Battle of Mactan
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He who increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. This article contains spoilers, meaning it has information and facts concerning Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple. If you do not want to know about these events, it is recommended to read on with caution, or not at all. |
The Battle of Mactan was fought on 27 April 1521 between the Spanish expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan, along with native allies from the island of Cebu, and an army of Visayan warriors from Mactan. The Visayan chieftan Lapu-Lapu used a Piece of Eden in his possession to defeat the Spanish forces and kill Magellan, delaying Spain's colonization of the Philippines by over four decades.
Prelude
In April 1521, the Spanish expedition led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan arrived on the island of Cebu in the Philippines, where they quickly established an alliance with the local chief Rajah Humabon, converting him and his subjects to Christianity. While the expedition's goal was allegedly to find gold and spices, in reality Magellan was searching for a Piece of Eden which he had managed to track to the region.[2]
After finding the Piece of Eden located on Cebu, Magellan was informed by Humabon that the artifact he had recovered was just a fragment of a larger one. With another Piece in the possession of Humabon's rival Lapu-Lapu, the chief of the neighboring Mactan Island, Magellan began making plans to acquire the artifact and turn both Cebu and Mactan into colonies of the Spanish Empire.[2]
The battle
On the morning of 27 April, Magellan led a coalition of several dozen Spanish soldiers to the shoreline of Mactan, where they were confronted by Lapu-Lapu and the native Visayans.[1] Despite their far superior technology, the Spanish were overwhelmed when Lapu-Lapu used the power of the Piece of Eden in his possession against them, resulting in their defeat. Among the casualties of the battle was Magellan himself, who was personally executed by Lapu-Lapu.[2]
Aftermath
Following Magellan's death, leadership of what was left of the Spanish expedition fell to Juan Sebastian de Elcano, who departed the Philippines and eventually completed the journey in September 1522. The Spanish Empire continued to send expeditions to the archipelago with little to no success until Miguel Lopez de Legazpi's expedition to Cebu and Manila in 1565, starting a period of three centuries of Spanish rule over the archipelago.[1]
The fate of both Magellan and Lapu-Lapu's Pieces of Eden after the battle remained a mystery until the early 18th century, when the Dutch navigator Hendrik came to investigate the legend of a "forgotten temple" allegedly located in the lost Khmer city of Angkor. During his investigation, Hendrik met a monk at the Basilica del Santo Niño in Cebu who told him of Magellan's pursuit of the Pieces of Eden and his fate. This made the navigator realize that the artifacts and the legend were somehow connected and eventually allowed him to find Angkor and its temple.[2]
Gallery
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Lapu-Lapu wielding the Piece of Eden during the battle -
Ferdinand Magellan's demise
Appearances
- Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple (flashback only)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3
Battle of Mactan on Wikipedia
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple – Episode 41
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