Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa
Encyclopedia
Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa (1795-1851), a native of Gerona, Spain
(but of Biscayan
origin), was the Governor-General of the Philippines
from July 16, 1844 to December 26, 1849. Clavería was a man of culture, probity, and industry. He traveled through many provinces trying to learn the needs of the Filipinos. He encouraged agriculture, improved the streets and suburbs of Manila, and tried to give the Islands a government as good as that of modern Spain. His command in the Philippines was remarkable in every respect that he and his wife were titled the Count and Countess of Manila after returning to Spain. The towns of Claveria
in Misamis Oriental
province
and Claveria
in Cagayan
province were named in his honor.
After leaving the position of governor-general of the Philippines, he immediately returned to Spain where he contracted a disease and died on June 20, 1851 in Madrid
.
s of Europe and America. When Ferdinand Magellan
sailed west around the world, he lost a few minutes every day. He was going the same way the sun was going, so his day ended later than that of the people who remained in Europe. Therefore he was later in beginning the next day. By the time he reached the Philippines he was a day behind Europe in his date. This error had been known for centuries. That it was not corrected shows how the rulers of the Philippines in those days were slow to change a custom. Finally, Clavería and the Archbishop of Manila agreed to drop December 31, 1844, from the Philippine calendar. So after December 30, 1844, the day that followed was called January 1, 1845.
surname
s. Most of the people, however, had no surnames, which caused much confusion. On November 11, 1849, Clavería issued a decree sending a long lists of Spanish surnames to the chiefs of the provinces. These were sent out to the different towns, and given to the locals who had no surnames. In many towns, all these names began with the same letter of the alphabet.
pirates from the South who used to raid the coastal villages north of them.
and Jolo
) and released one hundred and thirty Filipino and Dutch
captives (from Java
) in 1848, for which he received the titles of Count
of Manila and Viscount
of Clavería, and the received the Knight Grand Cross of Royal and Military Order of San Fernando from Queen Isabella II
, besides other rewards.
. With the duties of three men to perform, it was not strange that the governors were often poor rulers. They knew little of the law. Therefore they sent all the important cases to Manila. For this reason there were often long delays in processing cases. Sometimes it required years to get justice and this encouraged the strong to oppress the weak. Clavería therefore ordered that the governors be men of two years experience in the law.
Clavería mandated that the governors should not engage in trade
. This wise decree was not fully obeyed for many years after the time of Clavería. At that time there were thirty-one provinces. The governor received a salary of from three hundred to two thousand pesos a year. The most common salary was six hundred pesos. In return for the privilege of controlling the trade of the provinces the governors paid the government as high as three thousand pesos a year. Yet they usually became rich. Men of high position tried to get these places. Sometimes they returned to Spain with fortunes, after a few years as governor. Too often these fortunes were made by dealing unjustly with the Filipinos. From the days, of the first encomenderos the Spanish officials looked upon the Filipino as a mine out of which to dig a fortune. They did not see that if the rulers of a country are to be prosperous, they must make all the people prosperous.
was erected on the south bank of the Pasig River
in 1848. The regular clergy were forbidden to alienate property on January 15, 1849. His term was marked by intense activity, and a number of papers were founded, among them being the first daily of Manila
, La Esperanza (December 1, 1846), and Diario de Manila (1848).
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(but of Biscayan
Biscay
Biscay is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Biscay. Its capital city is Bilbao...
origin), was the Governor-General of the Philippines
Governor-General of the Philippines
The Governor-General of the Philippines was the title of the government executive during the colonial period of the Philippines, governed mainly by Spain and the United States, and briefly by Great Britain, from 1565 to 1935....
from July 16, 1844 to December 26, 1849. Clavería was a man of culture, probity, and industry. He traveled through many provinces trying to learn the needs of the Filipinos. He encouraged agriculture, improved the streets and suburbs of Manila, and tried to give the Islands a government as good as that of modern Spain. His command in the Philippines was remarkable in every respect that he and his wife were titled the Count and Countess of Manila after returning to Spain. The towns of Claveria
Claveria, Misamis Oriental
The Town of Claveria is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Misamis Oriental, Mindanao, Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 43,514 people. In 2000 census it has a recorded 7,843 households...
in Misamis Oriental
Misamis Oriental
Misamis Oriental is a province of the Philippines located in the Northern Mindanao region. Its capital and provincial center is Cagayan de Oro City...
province
Provinces of the Philippines
The Provinces of the Philippines are the primary political and administrative divisions of the Philippines. There are 80 provinces at present, further subdivided into component cities and municipalities. The National Capital Region, as well as independent cities, are autonomous from any provincial...
and Claveria
Claveria, Cagayan
Claveria is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 30,275 people in 5,767 households....
in Cagayan
Cagayan
Cagayan , the "Land of Smiling Beauty", is a province of the Philippines in the Cagayan Valley region in Luzon. Its capital is Tuguegarao City and is located at the northeastern corner of the island of Luzon. Cagayan also includes the Babuyan Islands to the north. The province borders Ilocos Norte...
province were named in his honor.
Biography
Narciso Clavería was born in Gerona, Spain on May 2, 1795.After leaving the position of governor-general of the Philippines, he immediately returned to Spain where he contracted a disease and died on June 20, 1851 in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
.
Reformation of the Philippine calendar
The Philippines till 1845 were one day behind the calendarCalendar
A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
s of Europe and America. When Ferdinand Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
sailed west around the world, he lost a few minutes every day. He was going the same way the sun was going, so his day ended later than that of the people who remained in Europe. Therefore he was later in beginning the next day. By the time he reached the Philippines he was a day behind Europe in his date. This error had been known for centuries. That it was not corrected shows how the rulers of the Philippines in those days were slow to change a custom. Finally, Clavería and the Archbishop of Manila agreed to drop December 31, 1844, from the Philippine calendar. So after December 30, 1844, the day that followed was called January 1, 1845.
Surnames for the Filipinos
From the days of the Spanish conquest some Filipinos had received SpanishSpanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
s. Most of the people, however, had no surnames, which caused much confusion. On November 11, 1849, Clavería issued a decree sending a long lists of Spanish surnames to the chiefs of the provinces. These were sent out to the different towns, and given to the locals who had no surnames. In many towns, all these names began with the same letter of the alphabet.
First steamers in the Philippines
The first steamship war-vessels to sail regularly in Philippine waters were the Magallanes, Elcano, and Reina de Castilla. They were brought from London in 1848. These steamers were of great value, because now it was possible to chase and capture the swift boats of the MoroMoro
- Events :* Moro Crater massacre, an engagement in the Philippine-American War* Battle of the Moro, a World War II battle between mainly Canadian and German forces on the Moro river in Italy in 1943...
pirates from the South who used to raid the coastal villages north of them.
Conquest of the island of Balanguingui
Clavería conducted a successful expedition against the pirates of the Samal Islands. He destroyed several towns and forts on the island of Balanguingui (between the islands of BasilanBasilan
The Province of Basilan is an island province of the Philippines within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao . Basilan is the largest and northernmost of the major islands of the Sulu Archipelago and is located just off the southern coast of Zamboanga Peninsula...
and Jolo
Jolo
Jolo may refer to:* Jolo Island* Jolo, Sulu* Jolo, West Virginia* Jolo is also the nickname of Swedish author Jan Olof Olsson....
) and released one hundred and thirty Filipino and Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
captives (from Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
) in 1848, for which he received the titles of Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
of Manila and Viscount
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
of Clavería, and the received the Knight Grand Cross of Royal and Military Order of San Fernando from Queen Isabella II
Isabella II of Spain
Isabella II was the only female monarch of Spain in modern times. She came to the throne as an infant, but her succession was disputed by the Carlists, who refused to recognise a female sovereign, leading to the Carlist Wars. After a troubled reign, she was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of...
, besides other rewards.
Reforming the governors of the provinces
From the earliest days, the chief of a province had acted both as governor and judge. He also engaged in trade, of which he had a monopolyMonopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
. With the duties of three men to perform, it was not strange that the governors were often poor rulers. They knew little of the law. Therefore they sent all the important cases to Manila. For this reason there were often long delays in processing cases. Sometimes it required years to get justice and this encouraged the strong to oppress the weak. Clavería therefore ordered that the governors be men of two years experience in the law.
Clavería mandated that the governors should not engage in trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
. This wise decree was not fully obeyed for many years after the time of Clavería. At that time there were thirty-one provinces. The governor received a salary of from three hundred to two thousand pesos a year. The most common salary was six hundred pesos. In return for the privilege of controlling the trade of the provinces the governors paid the government as high as three thousand pesos a year. Yet they usually became rich. Men of high position tried to get these places. Sometimes they returned to Spain with fortunes, after a few years as governor. Too often these fortunes were made by dealing unjustly with the Filipinos. From the days, of the first encomenderos the Spanish officials looked upon the Filipino as a mine out of which to dig a fortune. They did not see that if the rulers of a country are to be prosperous, they must make all the people prosperous.
Other acts during his term
A casino called "Sociedad de recreo" (" Recreation Association ") was established on October 31, 1844. His proposal to establish military library was approved on February 15, 1846. A monument to Ferdinand MagellanFerdinand Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
was erected on the south bank of the Pasig River
Pasig River
The Pasig River is a river in the Philippines that connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Stretching for , it is lined by Metro Manila on each side...
in 1848. The regular clergy were forbidden to alienate property on January 15, 1849. His term was marked by intense activity, and a number of papers were founded, among them being the first daily of Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, La Esperanza (December 1, 1846), and Diario de Manila (1848).
External link
- Narciso de Clavería Zaldúa from Universidad Complutense de Madrid