Battles of La Naval de Manila
The Battles of La Naval de Manila were a series of five naval battles fought in the waters of the Philippines in 1646, between the forces of Spain and the Dutch Republic, during the Eighty Years’ War. The Spanish forces, which included large contingents of native Filipino volunteers, consisted of only two, and later, three Manila galleons, a galley and four brigantines, against a Dutch fleet of eighteen warships, in three separate squadrons. Heavy damage was inflicted upon the Dutch squadrons by the Spanish-Filipino forces, forcing the Dutch to abandon their invasion of the Philippines.
The victories against the Dutch invaders were attributed by the Spanish and Filipino troops to the intercession of the Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of La Naval de Manila. On April 9, 1652, the five sea battles were declared a miracle by the Cathedral Chapter of Manila after a thorough canonical investigation, giving rise to the centuries-old festivities of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of La Naval de Manila.
Background
Spanish-Dutch War
The invasion of the Philippines launched by the Dutch was a spill over of the Spanish-Dutch War in the European continent which for the Hollanders was part of their struggle for independence and religious freedom.
The Netherlands became part of the Spanish territory in 1555 when Emperor Charles V (Charles I of Spain) divided the Habsburg Empire following his abdication. His son, Philip II inherited Spain and the Netherlands. The new ruler soon came into conflict with his Dutch provinces. Philip attempted to reinforce his rule upon Netherlands, which met oppositions from both the Dutch nobility and merchant classes who refused to surrender their freedom and privileges.
The conflict between the Dutch and the Spanish king heightened with the repression of the Protestant Reformation in Netherlands. A devout catholic, Philip II believed it was his duty as God’s “anointed king†to fight for the Catholic Church. Philip’s severe repression of the religious reforms, backed by the zeal of Jesuits and the Spanish Inquisition, eventually led the tension to a breaking point. In 1566, the Iconoclast Fury erupted, wherein radical Protestants instigated a religious riot and destroyed statues in Catholic churches and monasteries in Netherlands. This series of unrest spread throughout the country which ultimately led to Dutch revolt.
From 1517, the port of Lisbon in Portugal was the only European market of products (particularly spices) from India that was attended by other nations to purchase their needs. But as a result of Wars of Flanders between Spain and Netherlands, Portugal, depending on the former, closed its markets to Holland. Thus, in 1595, the Dutch decided to set sail on their own to acquire products for themselves, making use of the “secret†knowledge of the Portuguese trade routes, which Cornelis de Houtman managed to acquire in Lisbon.[2]
[edit]Early Spanish-Dutch conflicts in the Philippines
Pursuing their quest for alternative routes to Asia for trade, the Dutch had finally reached the Philippines. The Dutch sought to dominate the commercial sea trade in Southeast Asia by engaging in piratical activities. They harassed and infested the coasts of Manila bay and its environs, and preyed on sampans and junks from China and Japan which may go to trade at Manila, thereby disrupting the Spanish trade.
The first Dutch squadron to reach the Philippines was led by Olivier van Noort. On December 14, 1600, the van Noort's squadron grappled with the Spanish fleet under Antonio de Morga near Fortune Island, where de Morga's flagship, the San Diego, sank. Van Noort managed to return to Holland, thus becoming the first Dutch to circumnavigate the world.
Another Dutch fleet of four ships under the command of Francois de Wittert tried to attack Manila in 1609, but was repelled by the Spanish governor-general Juan de Silva who launched a counterattack and defeated the Dutch at the Battle of Playa Honda, where François Wittert was killed.
On October 1616, another Dutch fleet of 10 galleons under the command of Joris van Spilbergen (Georges Spillberg) blockaded the entrance of the Manila Bay. A Spanish armada of seven galleons led by Juan Ronquillo battled against Spilbergen's fleet at the Playa Honda on April 1617 (known as the second battle of Playa Honda). Spilbergen's flagship, the "Sol de Holanda" (Sun of Holland) sank, and the Dutch were once again repulsed.
From 1640 to 1641, a Dutch fleet of three ships stationed near Embocadero de San Bernandino to capture galleons coming from Acapulco, Mexico. These galleons, however, escaped safely by taking a different route after receiving warnings from a system of fire-signals (placed in Embocadero) which was devised by the Jesuit priest Francisco Colin.[3]
more in wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battles_of_La_Naval_de_Manila
