A Review of Gubat History By: *Vladimir E. Estocado (Vladimir E. Estocado is currently on-leave of his Ph.D Doctoral Program of Public Administration at National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG) UP Diliman. Finished his Master of Community Development Major in Planning and Administration at CSWCD –UP Diliman, wherein he was the Head Researcher of the published book “Quezon City Council: Quezon City History Coffeetable Book”. For 2 years, his research work “Pangangaliskis at Pananaliksik sa Paligid ng Lawa ng Laguna (Research on Laguna Lake), equivalent to thesis work got a grade of 1.00, the highest grade in UP Diliman. He was able to interview the descendants of the Mayor, Vice-Mayor and Councilors of Quezon City from its foundation on October 12, 1939. Right now he is on his 4th year of his research work of the rich history and culture of his hometown – Gubat, Sorsogon.) I. INTRODUCTION: Compared with Quezon City founded October 12, 1939, which has just celebrated its 73th Founding Anniversary, the town of Gubat, geographically situated at the tip southern part of Luzon will be celebrating its 250th inaugural on the 13th June 2014. As the former colony town of the crown of Spain, Gobat’s 250th year of existence and contribution for national development can never be deprived of its historical significance. Spanish civil-military government strategically positioned its encampment in the higher grounds established its pueblo in the mountains of Mount Bulusan and made Gubat as its visita in the early stage of its colonization and subjected its inhabitants in the Royal Crown of Spain. It’s one of its longest roads, Manook Street, which named after Don Pedro Manook or either Manook the young warrior-prince who aided Legazpi in its armed and Christianization campaign, as its founder and foremost leader actually is the descendant of a Boholano king-warrior settled in Gubat and established a separate town from Bulusan. Gubatnon (“nong”, which means “people of”) are actually subjected to the Spanish authorities for the longest time in its church and base in Bulusan mountains, in its 333 years colonization created European settlements in the mold of “reducciones,” building the church surrounded by municipio (now Bicol University – Gubat Campus), plaza for religious worships and celebrations and land-based settlements “within the hearing of the church bells”. However, in the books of Dr. Luis Camara Dery, a Philippine historian mentioned that Gubat was never founded on the 13th day of June 1764. These conflicting records were the result of poor documentations, archives were destroyed by typhoons and damage by wars, public libraries and civil registrars were destroyed by fires, and the proliferation of private collectors who stole religious artifacts in the churches. Important documents that will serve as evidences were converted to oral histories by the elderly generations. Gubatnon or Ginubatnon languages remain intact for about 3,000 years as part of Austronesian language and culture. Numerically Gubatnon or Ginubatnon language counted 1. Sayo, 2. Duwa, 3. Tolo, 4. Upat, 5. Lima (Lima means “hand” in Austronesia) 6. Unom, 7. Pito, 8. Walo, 9.Siyam, 10. Napulo; was transformed by the Spanish authorities to; 1. Uno, 2. Dos., Tres, 4. Kuwatro, 5. Singko, 6. Sais, 7. Siete, 8. Otso, 9. Nuwebe, 10. Diyes. THE ORIGIN OF GUBAT AND ITS BARANGGAYS (BARRIOS): Gubat, a small town part of Sorsogon Province (Bicol Region), is a Visayan term means “attack’, “war” or “raid”; a term from an incident in the coastal of Buenavista and Ariman where the Spaniards first landed their ships. Moro from Mindanao and Visayas frequently raided the coastals of Ibalon or Bicol region in search for slaves and harvests. Oral histories recorded by Spanish authorities archived in museums and libraries were the sole witnesses of one of the darkest period in its existence. The combined forces of Tausugs, Maguindanaos, Borneans, Ternatans, ang their other native anti-Spaniards allies grew tense as they neared the coastal villages they chose to attack. As they pushed on aboard their swift joangas and karakoas the Moro warriors, to steel their morale, punctuated the deafening stillness of the sea with their martial, manggayaw songs. Led by Datu Salikula (Sali) of Maguindanao and Datu Sirongan, the Rajah of Buayan, the Moro force numbered some three thousand (3,000) to eight thousand (8,000) men. The attacks in 1746 were similarly devastating. Not only did the Sorsogon and Gubat towns suffer but the raiders also destroyed the town of Gate, a town that was twelve kilometers distant from the coast. Various places got their names because of the Moro raiders in the years 1751 until 1896. Quenastillohan (place where a watchtower was built), Baluarte (place where a fort was built), Pigtaw-anan (lookout place), Cota (fort), etc. were some examples. The town of Gubat, Sorsogon, was named by its inhabitants because when some Spaniards came around asking for the name of the place, the people shouted “gubat, gubat!” (raid! raid!) for the inhabitants saw the Moro raiders coming. The impact of Moro anti-colonial resistance forced many coastal communities in Gubat, particularly the Ariman (Alamag, Aramag, Aropag) to moved farther into the interiors in the mountains and hinterlands. These were the residents who eventually formed the core residents of the barrios and visitas that multiplied during the 19th century. REFERENCES: Dery, Luis Camara. The Kris in Philippine History. A Study of the Impact of Moro Anti-Colonial Resistance, 1571-1896. Philippine Copyright 1997. Pages 10-13. FROM PROVINCIA DE IBALON TO PROVINCIA DE ALBAY: Goyena del Prado, a noted Bikol historian mentioned that the Moro raided the town of Sorsogon in Albay Province in 1737, 1740, 1746, 1749, and 1781. The 1740 raid against the towns in the Sorsogon Gulf was bloody. The Moros killed twenty-eight. They captured another twenty-eight in Sorsogon town alone. All the other towns in the said Gulf presumably suffered the same fate. As a consequence, in 1742 the Spanish colonial government transferred the capital of the Provincia de Ibalon from the town of Ibalon, in Western Sorsogon, to the town of Albay Viejo, in eastern Albay. Albay Viejo is located in the Gulf of Albay opposite the Gulf of Sorsogon and could easily be defended against the Moros. The transfer explains why the name “Provincia de Ibalon” became “Provincia de Albay.” REFERENCES: Dery, Luis Camara. The Kris in Philippine History. A Study of the Impact of Moro Anti-Colonial Resistance, 1571-1896. Philippine Copyright 1997. Page 25. THE MORO ATTACKS IN BACON AND SORSOGON: On June 27, 1754, the Moros came while the inhabitants of Sorsogon, Sorsogon were out in the field harvesting. They despoiled Sorsogon and they destroyed the town of Bacon. On July 6, a galeota from Donsol town battled seven joangas of Moros for three hours. The galeota sunk two joangas while the rest retired. On August 1, it was the turn of the towns along the shores of Sorsogon Gulf. Macalaya, Donsol, Sorsogon, and nearby towns suffered destruction. The attacks terrified the people of Donsol so that they evacuated their coastal site at Sitio de Barra to an interior site named Cagoncognan (now called Banuang-Gurang), which was a day’s travel to the coast. REFERENCES: Dery, Luis Camara. The Kris in Philippine History. A Study of the Impact of Moro Anti-Colonial Resistance, 1571-1896. Philippine Copyright 1997. IT WAS IN COGON WHERE THE FIRST GUBAT PARISH CHURCH WAS BUILT: SAINT ANTHONY OF PADUA PARISH CHURCH: June 13 of every year has always been a special day for the Roman Catholic Gubatnons since June 13, 1731 when the missionary Franciscan founders dedicated Gubat to God in honor of Saint Anthony of Padua. Thirty-three (33) years later, on June 13, 1764, Gubat officially became a Pueblo independent of Bulusan. Although the missionaries were instrumental in the creation of Gubat into a Pueblo, Gubat became a parish separate from that of Bulusan very much later. In 1777 the parish of Gubat was finally separated from Bulusan and Fray Geronimo Cabello, a Franciscan missionary, was assigned as the first parish priest. It was also the Franciscans who translated the bible and mass from Latin and Spanish into local Bicol language. Fray Cabello immediately constructed a church of bamboo and nipa in Cacogonan, (now Barrio Cogon), but this was destroyed by typhoons. With the help of tributes given by the people, which amounted to no more than 600 pesetas a year, he constructed another church of lime and stone which he dedicated in honor of another Franciscan missionary of world renown – Saint Anthony of Padua – most probably in commemoration of that June 13 morning 1731 when the first missionaries first set foot on Gubat. Fray Cabello did not limit his attention to the construction of the new church. Noting how fearful his flock was of Moro raids, he worked hard with the civil authorities and constructed a stone watchtower at the mouth of the Handauan river which led to Cacogonan (now Cogon). While the new church was strong enough to withstand typhoons, it was not so as earthquakes were concerned. During the earthquake which preceded the disastrous eruption of Mayon Volcano in 1814, the new church crumbled. Its reconstruction fell on the shoulders of Father Eulalio Prudencio who opted to transfer it to the site of the Pueblo chosen earlier by Don Pedro Manooc, and this was the place called Pinontingan which was protected by a thick mangrove and thorny bamboo called marurugi. But because the place was quite swampy, Father Prudencio chose to build a church, also of lime and stone, on the outskirts of Pinontingan, where it still stands to welcome all worshippers to its fold. REFERENCES: Estropigan, Isaias. St. Anthony of Padua Parish, A Little Early History. Gubat Town Fiesta June 6-13, 2002 Souvenir Program Magazine. Municipality of Gubat. June 6-13, 2002. Page 21.
Posted on: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 04:42:57 +0000
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