89. FORTRESS OF COURAGE

FORTRESS OF COURAGE

Dr. Troy Alexander G. Miano

18 April 2019

During my younger years, my parents would always bring us to historical sites in the metropolis during weekends and holidays. In turn, I tried my very best, despite owning a very busy schedule, to bring my children to these places for them to grasp history and inculcate love of country in their system.

Last April 9, we observed Araw ng Kagitingan or Day of Valor, also known as Bataan Day or Bataan and Corregidor Day, which commemorates the Fall of Bataan during World War II. To add spice to the 77^th year commemoration, my family toured the historic Island of Corregidor at the entrance of Manila Bay today for the brood to be brought back in time when our forefathers defended this Rock from the Japanese Imperial Army. The website www.corregidorisland.com was my guide in aiding me on the details of the island and the tour.

Our first stop was the artillery batteries which are scattered in every part of Corregidor. Battery Way (assembled 1904-1914; cost $112,969) was a battery of four 12-inch mortars and named after 2Lt. Henry N. Way of the 4th U.S. Artillery who died in service in the Philippines in 1900. It was the last of Corregidor's "concrete artillery" to cease firing before the surrender of Bataan.

The second stop was Battery Hearn (assembled 1918-1921; cost $148,105) the longest artillery battery in the island. Battery Hearn, originally named as Smith No.2, was renamed in honor of Brigadier General Clint C. Hearn who had commanded the Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays in 1917. Battery Hearn is famous to Japanese tourists who remembered the banzai victory photos of their countrymen when they conquered Corregidor. The other major batteries are: Geary, Grubbs, and Crockett. The other remaining batteries that were set up in Corregidor included: Wheeler, Ramsay, Morrison, James, Smith, Cheney, Monja, Kysor, Hamilton, Cushing, Sunset, Hanna, Keyes, Rockpoint, Wright, and Rose.

The third stop is the Mile-Long Barracks, said to be the “world's longest military barracks” with a length of 1,520 feet. It is located near Cine Corregidor and the Pacific War Memorial. Also known as the Topside barracks, this building is located at the Topside part of the island.

Standing on the highest part of Corregidor's Topside is the Pacific War Memorial, which was built by the United States Government to honor the Filipino and American soldiers who participated in World War II. It was completed in 1968 at the cost of three million dollars. The major memorial structure is a rotunda with a circular altar directly under the dome's oculus through which light falls on the altar during daylight hours. Light lands directly on the altar on May 5 at exactly 12 noon, in commemoration of the surrender of the troops stationed there and the courage they exhibited over 72 days of bombing. Located behind the Memorial is the Eternal Flame of Freedom, a 40-feet Corten steel structure commissioned to Aristides Demetrios symbolizing freedom.

In every travel I make, I would never fail to visit museums in the locality. Being the head of the Isabela Museum and Library, I am quite sure that this historic island has its own museum and I was correct. Located close to Cine Corregidor and the Filipino-American Friendship Park is the Pacific War Memorial Museum. We had a family picture at the entrance where the Corregidor map is prominently displayed. The museum holds remnants of the war, letters, memorabilia, photographs, mortars, and other associated with the Japanese Occupation .

Our fifth stop is the historic first Corregidor Island Lighthouse where we took our sumptuous lunch at a nearby tent intended for tourists meal stop. The light station was one of the most important lights in the archipelago. It was established in 1853 to guide ships to the entrance of Manila Bay on their way to the port of Manila, the most important trading center in the country. This light occupies the converging point of two lines of approach for vessels from the China Sea which steer for the entrance of the Manila Bay. Vessels from Hong Kong and the ports of China to the northwest first sight the Capones Island light off the southwest coast of Zambales. Vessels from ports of Indo-China first sight the Corregidor lights in the center. Vessels from Singapore, Indonesia, India, and all the ports of the Philippine Islands, to the south, first sight the Cabra Island light. All lines converge on Corregidor light at the bay entrance.

The sixth stop is the General Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964) Park where the life-size bronze statue of the general was erected in his honor. His notable message “I Shall Return” is engraved in a concrete marker. The statue is situated near the ruins of Lorcha Dock where many believed MacArthur departed Corregidor on board PT Boat 41, a torpedo.

One of the most recent additions to Corregidor is the Filipino Heroes Memorial located in the Tail End. This 6,000-square meter complex has 14 murals depicting heroic battles fought by Filipinos from the 15th century up to the present day. I posed on every mural designed by Francisco Mañosa including the statue of a Filipino guerrilla sculpted by Manuel Casas. The complex was inaugurated by President Fidel V. Ramos on August 28, 1992. The murals are: Battle of Mactan (1521), Datu Sirongan and Sultan Kudarat in Mindanao (16^th-17^th Century), Bankao’s Apostasy in Leyte (1621), Sumuroy Rebellion (1645-1650), Andres Malong of Pangasinan (1660), Dagohoy Revolt (1744-1829), Diego and Gabriela Silang in the Ilocos (1763), Palaris Revolt in Pangasinan (1762), Hermano Pule Revolt (1840-1841), Philippine Revolution (1896), Filipino-American War (1899), World War II (1941-1945), Guerilla Movement, and EDSA Revolution (Feb 22-25, 1986).

Our eight stop was my favorite in the whole tour - the Malinta Tunnel, which was the last stronghold of the joint Philippine and American military prior to the Japanese takeover during the World War II. It is now home to an audio-visual presentation by National Artist Lamberto V. Avellana of the events that took place on the island, including the reluctant departure of General Douglas MacArthur and the evacuation of the Philippine president Manuel L. Quezon and his family to unoccupied areas of the Philippines and eventually in exile in the United States.

The ninth stop is the Japanese Garden of Peace. This garden was built as a memorial to the Japanese soldiers who served and died on the island during World War II. The park includes a praying area, shrines, markers and a small pavilion that houses photographs and memorabilia.

The tenth stop was the General Jonathan M. Wainwright (1883-1953), Angels of Bataan and Corregidor Memorials. The memorial shows both, the Philippine and US flags displayed. The right stone has the re dedication plaque; the left stone has the nurses’ plaque. The middle stone has plaques on all four sides and is dedicated to General Wainwright, Hero of Bataan, and all his troops and all Allied personnel.

Since it is a Maundy Thursday, I requested the tour guide for a last stop at the chapel I saw earlier on our way to the Wainwright memorial. The chapel used to be the church that served Barrio San Jose residents in Corregidor during the pre-war times, then later on by the soldiers stationed at the island as the Second World War rolled into the Pacific. This is supposedly the third reincarnation of the chapel. It’s now made of concrete as opposed to the wooden structure it was before.

The ambience was sizzling hot as we hopped from one memorial to another. But this did not dampen our spirit for we know that greater sacrifices were made by our forefathers to make sure that democracy and freedom was defended at all cost which is now being enjoyed by the citizenry of these two great nations. My wife and kids appreciated this tour as evident of their attentiveness to the competent tour guide. As a history enthusiast and tourism officer as well, I would grade this destination as 5A.