The Walled City Called Intramuros in the Philippines

Intramuros is known to be one of Manila's top tourist attractions in the Philippines. It is rich in many vital cultural as well as historical heritage sites which includes Fort Santiago which in the past had been military headquarters for the Spanish. Named after Saint James, Slayers of the Moors (Santiago Matamoro), who is the patron saint of Spain and whose image now beautifies the main gate. Not only was it used as military headquarters for the Spanish but it was utilized for the Americans as well as the Japanese armed forces.

Inside Intramuros, there are also barracks that have been transformed into a shrine of Jose Rizal who was a Philippine national hero and had stayed at Intramuros prior to his execution for rebellion. Visitors here can view displays of various Rizal memorabilia which include manuscripts, shells, books, artwork and even his personal things. Other vital buildings located in Intramuros include the UNESCO world heritage site, San Agustin Church which is the oldest church in the Philippines and Barrio San Luis which is a display of colonial houses from the Spanish era that have been reconstructed. Even more buildings include the Bahay Tsinoy which is a Filipino and Chinese museum as well as the Manila Cathedral Church which is the seat of the local archdiocese. Intramuros is also recognized in having fine dining restaurants that have been renovated to look like Spanish colonial houses!

During the occupation of Americans, portions of the walls in Intramuros, were destroyed in order to house traffic and the moat was turned into a golf course. Intramuros saw its end at the close of World War II when the American troops fought in order to retake Manila from the Japanese. The attack resulted in the death of thousands of civilians as well as many Spanish churches, schools and houses. In the 1980's, President Ferdinand Marcos issued a proclamation which formed what was called the Intramuros Administration. This was developed to manage as well as guard the heritage of the Intramuros for all future generations to appreciate.

Here now is a brief explanation why it was called Intramuros. The name Intramuros means "within the walls". Now the walled city called Intramuros served as the colonial outpost in Asia for the Spanish for 400 years. Intramous was created by a Spanish conquistador known as Miguel Lopez de Legapsi in the year 1571. The streets of this new city was placed according to urbanization rules during 1573. This meant the streets were to be parallel as well as straight to one another which produced city blocks of identical sizes. Then a moat along with a stone wall was constructed in order to guard the city and its dwellers from any unwanted intruders.