Malacañang Palace (, ), officially known as Malacañan Palace, is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the Philippines. It is located in the Manila district of San Miguel, along Jose Laurel Street, though it is commonly associated with nearby Mendiola Street. The term Malacañang is often used as a metonym for the Government of the Philippines. The sprawling Malacañang Palace complex includes numerous mansions and office buildings designed and built largely in the bahay na bato and neoclassical styles. Among the presidents of the present Fifth Republic, only Gloria Macapagal Arroyo actually lived in the main palace as both her office and her residence, with all others residing in nearby properties that form part of the larger palace complex."Malacañan Palace" . Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved on June 15, 2013. The palace has been seized several times as a result of protests starting with the People Power Revolution of 1986, the 1989 coup attempt (when the palace was buzzed by T-28 Trojans), the 2001 Manila riots, and the EDSA III riots.
The original structure was built in 1750 by Don Luis José de la Rocha Camiña, a Spaniard physician in the galleon trade, who built it as a summer house with his wife, Gregoria Tuason de Zaballa, daughter of don Antonio Tuason and doña Justa de Zaballa. It is located in San Miguel, along the Pasig River. The Rocha property was built of stone and described as being a relatively modest country house (although modern-day Rochas say it was not small and in fact had a ballroom) with a bath house on the river and gardens, all enclosed by a stone fence. The latter was probably a nipa-roofed and bamboo-enclosed structure built on the water, away from the gaze of passing boats. It was easily accessible from Intramuros and Binondo by boat, carriage, or horseback. Malacañan was purchased by the state in 1825 as the summer residence for the Spanish governor-general upon Colonel José Miguel Formento's death.
Following an earthquake on June 3, 1863, which destroyed the governor-general's official residence, the Palacio del Gobernador in the walled city of Intramuros, Malacañan became the official seat of power of Spanish colonial rule. The use of the palace as the official state residence of colonial rulers continued after sovereignty over the islands was ceded to the United States in 1898. General Wesley Merritt was the first American governor to make use of the estate as his residence."Residents of Malacañan Palace and their respective periods of residence" . Presidential Museum & Library (Philippines). Retrieved on June 6, 2013.
Since 1863, the palace has been occupied by eighteen Spanish governors-general, fourteen American military and civil governors, and later the presidents of the Philippines. The palace had been enlarged and refurbished several times since 1750; the grounds were expanded to include neighboring estates, and many buildings were demolished and constructed during the Spanish and American periods. Its posts were strengthened, roof tiles replaced with corrugated iron sheets, balconies repaired, and both the exterior and interior were beautified. More recently, between 1978 and 1979, the palace building was drastically remodeled and extensively rebuilt by First Lady Imelda Marcos during the tenure of Ferdinand Marcos. Malacañang was the only major government building in Manila to survive heavy artillery bombing during the Second World War. The palace continues to be the centerpiece of the upscale district of San Miguel, spared by the war.
Name Etymology The earliest document to address the building's roots was the Compendio de la Historia de Filipinas written in 1877 by Spanish historian Felipe de Govantes, in which he stated that the term Malacañán meant "place of the fisherman". This was again referenced in the 1895 Historia general de Filipinas by José Montero y Vidal and the Historia de Filipinas by Manuel Artigas y Cuerva in 1916. In 1972, Ileana Maramag in her work on Malacañan history supplied the Tagalog word: mamalakáya, which means fisherman. The original denomination for the location is believed to be Mamalakáya-han, with the Tagalog suffix -han meaning "place of", later simplified by the Spanish colonial authorities as Malacañán and adapted according to Spanish orthography.
Spelling During the Spanish colonial era, Spanish-language books that were published at the time spelled the word as Malacañang.Las Islas Filipinas en 1882: estudios historicos, geográficos, estadísticos. pg. 274. El Correo, Madrid.Historia General de Filipinas, Tomo III, pg. 504. Impreso de Camara de S. M., Madrid.Boletin de la Sociedad Geografica de Madrid, Tomo XXI, pg. 274. Imprenta de Fortanet, Madrid. The name was changed to "Malacañan" during the American occupation of the Philippines from 1898 until 1946, supposedly for ease of pronunciation despite the fact that "-ng" as a final sound is very familiar in the English language. However, after the inauguration of President Ramon Magsaysay on December 30, 1953, the Philippine government reverted the name to Malacañang in honor of the palace's historical roots. During the administration of Corazon Aquino, for historical reasons, government policy was introduced to distinguish between both terms; while "Malacañan Palace" refers to the official residence of the president, "Malacañang" is addressed as the office of the president. Currently, the heading Malacañan Palace is reserved for official documents personally signed by the president, while those delegated to and signed by subordinates use the heading Malacañang.
History Spanish colonial era
The Spanish captains-general (before the independence of New Spain, from which the Philippines was directly governed) and the later governors-general originally resided at the Palacio del Gobernador (Governor's Palace) fronting the city square in the walled city of Intramuros in Manila. Malacañang Palace was originally built as a casita (or country house) in 1750, made of adobe and wood, with interiors panelled with the finest narra and molave. It sits on 16-hectare land owned by Spanish aristocrat don Antonio V. Rocha. It was subsequently sold to Col. José Miguel Formento on November 16, 1802, for a sum of a thousand pesos. Later, it was sold to the government upon his death in January 1825. With its expansive gardens and lazy verandah overlooking the placid Pasig River, Malacañan became the temporary summer home of governors-general, escaping the hectic bustle and unbearable heat of Intramuros.De Carlos, Abelardo (1896). "La Ilustracion española y americana, Part 2", pg. 171. Madrid.
An earthquake on June 3, 1863, destroyed the Palacio del Gobernador, and thereafter, Malacañang became the governor-general's official residence. Rafaél de Echagüe y Bermingham, previously governor of Puerto Rico, became the first Spanish governor-general to reside in the palace. Finding the place too small, he expanded the estate with a wooden two-story addition to the back of the original structure. He also added stables, carriage sheds, a boat landing for river-borne visitors, and smaller buildings for aides, guards, and porters.
An 1869 earthquake necessitated speedy repairs with more extensive reconstruction and expansion, further undertaken between 1875 and 1879 after subsequent earthquakes, typhoons and a fire caused graver structural damage. Posts and supports were repaired or replaced. Balconies were reinforced. Roofing was replaced with galvanized iron to lighten structural load and cornices were added for additional flair. The interior was also refurbished.
In 1880, an earthquake occurred, necessitating more repairs. This time, porticos were added to the façade to shelter waiting carriages. In 1885, a flagpole was installed in front of the palace. Decaying woodwork, stuck shell windows, leaking roofs, loose kitchen tiles, and drooped stables were some of the remaining deterioration due to numerous natural phenomena. An additional 22,000 pesos were spent on renovation and reconstruction.
By the end of Spanish rule in 1898, Malacañang Palace was a rambling complex of mostly wooden buildings that had sliding capiz windows, patios and azoteas.
American colonial rule
When the Philippines came under American sovereignty following the Spanish–American War, Malacañang Palace became the residence of the American governors-general, starting with General Wesley Merritt, the first American military governor to reside at the palace in 1898. William Howard Taft became the first civil governor to reside there in 1901. They and subsequent governors-general continued to improve and enlarge the palace, buying more land and reclaiming more of the Pasig River. Left and right wings were added. An azotea facing the river was joined to the existing azotea. A staircase was transferred to the center of the foyer with galleries built around the stairway where the public could circulate during crowded receptions. The ground floor was raised above the flood line, and workers replaced wood with concrete, beautified the interiors with hardwood panelling and added intricate chandeliers.
Commonwealth Era
The complex became the official residence of the president of the Philippines upon the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Philippines on November 15, 1935. President Manuel L. Quezon became the first Filipino resident of the palace. It has been the Philippine president's official residence ever since. One major improvement addressed during the American period was flood control. Quezon tackled the flooding problem around Malacañang by reclaiming 15 feet of the Pasig River bank and building a concrete wall. He also converted the ground floor (bodega) into a social hall. In addition to that, the Americans used shutters similar to Japanese shoji (made of opalescent shell) to soften the intensity of the tropical sunlight.
Emilio Aguinaldo, recognized as the first Filipino president but of the revolutionary government, the First Philippine Republic, established during the Spanish rule, did not reside but was later taken to the palace by the Americans as a political prisoner for a few weeks in 1901 after his capture in Palanan, Isabela. He resided in his private home as president, now the Aguinaldo Shrine, in Kawit, Cavite.
Malacañang Palace survived the Second World War, the only major government building left standing after the Bombing of Manila. Only the southwest side of the palace—which would have been the State Dining Room and its service area—was damaged by shelling. During the Second World War, in 1942, the Japanese turned Malacañang into a gilded prison, having served as the official residence of the Japanese-installed President of the Second Philippine Republic, Jose P. Laurel. Quezon moved the seat of government to Corregidor, the headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur.
Efforts of Macapagal By the time President Diosdado Macapagal moved to the palace, it required immense repair and restoration works. His wife, Eva Macapagal, initiated a massive beautification project that drove sidewalk vendors away from the grounds and turned muddy areas into landscaped gardens.
Later years The longest residents of the palace were President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda, who resided there from December 1965 to February 1986.
On January 30, 1970, four days after the fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Marcos, student activists were able to storm Gate 4 of the palace with a captured fire truck and threw stones and molotovs into the buildings and palace grounds before the Presidential Guards Battalion came out in full force and repulsed the militants. Later reports would state that damages to property reached between P500,000 and P1 million. In combination with rising civil unrest, Martial Law was declared in 1972 and the palace complex and its surrounding neighborhood were closed to the public.