Lapu-Lapu: The story and myths behind the Filipino hero
Lapu-Lapu is widely known as a hero who opposed colonization by vanquishing Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan on April 27, 1521.
Magellan, who sailed both Portugal (1505–13) and Spain (1519–21), arrived on the islands in 1521, stumbling on Samar (previously know as Homonhon Island). Magellan made an effort to convert all the indigenous people to Christianity. He convinced Rajah Humabon, who ruled Cebu (then referred to as Sugbo) at the time, to be baptized into Catholicism.
After his baptism, Humabon complained to Magellan about a ruler from nearby Mactan Island by the name of Lapu-Lapu. According to Esquire Magazine, Mactan’s location allowed its ruler to control surrounding waters, giving Lapu-Lapu power to control trade coming in and out of Cebu. This, along with Lapu-Lapu’s reputation as a fearless fighter allowed him to assert dominance over Humabon.
Humabon was looking for a way to cut Lapu-Lapu’s power and saw that Magellan could help. It was Humabon who insisted Magellan fight Lapu-Lapu and his army.
Magellan’s men advised him not to interfere in local affairs, but he didn’t listen and decided to fight Lapu-Lapu with 60 men and three longboats.
The forty-one-year-old Magellan attacked Mactan with his small force on April 27, 1521. The explorer and his men waded to shore to engage Lapu-Lapu’s large army of 1,500 warriors. Magellan wanted to use his ships to attack Lapu-Lapu’s army, but they arrived during low tied and were anchored too far from the shore for their cannons to be effective.
Italian scholar Antonio Pigafetta traveled with Magellan during the voyage, taking notes on the events. According to his account, Lapu-Lapu’s warriors aimed their bamboo spears and poisoned arrows at the leg of their enemies — killing Magellan. The survivors came back rushing to the ship defeated. Pigafetta mourned Magellan’s death calling him “our mirror, our light, our comfort, and our true guide.”
For a long time, people believed that Lapu-Lapu killed Magellan during the battle. However, historians say there isn’t enough evidence to prove that’s how the fight played out. Magellan did die on April 27, 1521, but it’s likely due to a collective effort.
“The story of Lapu-Lapu, depicted with bulging biceps rushing toward Magellan to kill him with a swift stroke of his weapon, is a folklore or ‘fakelore’ that had been repeated for five centuries,” historian Dr. Danilo Madrid Gerona told the Inquirer.
Despite most depictions of Lapu Lapu being a young fighter, there are testimonies that describe Lapu-Lapu as an old man. During the battle, he was likely in his 60s or 70s, much older than Magellan’s age of 41.
“We always thought of Magellan as a warrior,” Gerona told the Manila Standard, “but he was a short fellow, less than five-footer, and he was in fact limping.”
According to the Rappler, some testimonies say that at his old age Lapu-Lapu probably watched the battle unfold from afar.
Today, there is a city in the Philippines in the Central Visayas region on Mactan Island that is named after Lapu-Lapu.
In the city, there is a large bronze statue to honour Lapu-Lapu.
According to the Rappler, the statue will be replaced in 2021 to more accurately portray the Battle of Mactan. In the new monument, no single hero will be portrayed. Lapu-Lapu’s statue will be replaced by the new monument on April 27, 2021, exactly 500 years after the battle. The Lapu-Lapu statue will be moved to a proposed museum about Lapu-Lapu.
While in search of their identity, Filipinos have clung to any symbol that seemed untouched by their colonizers, according to Esquire Magazine. To Filipinos, Lapu-Lapu became a symbol of a native Filipino successfully fighting off foreigners.
“Is Lapu-Lapu a hero? Maybe not in the sense we usually revere heroes,” Justin Umali writes in the Esquire Magazine article. “But as a symbol, Lapu-Lapu was, and still is, important in helping Filipinos shape their identity. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what heroes are?”
References
- “6 popular ‘facts’ about Philippine history that are apparently wrong” by Fiel Estrella for CNN Philippines.
- “Busting myths on Lapu-Lapu and Ferdinand Magellan” by Alex Manlapao for the Rappler.
- “Interesting facts about the Philippines’ first hero and the battle that he led to victory” by Rhobie Alburo Ruaya for the Cebu Daily News.
- “Lapu-Lapu as national hero? Not so fast” by Juan Escandor Jr. for the Inquirer.
- “Lapulapu statue in Cebu to be replaced in 2021” by Pia Ranada for the Rappler.
- “Lapu-Lapu, Magellan and blind patriotism” by Ambeth R. Ocampo for the Inquirer.
- “Lapu-Lapu, national hero” by Ambeth R. Ocampo for the Inquirer.
- “Lapu-Lapu: the man behind the myth” by Jenny Ortuoste for the Manila Standard.
- “Magellan was first to sail around the world, right? Think again” by Erin Blakemore for National Geographic.
- “The contagion of history” by Luis H. Francia for the Inquirer.
- “The Contagion of History, Part 2” by Luis H. Francia for the Inquirer.
- “The Story of Lapu-Lapu: The Legendary Filipino Hero” by Ronica Valdeavilla for the Culture Trip.
- “Was Lapu-Lapu Really That Heroic?” by Justin Umali for Esquire Philippines.
