Morata, Johannah Isaah L.

BS Arch 3-2

HOA 4: PHILIPPINE ARCHITECTURE

SPANISH COLONIAL TRADITION

In 1565, the start of Spanish occupation in the Philippines brought big changes in the culture and
tradition of Filipinos. The Spaniards heavily influenced the life of Filipinos in terms of food, clothing,
language, and of course, architecture.

Miguel Lopez de Legazpi was instructed to establish more settlements and find adequate sources
of food. They move to Manila in 1571 and occupied the fort that had been abandoned by Rajah Sulayman.
They bordered the fort, a Spanish walled city called Intramuros, with wooden palisades and built
structures made of wood and bamboo but was destroyed by fire in 1583. This gave way to fortifications
of stone and tile. They have established kilns for manufacturing ladrilyos (bricks), tehas (roofing tiles), and
baldosas (floor tiles). The destruction also resulted to a hybrid type of construction, arquitectura mestiza
(mixed architecture) of wood and stone that uses wooden pegs and dovetail joints allowing them to have
a better chance of surviving an earthquake.

Town Plaza

To facilitate the work of Church and State, specifically the preaching of the gospel and the
administration of the colony, towns were established and the scattered population was brought together
in compact communities or reduccion.

The city was redesigned following the master plan of King Philip II, the 1573 royal ordinance
known as the Laws of the Indies. The plan declared that the town should establish a plaza mayor (main
plaza), streets were laid out in a quadricula (gridiron pattern). Around the main plaza rose the cathedral,
government buildings, and the houses of ranking persons. These structures were built under the direction
of maestro de obras, mostly priests. And to assure the continuous labor to build structures, Spaniards
used the tax system of polo y servicio aside from the contractual system of pakyaw. With this, Manila
became the capital of the colony and the model for town development.

Fortress Architecture

In general, Spanish construction in the Philippines—fortresses, churches, and civic buildings—

faithfully followed European models, especially when projects were closely supervised by Spaniards.

Fortress architecture was designed according to the principles of bastion system of medieval
citadels of Europe characterized by perimeter walls connected by protruding precincts called bastions at
every corner of the polygon, one of which is Intramuros. These fortifications were used to safeguard
colonial territories and protect harbors and coastlines. Forts typically have:

1. cortinas - thick walls of 3 to 10-meter-called

2. casa matas - stone landings on top of cortinas of which artillery weapons were propped up
3. baluartes or bastiones – four-sided bulwarks skirting cortinas on both ends
 4. garitas - little turrets resting on corners where sentinels kept watch
5. foso – moat; a deep and wide ditch filled with water surrounded the whole fortification as a
form of defense
6. rebelin - a massive structure sometimes constructed on one side of the structure

When forts cannot be built, watch towers were erected or the church itself doubled as a fortress,
the bell towers served as a look out, and the tolling of its bells warned the community of an impending
danger.

Church Architecture

The earliest churches were rendered in a vernacular idiom, simple and planned and fashioned of
light materials with high pitched roof. These structures were later on made of adobe (volcanic tuff) stone,
coral stone, or brick, reinforced with buttresses to ensure their strength during earthquakes. The façade
exemplified the tendency of Filipino ornamentation towards horror vacui (fear of empty space).

Despite the many changes over the centuries, the rectangular or cross form appeared to be the
basic plan or Philippine colonial churches. Some deviations from the norm were the Tayabas Church which
resembled a key and Oton church resembling a Greek cross. The whole external composition was lorded
over by one or two campanario (bell tower). Bell towers could be as simple as 4 posted structure or as
grand as an elaborate detached stone tower like the Ilocos churches, so that it would not topple or fall
over the main church structure.

The interior of a colonial church had two focal points: the altar mayor (main altar) at the far end
of the sanctuary which was emphasized thru the elaborately ornamented retablo or altarpiece/screen,
and the consecrated host kept in the sagrario (tavern metal) and a pulpito (pulpit). Other interior parts of
the church are:

1. Pulpito - an elevated structure usually of wood often placed at the intersection of the
nave and crucero (transept), or at the nave so as to amplify audibility of the homily.
2. Altares menores (side altars) - formed by the arms of the transept could accommodate
several priests celebrating mass simultaneously.
3. Koro (choir loft) - a high platform formed by a mezzanine behind or over the main
entrance where the band and choir perform.
4. Tribulas - a screened gallery where persons who sought privacy could attend mass; it has
an entry from the second floor of the convento
5. Convento – a parish house adjacent to the church; it serves as lodging house for visiting
dignitaries, storerooms for food and ornaments, school, office and parish archive
6. Campo santo – graveyard

Majority of the worshippers were left to stand or kneel. Long benches were provided only for
principales (leading citizens of the community).

Churches all around the Philippines developed different styles but the Filipino character of these
churches has become apparent. Ornaments made by Artisans were interpreted and executed according
to their own aesthetic which is simple but incorporated local tropical mortice. One of the church facades
with outstanding ornamentation is the Miag-ao Church in Iloilo, which depicts St. Christopher carrying
the Infant Jesus amid lush tropical vegetation.
 Embodying the principles of earthquake baroque, San Agustin Church built in 1587 is the only
stone church of its scale that still stands as originally built, one of the few structures constructed with a
true barrel vaulting. Inside, a three-dimensional effect or deep relief ornament is achieved through
trompe l'oeil technique. The Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte built in 1699 to 1702 evokes the grandeur
Hindu-Buddhist temple architecture or Southeast Asia. A detached bell tower tapers as it rises from the
ground in a reminiscent of a pagoda, enormous buttresses censures the curve along scroll-like base.

Other styles used neo-gothic decorative elements like the destroyed church of Sto. Domingo
Church in Intramuros and the all steel San Sebastian Church in Quiapo. The Manila Cathedral is energized
by Romanesque propensity while non-western neo-mudejar motifs lavished the façade of the Malate
Church in Manila as well as the bulbous domes and pointed arches of Carcar Church in Cebu.

Bahay na Bato

In 19th century, principalia (the elite) and even the upper class demanded a new type of dwelling
that was spacious, durable, comfortable, impressive, noble, and elegant. This new domestic prototype
descended from the bahay kubo and resembled the arquitectura metiza of the 17th century.

In general, the bahay na bato may be described as a house with wooden legs and a stone skirt, a
style of construction which makes the house a sure survivor of earthquakes. These houses were typically
2-storeys with a ground floor made of massive cut stone or brick walls, and the upper level made of hard
wood. Grillwork protected the ground floor windows, while second-storey windows were broad with
sliding caprice shutters or glass panel. Parts of the bahay na bato are:

1. pasamano - windowsill
2. ventanillas - small windows protected with iron grills or wooden barandillas or balusters, and
had sliding wooden shutters
3. zaguan - the dark ground floor vestibule was reserved for storage and where the staircase
leading to the upper floor
4. escalera - A wooden staircase with two landings led to the upper floor and directly on to the
interior overhanging veranda.
5. caida or antesala - as one ascended the staircase, the visitor waited to be received here; the
most immediate room from the stair and functioned as a foyer leading to the sala
6. sala - living room
7. comedor - dining room is located at one end of the room
8. cocina - kitchen with its distinctive banggera (shelf); sometimes built separately from the
house but was linked to the house by a walkway
9. banyo or paliguan – bathroom that is adjacent to the kitchen
10. latrina - toilet which is adjacent to the banio
11. batalan - metamorphosed into the azotea; an outdoor terrace where the residents and their
guests usually relaxed; at times, the azotea was used for food preparations and laundry
activities as it was located either beside a balon (well), or over an aljibe (cistern)
12. cuarto - bedrooms which opens into the spacious living area; room partitions did not reach
the ceiling ending but calados (fretwork) that enhanced cross ventilations inside the house

The house was capped by hip or gable tiled roof with a steep slope reaching a 45-degree angle to
repel rain and oust warm air within. Roof tiles were set in three or more layers which added a considerable
weight to the structure. Since they could easily displace and fall apart during earthquakes, yero (galvanized
iron sheets) took their place beginning in the 1880s. The hardwood posts, carry the weight of the roof
system. The thick masonry was merely a skirt concealing the wooden legs in the ground floor. Resonating
the special concept of bahay kubo, the living quarters were found in the upper floor. With a wide door
leading to the rooms open on most occasions, the house virtually had the essence of being one space.

The bahay na bato represents the apex in the development of indigenous Filipino architecture,
because it expands the prototypal structure of the ethnic house from a one-room dwelling to a
multiroomed house of grand scale while preserving the basic features.

Civic Architecture

Civic architecture epitomized the Spanish administrative institutions. Renaissance Architecture

inspired these civic structures which had spacious inner courts. The Casa del Ayuntamiento, the site of
colonial power, occupied the entire block of one of the sides of plaza mayor of Manila. While the Palacio
del Gobernador Heneral or Palacio Real was the residence of the highest official of the land.

The Spaniards build ports, roads, bridges, lighthouses, waterways, pipe water system, railway and
street car system employing the leading technology available at that time. In 1892, a 192-kilometer
locomotive driven railroad system between Manila and Dagupan was opened. The most outstanding
works carried out in the railway system were the bridge over Pampanga river and the Tutuban Station
designed by Juan Ervas. Every estacion de ferrocarril (railway station) was built of brick masonry following
the British design. Installation of the railway facilitated the unimpeded flocks of labor force from the
nearby provinces to partake in Manila’s industrial progress. The accesoria (apartment dwellings)
answered the migrant laborers need for cheap housing in commercial and industrial areas. The sparsely
decorated accesorias were single or two-storeys high having multiple units each defined by a common
party wall shared with the adjoining unit and by a separate door or access at the façade.

Bridges and light houses were also built during the 19th century. One example of an outstanding
Spanish bridge engineering was the Puente de España erected in 1875 over the Pasig river which had 8
arches, the 2 central arches were built of iron trusses and the other six were of quarried stone. Then faro
(light houses) was built to guide maritime traffic approaching the coast. It consisted of a high tower,
usually polygon or cylinder in plan, that serves as a light or beacon. The oldest lighthouse was the Pasig
faro (light house) built in 1642; a complex composed of a tower, pavilion and service buildings.

Commercial Buildings

Enlarged municipalities called Parian are special commercial district for Chinese merchants and
traders. Almacen (warehouses), fabrica (factories) and camarin (storehouses) were also built. Erected in
1894, De la Insular Cigar factory was a rare example of mudejar inspired industrial architecture. With the
influx of European commercial houses in the 1809, the bahay na bato on Escolta and streets were
retrofitted. Here the ground floor was occupied by offices and shops while the upper storey functioned
as the residence of the proprietor of the company. The houses of Rosario and Escolta in Binondo played
host to a contiguous line of business establishments. It was also in this period that the ubiquitous
neighborhood retail institution, the sari-sari store and carinderia (ready to eat restaurant sheds) came
into being.
 Other structures built during the Spanish era for amusements and public diversion are sabungan
(cock fighting arenas), fumadero de opio (opium den), a room for smokers to lie on, and teatros (theater),
a structure designed specifically for theatrical dance and musical performances.

The reworking of the indigenous space through the technologies of Hispanic urbanism and
architecture, empowered the colonizer to infuse the colonized society with new concepts of space, new
forms of identity, new power relations and new ways of orchestrating the everyday colonial experience.