Of the Siege of Manila by the English, in the Year 1762.
The courts of England and Spain had declared war in the month of
November, 1761, but nothing of this was known at Manila, although there
were reasons for our being in some degree on our guard. A priest,
who held a correspondence with the English on the coast, received
information of an expedition which was preparing there, and Father
Quadrado, an Augustine, received a letter from his father by way of
China, which informed him of the commencement of hostilities with
the English; but as it was private intelligence, and not confirmed,
those who had gone on their different pursuits to Canton and Batavia
paid no attention to it. On the 14th of September, 1762, an English
vessel appeared in the bay, which would not admit our officers on
board, and having made soundings all over the bay, sailed again by
the point of Mariveles.
The Mahhicas Indians informed us they had seen a large ship of two
tiers of guns, and manned with white men, the captain of which had
put many questions to them respecting the ships which traded to New
Spain. In Manila it was generally believed this ship was not in search
of the Philippine Islands, but was on its passage home to Europe,
and as it was near the commencement of the winter season, that she
was making all despatch to save the monsoon. It afterwards appeared,
however, that an English fleet had sailed from Madras the beginning
of August for the express purpose of taking Manila, and which was to
rendezvous at the island of Luban in case of separation, and which
actually did take place in consequence of a gale of wind, which obliged
one English frigate to put into Canton, and delayed the arrival of two
others eight days after the rest of the squadron appeared in our bay.
On the 22d of September, at half past five in the afternoon, a fleet
was discovered, consisting of thirteen sail, and notwithstanding he
was thus taken by surprize, the Governor immediately adopted every
needful measure of defence, and sent reinforcements to Cavite. While
preparations were thus making for the reception of an enemy, an officer
was despatched with a letter to the commanding officer of the squadron,
demanding to know who he was, and what motive he had for entering
the harbour. The following day, in the morning, two English officers
landed, and brought the answer of Admiral Cornish, who commanded the
squadron, and Brigadier-General Draper, who commanded the troops,
stating, that they had orders from the King of Great Britain to take
possession of these islands, and they demanded an immediate surrender,
for if any resistance were made, having a force sufficiently formidable
to attain the object in view, they should commence hostilities as
soon as they received an unfavourable reply. The Governor answered,
that the proposition they had made could not be accepted by subjects
faithful to their allegiance, and that they were ready to lose their
lives in the defence of the honour of their Sovereign. The squadron, in
consequence, approached near the south front of the powder manufactory,
and about six in the afternoon they took possession of that redoubt,
in which our people had left some saltpetre, and other effects,
having only had time to remove the powder. Supported by the fire of
the squadron, they took possession successively of the churches of
Malate, La Hermita, San Juan de Bagunbayan, and Santiago, and of all
the houses in those suburbs of Manila.
Two piquet guards made a sortie, but not being able to sustain the
heat of the enemy's fire from the church of Santiago, they were
obliged to retire.
If our troops had, in the first instance, opposed the landing of the
enemy, they possibly might have repulsed them, for they effected it
in the day-time, when the sea ran high, and there was a very great
surf, which occasioned the loss of one of the launches, carrying
an eighteen pounder, with the whole of her crew. The other launches
landed their troops, the water breast high, carrying their muskets
and cartouch boxes on their heads; and under these disadvantages two
hundred reached the shore, who immediately drew up in line, covering
the landing of the rest. If under these circumstances they had been
attacked, what might not have been expected from the gallantry of
our troops? But our numbers were so insignificant, that they were
no more than adequate to the defence of the walls. The whole force
in Manila consisted of the King's regiment, which was so reduced by
death and desertion, and by different detachments in the galleons and
garrisons, that they could scarcely muster five hundred and fifty men,
of which the artillery consisted of eighty, most of them Indians,
very little accustomed to the use of great guns.
On the arrival of the English, four companies of militia were formed
from among the merchants, and a few days after five thousand Indians
came to our aid, who not knowing how to handle a musket were of very
little use. The English had one thousand five hundred European troops,
consisting of Draper's regiment, two companies of artillery, three
thousand seamen, eight hundred seapoy fusileers, and one thousand four
hundred seapoy pioneers, making in all a force of six thousand eight
hundred and thirty men. How was it possible to resist such a force,
and think of preventing it from disembarking?
On the following day, the 24th, our batteries of San Diego and
San Andres commenced their fire, but with very little effect, the
enemy being under cover of a church. The same day arrived a galley,
which had been despatched by the commander of the Philipino, Acapulco
ship, which had put into Palapag. As soon as the enemy perceived this
galley, they despatched a light frigate and four shallops in chase,
when perceiving itself pursued, it bore up for Navotas, where it
was run on shore, and the crew quitted it, leaving on board only the
captain and some passengers, who were made prisoners. Not being able
to get off the galley, the English set it on fire, after stripping
it of every thing valuable. Those who escaped informed the Governor
that the Philipino was at Palapag, and that the captain was desirous
of measures being adopted, without loss of time, for securing the
treasure she had on board.
The English likewise, by means of the despatches they had taken in the
galley, got information of the situation of the Philipino, and sent
off that night a ship of the line and a frigate in quest of her; but
instead of her they fell in with the Trinidad, which had just arrived
on that part of the coast in her route to Acapulco, and of which they
made a prize, with her valuable cargo. Contenting themselves with
this, they gave the Philipino an opportunity of putting her treasure
on shore, thus preserving what proved our only resource during this
war, as we shall see afterwards. In the night a sortie was made from
the fort, with a view to dislodge the enemy from the churches, in
which they had strongly established themselves. The command of this
sortie was given to Monsieur Faller, a Frenchman, who had served in
Manila. He sallied out with two four-pounder field pieces, and the
requisite number of artillerymen, fifty fusileers of the regulars,
a few militia, and eight hundred Indians, armed with lances. He
attacked the enemy at his quarters, and the action lasted the whole
night; but observing that the English received fresh succours, he
withdrew his people towards the church of San Juan de Bagunbayan,
from which he kept up a fire against the church of Santiago until
the following morning, and from thence, by means of a reinforcement
which was sent him from the fort, he was enabled to make good his
retreat. This sortie could be considered only as an empty vaunt,
for how could they flatter themselves, with a handful of men, with
dislodging the English from the churches, which may be considered,
in fact, like so many castles, having such immensely thick walls of
square stone? Faller by this attempt incurred the charge of treason,
however unjustly.
The artillery now began to play incessantly on both sides; the
enemy did some injury to the buildings with their bombardment, and
some eighteen-inch shells were picked up in the fort quite entire,
and returned to them in their own camp. At night we used charges of
canister shot, and kept up a brisk fire of musketry, which produced
some effect, for the next day we perceived many of their dead between
the esplanade and their trenches.
On the morning of the 27th, at eight o'clock, some Indians and
Mestizoes, without having any orders to that effect, presented
themselves before the advanced guards of the English camp, fell upon
them, and drove them from their posts, but a reinforcement of three
hundred men arriving, the advantage was lost, and the Indians repulsed,
to whom a signal was made to leave the field open, in order that the
artillery might play upon the enemy. During this action, an English
officer was seen approaching with a white flag, accompanied by a youth
in negro's dress, and beating the chamade on his drum: our artillery
suspended their fire, but the Indians attacking the English officer,
murdered him and the boy who accompanied him.
The youth in the negro dress turned out to be a nephew of the
Archbishop, whom the English had made prisoner in the galley which
they took at Navotas, and the officer was bringing him to deliver him
up to his uncle. On the morning of the 28th, a letter was received
from the English general, demanding peremptorily the head of the
officer who fell on this occasion, the body having, the evening
before, been found without the head. He demanded also the author of
this atrocious act, with a threat that if he was not delivered up,
he would send the heads of all the prisoners in his possession. The
Governor replied to this demand by exculpating himself from the act,
pleading the uncivilized customs of the Indians, and throwing the
blame principally on the sepoys, who did not discontinue their fire
on our people even whilst the officer was advancing with the prisoner.
The bombardment now continued with vigour. The enemy had, in the
commencement of the siege, placed three mortars behind the church of
Santiago, to which they added another battery of three more mortars,
which threw the whole city into consternation. On the 29th they fired
against the houses of the Governor and Admiral, but without effect;
the shots which were fired horizontally reaching only to the beach,
and those which they threw by elevation passing over the fort to the
other side.
We on our part mounted two mortars in the bulwark of San Diego, from
whence were thrown shells against the enemy's camp. On the 30th, we
observed from the fort four shallops overset in the surf, with the crew
and troops which they were bringing on shore, and the same accident
happened to a sampan; and in the evening a south-wester freshening up,
a bomb vessel foundered which was advancing against the place. The
wreck of this vessel was discovered near Pasay, of which the Indians
gave information the day following, and the Governor despatched some
cavalry to take possession of it; but having arrived on the spot,
they were repelled by the enemy's fusileers, who made a sortie from
the quarters at Malate in defence of it.
On the 2d of October, at day-break, a battery of eight twenty-four
pounders opened against the angle of the foundery bulwark, and by
ten in the morning the whole of the parapet was a ruin. The enemy
at the same time directed their shells against that battery from
nine mortars of various calibres, assisted by the fire of two ships
in front; and so hot was the fire, that we picked up four thousand
balls of twenty-four pounds. But what incommoded the place most was
the fusileers, who could see from the tower and church of Santiago
all that passed in the city, and they could fire as they pleased
against its defenders. Notwithstanding such a heavy fire directed
against a bulwark without a parapet, only seven men were killed,
and about twenty wounded. Our people endeavoured to get possession of
the church of Santiago and the artillery, but could not succeed. The
ships discontinued their fire about sun-set, but the fire from
the camp continued all night, and dismounted the artillery of our
bastion, so that it became necessary to abandon it: the same night,
or rather in the morning of the 3d, it was resolved that a sortie
should be made from the fort. About five thousand Indians had arrived
from the provinces, of which two thousand Pampangos were selected for
this undertaking; they were divided into three columns, to advance by
different routes; the first, under command of Don Francisco Rodriguez,
was to attack the church of Santiago; the second, commanded by
Don Santiago Orendain, was ordered to throw itself upon Malate and
Hermita; and the third was to attack the troops on the beach, and
was commanded by Eslava y Bastos; the whole to be supported by two
piquets of fusileers. The Indians were no sooner on the outside of the
fort than they began a loud outcry, which prepared the enemy for their
reception; and when the column commanded by Rodriguez arrived near the
English camp, the Indians hesitated to advance; but being urged on by
the famous Manalastas, their chief, they proceeded, and finding the
church of Santiago abandoned, they ascended the tower, and began to
ring the bells; but the peals were of very short duration, for the
English fell upon them, and scarcely allowed them time to retreat.
The other column, which was ordered to advance on Hermita, marched
with the utmost silence until Orendain gave them orders to attack,
when they began with their accustomed howlings and beating of their
drums, and thus threw the English camp into complete disorder. The
English general put his troops under arms, and commenced a fire on
the Pampangas, who were speedily put to flight, and their confusion
was so great that every shot told. Two hundred were left dead on the
field, and Orendain clapping spurs to his horse, was very soon out
of all personal danger. From this time forward he was considered as
a traitor, and after Manila was delivered up to the English, many
were the more inclined to believe this, as he was much seen with
the English, although nothing was actually proved against him. The
third column was more fortunate, as, without having done or received
any damage they retired with more honour than the rest. This action,
however, so intimidated the Indians, that they almost all retreated to
their towns. The fire from the battery did not cease during all this
time, and demolished the whole face and platform of the works of the
foundery, whose ruins filled up the fosse; but what caused the greatest
uneasiness was a battery which the enemy had constructed, and which,
at twelve o'clock at noon, was opened against the works of San Andres
and San Eugenio, and so hot was the fire, that in two hours the guns
were dismounted from their carriages, the parapets thrown down, and
several fusileers and workmen killed, and though new parapets were
twice replaced with timber and bags of sand, they were immediately
demolished. The Governor held a council of war that same evening, at
which were present the staff officers, the Royal Audience, the deputies
of the city, and the prelates. The military men gave their opinion for
a capitulation, the rest were for obstinately continuing the defence,
availing themselves of the usual methods of repairing the works. Orders
were accordingly given to this effect, but they could not be put in
execution, as the few Indians who remained would not undertake such
dangerous work, and the Spaniards could not support the fatigue.
On the morning of the 4th the enemy began to throw carcases into the
fort; they set fire to some buildings, and the soldiers and inhabitants
of Manila were in the greatest consternation. In this state of things,
Monsieur Faller went to the Governor, and endeavoured to induce him
to capitulate, but as he had already incurred the charge of being
a traitor in the first sortie which he made against the English,
and the suspicion had been increased from the circumstance of his
going to the enemy's camp with a present from the Governor to the
English Commander in Chief, the Oidors would not permit him to have
a voice in the matter, suspecting his fidelity. On this account, when
the English left this for the peninsula, he was obliged to accompany
them, from the apprehension that at Manila they would institute some
suit against him. At one o'clock in the afternoon of this day, the
English troops presented themselves before the lines, showing a very
extensive front. The grenadiers were somewhat advanced, and in position
to make the assault. The town on this became in complete confusion,
and many inhabitants, with the clergy, seeing that no capitulation was
in agitation, determined to quit the city, which they could easily do,
as the guard of the Parian gate was composed of the town's people of
Manila. The English maintained their threatening position for some
time, and retiring without making any further attempt, the inhabitants
resumed their tranquillity, and thought no more of capitulation. On
the night of the 4th the fire of the enemy was terrible from the
artillery, the mortars and small arms by land, and principally from
the roof of the church of St. Jago, until two o'clock in the morning,
when it ceased, and was not resumed. From the commencement of the siege
they had thrown more than twenty thousand balls, five thousand shells,
and twenty-five carcases, which ruined a great many buildings in the
city, and set it on fire in five different places. We cannot account
for this otherwise than that the English, to give more splendor and
value to their conquest, resolved on such an enormous expenditure of
powder and ball, for much less would have sufficed to take a place
which was only in a state to defend itself against Asiatic nations,
and not against Europeans.