Lapulapu facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lapulapu |
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|---|---|
| Datu of Mactan | |
| Reign | fl. 1521 |
| Successor | Mangubat |
Lapulapu or Lapu-Lapu (fl. 1521), whose name was first recorded as Çilapulapu, was a datu of Mactan in the Visayas. He is best known for the Battle of Mactan that happened at dawn on April 27, 1521, where he and his warriors defeated the forces of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (Fernão de Magalhães, Fernando de Magallanes) and his native allies Rajah Humabon and Datu Zula. Magellan's death ended his voyage of circumnavigation and delayed the Spanish occupation of the islands by over forty years until the expedition of Miguel López de Legazpi in 1564. Legazpi continued the expeditions of Magellan, leading to the colonization of the Philippines for 333 years.
Modern Philippine society regards him as the first Filipino hero because of his resistance to imperial Spanish colonization. Monuments of Lapulapu have been built all over the Philippines to honor Lapulapu's bravery against the Spaniards. The Philippine National Police and the Bureau of Fire Protection use his image as part of their official seals.
Besides being a rival of Rajah Humabon of neighboring Cebu, very little is reliably known about the life of Lapulapu. The only existing primary source mentioning him by name is the account of Antonio Pigafetta, and according to historian Resil B. Mojares, no European who left a primary record of Magellan's voyage/vessel "knew what he looked like, heard him speak (his recorded words of defiance and pride are all indirect), or mentioned that he was present in the battle of Mactan that made him famous." His name, origins, religion, and fate are still a matter of controversy.
Images for kids
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Mactan Island in Cebu
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A depiction of the Battle of Mactan in the Magellan shrine
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Illustration from Antonio Pigafetta's journal showing Cebu, Mactan, and Bohol; with a label indicating that the "Capitaine general" died on Mactan (c. 1525)
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Depiction of the Visayan Pintados in the Boxer Codex (c. 1595)
