| |||||
| Anthem | "God Save the Queen (royal), Filipinas (national)" | ||||
| Capital | Manila | ||||
| Largest city | Quezon City | ||||
| Other cities | Villa Fernandina, Baguio, Santiago, Cavite, Nueva Caceres, Cebu, Iloilo, Bacolod, Tacloban, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Zamboanga, Butuan, Marawi, Cotabato, Jolo, Agaña | ||||
| Language official |
English, Spanish | ||||
| others | Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray, Arabic | ||||
| Religion main |
Roman Catholicism | ||||
| others | Church of England, Islam | ||||
| Demonym | Filipino/Filipina | ||||
| Government | Spanish Colony (1565-1762) British Crown Colony (1762-1892) Republic (1965-1986) Dominion (1892-1965; 1986-present) | ||||
| Legislature | Parliament | ||||
| Monarch | Elizabeth II | ||||
| Governor-General | Maria Leonor Robredo | ||||
| Prime Minister | Rodrigo Duterte | ||||
| Population | 100,981,437 | ||||
| GDP Total: |
811.726 billion | ||||
| per capita | 7,846 | ||||
| Currency | Philippine peso (PHP) | ||||
| Internet TLD | .ph | ||||
| Organizations | United Nations Commonwealth of Nations Association of Southeast Asian Nations | ||||
The Commonwealth of the Philippines is a Commonwealth realm located in Southeast Asia. Annexed by the British during the Seven Years' War in 1762, it was granted dominion status in 1892, briefly a republic from 1965-1986 under Governor-General Ferdinand Marcos after a coup, dominion status was restored after the People Power Revolution in 1986 under Corazon Aquino as its designated Governor-General.
History[]
The British East India Company, then the governing power in India, was tasked by King George III to take control of the Spanish colony of the Philippines on 1762, during the onset of the Seven Years' War. After British bombardment, Manila fell. The acting Spanish Governor-General, Manuel Rojo, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila, held to the fortress of Intramuros. It was eventually breached and Archbishop Rojo was placed under house arrest. In a surrender instrument, he relinquished the office of the Governor-General but remained as the Archbishop of Manila.
With Manila firmly in British hands, Sir Dawsonne Drake assumed the role as the first Governor-General on November 2, 1762. The letters patent from London confirmed his office. The following year, British troops occupied the port City of Cavite and used it as a staging point for invasions across the Philippines. Cebu fell into British hands as the Governor raised the white flag in Fort San Pedro of Cebu. Iloilo gave the hardest resistance and after the British breached the Fort San Pedro of Iloilo, the Governor was able to escape to the town of Bacolod, across the Guimaras Strait. The hastily-built Fort San Juan was razed to the ground, capturing the beleaguered Governor of Iloilo and the Military Governor of Negros.
Meanwhile in Mindanao, Zamboanga natives rebelled against the Spanish garrison in Fort Pilar. The British came to the aid the rebels and the Rebel-British coalition took over the fort. In honor of the natives, the British did not immediately occupy Zamboanga, designating it as a protectorate within the Philippines.
Simeon de Anda, the Spanish Lieutenant-Governor, fled to Bacolor, Pampanga and organized a resistance. He assumed the role of Interim Governor-General after Archbishop Rojo's capture. With the help of Pampanga natives, he was able to repulse British advances. Diego Silang revolted against the Spanish provincial authorities in Ilocos with arms supplied by the British, raising his standard in Villa de Fernandina. As a reward for Silang's service, Silang was created Count of Ilocos and was designated its first native governor. With Ilocos firmly secured, Silang sent his army south in order to squash Anda's resistance. Bacolor fell on Christmas Day of 1763 and the British standard was raised on top of the town's church. The Treaty of Paris, signed on May 31, 1764 after the war, awarded the Philippines permanently to the British. Despite the protest of the British East India Company, the English Parliament designated the Philippines as a crown colony.
Politics[]
Royal Standard of Queen Elizabeth II as the Queen of the Philippines
Main Article: Politics of the Commonwealth of the Philippines The Commonwealth of the Philippines is a federal state that is under the framework of parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy, currently Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state, represented by the Governor-General, currently Leni Robredo, while the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, is the head of government.
Executive power is exercised by the Philippine government on behalf of and by the consent of the monarch, as well as by the provincial governments within the Commonwealth of the Philippines. Legislative power is vested in the Parliament, as well as in provincial assemblies. The judiciary is independent from the executive and the legislature.The highest court of the Commonwealth is the Supreme Court.
Parliament consists of a partially-appointed upper house called the Senate, and the lower house called the House of Representatives. Like other Commonwealth nations, the Philippines is a Westminster-styled parliamentary government, the Parliament is modelled after the British Parliament, albeit also similar to Canada. Previously, the Senate was a purely appointed house composed of native nobles titled "datus" (decreed equivalent to barons) and "apos" (decreed equivalent to counts), and those ennobled through Spanish and later, British letters patent. However, due to referendum providing for a fully-federal government, provinces were given a right to elect a representative to the Senate, with the House of Representatives elected by districts.
Government[]
The Philippines has a parliamentary government based on the Westminster system that has been emulated around the world: a legacy of the British Empire. The parliament of the Philippines meets in the Legislative Building, Manila, and has two houses; an elected House of Representatives and a partially-appointed appointed Senate. All bills passed are given Royal Assent before becoming law.
The position of Prime Minister, the Philippines' head of government, belongs to the person most likely to command the confidence of the House of Representatives; this individual is typically the leader of the political party or coalition of parties that holds the largest number of seats in that chamber. The Prime Minister chooses a cabinet and its members are formally appointed by the monarch to form Her Majesty's Government. By convention, the monarch respects the Prime Minister's decisions of government.
However, the appointment of Maria Leonor Robredo, former Representative from the Camarines district of Bicol, as Governor-General was controversial, as she held opposing views as Prime Minister Rodrigo Duterte, who preferred former Senator Ferdinand Marcos II, the son of the namesake late rebel Governor-General and President. Upon the mediation of former Prime Minister Fidel Ramos, the Queen prevailed on the Prime Minister.
Local Administrations[]
The colony was redivided into new provinces, with former provinces turned into territorial districts. Luzon was divided into Ilocos, Cordillera, Valle de Cagayan, Pampanga, Manila, La Laguna, Batangas (inc. Marinduque), Tayabas, Bicol, Mindoro (inc. Paragua); Visayas with Madya-as (inc. Romblon and Masbate), Cebu (inc. Bohol), Leyte (inc. Samar); Mindanao with non-royal provinces of Misamis, Caraga, and Davao. The Pacific Islands of Micronesia, Carolines, and the Marianas were place under the jurisdiction of Cebu. They were later separated to form the Pacific Province, with Agaña in the island of Guam as the capital.
In 1898, after a rebellion by the sugar barons of Negros Island, led by Aniceto Lacson, Baron of Matab-ang, Negros and Siquijor Islands were separated to form a new autonomous province with Bacolod as the capital. Baron Lacson was appointed as the first Lieutenant-Governor. Zamboanga was later annexed as an autonomous province, while in 1907, the Sultans of Sulu, Cotabato, and Lanao submitted to British suzerainty, with the Sultans of Mindanao and their Rajah Mudas (crown princes) granted a hereditary seat in the Senate.
North Borneo, originally rented from the Sultan of Sulu, was placed under the jurisdiction of Sulu as a territorial district (later federal province).
Law and Criminal Justice[]
Foreign Relations[]
Military[]
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