Philippines

PHILIPPINES HISTORY

The Philippine archipelago, which divides the Pacific Ocean and the China Sea, covers over 115,600 square miles, with approximately 7,100 islands and 13,250 square miles of dangerous coral reefs. For at least 1,000 years, Chinese and other Asian trading vessels sailed through these waters trading with and in some cases plundering settlements and other vessels.

Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to visit the Philippines, in 1520. But the Spanish Crown did nothing about establishing a colony there for almost half a century, even though the islands belonged to the half of the world designated as being under Spanish sovereignty by Pope Alexander VI in the 1495 Treaty of Tordesillas. In 1564 Philip II, decided that he wanted a share of the lucrative East Indian spice trade monopolized by Portugal. He sent an expedition led by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi to conquer the Philippines and establish a trading base. The plan to cut in on the spice trade but the plam fell through in the face of determined opposition from the Portuguese, who held sovereignty over most of the East Indies and were more powerful than the Spaniards in Eastern waters. Nevertheless, so flourishing a traffic sprang up between the East and Mexico-and ultimately Spain-that Manila, the clearinghouse for the treasure of the East, became a city of impressive size and splendor.

THE MANILA GALLEONS

The first of the Manila Galleons crossed the Pacific in 1565 and the last one put into port in 1815. When the line began, Philip II was king of all the Spains and his enemy, Elizabeth I, was queen of England. Hernan Cortes, conqueror of Mexico, had been dead about 18 years and Pedro Menendez de Aviles had laid the foundations of St. Augustine in Florida. When the last Manila Galleon sailed, Miguel Hidalgo had already begun the revolt against Spain which was to create the Republic of Mexico, the United States had been independent for more than 30 years and Andrew Jackson had just won the battle of New Orleans.

Each year, for two and a half centuries, the Galleons made the long and lonely voyage between Manila in the Philippines and Acapulco in Mexico. No other line of ships has ever endured for so long or been so dangerous as this, for during its voyages the sea claimed dozens of ships, thousands of men and millions in treasure. As the richest ships of their era, the Manila Galleons were among the most coveted prize of pirates. The English took four of them, the "Santa Ana" in 1587, the "Encarnacion" in 1709, the "Covadonga" in 1743, and the "Santissima Trinidad," the largest ship of her time, in 1762.

The Manila Galleons were large ships the Spanish built, averaging, in the 16th century, approximately 700 tons, in the 17th century, 1,500 tons, and in the 18th century, between 1,700 and 2,000 tons. Three or four of these ships sailed annually in each direction until 1593, when a law was enacted limiting the sailings to two per year in each direction.

To the people of Spanish America, these Galleons were considered the "China Ships," bringing cargoes of silks, spices and other precious merchandise from the East. To the people of the Orient, they carried Mexican and Peruvian silver pesos that were to become the standard of value along China's coasts. To California, they provided the opportunity for exploration of her coast. To Spain, they were the link that bound the Philippines, and, for a time, the Moluccas, to her, and it was their bounties that gave substance to the Spanish dream of empire over the Pacific.

The voyage from Acapulco to Manila was not exceptionally dangerous, with only an occasional storm unsettling the routine sailing, which took from eight to 10 weeks. On the other hand, the voyage from Manila to Acapulco was extremely hazardous. Because the winds in the Philippine latitudes are from the east, the Manila Galleons had to beat their way as far north as Japan before reaching the belt of westerly winds, which would carry them across the Pacific until they reached landfall off the coast of California and then worked their way down to Acapulco. This voyage took from four to eight months, depending on luck. Generally, from 300 to 600 crewmen sailed on each Galleon, with approximately 150 perishing enroute from epidemics, scurvy, thirst, starvation or exposure.

Approximately 900 of all losses involving the Manila Galleons occurred in Philippine waters and, until just recently, no one was permitted to search for these vessels. Ships sailing for Mexico foundered on treacherous reefs or fell victim to typhoons near the Manila coast and even though the Acapulco-Manila route was generally less hazardous, once the heavily laden Galleons entered the Philippine waters, the ships were in danger from storms and hazardous waters.

The cargoes carried from Acapulco to Manila were the same as those aboard the flotas between Spain and the Indies, primarily silver and gold bullion and coin from the mines of Peru and Mexico, which were to be payment for the cargoes sent from Manila. Despite the imposition of restrictions on the amount to be sent to Manila to 500,000 pesos a year, it is believed that an average of 3 to 5 million pesos were sent to Manila annually. In 1597, 12 million pesos actually reached Manila. In this era, one peso equaled one and one-eighth ounce of silver, and 16 ounces of silver equaled one ounce of gold. Today, each peso would be worth approximately $100.

Just the numismatic value of silver aboard the average Manila Galleon is estimated at $150,000,000, not taking into consideration the gold coins and bullion carried or her other cargo and bronze cannons. The average Galleon carried 50 bronze cannons, and at the current value of between $25,000 and $50,000 each, these alone provide a tempting target for salvage.

The outbound ships traveling from Manila to Acapulco were equally as valuable but with more diversified and exotic cargoes, including Ming China, porcelain, gold and silver works of art, church plate, jade and ivory artifacts and chests of pearls and precious stones. The Galleons also carried jewelry, including pendants, earrings, bracelets and rings, as well as gem studded sword hilts, rugs, fans, combs and a wide range of precious spices and drugs. The ships also carried objects carved of sandalwood, gold bells, copper cuspidors and devotional pieces such as crucifixes, reliquaries, rosaries and religious sculptures. Considerable gold in the form of bullion or manufactured articles was also exported to Mexico. The value of these Galleons is more difficult to calculate without having a complete inventory of items aboard, but contemporary documents indicate that their riches were greater than those carried on the inbound ships.

Unlike so many of the treasure galleons lost in the New World, none of the Manila Galleons have ever been found or salvaged. They sunk in deep water, beyond the reach of Spanish Colonial salvors but well within the reach of modern day salvage operations.

DEEP AND SHALLOW SHIPWRECKS

Contrary to popular belief, most lost ships did not sink but rather were wrecked on a lee shore or struck a reef or shoal in relatively shallow water. During the age of sail, probably less than 2% of ships lost were lost in deep water, mostly as a result of fires aboard or sea battles. Even when a ship capsized at sea, it would likely drift into shallow water before breaking up and spreading debris over a wide area. However, if a ship did sink in open ocean, its remains, including the ship's armament and cargo, would generally be situated in a relatively small area, unless the ship exploded before sinking. These open ocean shipwrecks, however, are seldom excavated because their locations are generally vague in historical documents and the wrecks are costly to locate and salvage.

When a ship struck a shoal or reef in shallow water, its remains would be scattered over a wide area, often over miles. The average shipwreck in the Western Hemisphere is scattered over an area of four to five square miles. Usually the bottom of the ship containing the ship's ballast would remain in the area of the initial impact while the current would carry the remainder of the ship and its cargo to other areas. In some cases a large hole would result from the impact and the ship would keep moving with not only its ballast falling out but also a great deal of its cargo. Further, hurricanes occurring years after a ship is wrecked can cause additional scattering of a ship's contents. Finally, as a result of ocean currents and weather, the remains of a ship sunk in shallow water will most likely be buried under many feet of sediment, unlike the remains of a ship sunk in deeper water.

Due to the nature of the rocky terrain of the waters off the Philippines, the sea floor drops off very rapidly from the shoreline and the majority of the ship losses fit into the category of "deep shipwrecks" (but still in divable depths). As "deep shipwrecks," the contents of a Manila Galleon should be contained in a relatively small area - anticipated to be about the size of a football field - and, under minimal sediment. However, due to the deeper diving depths, there is more risk of diving accidents from the 'bends' or other afflictions from which divers suffer. It is also believed that certain of the Manila Galleons and Asiatic trading vessels were also lost in shallow depths such as most shipwrecks in the Western Hemisphere and the Partnership will face the same problems in recovery, such as widely scattered distribution of cargoes and the non-delectability of cargoes buried under many feet of sediment.