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Miguel López de Legazpi Facts & Worksheets

Miguel López de Legazpi was a Spanish conqueror who spearheaded an expedition to seize control of the Philippine Islands during the mid-16th century.

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Miguel López de Legazpi, born on June 12, 1502, and known as El Adelantado and El Viejo, was a Spanish conqueror who spearheaded an expedition to seize control of the Philippine Islands during the mid-16th century. 

See the fact file below for more information about Miguel López de Legazpi, or you can download our 28-page Miguel López de Legazpi worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

KEY FACTS & INFORMATION

EARLY YEARS

  • Miguel López de Legazpi, born in Zumarraga, Guipúzcoa, Spain, on June 12, 1502, belonged to a prosperous family actively involved in military affairs and municipal governance.
  • His father, Juan de Legazpi, served as a soldier under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba in the Italian Wars and later led military campaigns against a French army in the province of Guipúzcoa. His mother, Elvira de Gurruchátegui, also came from a prominent provincial family.
  • Although his educational background is unknown, López de Legazpi likely studied law, given his professional and governmental activities.
  • During his father’s lifetime, he worked as a councilor in the local government. Following his father’s passing in 1527, his elder brother inherited the family’s wealth and leadership positions.

NEW SPAIN

  • Around 1528, Legazpi relocated to New Spain, a Spanish colony formed through Hernán Cortés’s conquests in Mexico, likely in pursuit of new opportunities, although the exact circumstances of his departure from home remain unclear.
  • He possibly accompanied Juan de Zumárraga, another Basque figure appointed by Charles V as the first bishop and inquisitor in New Spain. Later, in 1559, he was appointed alcalde mayor of Mexico City. He also participated in the Court of Inquisition and was engaged in multiple inquisitorial processes from 1536 to 1543. Due to his dedicated service, he received numerous land grants and personally acquired additional properties in the capital and the region of Michoacán.
  • In 1532, he married Isabel Garcés, the sister of Julián Garcés, the first bishop of Tlaxcala, and the couple had nine children – four boys and five girls. Before 1559, his wife passed away. His eldest daughter, Teresa, had two children, Felipe and Juan, who later joined their grandfather in the conquest of the Philippines.

EXPEDITION TO THE PHILIPPINES

  • In 1564, López de Legazpi led an expedition to seek the Spice Islands, previously explored by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 and Ruy López de Villalobos in 1543, at the command of King Philip II of Spain and viceroy Luís de Velasco. In July 1564, the viceroy died, but the Audiencia and López de Legazpi completed expedition preparations.
  • On 19 or 20 November 1564, five ships carrying 500 soldiers, more than half of whom were Mexicans (including Criollos, Mestizos, and Indios), and the remaining Spanish soldiers left Barra de Navidad, New Spain, in Jalisco, Mexico. The fleet included the flagship nao San Pabló, almiranta San Pedro, and pinnaces San Juan and San Lucas. 
  • The expedition included six Augustinian missionaries: Navigator and Spiritual Advisor Fr. Andrés de Urdaneta, Melchor de Legazpi, Felipe de Salcedo, and Ferdinand Magellan survivor Guido de Lavezaris. López de Legazpi’s crew sailed the Pacific for 93 days. In 1565, they rested and restocked at the Mariana Islands. They fought Chamorro tribes and burnt homes.

ARRIVAL IN THE PHILIPPINES

  • Sikatuna, a Bohol chief, guided López de Legazpi across Cebu. On February 13, 1565, Legazpi’s expedition arrived off the Indianized Rajahnate of Cebu, but indigenous peoples prevented them from landing. 
  • The expedition reached Samar on February 22, 1565, and made a blood covenant with its chief, Datu Urrao. The Spaniards then went to Limasawa, where Datu Bankaw met them, and then to Bohol, where they made friends with Datu Sikatuna and Rajah Sigala. 
  • In 1568, the Portuguese tried to blockade Cebu to deport Spaniards. The Portuguese fleet retreated owing to typhoid sickness, but the Spanish colony survived the blockade. After a food shortage in Cebu in 1569, López de Legazpi constructed Capiz, now Roxas, in Capiz province in Panay town. In 1570, López de Legazpi sent his grandson Juan de Salcedo, who had arrived from Mexico in 1567, to Mindoro to fight the Muslim Moro pirates raiding Panay villages Salcedo and destroying Ilin and Lubang forts south and northwest of Mindoro.

LUZON AND MANILA CAPTURE

  • López de Legazpi served as the first governor of the Philippines from 1565 until his death in 1572. In 1570, he sent an expedition to the northern island of Luzon, arriving there personally the following year. After deposing a local Muslim ruler in 1571, he established the city of Manila, which became the capital of the new Spanish colony and Spain’s major trading port in East Asia.
  • López de Legazpi repulsed two attacks by the Portuguese in 1568 and 1571 and easily overcame the poorly organized Filipinos’ resistance. The Muslims in the southern islands resisted Spanish rule up to the 19th century, but Islam was weak in Luzon and the northern islands, and Legazpi and his chaplain, Andrés de Urdaneta, were able to lay the foundations for the conversion of the people to Christianity, which proved their most durable legacy.

LAST YEARS

  • López de Legazpi left Cebu for Panay and Luzon the same year as more forces arrived. He explored Leyte and Panay with 250 Spanish soldiers and 600 indigenous warriors. After hearing of the village conquests, he joined Goiti and Salcedo in Maynila the following year.
  • Due to illness and old age, López de Legazpi stayed in Cebu during the initial survey of the northern Philippines and did not help his men conquer Manila. Legazpi made a peace deal with Rajah Sulayman and Lakandula in Manila. 
  • Both parties agreed to construct a city council with two mayors, twelve councilors, and a secretary. On June 24, 1571, López de Legazpi constructed a settlement there, starting Intramuros’ walled city and declaring Manila the island’s capital.

LEGACY

  • López de Legazpi and Urdaneta’s expedition to the Philippines established the trans-Pacific Manila galleon trade, exchanging Mexican and Potosí silver for commodities like Chinese silk, porcelain, Indonesian spices, Indian gems, and other valuable goods in Europe. This commerce route connected Latin America with the Asia-Pacific, with items reaching Europe via the Havana Galleons, boosting the Spanish Empire’s finances. Western goods, ingredients, and colonial influence caused ‘Hispanization’ in the islands.
  • The Philippines were under Spanish rule for 333 years, starting in 1565 when Spain arrived and ruled from Mexico City and Madrid. This period lasted until the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898, except during 1762–1764, when the British occupied Manila and Cavite but not the entire country.

Miguel López de Legazpi Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Miguel López de Legazpi across 28 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Miguel López de Legazpi. Miguel López de Legazpi was a Spanish conqueror who spearheaded an expedition to seize control of the Philippine Islands during the mid-16th century. 

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Miguel López de Legazpi Facts
  2. Vocab Voyage
  3. Legazpi’s Life
  4. History at a Glance
  5. Expedition Log
  6. Mapping the Expedition
  7. Cros-SWORD Puzzle
  8. Let’s Trade Some Info
  9. Convert-sation
  10. 3-3-3-Trivia
  11. Expeditions Contrasts

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was Miguel López de Legazpi?

Miguel López de Legazpi was a Spanish navigator and conquistador who is best known for establishing the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines in 1565. He led several expeditions to the Pacific region and played a crucial role in the Spanish colonization of the Philippines.

What was Miguel López de Legazpi’s significance in Philippine history?

Legazpi is significant in Philippine history for being the first Spanish governor-general of the Philippines and for initiating the process of Spanish colonization in the archipelago. He founded the city of Manila, which became the capital of the Spanish East Indies and a center of Spanish influence in Southeast Asia.

What were some of Miguel López de Legazpi’s major achievements?

Legazpi’s major achievements include the establishment of Spanish rule in the Philippines, the founding of Manila as a Spanish settlement, the negotiation of peace agreements with local rulers, and the spread of Christianity in the islands through missionary activities.

What were some challenges faced by Miguel López de Legazpi during his expeditions?

Legazpi faced numerous challenges during his expeditions, including navigating treacherous seas, dealing with hostile indigenous populations, contending with rival European powers, such as the Portuguese, and managing the logistics of maintaining colonies in distant lands.

What is Miguel López de Legazpi’s legacy?

Legazpi’s legacy is complex and subject to differing interpretations. While he is celebrated as a pioneer and explorer by some, others view him as a symbol of Spanish imperialism and colonialism. His actions laid the foundation for over three centuries of Spanish rule in the Philippines, which significantly influenced the culture, language, and religion of the islands. However, his legacy also includes the exploitation and oppression of indigenous peoples by Spanish colonizers.

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