Lakandula
Lakandula was the title of the last lakan or paramount ruler of pre-colonial Tondo when the Spaniards first conquered the lands of the Pasig River delta in the Philippines in the 1570s.
The firsthand account of Spanish Royal Notary Hernando Riquel says that he introduced himself to the Spanish as "Sibunao Lacandola". While his given name has since been interpreted as being "Bunao", the historic meaning of the word Lakan, was a title equivalent to prince or paramount ruler, meaning he was the principal Datu or Prince of his domain.
Along with Rajah Matanda and Rajah Sulayman, Bunao Lakandula, was one of three rulers who played significant roles in the Spanish conquest of the Pasig River delta polities during the earliest days of the Philippines under Spanish colonial period.
While it is questionable whether "Lakandula" represented a single titular name during his own lifetime, a few of his descendants in the first few generations after his death came to refer to themselves as the "Lakandula of Tondo", taking that name on as a noble title.
Name and title
Over time, the Lakandula's name has come to be written in several ways. However, according to the firsthand account written in Spanish by Hernando Riquel, the royal notary who accompanied Miguel López de Legazpi, the Lord of Tondo specifically identified himself as "Sibunao Lacandola, lord of the town of Tondo" when he boarded Legazpi's ship with the lords of Manila on May 18, 1571. According to Riquel, the lords of Manila introduced themselves as "Rajah Ache the Old and Rajah Soliman the Young, lords and principals of the town of Manila"In page 13 of "Cracks in the Parchment Curtain", preeminent historian William Henry Scott quotes Riquel's original text, which he found in the Spanish archives under "Archivo General de Indias Seccion Patronato leg. 24, no 24." The relevant part of the text read:
...declaracion llamarse Raha Ache el Viejo y Raha Solimane el Mozo, senores y principales del pueblo de Manila, y Sibunao Lacandola, principal del pueblo de Tondo...
Modern historians routinely remove the Filipino word "si", a grammatical article that precede personal names, from recorded names during this era because Spanish writers had not yet learned the local languages and often mistakenly included "si-" in Filipino names. Sibunao thus should be interpreted as " si Bunao" = " Bunao". Historians thus take this to mean that the Lakan introduced himself as "Bunao Lakandula." At the time, Lakandula was assumed to be a regnal name, but as noted below, it was actually his title.
Etymology of "Lakandula"
His title "Lakan" denoted a "paramount ruler" of one of the large coastal settlements of the Tagalog people.In its current Tagalog form, means "gentleman".
Another common variation of the name is Gat Dula. Historically, the prefix Gat, a shortened version of the Tagalog honorific "Pamagat", meant "nobleman." Hence, Gatdula would literally read "Nobleman of the Palace", meaning essentially the same thing as the Kapampangan version, Lakandula.
This leaves the matter of the addendum "dula" to be settled. While this could not have been a family name such as Filipinos use today, this may not be a satisfactory explanation, since static family names were introduced to the Filipino culture much later, by a decree issued by Governor General Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa on November 11, 1849. Alternatively, rather than a surname per se, Dula may have referred to a family group or clan, but there does not neem to be any historical evidence to support this postulation. Historian Jose N. Sevilla y Tolentino, theorized that "Dula" was not a personal name at all, but a local word that meant something akin to "Palace". While he may not have ruled from a literal palace, this would have indicated the Lakan's seat of power. As such, the "Lakandula" would have been the local language title for the "Lord of the Palace" and ruler of Tondo. Analogously, contemporary Rajah Ache was referred to as Rajah Matanda, while Rajah Sulayman was sometimes referred to as Rajah Muda or Rajamora.
Historians such as Dery and Scott explain that his given name was Bunaw, but they also continue to refer to him by his title, Lakandula or "the" Lakandula. On the other hand, Joaquin explains that the Lakan's given name was Bunaw, and proceeds to call him Lakan Dula or "the" Lakan Dula throughout his "Manila, My Manila" manuscript. In any case, many contemporary historians continue to ignore the fact that Lakan was a title, and refer to the last Lakan of Dula as "Lakandula" as if it had been his name. All things considered, the most accurate way to style the historical person's name and title would be "Bunao, Lakandula" or "the Lakan of Tondo".
"Lakan" instead of "Rajah"
While he has been erroneously referred to as Rajah Lakandula, the terms "Rajah" and "Lakan" actually have practically the same meaning. In Tondo, the native Lakan title was used, making the use of both "Rajah" and "Lakandula" at the same time both redundant and erroneous. and Filipino historian and national artist for literature Nick Joaquin takes pains to point out that the term Lakan, not Rajah, was used by the rulers of Tondo.Life before the arrival of the Spaniards
Little is known about the early life of Bunaw, Lakan Dula, before the arrival of Legazpi. According to National Artist Nick Joaquin "he is presumed to be of native birth," with mixed Sinaunang Tagalog and Kapampangan ancestry. Joaquin adds that "He was said to be a descendant of King Balagtas."Joaquin further speculates on the Lakandula's religious beliefs:
"Tondo's Lakan Dula may have been unusual in being neither foreign nor Muslim. This was indicated by his use of the native term Lakan instead of the foreign title Rajah. Lakandula can be presumed... to have been reared in the anito cults. One guess is that he converted to Islam, then changed his mind and returned to his native faith."
Joaquin also expounds on the economic context of the Lakandula's reign over Tondo:
"Tondo had replaced Namayan as the chief port of entry on Manila Bay. Tondo was right on the seaside. This was the advantage it had over Namayan, which was upriver inland. So the merchant ships that came into the bay preferred to unload their goods at the port of Tondo. And now it was the king of Tondo who was responsible for sending the merchandise upriver to the lakeside communities, there to be traded for local products. Tondo was thus the distributing center, or entrepot, on the delta... At the time of Lakan , Tondo was at the height of its career as an entrepot...."
According to Scott, when ships from China arrived at Manila Bay, the Lakandula would remove the sails and rudders of their ships until they paid him duties and anchorage fees, and then he would then buy up all their goods himself, paying half its value immediately and then paying the other half upon their return the following year. In the interim, he would trade these goods with peoples further upstream, the end result being that other locals were not able to buy anything from the Chinese directly, but only through the Lakandula, who made a considerable profit as a result.
William Henry Scott notes that Augustinian Fray Martin de Rada Legaspi reported that the Tagalogs were "more traders than warriors", and elsewhere notes that Maynila's ships got their goods from Tondo and then dominated trade through the rest of the archipelago. People in other parts of the archipelago often referred to Maynila's boats as "Chinese" because they came bearing Chinese goods.
Arrival of Legazpi, May 1571
When Miguel Lopez de Legazpi arrived at Manila Bay in May 1571, the Lakandula was there to meet him. The two first met on May 17, the day after Legazpi's arrival on the bay, when Rajah Matanda and Lakandula boarded Legazpi's ship to discuss terms with him. Part of these discussions specified that the Spaniards would not land in Tondo, and would instead land in Manila, which had been burned to the ground the year before. Joaquin suggests that Lakandula would "have seen that Legaspi was being practical. Burned down and emptied, Maynila would be a better spot to fortify, being more strategic." In fact, Manila was not conquered, but it was occupied through a peace pact that joined Legazpi and the three kings: the Lakandula, the Rajah Ache and the Rajah Sulayman.On May 18, 1571, the native nobility of Luzon, Rajah Sulayman, Rajah Matanda, and Lakandula, acknowledged the sovereignty of Spain over the islands and proclaimed themselves to be vassals of Spain. On the following day, May 19, Legazpi landed in Manila and took ceremonial possession of the land in the presence of Soliman, Matanda, and Lakandula.
Lakandula helped establish a house for Legazpi and build a fort for the Spaniards, giving them fourteen pieces of artillery and twelve jars of gunpowder, a gift much appreciated by the Spaniards, who were running low on ammunition.
Soon after, the Lakandula and his sons were baptized as Catholics. Bunao Lakandula took on the name "Don Carlos Lacandola" after Charles I of Spain. To celebrate the event, the Spanish discharged Manila's artillery and arquebuses as part of the ceremony.
The Battle of Bangkusay, June 1571
When the Spaniards first came to Manila they were kindly accepted, but over time the natives understood that it had meant subservience to them. It was not long before Spanish power in Luzon was challenged. A first battle took place on May 24, 1570, where the natives were defeated. A month later, Tarik Sulayman of Macabebe attacked Manila, convincing Rajah Sulayman to join the battle against Legazpi. Macabebe and Sulayman's forces were defeated, and the Datu of Macabebe was killed in what history would record as the Battle of Bangkusay Channel.Lakandula had refused to join Macabebe and Sulayman's coalition, but among the prisoners taken by the Spaniards after the battle were two of his nephews and a number of his officers. When questioned, they said that they had been on the scene only as observers, not as combatants. Legazpi let them go to demonstrate his confidence in Lakandula.
Joaquin notes that this was a wise choice on Legazpi's part:
"If he had been playing a double game before, Lakandula now became earnest in supporting the Spanish. It may be he who persuaded the fugitive Soliman to surrender and return to the good graces of Legazpi."