History of the Philippines (1521–1898)
The history of the Philippines from 1521 to 1898, also known as the Spanish colonial period, was a period during which Spain controlled the Philippine islands as the Captaincy General of the Philippines, initially under New Spain until Mexican independence in 1821, which gave Madrid direct control over the area. It was also known as Spanish East Indies to the colonialists. It started with the arrival in 1521 of European explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailing for Spain, which heralded the period when the Philippines was a colony of the Spanish Empire, and ended with the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution in 1898, which marked the beginning of the American colonial era of Philippine history.
Federal State of the Visayas
The Spanish–American War which sparked in Cuba reached the Philippines. On May 1, 1898, US Commodore George Dewey defeated the Spanish Navy in Manila. The Spanish designated Iloilo City as the colonial government's capital after Manila fell to the Americans on August 13, 1898, and later installed Roque Lopez as president of the provisional government in Santa Barbara town in Iloilo. Diego de los Ríos was named Governor General over the Philippines. The Spanish armed the Iloilo Voluntarios, a battalion composed mainly of Ilonggos believing that they are loyal to the Spanish crown. However, Ilonggo revolutionaries, calling themselves the "Ejercito Libertador", started a revolt gaining control of all of Panay within days, except for Iloilo City, Jaro, La Paz and Molo.