Research Paper on:
Spanish Colonial Rule in the Philippines

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
the direct result of European colonization. When the competition for territorial acquisition reached its pinnacle during the sixteenth century, the Philippines became just another jewel in the Spanish crown.  The government believed that the group of tiny islands would generate significant revenues through the spice trade. In addition, Spain had also regarded itself as the official representative  of the Roman Catholic Church, and missions were eagerly seeking Christian converts wherever they could find them (History of the Philippines, 2002). For the Filipinos who had established their  own modest economy and culture based on agriculture and primitive religious rituals, the intrusion was unwelcome. But in what was essentially a peasant society, they had little recourse except  to acquiesce to the mighty will of the Spanish Empire. The result of this early example of colonialism was several hundred years of upheaval, discord, and humiliation, as the  inferior Filipino way of life was replaced by superior European administrative, economic, social and religious practices. In 1521, Ferdinand Magellan was on the last leg of his journey to circumnavigate  the globe (History of the Philippines, 2002). He and his crew are believed to be the first Europeans to touch Filipino soil (History of the Philippines, 2002). On  the island of Cebu, Magellan erected a cross and claimed it as a territory of Charles I of Spain (Spanish Expeditions to the Philippines; History of the Philippines, 2002).  While the Spanish government was enthusiastic about the potential this exotic island represented, its residents were particularly less so, as evidenced by Magellans murder one month after his arrival by  a disgruntled local village chief (History of the Philippines, 2002). This was only the beginning of the uneasy alliance, and the Philippines did not become an official Spanish colony