History of Balangiga

THE NAME “BALANGIGA”

How the name Balangiga came to be is still unknown and unrecorded. A legend may have been told about a hallow jackfruit called “Balanga” floating in the nearby river. The fruit kept on coming back until picked up by a fisherman who threw it with much anger upon seeing it without the juicy stuff inside. The spot where the fruit landed came to be known as Balanga and which through the years became what it is now - - - Balangiga. This and another story that may have been told could be the first “real story” only if we could dig deeper into our culture.

The early Spanish chronicles and historians spell the name of the town in different ways. The names Balangigan, Balanguiga and Balangiga were used in different occasions.

SOME HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS

Balangiga ranks certainly among the earliest settlements in Samar. However, no historical date can shed on its pre-historic and pre-spanish past. Hence, its historical account may commence with Spanish period.

Similar to the other old towns of Samar, Balangiga was initially a Jesuit mission territory. The Historical Institute stated that in the year 1653, Father Cristobal Mirrales, a Jesuit Priest, rebuilt the Balangiga church consisting of haliques o poste de Madera inside a quadrangle or fort with four baluartes. If Father Miralles just rebuilt the church, then an older one could have been there before. No record yet is available pinpointing exactly when the first church of Balangiga was built. Since the Jesuit Missionaries arrived in 1596, the first church could have been built during the first half of the 17^th century. Further, the description of the structure lead us to believe that the ruins of stone walls and pillars that are still evident at the back of the present church, along the river banks, could have been part of the first walls and towers that Father Miralles built in 1653. The presence of these four towers or fort could have been the basis of the story of our “kaaapuyans” that the town, being a coastal village was an easy prey to “Moro raids” which were rampant in the 16^th and 17^th centuries.

In 1655, the second mission residence was established in Dagami, Leyte. Balangiga was made under its jurisdiction together with nine other settlements namely:  Dagami, Malaguicay, Tambuco, Dulag, Beto, Abuyog, Palo, Basey and Guiuan.

In 1767, Charles III of Spain ordered the expulsion of the Jesuits from all Spanish Dominion. The decree reached the Philippines in 1768 and immediately all the Jesuits were placed under arrest and their houses sealed. The Jesuits Missions in Leyte and Samar were then handed over to the Franciscans. However,  the Franciscans Missionaries could have missed the town from their administration since for almost twenty years (from 1768 to 1796), the church was neglected and the settlement went into oblivion leading to its dissolution until the Augustinian refounded it in 1796.

In the year 1850, Father Manuel Valverde rebuilt a church of solid structure and a convent. This convent was later destroyed but Father Aquilino Majuelo, during his tenure, had it rebuilt which was finished by Father Augustin Delgado. The first floor was solid and the upper floor was made of wood.

On April 3, 1854, there was an Episcopal Decree declaring the Parish of Balangiga. However, it was only made effective on September 27, 1859 when a priest was assigned to lead the parish. According to Father Felix de la Huerta, on April 3, 1854, through the zealous work of Father Valverde, Balangiga was declared a town out of a visita of Guiuan, through a Decree of the Superior Government.

Balangiga had two schools constructed in the year 1892 to 1894 and were under Father Bernardo Aparicio.

As early as the year 1814, the town had its own gobernadorcillo.

Father Felix de la Huerta, a Franciscan historian and statistician, wrote about Balangiga in 1865:

“This town was a visita of Guiuan and was separated from the mother land by decree of the Superior Government on the 3^rd of April, 1854.

The Decree of the Superior Government issued on the 3^rd of April, 1854 as recounted by Father Felix de la Huerta has become the basis for considering April 3, 1854 as the date for which the township of Balangiga was duly constituted.

In connection with this, last April 3, 1993, the people of Balangiga have unveiled a historical marker that commemorates the proclamation of Balangiga’s town hood on the same date in 1854. The marker is fittingly located at the San Lorenzo Martyr Church which sired the political birth of the town. The unveiling of said marker was made possible through the efforts of the Balangiga Historical Society in coordination with the National Historical Institute. The marker bears the following message:

SIMBAHAN NG BALANGIGA

Ipinagawang yari sa bato sa loob ng kutang patyo na may apat na baluarte ng mga paring Heswita noong mga ika – 17 dantaon sa patronato ni San Lorenzo. Muling ipinagawa ni P. Cristobal Miralles, 1653. Visita ng Guiuan 1773. Ipinaayos ni P. Manuel valverde, 1850. Naging isang bayan, Abril 3, 1854; parokya, Setyembere 27, 1859. Dito and mga manghihimagsik ay nagtipon-tipon para hintayin and pagtunong ng kampana na siyang hudyat sa pagsisimula ng pag-aaklas sa Balangiga laban sa nga Amerikano, Setyembere 28, 1901. Muling ipinagawa, 1927; inayos at pinaganda, 1962-1993.”

The town of Balangiga was previously a part of the whole Samar Province with the present municipalities of Lawa-an, Giporlos and Quinapondan among its barrios. When Republic Act No. 4221 was passed which in effect divided the island of Samar into three administrative provinces, Balangiga became one of the municipalities that comprises the province and the lone congressional district of Eastern Samar up to the present.

On the early morning of September 28, 1901, Balangiga church bells rang to signal the attack of Filipino freedom fighters against Company “C” of the 9^th Infantry Regiment of the United States Army led by Capt. Thomas O’connel. The attacking forces were led by Capt. Valeriano S. Abanador, then the town’s Chief of Police. It was on this fateful day that the bells made their mark on our long struggle for freedom from colonial rule. It was also on that fateful day that real sense of bravery, courage and gallantry was displayed by our local heroes undaunted by the superiority of the enemies.

In recognition of this heroism, Congressman Jose tan Ramirez, of the lone district of Eastern Samar sponsored and work for the passage of Republic Act 6692 which in effect declares every 28^th day of September of every year as Balangiga Encounter Day and a Special Non-Working Holiday in the whole province of Eastern Samar.