Your Majesty will find in the enclosed report the resolutions
adopted by the Committees of the War and Treasury Departments for the
purpose of reinstating the king of Sulu, Fernando the First, whom I
found in this capital, baptized and protected by Royal briefs insuring him
the continuation of the same Eoyal goodwill as long as he remained a
Christian and a friend of the nation, which seems to be his intention
hitherto, with the help of 3 galleys, 3 barges, 1 gaJiot, 2 large champanes
and other craft for war and transportation, under the orders of the
Master-of-camp of your Majesty's infantry here, to whom I have given the
instructions and orders contained in said report, to the effect that he
should make port at Zamboanga, and from 'there try to subdue the rebel
vassals, blockade the island of Sulu by sea, cut it off from all communica-
tion with its neighbors, prevent food from being introduced, prevent and
punish all depredations, acts of piracy and insults on the part of that
barbarous nation against the town and vassals of your Majesty of which
I receive pitiful complaints every day, and see that the captives are
returned and that due observance is given the treaties of peace and other
agreements which were made by my predecessor but have not proved to
be as satisfactory as might have been hoped, on account of the inconstancy
which characterizes that nation.
Before undertaking such an important operation, I decided to order
the construction of three average sized galleys, and other small vessels,
of which there were none in these Islands; and to arm them I ordered
to be cast 100 perrier cannon of calibre 2, with three chambers each,
ordering the tranfer to the province of Iloilo of General Francisco
Domingo Oscoti, as Lieutenant-Intendant-General, with instructions to
prepare provisions at the smallest cost for the Treasury, and directing
him to issue a proclamation (as he did) calling for volunteers, who
would be rewarded according to their merits on the ships plying between
Manila and Acapulco, and authorizing the natives to arm boats at their
expense, exempting them of all taxes during the expedition. As I was
in possession of a rescript of your Majesty addressed to his Field Marshal
my predecessor Gaspar de la Torre, ordering him to reconnoiter the island
of Balabak, and Ipolote Bay, and other places of Palawan Island for the
purpose of building a fort for the protection of the inhabitants against
the people of Sulu, Tiron and Borneo, and to build six galleys with which
to fight tlie Moros, with a report on the same object presented by the
Province of Saint Nicholas of tlu^e Islands,' both of which have been
communicat<id to said Committees of the War and Trciusury Department
and to persons who had knowledge by experience of the said province and
regions; alpo, in view of the poor condition of the Royal treasury which
precluded the possibility of greater expenses it was decided, in accordance
with the opinion of your Majesty's Fiscal [Attorney General] in regard
to the above mentioned instniments, to incorporate them to said report
(or record),- as they are of the same nature, to take, when there was a
better opportunity, tlie proper measures for reconnoitering the most
favorable position for the intended fort, and to await the result of the
expedition for the reinstatement of the king of Sulu, so as to request
him, if the result should be favorable, to withdraw his vassals from the
fort of Ipolote, and, if not, to secure the safety of the people of the said
island by driving them out ; and having already ordered, as I have said,
the construction of the galleys, which were necessary and made more so
by your Royal order, to continue the work until the six were built, said
work being carried on witU t]\e ut^nost care and economy, which I
always bear in mind in my zeal for the service of your Majesty.
I will send your Majost}' full reports on the progress of these different
undertakings, so that your Royal orders may let me know your Royal
pleasure, which will always meet with my humble obedience.
God give the Royal and Catholic Person of your Majesty the many
years of life which are required by Christendom for the happiness of
your vast dominions.
In a letter addressed to your Majesty last year, 1751, I for-
warded a report and vouchers to the effect that I had sent, with the
King jof Sulu, Fernando the First, to tlie fortified station of Zaniboanga,
a fleet of 3 galleys, two feluccas, two galiots and two large champanes,
with other craft, under the Mastor-of-camp ^ of the Koyal troops here, for
the purpose of restoring said king to his throne and forcing his rebel
vassals to submit, by means of a blockade of the island of Sulu, which
would cut it off from all communication with its neighbors and prevent
the importation of food to the island, other provisions being made for
the purpose of protecting the Christian communities against any further
harm on the part of the Sulu people and the Tirons.^ 1 have the honor
to report now that the said Ma*ster-of-camp arrived at Zamboanga with
most of the fleet, ahead of the Sultan of Sulu, who had been delayed by
various accidents, and sailed at once, in order to avoid the monsoon, for
the Bay of Jolo, where he anchored on the 26th of June of that year,
at about one mile from the forts. He formed line of battle, and, notic-
ing two Chinese champanes without flags, that were stationed near the
river mouth and were stretching two lines to go up stream, he ordered
two long-boats to go and remove them from under the artillery of the
enemy ; the Jolo forts, four in number, displayed /ed banners and opened
fire with cannon of calibre 8 to 18 on the boats towing the champanes ;
our fleet answered, and the fire was kept up some time on both sides, until
the enemy hoisted the white flag in order to gain time for reenforcing his
trenches ; the Master-of-camp sent a letter to Prince Asin, informing him
that his only purpose was to restore the legitimate king of Sulu to his
dominions, and to have the captives delivered ; the prince answered that
he had no captives to deliver; that he was waiting for the return of the
king, who would do as he wished with them, that he was begging the
Prophet to send back the king * * *. Finding such an answer vain
and impertinent, our ships opened fire again; a suburb was stormed and
burned, and our men found out that the negotiations were a pretext to
gain time to place artillery behind the palisades ; the Moros accomplished
this purpose and again requested a truce in order to hold a meeting of
their leaders and to deliberate as to what should be done. This was
granted, and in a second letter signed by the Datus Prince Asin insisted
that the Master-of-camp should retire to Zamboanga, promising to bring
over the captives; as the south-west monsoon was blowing hard and he
was short of provisions, the latter decided to go back to Zamboanga; the
Datus informed their king Fernando in a letter addressed to him at
Zamboanga of what had been agreed; Prince Asin also stated verbally
that he would bring to Zamboanga some captives whom he was going to
seek in the woods, and asked the Master to leave the port, while he went
after the wives and children of the followers of King. Fernando, who
had been frightened and scattered by the artillery. After a few more
answers and objections which showed an utter lack of sincerity, the Master-
of-camp sailed back to Zamboanga. The King of Sulu had arrived
there on June 22, and as soon as he heard about the truce requested by
his brother Asin, and other affairs of the fleet, he declared that the
prince was his enemy. This statement was believed at the time, but soon
afterwards good-sized boats began to arrive one after the other with
many of his principal people on the pretext of Prince Asin's visit to the
King, until there were 180 persons, including 32 women between con-
cubines and servants. When the Master-of-camp, Governor of Zam-
boanga, remarked that all these boats were full of fireaiins, powder, ball,
coats of mail, helmets, and other warlike equipment, that the King of
Sulu had secretly sent to his brother Asin, at Basilan, golden buckles
and epaulets, and embroidered stockings to make a brilliant appearance at
landing in Zamboanga, while he feigned to be his enemy; that Prince
Asin had failed to keep his word, since he said that he had been unable
to get hold of the captives he was to bring to Zamboanga, when it was
known that he was keeping the said captives in a secret place, six of
them, including a woman, having escaped by swimming over to the
fleet when the latter was at Jolo, and reported that the Moros had many
captives concealed in the woods; that Prince Asin had written to the
King that all the captives seized during the latter's stay in Manila were
still in their power, not one having been sold while awaiting the royal
commands; and finally, that the King and his brother were secretly dis-
missing the concubines only, telling them that the Master-of-camp was
sending them away with contumely ; he inferred that the King was prepar-
ing to surprise the fort. This surmise was strengthened by the face
that aruied men were steadily coming in each day, despite the Master-of-
camp's friendly admonition to the King that his followers enter the fort
unarmed. The lying and disingenuousness of the King, which all these
indications were making plainer every moment, were finally betrayed by
a letter, written in Arabic characters, to tlie King of Mindanao, in which
he stated that he had been compelled, by those in whose power he was,
to write the letter he had previously sent him from Manila, — ^whereas he
had enjoyed complete freedom in this capital, so complete, in fact, that
he did not perform, during the voyage hence to Zamboanga, a single rite
of the Christian religion, as far as known, while he was seen to perform
various Moro religious acts, and took with him the Quran in his own
language, instead of the numerous Catholic books which had been given
him for his instruction. In view of all the foregoing evidence of bad
faith, the Master-of-camp, Governor of Zamboanga, and the captains of
the fleet decided to arrest at the same time the King, the datus and their
men, to seize their boats, arms, and concealed ammunition, and to keep
the wliole under careful guard, the men being detained in decent quarters,
pending the decision of the Captain-General.
In reflecting on this, important and critical change in the situation,
I bore in mind that the said King of Sulu had been a false friend and a
consummate Machiavellian, who had deceived your Majesty's Governor
Fernando Valdes Tainon with his feigned promises of peace, which he
never kept, and that, instead of releasing the captives and preventing
the cruel outrages of liis vassals the Moros and Tirons, he had used the
considerable supply of arms, which he received from the said Governor
and Governor Gaspar de la Torre under the pretence of suppressing sup-
posed rebellions of his vassals, to keep our forces busy in Sulu, so that
his vassals the Tiron pirates might ravage the provinces, while our forces
were engaged in the Sulu kingdom. He also deceived your Majesty's
Governor and Bishop when a fleet was sent against the Tirons; he went
as an ally and a pilot for the fleet among the shallows, and the small
islands belonging to the enemy, and prevented the destruction of the
principal towns, by misrepresenting to the commander of the expedition
that said towns belonged to peaceful people who were friends of his,
and pledging himself to have the prisoners returned, so that the fleet
retired after burning only nine villages without importance, thanks to
the cunning of the king. The trouble caused by all these Moros, thanks
to his influence, is really astounding, and has nearly drained the Royal
treasury, as, since the last peace agreement made by Governor Tamon,
89,744 pesos have been spent from 1736 to 1740, and since then the war
expenses have far exceeded that amount. All these criminal and astute
antecedents fully justify my distrust in giving careful instructions to
the Master-of-camp to avoid a surprise of the fort under the veil of
feigned friendship; I really expected this new act of treason on account
of what I already knew about the said King of Sulu, and was only held
back by the fact that he had been baptized, and the information about
him which my predecessor had given me in good faith. As it is, all
the members of the Government were glad that the treachery of the
King had been foreseen and that he had been arrested. * ♦ ♦
In Zamboanga, after his arrest, 12 krises, each in six pieces, were
found liidden in two cushions belonging to him. * * * Urged by
the members of the ministry, I proceeded at once to explain to the
Real Acuerdo ^ and the council of war all the difficulty of inflicting the
condign punishment that was deserved, and, supported by a majority
of votes, I decided to declare war on all the Sulus, Tirons and Kamu-
kons, with the understanding that no capitulations or treaties of peace
would be considered, but that they would be treated as rebels, in their
persons, their property and their land, and put to the sword in case of
resistance; that all their towns would be destroyed and burned; and that
the mission of our fleet was not. to make conquests, but to punish tlie
rebellion and to blockade the island of Sulu so as to prevent any attempt
to bring in food or any other help. I also directed that the King of
Sulu, who was under arrest at Zamboanga, should be sent to Manila,
there to be kept in confinement until the pleasure of your Majesty be
known. The Datus and other Moros were declared to be slaves, and I
ordered that they should be branded and marked, not so much for the
purpose of guaranteeing the ownership of their masters or punishing
their obstinacy, as for that of avoiding all confusion between them and
the numerous Indians of these Islands, whom they resemble in color,
bearing and language, of crushing their pride, their daring and their evil
spirit, experience having shown that 8 Sulus suffice to subjugate a whole
town, and principally of preventing the clandestine introduction of the
sect of Mohammed, which would easily spread among the Indians, if
the brand did not mark them as enemies from Sulu, it being known
that the sect of Mohammed is daily extending its darkness over these
regions. * * *
The declaration of war against the Moros was publislied in all the
provinces, which were instructed to be constantly ready for attack or
defense; to organize companies of militia, with their officers, in all the
pueblos, and have them frequently drilled and reviewed, so as to become
skilful in the use of their arms; to send a list of all the arms and am-
munition on hand to the Captain-General, who will thus be able to
supply them with all he may deem necessary. I furthermore ordered
that no boat should leave Manila or any other port without being well
provided with men and arms, and issued proclamations calling for
privateers, several of whom have already been given letters of marque
and have sailed with the hope of doing good service for your Majesty;
I issued new instructions on every subject, to be followed in their respec-
tive parts according to circumstances; I reserved for my future action
the disposal of our prisoners at the best terms, one fifth of the profits
going to the Royal treasury ; the right of plundering was declared to be
free for all, all privateers from the Bisayas were exempted from tribute,
and I promised them in the name of your Majesty 6 pesos for each
Moro, as an encouragement to pursue and exterminate them. As soon
as I heard the news from Zamboanga, I sent there a supply boat with
plenty of food, arms and ?oldiers, in view of the next campaign; I took
on myself the care of relieving from time to time the officers and soldiers
* * * and I can sincerely assure your Majesty that I have been so
provoked and exasperated by the untamable fierceness and the bad faith
of the Moros, that I am decided to spare neither work nor efforts in
order to punish them thoroughly and to deliver from oppression the
Christian communities, so that tlie glorious name of your Majesty may
be feared and respected all through my Government, in compensation
for the gross deceit practised by said Moros upon my predecessors. I
trust, with the help of God, to punish them as they deserve, and will
report to your Majesty the progress of the expedition.
God keep the Catholic and Royal Person of your Majesty many years,
as Christendom and the Monarchy have need.
