The unloading in Cebu of Miguel López de Legazpi, in 1565, marked the beginning of the conquest of an archipelago which, unlike the other countries of the South-East Asia, had not known true civilization as a preliminary. It resulted a strong penetration from it from the influences of the Occident.  

Political organization
At the beginning of the conquest, the king of Spain named in charge of the country an assisted general governor of a council, Real Audiencia. The government thus created was placed under the control of the viceroy of Mexico, which made archipelago, during nearly three centuries, the colony of another colony.

Philippines were initially divided in encomiendas, great strongholds which went to faithful from the Crown and the Church, with the right for those to collect the tax. After the abolition of the feudal mode, about the middle of the XVII E century, the country was divided, depending on the state of pacification of the area, in civil provinces (alcaldías mayores) or soldiers (corregimientos).

With a lower hierarchical level municipalities and communes were created, that the Spanishs allotted in majority to the indigenous chiefs. Having a piece of the sovereign authority, those attempted to copy the Spanish aristocracy, into engrossing at the same time the land vast domains which are at the origin of the modern haciendas. For the Spanish sovereigns, this conquest especially aimed at evangelizing the population. Four orders contributed to it: the Augustinian ones, the Franciscan ones, the Dominican ones and Augustinian the récollets. In about fifty years, most of the archipelago was christianized in a peaceful way. Only the Moslem territories of the South resisted.

The galleon of Manila
Disappointed not to find so much on the spot gold required, the Spanishs deferred their activities on the trade. They made of Manila cigar the center of the exchanges between the East and the west coast of Mexico. The trade consisted especially of an exchange of porcelains and Chinese silk trade against Mexican money. Flourishing to the XVI E century, this one was highly fought by the manufacturers of silk trade of Cadiz and Seville (Philippe II had to limit this trade to two annual galleons). Entered in decline at the XVIIIe century, this commercial monopoly was abolished in 1813.

The XIX E century was one period of relative prosperity. From 1934, the opening of many ports to the international exchanges allowed the development of new commercial cultures: indigo, coffee, tobacco, sugar, hemp.

Rise of nationalism: Katipunan
The economic advancement also resulted by the formation of a local middle-class of business acquired with the liberal ideas and in the birth, often in its rows, of an intelligentsia vigorously opposed to the colonial mode.

Two personalities mark this first nationalist period of awakening: Marcelo H. del Pilar, founder of the first movement reformist, and especially the writer Jose Rizal (1861-1896). This last quickly becomes famous for its first novels, like Noli me tangere (1886), where he denounces the oppression of the Spanish administration and in particular the abuses the clergy, person in charge in its eyes of the delay of the country. Its writings are prohibited, and it is exiled then shot.

The Spanish intransigence causes to transform the dash reformist into a revolutionary movement claiming either the assimilation but the independence of the country, with the requirement by taking the weapons. In 1892, Andrés Bonifacio founds a secret nationalist company, Katipunan, which swarms groups in province quickly. The discovery of this movement, in 1896, starts an armed insurrection. After some initial successes, Emilio Aguinaldo, become chief of the insurrectionists following the elimination of Bonifacio, is finally defeated and constrained to exile itself with his companions with Hongkong.  

With the crisis of Cuba and the entry in war of the United States against Spain (April 1898), the events precipitate. The admiral Dewey runs the Spanish fleet in roads in Manila and gives the attack to the city (August 1898). Overcome, Spain yields by the treaty of Paris (December 1898) Philippines to the United States against an allowance of 20 million dollars. Returned in Philippines in the interval, the junta of Hongkong sets up in revolutionary government and enters in open conflict with the American administration. After three years of conflict being summarized especially with skirmishes, Emilio Aguinaldo is made prisoner in 1901.

The American period and Japanese occupation

American domination (1898-1946), although short, constituted a decisive stage in the political, economic and social evolution of Philippines.  

Evolution of the country towards the “self-government”
By taking over Spanish, most American officials do not hide their intention to lead the country to independence after having constituted a stable government. The first Filipino Parliament is joined together in 1907. The Harrison governor creates a Council of State, embryo of a true government. But these measurements are considered to be insufficient by most chiefs of the nationalist party. The crisis of the years 1930 will serve their cause by pushing certain American, anxious agricultural mediums competition of the Filipino products, and the trade unions, which fear the free entry in the United States of a cheap labor, to support with the Congress the partisans of independence. Vis-a-vis the reserves issued by the republicans, the democratic government is not hostile there. Roosevelt, to cross short to the political conflict, signs in 1934 the law Tydings-McDuffie, envisaging one ten years transitional period before the country can reach independence. A new Constitution is promulgated in 1935.  

Economic and social transformations
The treaty of free trade instituted in 1909 between the two countries clearly favoured the metropolis, producing and exporter of manufactured articles. The Filipinos did not withdraw from them less substantial benefit: intensification of mining research, development of the commercial cultures (canes with sugar), improvement of the infrastructures. The progress recorded in the field of education is based on the fast elimination of illiteracy of the population and a broad diffusion of English like national language. On the medical level, massive vaccination campaigns and the cleansing of many forest areas result in a better control of the great endemic diseases (cholera, paludism) and a significant retreat of mortality. The social reforms were, on the other hand, more modest. The agrarian problem will remain whole, in spite of the important agrarian law of 1902, which - by limiting to 1 024 ha the concessions which can be obtained on public grounds - made it possible to make of Mindanao an area of country colonization.  

Japanese occupation (1941-1946)
Pearl Harbor put brutally fine at the mode of the Commonwealth. Unloaded in the island of Luçon in December 1941, the Japanese troops go in a few months mistresses of the archipelago (August 1942) and proclaim shortly after the republic. If these measurements are rather well accommodated by certain nationalist mediums, the brutality of the military police force and the important food requisitions operated by the occupants do not fail to raise the dissatisfaction with the population. Armed resistance is organized in the campaigns of the center of Luçon, with the formation, on the initiative of socialist directors and Communists, of the movement Hukbalahap (armed resistance antijaponaise). In same time, the battle of the Pacific seals the destiny of the war. Unloaded in October 1944 with Leyte, the American forces of the MacArthur general, after a reconquest flash of the archipelago, enter victorious to Manila cigar on on February 23rd, 1945.  

The Republic of Philippines

After independence, proclaimed on on July 4th, 1946, the first Filipino governments endeavor to rebuild a country devastated by four years of war.  

The re-establishment of the interior situation
The US government takes part in it by meeting the first financial needs for the administration and while making vote, in 1946, a help of 620 million dollars under the war damagees. But this one was initially matched heavy counterparts: prolongation of the mode of free trade until 1954 and obtaining for the American nationals of the parity of the economic rights with their Filipino counterparts on all the archipelago.  

A second problem, of more political nature, is due to the extension of the rebellion of Huks in the central campaigns of Luçon, zones “caused to become gangrenous” by the agrarian problem. Most measurements taken, which make alternate political concession and pacification campaigns, remain without much effect. It will be necessary to await the arrival of Ramón Magsaysay as secretary with National defense (1950) so that the rebellion is overcome at the end of vigorous military campaigns.  

The Marcos era and the “new company” (1965-1986)
Ferdinand Marcos, spokesperson of the nationalist party, reaches the power in 1965. Shining speaker and skilful politicking, it gains some initial successes in foreign policy, which are worth a certain popularity to him: reduction at twenty-five years of the duration of the lease conceded with the great American bases; adhesion in 1967 of the country to the Association of the nations of the Southeast Asia (Association off South East Asian Nations, or ASEAN)

But the assessment of its interior policy is registered on a darker screen. In 1972, at the end of its second and in theory last mandate, it takes pretext of a communist plot to issue the martial law and to assume the full powers at the same time. The shouted goal of the new mode is then to build a “new company”. A land reform is launched, and the great projects of development multiply. The results follow badly: ten years after its installation, the land reform leads to the emancipation of less than 100 ' 000 tenants instead of 1 million. The great projects of development, if they are not always useless, contributed to weigh down the national debt. The populism is set up in system of government: public monopolies and companies of going State of growing number with the family and the close relations of the presidential couple. The state banks are put at contribution to support the speculations of these companies and to sponge their deficits.  

Occurring in this context, the world recession of the beginning of the year 1980 has catastrophic consequences. The assassination of the senator Benigno Aquino, on on August 23rd, 1983 with the airport of Manila, involves a major political crisis. The capital flees the country massively, and the value of the peso crumbles. Under the American pressure, elections are organized for the beginning of the year 1986. Cory Aquino, the widow of the assassinated senator, takes the head of the opposition. After a very disputed poll, Ferdinand Marcos allots once again the victory. Released by the army and confronted with the quasi revolutionary pressure of the street, it must be inclined and flees Manila in February 1986 precipitately to gain the base of Clark, from where it flies away shortly after for Hawaii, its place of exile until its death in 1989.  

The new mode
As of its come to power, the government of Cory Aquino engages an important program of national rectification: vote of a new Constitution, supported structural reforms, vote of a news and ambitious land reform. The policy of conciliation carried out by the government with regard to the Communist party however does not fail to alienate the hard cores of the army to him, which has as consequences of many coup attempts of State and a durable destabilization of the mode. After his victory with the presidential election, followed by a conflict of almost 9 months, the general Fidel Ramos reaches the power in May 1992. The significant retreat of the influence of the Communist party and the insecurity in the provinces (Moslem rebellion) were the first stages of the restoration of the authority of the State, in spite of the rooting of the economic crisis. In May 1998, Joseph Estrada, candidate of the opposition, succeeds Fidel Ramos in charge of the State.