rajah Laut had advised Captain Swan to leave his mooring in the bay and drive his ship up the river so as to protect it from the imminent monsoon. When, on the second day Captain Swan read the two English letters that of the East India Company in which it professed its intention to open a factory in the Sultanate completely overshadowed the warnings of Captain Goodlud. If the lauded East India Company had faith in the Sultanate than that was all Captain Swan needed to hear. On the third day, with Rajah Laut aboard and at least fifty Maguindanowans labouring the crew dragged the ship a half a kilometer upriver by block and tackle, an arduous task with such a large vessel in only three meters of water riddled with sand bars.
Arriving at an indentation that allowed proper mooring while always leaving the ship afloat the crew set about acclimaring itself to life on Mindanao. Dampier tells how the tribe had acquired a formal system of begging in which newly arriving foreigners were accosted and solicited to become good friends much like people might date in our age. The tribesman, asking if the sailor had a "comrade" (male friend) or "pagallie" (female platonic friend). If receptive the foreigner would be led to his "comrade" or "pagallie's" home where he would be offered food, a place to nap or even a bit of diversion via intoxicants like locally grown tobacco or betel nut. In exchange the foreigner was expected to regularly bestow gifts of considerably steeper value. Dampier mentions sailors, who had been considerably enriched by the crews depradations against Spanish shipping and at least one overland aTtack in Panama as bestowing gold rings weighing 14 grammes for the simple pleasure of spending a day or two with a local family and enjoying what little food and enjoyment they had to offer.
Something that any visitor to the Philippines today would easily recognise, the traders and craftsmen in the Sultanate vastly overcharged their foreign customers, a practice Dampier found repugnant almost as much as dud about his crewmates willingness to endure it. Dampier warns that his crewmates will cause any Englishmen that might follow them to pay dearly for even the most basic of commodities (now I know who to blame!).
As the crew set about scrubbing their ship's keel they noticed that there was a huge problem with marine worm infestation that had eaten nearly through their outer hull. Luckily the ship was double hulled and so the vessel was salvagable. Dampier later learned that a Dutch vessel had been convinced by the Rajah Laut to moor at that same spot; within two months the hull had been destroyed and the Rajah Laut was able to theb very cheaply acquire the ship's artillery. He later noted that when the Rajah Laut visited the ship and found it to be double hulled he became visibly distressed and that when, towards the new year the ship drove out again to the bay the Rajah Laut was nowhere to be found unlike when he had eagerly directed them to that site.
As New Year approached the Rajah Laut not only failed to keep his word about provisioning the ship (for a fee) but then connived with several of the young crew members to deceive Captain Swan in the matter. Likewise he assisted several crew members in absconding from the Sultanate so as to avoid having to sail.
Finally, the crew was getting ready to leave when a crewman inadvertently discovered Captain Swan's journal and found that the Captain had badly disparaged just about everybody in the crew. Already the crew had separated into cliques where those with means stayed ashore, several going so far as to have their own nipas built and lease a concubine from tribesmen so as to lead the semblabce of a stable life. The others without means were left aboard with little provisions and so they had begun stealing iron ingots stored aboard by two merchants who had taken passage. With the proceeds the crewmen purchased honey and other commodities and manufactured their own liquor. Already resentful the alcohol was like a spark to tinder so that when the journal was read it gave birth to a mutinous plot that left Captain Swan and 36 other crewmen at the Sultanate as the ship departed in mid-January of 1687. In addition, 16 had died during their six month sojourn and eight had run away before as re-provisioning began. Dampier attributes some of the deaths to deliberate posoining by tribesmen amd adds that some died long after they left from slower acting posions.
Traveling north they skirted the Zamboanga Peninsula, or as Dampier refers to it, "Chambonga." Landing where Zamboanga City sits today they inspected the ruined foundation of the Spanish fort which had been abandoned decades before. From there, intending to attack Spanish shipping in the sea lanes around Manila they land at Palawan and then a Visayan island near Cebu, and finally, Batanes which although unrelated to Mindanao of course still makes for a fascinating read.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
History of Mindanao, Part IV: Maguindanao Sultanate in the Late 17th Century, Part 4
This is a continuation of William Dampier's "A New Voyage Around the World," continuing to excerpt from Chapter 12.
"A Sort of Leprosy There, and other Distempers"
The Mindanao people are much troubled with a sort of leprosy, the same as we observed at Guam. This distemper runs with a dry scurf all over their bodies and causes great itching in those that have it, making them frequently scratch and scrub themselves, which raises the outer skin in small whitish flakes like the scales of a fish when they are raised on end with a knife. This makes their skin extraordinarily rough, and in some you shall see broad white spots in several parts of the body. I judge such have had it but were cured, for their skins were smooth and I did not perceive them to scrub themselves. Yet I have learnt from their mouths that these spots were from this distemper. Whether they use any means to cure themselves or whether it goes away of itself, I know not: but I did not perceive that they made any great matter of it, for they did never refrain any company for it; none of our people caught it of them for we were afraid of it and kept off. They are sometimes troubled with the Smallpox but their ordinary distempers are fevers, agues, fluxes with great pains and gripings in their guts. The country affords a great many drugs and medicines and herbs whose virtues are not unknown to some of them that pretend to cure the sick.
"Their Marriages"
The Minadanao men have many wives: but what ceremonies are used when they marry I know not. There is commonly a great feast made by the bridegroom to entertain his friends and the most part of the night is spent in mirth.
"The Sultan of Mindanao, His Poverty, Power, Family, etc."
The Sultan is absolute in his power over all of his subjects. He is but a poor prince; for, as I mentioned before they have but little trade and therefore cannot be rich. If the Sultan understands that any man has money, if it be but 20 Dollars, which is a great matter among them, he will send to borrow so much money, pretending urgent occasions for it; and they dare not deny him. Sometimes he will send to sell one thing or answer that he has to dispose of to whom he knows to give him his price; and if afterwards he has occasion for the same thing he must have it, he sends for it. He is but a little man, between 50 and 60 years old, and by relation very good natured but overruled by those about him. He has a queen and keeps about 29 women, or wives, more in whose company he spends most of his time. He has one daughter by his Sultaness, or queen, and a great many sons and daughters by the rest. They walk about the streets and would always be begging things of us, but it is reported that the young princess is kept in a room and never stirs out; and that she never did see any man but her father and Raja Laut her uncle, being then about 14 years old.
When the Sultan visits his friends he is carried in a small couch on four men's shoulders with eight to ten armed men to guard him; but he never goes far this way for the country is very woody and they have but little paths, which renders it the less commodius.
"The Proas or Boats Here"
When he takes his pleasure by water he carries some of his wives along with him. The proas that are built for this purpose are large enough to entertain fifty or sixty persons or more. The hull is neatly built, with a round head and stern and over the hull is a small slight house built with bamboos; the sides are made up with split bamboos about four feet high, with little windows in them of the same to open and shut at their pleasure. The roof is almost flat, neatly thatched with palmetto leaves. This house is divided into two or three small partitions or chambers, one particularly for himself. This is neatly matted underneath and round the sides and there is a carpet and pillows for him to sleep on. The second room is for his women; much like the former. The third is for the servants, who tend them with tobacco and betel nut; for they are always chewing or smoking. The fore and after parts of the vessel are for the mariners to sit and row. Besides this they have outlayers, such as those I described at Guam; only the boats are more round like a half moon almost; and the bamboos or outlayers that reach from the boat are also crooked. Besides, the boat is not flat on one side here, as at Guam; but has a belly and outlayers on each side: and whereas at Guam there is a little boat fastened to the outlayers that lies in the water like boats, but one, three, or four feet above the water and serve for the bargemen to sit and row and paddle on; the inside of the vessel and except only just afore and abaft, being taken up by the apartments for the passengers. There run across the outlayers two tier beams for the paddlers to sit on, on each side of the vessel. The lower tier of these beams is not above a foot from the water: so that upon any the least reeling of the vessel, the beams are dipped in the water, and the men that sit are wet up to their waist, their feet seldom escaping the water. And thus, as all our vessels are rowed from within, these are paddled from without.
"Raja Laut the General, Brother to the Sultan, His Family"
The Sultan has a brother called Raja Laut, a brave man. He is second in the kingdom. All the strangers that come hither to trade must make their address to him, for all sea-affairs belong to him. He liscences strangers to import or export any commodity and it is by his permission that the natives themselves are suffered to trade: nay, the very fisherman must take a permit from him, so that there is no man can come in the river or go out but by his leave. He is two or three years younger than the Sultan and a little man like him. He has eight women by some of whom he has issue. He has only one son, about 12 to 14 years old, who was circumcised while we were there. His eldest son died a little before we came hither, for whom he was still in great heaviness. If he had lived a little longer he should have married the young princess; but whether this second son must have her I know not, for I never did hear any discourse about it. Raja Laut is a very dharp man; he speaks and writes Spanish, which he learned in his youth. He has by conversing with strangers got a great sight into the customs of other nations, and by Spanish books has some knowledge of Europe. He is General of the Mindanayans, and is accounted an expert soldier, and a very stout man; and the women in their dances sing many songs in his praise.
"Their Way of Fighting"
The Sultan of Mindanao sometimes makes war with his neighbours, the Mountaineers or Alfoores. Their weapons are swords, lances, and some hand cressets. The cresset is a small thing like a baggonet, which they always wear in war or peace, at work or play, from the greatest of them to the poorest, or the meanest persons. They do never meet each other so as to have a pitched battle but they build small works or forts of timber where they plant little guns and lie in sight of each other for two or three months, skirmishing every day in small parties and sometimes suprising a breastwork; and what ever side is to be worsted, if they have no probability to escape by flight, they sell their lives as dear as they can; for there is seldom any quarter given, but the conqueror cuts and hacks his enemies to pieces.
"Their Religion"
The religion of these people is Mohammedanism; Friday is their sabbath; but I did never see any difference that they make between this day and any other day; only the Sultan himself goes then to the mosque twice.
"Raja Laut's Devotion"
Raja Laut never goes to the mosque but prays at certain hours, eight or ten times in a day wherever he is, he is very punctual to his canonical hours, and if he be aboard will go ashore on purpose to pray. For no business nor company hinders him from this duty. Whether he is home or abroad, in a house or in a field, he leaves all his companny and goes about 100 yards off, there kneels down to his devotion. He first kisses the ground and does the same when he leaves off. His servants and wives and children talk and sing, or play how they please all the time, but himself is very serious. The meaner sort of people have little devotion; I did never see any of them at their prayers or go into a mosque.
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"A Sort of Leprosy There, and other Distempers"
The Mindanao people are much troubled with a sort of leprosy, the same as we observed at Guam. This distemper runs with a dry scurf all over their bodies and causes great itching in those that have it, making them frequently scratch and scrub themselves, which raises the outer skin in small whitish flakes like the scales of a fish when they are raised on end with a knife. This makes their skin extraordinarily rough, and in some you shall see broad white spots in several parts of the body. I judge such have had it but were cured, for their skins were smooth and I did not perceive them to scrub themselves. Yet I have learnt from their mouths that these spots were from this distemper. Whether they use any means to cure themselves or whether it goes away of itself, I know not: but I did not perceive that they made any great matter of it, for they did never refrain any company for it; none of our people caught it of them for we were afraid of it and kept off. They are sometimes troubled with the Smallpox but their ordinary distempers are fevers, agues, fluxes with great pains and gripings in their guts. The country affords a great many drugs and medicines and herbs whose virtues are not unknown to some of them that pretend to cure the sick.
"Their Marriages"
The Minadanao men have many wives: but what ceremonies are used when they marry I know not. There is commonly a great feast made by the bridegroom to entertain his friends and the most part of the night is spent in mirth.
"The Sultan of Mindanao, His Poverty, Power, Family, etc."
The Sultan is absolute in his power over all of his subjects. He is but a poor prince; for, as I mentioned before they have but little trade and therefore cannot be rich. If the Sultan understands that any man has money, if it be but 20 Dollars, which is a great matter among them, he will send to borrow so much money, pretending urgent occasions for it; and they dare not deny him. Sometimes he will send to sell one thing or answer that he has to dispose of to whom he knows to give him his price; and if afterwards he has occasion for the same thing he must have it, he sends for it. He is but a little man, between 50 and 60 years old, and by relation very good natured but overruled by those about him. He has a queen and keeps about 29 women, or wives, more in whose company he spends most of his time. He has one daughter by his Sultaness, or queen, and a great many sons and daughters by the rest. They walk about the streets and would always be begging things of us, but it is reported that the young princess is kept in a room and never stirs out; and that she never did see any man but her father and Raja Laut her uncle, being then about 14 years old.
When the Sultan visits his friends he is carried in a small couch on four men's shoulders with eight to ten armed men to guard him; but he never goes far this way for the country is very woody and they have but little paths, which renders it the less commodius.
"The Proas or Boats Here"
When he takes his pleasure by water he carries some of his wives along with him. The proas that are built for this purpose are large enough to entertain fifty or sixty persons or more. The hull is neatly built, with a round head and stern and over the hull is a small slight house built with bamboos; the sides are made up with split bamboos about four feet high, with little windows in them of the same to open and shut at their pleasure. The roof is almost flat, neatly thatched with palmetto leaves. This house is divided into two or three small partitions or chambers, one particularly for himself. This is neatly matted underneath and round the sides and there is a carpet and pillows for him to sleep on. The second room is for his women; much like the former. The third is for the servants, who tend them with tobacco and betel nut; for they are always chewing or smoking. The fore and after parts of the vessel are for the mariners to sit and row. Besides this they have outlayers, such as those I described at Guam; only the boats are more round like a half moon almost; and the bamboos or outlayers that reach from the boat are also crooked. Besides, the boat is not flat on one side here, as at Guam; but has a belly and outlayers on each side: and whereas at Guam there is a little boat fastened to the outlayers that lies in the water like boats, but one, three, or four feet above the water and serve for the bargemen to sit and row and paddle on; the inside of the vessel and except only just afore and abaft, being taken up by the apartments for the passengers. There run across the outlayers two tier beams for the paddlers to sit on, on each side of the vessel. The lower tier of these beams is not above a foot from the water: so that upon any the least reeling of the vessel, the beams are dipped in the water, and the men that sit are wet up to their waist, their feet seldom escaping the water. And thus, as all our vessels are rowed from within, these are paddled from without.
"Raja Laut the General, Brother to the Sultan, His Family"
The Sultan has a brother called Raja Laut, a brave man. He is second in the kingdom. All the strangers that come hither to trade must make their address to him, for all sea-affairs belong to him. He liscences strangers to import or export any commodity and it is by his permission that the natives themselves are suffered to trade: nay, the very fisherman must take a permit from him, so that there is no man can come in the river or go out but by his leave. He is two or three years younger than the Sultan and a little man like him. He has eight women by some of whom he has issue. He has only one son, about 12 to 14 years old, who was circumcised while we were there. His eldest son died a little before we came hither, for whom he was still in great heaviness. If he had lived a little longer he should have married the young princess; but whether this second son must have her I know not, for I never did hear any discourse about it. Raja Laut is a very dharp man; he speaks and writes Spanish, which he learned in his youth. He has by conversing with strangers got a great sight into the customs of other nations, and by Spanish books has some knowledge of Europe. He is General of the Mindanayans, and is accounted an expert soldier, and a very stout man; and the women in their dances sing many songs in his praise.
"Their Way of Fighting"
The Sultan of Mindanao sometimes makes war with his neighbours, the Mountaineers or Alfoores. Their weapons are swords, lances, and some hand cressets. The cresset is a small thing like a baggonet, which they always wear in war or peace, at work or play, from the greatest of them to the poorest, or the meanest persons. They do never meet each other so as to have a pitched battle but they build small works or forts of timber where they plant little guns and lie in sight of each other for two or three months, skirmishing every day in small parties and sometimes suprising a breastwork; and what ever side is to be worsted, if they have no probability to escape by flight, they sell their lives as dear as they can; for there is seldom any quarter given, but the conqueror cuts and hacks his enemies to pieces.
"Their Religion"
The religion of these people is Mohammedanism; Friday is their sabbath; but I did never see any difference that they make between this day and any other day; only the Sultan himself goes then to the mosque twice.
"Raja Laut's Devotion"
Raja Laut never goes to the mosque but prays at certain hours, eight or ten times in a day wherever he is, he is very punctual to his canonical hours, and if he be aboard will go ashore on purpose to pray. For no business nor company hinders him from this duty. Whether he is home or abroad, in a house or in a field, he leaves all his companny and goes about 100 yards off, there kneels down to his devotion. He first kisses the ground and does the same when he leaves off. His servants and wives and children talk and sing, or play how they please all the time, but himself is very serious. The meaner sort of people have little devotion; I did never see any of them at their prayers or go into a mosque.
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History of Mindanao Part IV: The Maguindanao Sultanate in the Late 17th Century, Part 3
Before I begin on my third excerpt from William Dampier's "A New Voyage Around the World" in a following entry, I thought it only prudent to offer a bit of commentary. After all, 17th Century Maguindanao through the eyes of an Englishman shouldn't be misconstrued as a picture perfect encapsulation, culturally NOR historically. Dampier was an upper-class British gentleman of the late 17th Century. Like many young men he sought to make his mark on the world. While some in his position may have opted to read Law at Oxford Dampier decided to travel to the New World and become a Privateer, or liscenced pirate. In the course of this adventure Dampier circumnavigated the globe. One of several Europeans who visited Australia long before it was "discovered" by James Cook, one of the first Europeans to explore New Guinea, Dampier certainly led a fascinating life.
After leaving the Americas Dampier's ship stopped in Guam to take on provisions and to contemplate its next destination. While in port the crew met a Catholic monk who recommended Mindanao. The island was a good choice for a number of reasons. First and foremost it is a very large island and the Western Monsoon was about to arrive. Nobody in their right mind stayed out at sea during the Monsoon. Then, though it had been in close relations with Spain who in fact claimed the island by virtue of the colonial government in Manila, the friar maintained that the island was now at war with Spain. This was corroborated by other sailors who had recently sailed from or transited the Philippines. Spain was Britain's foremost enemy at the moment (a long moment indeed) and was the richest nation in Europe, if not the world. To a privateer that combination is irresistible.
Mindanao it was and in the early days of June, 168 Dampier et al departed Guam bound for the promising island of Mindanao. Sailing in from the east the first Philippine island they encountered was Siargo Island, a small island off of Mindanao's northeast coast and in today's world, attached to the province of Surigao del Norte. Due to a cartographic era however Dampier mis-identified the landmass as "Saint John's Island." In fact the location of THAT island remains a mystery until the present with some reckoning it as far afield as the Northern Marianas and therefore not in the Philippines at all. It was at Siargo that Dampier would first interact with Filipinos when he and his crewmates sighted a canoe off its northern side. Lowering a skiff Dampier's crewmates meant to parlez with the canoe's inhabitants but instead merely served to terrify them. The canoe made a beeline for Siargao, beached upon it with its occupants running hysterical into the jungle.
At the time the richest tribe on the island was the Maguindanowans. Islamicised for less than a hundred years they were still developing their own unique identity. Inhabiting the Cotabato Basin, they were known as "The People of the Flood," or in their language, "Mindanowans," or in Dampier's corruption of the word, "Mindanayans." Later this would become, "Maguindanaowans," (Maguindanaon), or "People of the Flood Plain," a more specific label given the tribe's location in the Cotabato Basin. The Islamisation of the tribe nearly a century before had brought with it a more sophisticated form of governance, the "Sultanate." This form of governmnt wasn't alien to Europeans who by then had more than a thousand year acquaintance with it and so of all the tribes on the island, the Mindanowans were the most attractive. It was this fact that allowed the Spanish, the Dutch and now the English to christen the entire island, "Mindanao."
Dampier spent nearly 6 months with the tribe and had very little interaction with any other group. He describes only three tribes besides the Maguindanowans:
1) Hilanoones
2) Alfoores
3) Sologues
The three labels remain a subject of debate. Hilanoones, from his own words are synonymous with "Mountaineers." Who could they be then but the "Higaon-on," whose very name means, "People of the Mountains." Still, I haven't found anyone making that same conclusion though most who debate Dampier have never been within a hemisphere of Mindanao.
The Alfoores? Dampier describes them as an Ilamicsised Tribe that had been a vassal to the Maguindanowan before gaining independence. During Dampier's stay the Maguindanowans were attempting once again to bring them to heel. The natural bet would be the Maranaw (Maranaon), or "People of the Lake." The label "Maranaw" is of recent vintage with the tribe only settling around Lake Lanao, in todays Lanao del Sur Province in the 17th Century (the lake was only created shortly before that by volcanic eruption) so that what they were called before that point is anybody's guess. A note worthy alternative might be Buayan, as they were periodically at war with them and did intermarry as Dampier's clues specify but their adoption of Islam came more than 100 years in the future.
I have seen people theorise that "Alfoores" is corrupted Portugese used to label any "wild" tribe. However, would the Maguindanowans view another Islamicised Tribe in such a fashion? More than 95% of Mainland Mindanao was animist at that point. A tribe of Muslims living in very close proximity would tend to be viewed a bit more sympathetically irregardless of the political relationship between them. A possibility that had occurred to me is that as Muslims, the label had a more direct lineage to Arabic. I say "more direct" because the Portugese label is rooted in Arabic as well with Iberia having been under Arab domination for almost 800 years. The Arabic words "al Fajuah," or "The Honeycomb" could conceivably be applied to a tribe whose main line of export is beeswax. We know from Dampier and others that inland tribes, including the Higaon-on primarily traded beeswax and honey on the coast. Worth consideration anyway.
The third tribe? Sologues? That is a bit more difficult to pin down. Dampier gives their territory as Northwest Mindanao. In an earlier Dampier entry I reckoned that would be where Misamis Oriental and Occidental Provinces are today. Others have placed it on the Zamboanga Peninsula and more than one has gone so far as to place it squarely in Dapitan City. From Dampier's location, where Cotabato City sits today, Zamboanga could certainly fit the bill. However the predominant tribe there, then as now was the Subanen. Even in a corrupted English rendition it just doesn't feel like a good fit. Of course, often times such labels are applied by outsiders. "Subanen" is the label used by the tribe itself. Who can say what other tribes might have called them? Though I have a working knowledge of Maguindanowan I don't recognise any word coming close to "Sologue," or "Sologues."
Dampier's 6 months with the Maguindanowans during the reign of their ninth Sultan, Barahaman, however did allow great insight into that small corner of the island. He describes a proud but impovershed tribe whose royal house, more often than not, begged even on its own streets. Closed off from most outside influences, a stunted economy, the Sultanate of Maguindanao seemed to be in a very precarious position. The standard Bangsamoro narrative today tells us that the Sultanate of Maguindanao was at its apex during this period. If so, there isn't very much to be proud of. Enslaving even fellow Muslims, failing to capitalise on trading and political opportunities, they were content to go hungry rather than working to build a stronger territory.
I thought it also prudent to properly define some terms that might be confusing to modern readers; What follows is a short glossary:
Bark: A small ship, equivalent to a "skiff" or "proa'l
Factory: A hybrid of military fort and trading post
East India Company: A quasi-governmental consortium of British businessmen concentrating on trade with what was then referred to as the "East Indies," which of course included the Philippines
Libby Tree: Sago Palm, which provided the basic food for most natives of Mindanao at that time
Ramdam: The Islamic Holiday of Ramadan, a month of fasting and contemplation during daylight hours
Pagallie: Platonic female friend in a systematic form of begging where in exchange for a meal and a place to sometimes nap sailors were compelled to offer extravagant gifts of gold and silver
Comrade: The male equivalent of a "Pagallie."
Delilah: A romantic or sexual partner from the native population
Whither: Where
Thither: There
After leaving the Americas Dampier's ship stopped in Guam to take on provisions and to contemplate its next destination. While in port the crew met a Catholic monk who recommended Mindanao. The island was a good choice for a number of reasons. First and foremost it is a very large island and the Western Monsoon was about to arrive. Nobody in their right mind stayed out at sea during the Monsoon. Then, though it had been in close relations with Spain who in fact claimed the island by virtue of the colonial government in Manila, the friar maintained that the island was now at war with Spain. This was corroborated by other sailors who had recently sailed from or transited the Philippines. Spain was Britain's foremost enemy at the moment (a long moment indeed) and was the richest nation in Europe, if not the world. To a privateer that combination is irresistible.
Mindanao it was and in the early days of June, 168 Dampier et al departed Guam bound for the promising island of Mindanao. Sailing in from the east the first Philippine island they encountered was Siargo Island, a small island off of Mindanao's northeast coast and in today's world, attached to the province of Surigao del Norte. Due to a cartographic era however Dampier mis-identified the landmass as "Saint John's Island." In fact the location of THAT island remains a mystery until the present with some reckoning it as far afield as the Northern Marianas and therefore not in the Philippines at all. It was at Siargo that Dampier would first interact with Filipinos when he and his crewmates sighted a canoe off its northern side. Lowering a skiff Dampier's crewmates meant to parlez with the canoe's inhabitants but instead merely served to terrify them. The canoe made a beeline for Siargao, beached upon it with its occupants running hysterical into the jungle.
At the time the richest tribe on the island was the Maguindanowans. Islamicised for less than a hundred years they were still developing their own unique identity. Inhabiting the Cotabato Basin, they were known as "The People of the Flood," or in their language, "Mindanowans," or in Dampier's corruption of the word, "Mindanayans." Later this would become, "Maguindanaowans," (Maguindanaon), or "People of the Flood Plain," a more specific label given the tribe's location in the Cotabato Basin. The Islamisation of the tribe nearly a century before had brought with it a more sophisticated form of governance, the "Sultanate." This form of governmnt wasn't alien to Europeans who by then had more than a thousand year acquaintance with it and so of all the tribes on the island, the Mindanowans were the most attractive. It was this fact that allowed the Spanish, the Dutch and now the English to christen the entire island, "Mindanao."
Dampier spent nearly 6 months with the tribe and had very little interaction with any other group. He describes only three tribes besides the Maguindanowans:
1) Hilanoones
2) Alfoores
3) Sologues
The three labels remain a subject of debate. Hilanoones, from his own words are synonymous with "Mountaineers." Who could they be then but the "Higaon-on," whose very name means, "People of the Mountains." Still, I haven't found anyone making that same conclusion though most who debate Dampier have never been within a hemisphere of Mindanao.
The Alfoores? Dampier describes them as an Ilamicsised Tribe that had been a vassal to the Maguindanowan before gaining independence. During Dampier's stay the Maguindanowans were attempting once again to bring them to heel. The natural bet would be the Maranaw (Maranaon), or "People of the Lake." The label "Maranaw" is of recent vintage with the tribe only settling around Lake Lanao, in todays Lanao del Sur Province in the 17th Century (the lake was only created shortly before that by volcanic eruption) so that what they were called before that point is anybody's guess. A note worthy alternative might be Buayan, as they were periodically at war with them and did intermarry as Dampier's clues specify but their adoption of Islam came more than 100 years in the future.
I have seen people theorise that "Alfoores" is corrupted Portugese used to label any "wild" tribe. However, would the Maguindanowans view another Islamicised Tribe in such a fashion? More than 95% of Mainland Mindanao was animist at that point. A tribe of Muslims living in very close proximity would tend to be viewed a bit more sympathetically irregardless of the political relationship between them. A possibility that had occurred to me is that as Muslims, the label had a more direct lineage to Arabic. I say "more direct" because the Portugese label is rooted in Arabic as well with Iberia having been under Arab domination for almost 800 years. The Arabic words "al Fajuah," or "The Honeycomb" could conceivably be applied to a tribe whose main line of export is beeswax. We know from Dampier and others that inland tribes, including the Higaon-on primarily traded beeswax and honey on the coast. Worth consideration anyway.
The third tribe? Sologues? That is a bit more difficult to pin down. Dampier gives their territory as Northwest Mindanao. In an earlier Dampier entry I reckoned that would be where Misamis Oriental and Occidental Provinces are today. Others have placed it on the Zamboanga Peninsula and more than one has gone so far as to place it squarely in Dapitan City. From Dampier's location, where Cotabato City sits today, Zamboanga could certainly fit the bill. However the predominant tribe there, then as now was the Subanen. Even in a corrupted English rendition it just doesn't feel like a good fit. Of course, often times such labels are applied by outsiders. "Subanen" is the label used by the tribe itself. Who can say what other tribes might have called them? Though I have a working knowledge of Maguindanowan I don't recognise any word coming close to "Sologue," or "Sologues."
Dampier's 6 months with the Maguindanowans during the reign of their ninth Sultan, Barahaman, however did allow great insight into that small corner of the island. He describes a proud but impovershed tribe whose royal house, more often than not, begged even on its own streets. Closed off from most outside influences, a stunted economy, the Sultanate of Maguindanao seemed to be in a very precarious position. The standard Bangsamoro narrative today tells us that the Sultanate of Maguindanao was at its apex during this period. If so, there isn't very much to be proud of. Enslaving even fellow Muslims, failing to capitalise on trading and political opportunities, they were content to go hungry rather than working to build a stronger territory.
I thought it also prudent to properly define some terms that might be confusing to modern readers; What follows is a short glossary:
Bark: A small ship, equivalent to a "skiff" or "proa'l
Factory: A hybrid of military fort and trading post
East India Company: A quasi-governmental consortium of British businessmen concentrating on trade with what was then referred to as the "East Indies," which of course included the Philippines
Libby Tree: Sago Palm, which provided the basic food for most natives of Mindanao at that time
Ramdam: The Islamic Holiday of Ramadan, a month of fasting and contemplation during daylight hours
Pagallie: Platonic female friend in a systematic form of begging where in exchange for a meal and a place to sometimes nap sailors were compelled to offer extravagant gifts of gold and silver
Comrade: The male equivalent of a "Pagallie."
Delilah: A romantic or sexual partner from the native population
Whither: Where
Thither: There
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