Battle of Mactan
Statue of Lapu-Lapu on Mactan Island in the Philippines
Date April 27, 1521 Location Mactan Island, Cebu, Philippines Result Visayan victory, death of Ferdinand Magellan
Belligerents
Explorers in the service of Spain under Phillip II	Visayan natives of Mactan Island
Commanders
Ferdinand Magellan†	Lapu-Lapu
Strength
49 men including Magellan on shore, at least 11 others in boats	approx. Lapu-Lapu is also the name of the Grouper fish in the Philippines This page refers to the island in Cebu. For the battle that happened here see Battle of Mactan, For the airport of this island see Mactan-Cebu International The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP Events 1124 - David I becomes King of Scotland. 1296 - Battle of Dunbar: The Scots are defeated This page refers to the island in Cebu. For the battle that happened here see Battle of Mactan, For the airport of this island see Mactan-Cebu International Cebu is one of the Provinces of the Philippines. It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the west of Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP Visayas ( Visayan: Kabisay-an) is one of the three island groups in the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao. Ferdinand Magellan (Fernão de Magalhães fɨɾˈnɐ̃ũ dɨ mɐgɐˈʎɐ̃ĩʃ Fernando de Magallanes (Spring 1480 &ndash April 27 1521 Mactan Island, Cebu Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Philip II may refer to Philip II of Macedon (382&ndash336 BC Philip II of France (1165&ndash1223 Philip II of The Visayans ( Visayan, Filipino: Bisaya) are the largest ethnolinguistic group in the Philippines. This page refers to the island in Cebu. For the battle that happened here see Battle of Mactan, For the airport of this island see Mactan-Cebu International Ferdinand Magellan (Fernão de Magalhães fɨɾˈnɐ̃ũ dɨ mɐgɐˈʎɐ̃ĩʃ Fernando de Magallanes (Spring 1480 &ndash April 27 1521 Mactan Island, Cebu Lapu-Lapu is also the name of the Grouper fish in the Philippines 1,500
Casualties and losses
3 killed –including Magellan	unknown

Location of Mactan Island within Cebu Province. Cebu is one of the Provinces of the Philippines. It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the west of Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol

The Mactan Shrine located at Punta Engaño, Lapu-Lapu City marks the site where Magellan was reportedly killed. The City of Lapu-Lapu is a 1st class highly-urbanized city in the province of Cebu, Philippines The four-sided monument has the following engraved words: A HERNANDO DE MAGALLANES, SIENDO GOBERNADOR DON MIGUEL ORFUS, REINANDO YSABEL II and GLORIAS ESPAÑOLAS.

The Battle of Mactan was fought in the Philippines on April 27, 1521. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP Events 1124 - David I becomes King of Scotland. 1296 - Battle of Dunbar: The Scots are defeated The warriors of Lapu-Lapu, a Muslim chieftain of Mactan Island, defeated Spanish sailors and soldiers under the command of Portuguese sea captain and explorer Ferdinand Magellan also known as Fernando de Magallanes. Lapu-Lapu is also the name of the Grouper fish in the Philippines A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion This page refers to the island in Cebu. For the battle that happened here see Battle of Mactan, For the airport of this island see Mactan-Cebu International Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Portuguese people (os Portugueses literally the Portuguese) are the Ethnic group or Nation native to the country of Portugal, in the west Ferdinand Magellan (Fernão de Magalhães fɨɾˈnɐ̃ũ dɨ mɐgɐˈʎɐ̃ĩʃ Fernando de Magallanes (Spring 1480 &ndash April 27 1521 Mactan Island, Cebu The Battle of Mactan is commemorated by a shrine, known as the Mactan Shrine or the Lapu-Lapu shrine which is located at Punta Engaño, Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, Philippines. The City of Lapu-Lapu is a 1st class highly-urbanized city in the province of Cebu, Philippines Cebu is one of the Provinces of the Philippines. It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the west of Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol It features a 20-meter bronze statue of Lapu-Lapu. Bronze is any of a broad range of Copper alloys, usually with Tin as the main additive but sometimes with other elements such as Phosphorus

Background

By the 15th century, Portuguese explorers had found a way around the Islamic kingdoms which held control of the trade routes overland to the spices of Southeast Asia, which was to round the Cape of Good Hope of Africa, through the Indian Ocean, and then to the Spice Islands. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. The Cape of Good Hope ( Afrikaans: Kaap die Goeie Hoop, Kaap de Goede Hoop Cabo da Boa Esperança Persian Language: دماغه امید نیک The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's Oceanic divisions covering about 20% of the water on the Earth 's surface This article covers the historical role of the Maluku Islands as a source of spices since early history when the islands where known as the Spice Islands

Magellan was assigned to Portuguese Goa in India for military training at the age of 20 years old, and soon divined that geography was a key to the riches of Southeast Asia. Goa ( Konkani: गोंय /ɡɔ̃j/ is India 's smallest state in terms of area and the fourth smallest in terms of population. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country After a voyage to the area, he indentured a Malayan servant, Enrique, whom he would employ as an interpreter during his voyage around the globe. An indentured servant is a form of Debt bondage worker The Laborer is under Contract of an Employer for some period of time usually three to This article discusses the slave and interpreter of Ferdinand Magellan. Enrique was actually taken from his home islands, captured by Sumatran slavers, taken to Malacca, and later baptized. Sumatra (also spelled Sumatera) is the sixth largest island in the world (approximately 470000 km² and is the largest island entirely in Indonesia (two In Christianity, baptism ( Greek, "immersing" "performing Ablutions " is the ritual act with the use of water by which one is admitted

After Magellan landed on the island of Homonhon on March 17, 1521, he parleyed with Rajah Calambu (or Kolambu) of Limasawa, who guided him to Cebu, on April 7. Homonhon Island is an island in the province of Eastern Samar, Philippines, on the west side of Leyte Gulf. Events 45 BC - In his last victory Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger For other uses see Raja (disambiguation and Rajah (disambiguation. Limasawa is a 6th class municipality and an island of the same name in the province of Southern Leyte, Philippines. Cebu is an island of the Philippines. It is the main island of Cebu Province in Visayas. Events 529 - First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in Jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Communicating through his interpreter, Enrique, Magellan befriended Rajah Humabon, the king of Cebu, and he and his queen were baptized into the Catholic faith, taking the Christian names Carlos and Juana. Rajah Humabon was the main Raja of Cebu island in the Philippines at the time of Ferdinand Magellan 's arrival in the archipelago in 1521 As a Christian Ecclesiastical term Catholic —from the Greek adjective, meaning "general" or "universal"—is described A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Magellan gave Juana the Santo Niño as a symbol of the alliance. The Santo Niño de Cebú ("Holy Child of Cebu" is a Roman Catholic depiction of the Child Jesus, similar to the Impressed by Magellan's armament (consisting of guns, swords, armor, 12 cannons, and 50 crossbows), Humabon and Datu Zula convinced Magellan to go to the nearby island of Mactan and kill rival chieftain Lapu-Lapu. Lapu-Lapu is also the name of the Grouper fish in the Philippines It is widely believed that Humabon and Lapu-Lapu bore each other grudges and were constantly fighting for control of territory.

The battle

According to the accounts of Antonio Pigafetta, Magellan deployed 48 armored men, less than half his crew, with swords, axes, shields, crossbows and guns. Antonio Pigafetta (c 1491 was an Italian Scholar born in Vicenza. Filipino historians note that because of the rocky outcroppings and corals near the beach, he could not land on Mactan. Forced to anchor his ships far from shore, Magellan could not bring his ships' firepower to bear on Lapu-Lapu's warriors, who numbered more than 1,500.

"When morning came, forty-nine of us leaped into the water up to our thighs, and walked through water for more than two cross-bow flights before we could reach the shore. The boats could not approach nearer because of certain rocks in the water. The other eleven men remained behind to guard the boats. When we reached land, [the natives] had formed in three divisions to the number of more than one thousand five hundred persons. When they saw us, they charged down upon us with exceeding loud cries. . . The musketeers and crossbow-men shot from a distance for about a half-hour, but uselessly. . . ^[1]

Magellan then tried to scare them off by burning some houses. However, this only provoked the natives, and he was wounded in the leg by a poisoned arrow. Magellan then ordered a retreat, but some men fought on.

Seeing that, the captain-general sent some men to burn their houses in order to terrify them. When they saw their houses burning, they were roused to greater fury. Two of our men were killed near the houses, while we burned twenty or thirty houses. So many of them charged down upon us that they shot the captain through the right leg with a poisoned arrow. On that account, he ordered us to retire slowly, but the men took to flight, except six or eight of us who remained with the captain. The natives shot only at our legs, for the latter were bare; and so many were the spears and stones that they hurled at us, that we could offer no resistance. The mortars in the boats could not aid us as they were too far away. ^[1]

Many of the warriors turned upon Magellan; he was wounded in the arm with a bamboo spear and in the leg by a native sword (kampilan). The kampilan is a long Sword widely used in the pre-conquest Philippine Archipelago and still in use by many Filipino Muslims today especially He was finally overpowered and killed, stabbed and hacked by spears and swords. Pigafetta and the others managed to escape.

Recognizing the captain, so many turned upon him that they knocked his helmet off his head twice. . . An Indian hurled a bamboo spear into the captain's face, but the latter immediately killed him with his lance, which he left in the Indian's body. Then, trying to lay hand on sword, he could draw it out but halfway, because he had been wounded in the arm with a bamboo spear. When the natives saw that, they all hurled themselves upon him. One of them wounded him on the left leg with a large cutlass, which resembles a scimitar, only being larger. That caused the captain to fall face downward, when immediately they rushed upon him with iron and bamboo spears and with their cutlasses, until they killed our mirror, our light, our comfort, and our true guide. When they wounded him, he turned back many times to see whether we were all in the boats. Thereupon, beholding him dead, we, wounded, retreated, as best we could, to the boats, which were already pulling off. "^[1]

His allies Rajah Humabon and Datu Zula were said not to have taken part in the battle due to Magellan's bidding, and watched from a distance. There is no other record of the events, but it is evident that Magellan was defeated by sheer force of numbers and poor strategic preparation.

In Philippine culture

Today Lapu-Lapu is honored as the "first" Philippine national hero, Muslim - a Tausug, to resist foreign rule, the famous fierce defender of freedom and sovereignty, and he is commemorated by a monument in Mactan, as well as a city bearing his name. A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion This article is about the people name Tausūg For their language see Tausug language. The City of Lapu-Lapu is a 1st class highly-urbanized city in the province of Cebu, Philippines Magellan is likewise given the dubious honor of bringing the first vestiges of Spanish colonization to the Philippines. A common misconception that Lapu-Lapu cut Magellan down in single combat is claimed false by Pigafetta's account somewhat a biased unreliable source since he was employed by the spanish and was a spaniard himself. most likely Magellan did die by Lapu lapu's sword a kampilan primarily used by the pre hispanic malays. The battle is typically re-enacted during its anniversary.

A local variety of red grouper is called lapu-lapu (in Luzon, though not in Cebu itself) after the chieftain. For other meanings see Grouper (disambiguation. Groupers are Fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of Luzon is the largest and most economically and politically important Island in the Philippines and one of the three island groups in the country with Visayas

Actor-turned-politician Lito Lapid made a film called Lapu-Lapu. Manuel Mercado Lapid, popularly known as Lito Lapid, is a Filipino actor politician and Senator of the Republic of the Philippines.

Novelty singer Yoyoy Villame of Calape, Bohol wrote a song entitled Magellan that tells the story of the Battle of Mactan. A novelty song is a silly or nonsensical Song, performed principally for its comical effect. Yoyoy Villame ( November 18, 1932 - May 18, 2007) born Roman Tesorio Villame, was a Filipino Singer, Composer For the island see Bohol Island. Bohol is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central ^[2]

References

External links

• The Death of Magellan according to Pigafetta
• The Bangsamoro Historical site
• Reliving the Battle of Mactan