Don Juan de Bivero, dean of Manila. Archdeacon Arellano Sancto de Castro, precentor of Manila. Juan de la Za, canon. Diego de Leon, canon. Licentiate Gabriel Sanz Juan Galindo de Mesa Ramirez de Cartajena, canon. Pablo Ruiz de Talavera Blas Vela Melquior Crisanto de Tapiayo
LETTER FROM BERNARDINO MALDONADONADO [130] TO FELIPE III
I have attended carefully to my obligations as your Majesty’s servant and to my duties as castellan of the chief fort and redoubt of this city of Manila every year, and have reported to your Majesty the advisable reform for its fortification and security. For in that consists the defense of this kingdom and that from which danger is most imminent, on account of its site which is on the point and at the junction of the river and sea. At that place anchor the ships that come to this city from the surrounding kingdoms of the Chinese, Japanese, Borneans, Siamese, and other nations. Although those people come under pretense of trading, they are suspicious and treacherous peoples, over whom we must keep a close and never-ceasing watch as is advisable. In order that we might maintain that watch here in this redoubt, I begged and petitioned Don Francisco Tello, the former governor, once and many times, to station the necessary presidio and garrison of soldiers here, for it had no guard, at the time when I was given charge of it, but only an outpost of three soldiers was set at night, and they stood watch in their quarters, although we were stationed so far distant from the city and had in our keeping the arms, artillery, ammunition, and powder which your Majesty has in this kingdom for its defense. Accordingly, I petitioned that greater care and vigilance be exercised than formerly, because of the great fear generally held of the enemies by whom we are so closely surrounded and who are inside the bar [of the river] by night and by day. I insisted that there should be a garrison of infantry sufficient for its ordinary defense, and intimated to the governor for this purpose the orders and instructions given him by your Majesty for his policy and to Gomez Perez Dasmariñas his predecessor, in which it was urgently ordered him. In accordance with that, the governor appointed some soldiers under command of an alférez and sergeant, as your Majesty will have seen by the testimonies which I have sent to the royal Council. Will your Majesty have them examined, since it is very important to your royal service and to the welfare and security of this kingdom that there should be no neglect in this redoubt and that it be placed in no danger as formerly; as has been experienced by the good which resulted in having it garrisoned with soldiers, by what happened in the former year of one thousand six hundred and three, when the Sangleys who were living here in this city rose in insurrection. Had it not been for the care that I exercised, the Sangleys would have entered the redoubt if it had been found with the neglect of former years.