British occupation of Manila | |||||||||
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| 1762–1764 | |||||||||
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| Anthem: God Save the King | |||||||||
 "The Attack of Manilla, October 1762", depicting the British capture of Manila | |||||||||
| Status | Occupation of Manila by the Kingdom of Great Britain | ||||||||
| Capital | Manila, Bacolor,Pampanga (Spanish Philippine colonial government retains control outside of Manila and Cavite) | ||||||||
| Official languages | English | ||||||||
| Common languages | Tagalog • Spanish | ||||||||
| Religion | Roman Catholicism | ||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||
• 1760–1820 | George III | ||||||||
| Governor-General | |||||||||
• 1762–1764 | Dawsonne Drake | ||||||||
| Historical era | Spanish colonial rule | ||||||||
| 6 October 1762 | |||||||||
| 31 May 1764 | |||||||||
| Currency | Spanish dollar | ||||||||
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In theBritish occupation of Manila, theKingdom of Great Britain occupied the Spanish colonial capital ofManila and the nearbyport of Cavite for eighteen months, from 6 October 1762 to the first week of April 1764. The occupation was an extension of the largerSeven Years' War between Britain and France, which Spain had recently entered on the side of the French.
The British wanted to use Manila as anentrepôt for trade in the region, particularly withChina.[1] In addition, the Spanish governor agreed to deliver a ransom to the British in exchange for the city being spared from any further sacking.[2] However, the resistance from the provisional Spanish colonial government, established by members of theRoyal Audience of Manila and led by Lieutenant GovernorSimón de Anda y Salazar, whose mostly Filipino troops prevented British forces from expanding their control beyond the neighbouring towns of Manila and Cavite, led to the project's abandonment.[3]: 57
At the time, Britain andFrance were belligerents in what was later termed theSeven Years' War but Spain remained neutral despite diplomatic approaches from both sides. The war began badly for the British but as it progressed the tide of the war turned strongly in their favour and the neutral Spanish government became alarmed that the string of major French losses was transforming the British into a major threat to Spanish overseas interests. France successfully negotiated a treaty with Spain known as theFamily Compact which was signed on 15 August 1761. By an ancillary secret convention, Spain committed to making preparations for war against Britain.[3]: 9 Britain first declared war against Spain on 4 January 1762, and on 18 January 1762, Spain issued their own declaration of war against Britain.[4]
On 6 January 1762, the BritishCabinet led by Prime MinisterJohn Stuart, agreed to attackHavana in theWest Indies, and approved ColonelWilliam Draper's scheme for taking Manila with his forces, which were already in the East Indies.[5] Draper was commanding officer of the79th Regiment of Foot, which was then stationed atMadras inBritish India. Weeks later, KingGeorge III of Great Britain signed the instructions which permitted Draper to implement his scheme, emphasising that by taking advantage of the 'existing war with Spain', Britain might be able to assure her post-war mercantile expansion. Manila was one of the most important trading cities inAsia during this period, and theEast India Company wished to extend its influence in the archipelago.[3]: 8 As a result, there was an expectation that the commerce of Spain would suffer a 'crippling blow'.[3]: 14
Upon arriving in India, Draper'sbrevet rank becamebrigadier general.[3]: 12–15 A secret committee of the East India Company agreed to provide a civil governor for the administration of the Islands, and in July 1762, they appointedDawsonne Drake for the post.[6]
On 24 September 1762,[7] a British fleet of eightships of the line, threefrigates, and four store ships with a force of 6,839 regulars, sailors andmarines, sailed intoManila Bay from Madras.[3]: 9 The expedition, led byWilliam Draper andSamuel Cornish, captured Manila, "the greatest Spanish fortress in the western Pacific".[3]: 1, 7, endcover
The Spanish defeat at Manila was in part due to the neglect of the city's military preparedness and poor military leadership during the battle. This had come about because the formerGovernor-General of the Philippines, Pedro Manuel de Arandia, had died in 1759 and his replacement, Francisco de la Torre, had not arrived due to the Britishcapture of Havana inSpanish Cuba. In the interim, the Spanish Crown appointed the militarily inexperiencedMexican-born Archbishop of ManilaManuel Rojo del Río y Vieyra as a temporary Lieutenant Governor. As a result, many military mistakes were made by the defenders of the city.[3]: 33
On 5 October 1762 (4 October local calendar), the night before the fall of thewalled city of Manila, the Spanish military persuaded Rojo to summon acouncil of war. Several times the Archbishop wished to capitulate, but was prevented. That same day with very heavy battery fire, the British had successfully breached the walls of the bastion of San Diego. The British had emptied the water in the ditch, dismounted the cannons of that bastion and the two adjoining bastions, San Andes and San Eugeno. In addition they set fire to parts of the town, and drove the Spanish forces from the walls. At dawn of 6 October, British forces attacked the breach and took the fortifications, meeting little resistance.[3]: 48–51
During the siege, the Spanish lost three officers, two sergeants, 50troops of the line, and 30militiamen, besides many wounded. Among the Filipino troops, there were 300 killed and 400 wounded. The British suffered 147 killed and wounded,[8][9] of whom sixteen were officers. The British fleet expended more than 20,000 cannonballs and 5,000 bombs during their bombardment.[10]
Once Manila was captured, "the soldiers turned to pillage." Rojo wrote that the sack actually lasted thirty hours or more, although he laid the blame on the Spanish, Chinese and Filipino denizens of Manila, as much as upon the marauding soldiers.[3]: 52–53 Rojo described the events in his journal.
"The city was given over the pillage, which was cruel and lasted for forty hours, without excepting the churches, the archbishopric, and a part of the palace. Although the captain-general (Simon de Anda y Salazar) objected at the end of the twenty-four hours, the pillage really continued, in spite of the orders of the British general (Draper) for it to cease. Rojo himself killed with his own hands a [Spanish] soldier he found transgressing his orders, and had three hanged."[3]: 52–53
Drake then demanded a ransom from the Spanish authorities in exchange for agreeing to stop his troops from any further acts of pillage. Rojo agreed to the ransom, which amounted to four millionSpanish dollars. By the time the British left, only a quarter of the ransom was paid, and the matter quietly dropped.[12]
On 2 November 1762,Dawsonne Drake, an official of theEast India Company, assumed office as the Governor of Manila. He was assisted by a council of four, consisting of John L. Smith, Claud Russel, Henry Brooke and Samuel Johnson. When after several attempts, Drake realised that he was not obtaining as many financial assets as he expected, he formed a war council which he termed the "Chottry Court". Life in Manila during the British occupation was difficult for many locals. According to one account, "Filipinos tried to live normally under foreign rule, but fear and uncertainty were constant."[13][failed verification] Some residents continued trading with the British to survive, while others quietly supported the Spanish resistance.Drake imprisoned several Manilans on charges "only known to himself", according to Captain Thomas Backhouse, who denounced Drake's courtas a sham.[14] The British expedition was further rewarded after the capture of the Spanish treasure shipFilipina, carryingAmericansilver fromAcapulco, and in abattle off Cavite theSantísima Trinidad which carried a cargo of Chineseporcelain. The cargo of theTrinidad alone was valued at $1.5 million and the ship at $3 million.[3]: 75–76
The battles portrayed inAlegoría de la defensa de Filipinas.In the meantime, theRoyal Audience of Manila had organised a war council and dispatchedOidor DonSimón de Anda y Salazar to the provincial town ofBulacan to organise continued resistance to the British.[3]: 48–49 The Real Audiencia also appointed Anda as Lieutenant Governor and Visitor-General.[3]: 58 [15] That night, Anda took a substantial portion of the treasury and official records with him, departing Fort Santiago through thepostern of Our Lady of Solitude, to a boat on thePasig River, and then to Bulacan. He moved headquarters from Bulacan toBacolor,Pampanga, which was more secure, and quickly obtained the powerful support of theAugustinians. On 8 October 1762, Anda wrote to Rojo informing him that he had assumed the position of Governor and Capitan-General under the statutes of theCouncil of the Indies which allowed for the devolution of authority from the Governor to the Audiencia in cases of riot or invasion by foreign forces, as was the case presently. Anda, being the highest member of the Audiencia not under British control, assumed all powers and demanded the royal seal. Rojo declined to surrender it and refused to recognise Anda as Governor-General.[3]: 58–59
The surrender agreement between Archbishop Rojo and the British military guaranteed theCatholic Church and its episcopal government, secured private property, and granted the citizens of the former Spanish colony the rights of peaceful travel and of trade as British subjects. Under British control, the Philippines would continue to be governed by the Real Audiencia, the expenses of which were to be paid by Spain.[3]: 54 Anda refused to recognise any of the agreements signed by Rojo as valid, claiming that the Archbishop had been made to sign them under duress, and therefore, according to the statutes of the Council of the Indies, they were invalid. He also refused to negotiate with the British until he was addressed as the legitimate Governor-General of the Philippines, returning to the British the letters that were not addressed to that effect. All of these initiatives were later approved by Charles III, who rewarded him and other members of the Audiencia, such asJosé Basco y Vargas, who had fought against the British. Anda eventually raised an army which amounted to over 10,000 combatants, most of them volunteer Filipinos, and although they lacked enoughmuskets to go around, they were successful in keeping the British largely confined to Manila and Cavite.
On 26 November, Captain Backhouse dispersed Anda's troops fromPasig and soon after, established a post, manned bylascars and sepoys so they could ensure their control ofLaguna de Bay. Then on 19 January, the following year, the British sent an expedition commanded by Captain Sleigh againstBulacan which was reinforced by 400 Chinese civilians after Anda had ordered their executions for aiding the British. "In Bulacan alone 180 Chinese had been murdered in cold blood [by the Spanish] or had hanged themselves in fear." The British tookMalolos on 22 January, but failed to advance upon Anda inPampanga and withdrew from there on 7 February. In the spring of 1763, Backhouse undertook another expedition against Anda, advancing as far asBatangas.[3]: 64–65, 67–68, 85–87
Cornish and the East Indies Squadron departed in early 1763, leaving two frigates behind,HMS Falmouth and HMSSeaford. On 24 July, news arrived of the cessation of fighting and on 26 August a preliminary draft of thePeace of Paris. The treaty stated that "All conquests not known about at the time of the signing of the treaty were to be returned to the original owners." The impasse continued in Manila however, as the British order to withdraw would not arrive for another six months, and Anda reinforced his blockade of the city. "During the final winter of the British occupation all pretence of cooperation amongst the British leaders was abandoned."[3]: 72, 90–92
The Seven Years' War ended with the signing of theTreaty of Paris on 10 February 1763. At the time of the signing, the signatories were not aware that Manila had been captured by the British, and consequently, it fell under the general provision that all other lands not otherwise provided for be returned to the Spanish Crown.[3]: 109
After Archbishop Rojo died in January 1764, the British military finally recognised Simón de Anda y Salazar as the legitimate Governor of the Philippines, sending him a letter addressed to the "Real Audiencia Gobernadora y Capitanía General", after which Anda agreed to an armistice on the condition that the British forces withdraw from Manila by March. However, the British finally received their orders to withdraw in early March, and by mid-March the overdue Spanish governor for the Philippines, Brigadier Don Francisco de la Torre, finally arrived. This Spanish governor brought with him orders from London for Brereton and Backhouse to eventually hand over Manila to himself.[3]: 98–100 Drake departed Manila on 29 March 1764, and the Manila Council electedAlexander Dalrymple Provisional Deputy Governor. The British ended the occupation by embarking from Manila and Cavite in the first week of April 1764. The 79th Regiment finally arrived in Madras on 25 May 1765.[3]: 104–106, 108
Diego Silang, who was emboldened by Spanish vulnerability, was promised military assistance by the British if he began a revolt against the Spanish in theIlocos Region, but such aid never materialised. Silang was later assassinated by his own friends, and the revolt was aborted afterhis wife, who had taken over the leadership, was captured and executed by the Spanish along with the remaining rebel forces.[16] SultanAzim ud-Din I of Sulu, who had signed a treaty of alliance with the British after they had freed him from Fort Santiago in Manila, where he had been imprisoned accused of treason, was also taken with the evacuating forces, in the hope that he could be of help to the aspirations of the East India Company in theSultanate of Sulu.[17] As British forces suffered increasing frustration and the unity of the commanders broke down, a number ofIndiansepoysdeserted and settled down inPasig,Taytay, andCainta.[18]
The conflict over payment by Spain of the outstanding part of the ransom promised by Rojo in the terms of surrender, and compensation by Britain for the excesses committed by Drake in Manila, continued in Europe for years afterwards.[3]: 110–115 The capture of the Spanish treasure galleonsSantissima Trinidad and theFilipina made the expedition and the occupation rewarding more to the British government than the East India Company as well as representing a severe loss to Spain.[19][20] However, the British failure to extend control beyond Manila and Cavite made their occupation's continuation unviable: Captain Backhouse reported to the Secretary of War in London, "the enemy [Spanish] are in full possession of the country".[14]: v. 20
The British had accepted the written surrender of the Philippines from Archbishop Rojo on 30 October 1762,[3]: 54 but theRoyal Audience of Manila had already appointed Simón de Anda y Salazar as the new Governor-General as provided for under the statutes of theCouncil of the Indies, as was pointed out by Anda and retrospectively confirmed by KingCharles III of Spain, in his re-appointment of both Anda and Basco. It was not the first time that the Audiencia had assumed responsibility for the defence of the Philippines in the absence of a higher authority; in 1646, during theBattles of La Naval de Manila, it temporarily assumed the government and maintained the defence of the Philippines against aDutch attack. As Francisco Leandro Viana, who was in Manila during the 18-month occupation, explained to King Charles III in 1765, "the English conquest of the Philippines was just an imagined one, as the English never owned any land beyond the range of the cannons in Manila."[21]
The old Spanish maps Alexander Dalrymple took from Manila gave the British information about the Pacific, encouraging the quest forTerra Australis Incognita.
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