The Manila Chinese: Community, Trade and Empire, C. 1570 – C. 1770
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THE MANILA CHINESE: COMMUNITY, TRADE AND EMPIRE, C. 1570 – C. 1770 A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Georgetown University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History By Joshua Eng Sin Kueh, M.A. Washington, DC April 10, 2014 Copyright 2014 by Joshua Eng Sin Kueh All Rights Reserved ii THE MANILA CHINESE: COMMUNITY, TRADE AND EMPIRE, C. 1570 – C. 1770 Joshua Eng Sin Kueh, M.A. Dissertation Advisor: Carol Benedict, Ph.D. ABSTRACT This study focuses on the Chinese community of Manila from 1570 to 1770, revealing that the community was not an insular, ethnic enclave unified in its efforts and aspirations but one made up of different groups with varying goals. Not all Chinese saw the Spanish presence as conducive to their livelihoods but certain sectors of the community did. I argue the collaboration of these elements within the Chinese community was essential in maintaining the Spanish presence in Manila. Those whose interests most closely aligned with Spanish aims included a small group of wealthy Chinese merchants involved in supplying the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade with merchandise (mainly silk), merchants and artisans in the Chinese quarter called the Parián and Chinese leaders who acted as middlemen linking the needs of the regime with Southern Fujianese workers to supply the city with services, food, and labor. In return, Spaniards provided New Spanish silver, government monopolies and recognition of the authority of Chinese elites over laborers. In that way, the Spanish empire in the Asia- Pacific region was a collaborative enterprise, constructed in the cooperation of various interest groups. When the abuses of Spanish authorities threatened the lives of those they ruled, Chinese intermediaries could not maintain their claims of mitigating the demands of the regime on behalf of Chinese workers and lost control of those under their supervision. In 1603, 1639, and 1662, Chinese laborers raised the banner of revolt. These moments of iii violent rupture with the colonial order indicate that mediation was crucial to preserving the Spanish presence in Manila. Coercion could put down threats to control but on its own could not hold colonial society together. The Chinese, with others, created the ties that bound colonial society together through kinship and credit networks for mutual aid. Compadrazgo (coparenthood), padrinazgo (godparenthood), and marriage connected Chinese to colonial society and provided a means of profit, protection and recruiting labor. These links persisted into the nineteenth century and helped the Chinese shape the ecology of Manila to their purposes, albeit within the confines of Spanish sovereignty. Sources: baptismal records, notarial books ( protocolos de Manila ), court cases iv To Olga, Misha and Mila v Acknowledgements It has been almost twelve years since I chanced upon a copy of Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas in the stacks of Alderman Library at the University of Virginia. This chance encounter opened up a new world of inquiry that has led me from being a student of Spanish literature to the study of history, from Charlottesville to Washington D.C. and beyond to Seville and Manila. What an adventure it has been. Now at the completion of a long journey, I have the pleasure of looking back and remembering those who have made it all possible. First and foremost, much gratitude goes to my dissertation advisor, Prof. Carol Benedict. She has been patient, insightful, meticulous, probing and supportive, all at the right time and in proper measure. Whether it was helping me through the rudiments of history writing, giving detailed and prompt responses to my ideas, or providing much needed succor with Chinese translations, her guidance and dedication have been a boon. Her perspective has greatly strengthened my work and the imperfections in the dissertation are mainly because I am stubborn. Many thanks also to professors James Millward, Micah Muscolino and John Tutino for helpful comments on the dissertation and insisting that I take time to reflect on the larger picture. John Tutino, in particular, was instrumental in helping me situate my arguments within the context of the Spanish empire and global trade. I would also like to thank Professor Antoni Ucerler, S.J., who took an interest in my work during his one-year sojourn at Georgetown and shared his expertise and enthusiasm on the early modern Pacific world with me in the classroom, during excursions to the Library of Congress and over meals. vi I owe a debt of gratitude to several institutions. The Georgetown University Department of History provided me with fellowships during my years as a graduate student there. The Institute of Philippine Culture (IPC) gave me the opportunity to travel to Manila and meet other scholars studying the Philippines in the summer of 2013. It was a privilege to receive comments from professors Resil Mojares, Jun Aguilar and Leloy Claudio at the IPC summer school. While conducting research, the staff at the Archives of the University of Santo Tomas facilitated easy access to holdings as did staff at the Records Management and Archives Office and the Archivo General de Indias . Teresita Ang See and Go Bon Juan gave me the freedom of the Kaisa holdings. There are so many others who helped me along the way and I am grateful to them all. Prof. Ruth Hill introduced me to the world of colonial Latin America. Professor Alan Holiman gave me a whole-hearted endorsement at the beginning of my journey. Professor Adriana Brodsky spent many hours on the road with me in conversation, helping clarify my thoughts on entering the field of history. Thank you Clark Alejandrino for sharing multiple contacts for my stay in Manila and Father Ari Dy, S.J., for your kind hospitality at Xavier School. Professors Richard Chu and Mike Cullinane answered many of my questions prior to my first research trip to the Philippines. While in Manila, Wilson Lee Flores took time to show me around town and Rose Mendoza was generous with knowledge on conducting research in the city. Friends in DC, Kevin Gormley and Maureen Klovers listened with kind understanding when I spoke about my dissertation and Kevin even helped me with some of the intricacies of pivot tables. Guy Lurie was a constant companion as we traversed student life at Georgetown. vii Most importantly, there is family. I thank my parents, Irene and David Kueh, and my sister, Sarah, for much support. Thanks also to my Ukrainian family, Irina Federovna, Anatoliy Nikolaevich and Onick. Both mothers, Irene and Irina, flew many miles to help care for little ones while I was busy with the concerns of graduate school and away on trips. I could not have done it without you. Cousins Sam and Angie, thank you for scrumptious meals and good company over the years. Finally, to my wife Olga and our children, Misha and Mila, thank you for your forbearance all this time. The best part of long trips to far-off lands has always been returning home to you. To the three of you, I dedicate this dissertation. Heartfelt thanks, Joshua Eng Sin Kueh viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction………………………………………………………………………………. 1 Chapter One The “Sangley” Insurrection of 1603……………………………..............38 Chapter Two Adaptive Strategies of Parián Chinese: Fictive Kinship and Credit in Seventeenth-Century Manila…………………………………………….72 Chapter Three Contracting Empire: Litigation, Coercion and Insurrection......................95 Chapter Four The Chinese and the Galleon Trade…………………………………….127 Chapter Five Rethinking the Chinese Community of Manila: 1750-1800……………163 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………...190 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………194 ix LIST OF TABLES 2.1 Godfathers by Ethnic/Legal Categories in the Parián, 1626-1700 82 2.2 Godparents of the Children of Diego de Paciencia Ang Quimco and 83 Petronila de Jesus, 1678-1693 2.3 Number of Personnel of Gremios de Sangleyes Infieles in Manila, 89 1689 and 1690 2.4 Number of Personnel of the three largest Silk Shops of Sangleyes 90 Infieles in the Parián , 1689 and 1690 2.5 Number of Members of Gremios de Sangleyes Infieles in the Parián , 91 1689 and 1690 4.1 Official Amount of Silver reported onboard Galleons from Acapulco 142 to Manila for 1722-1743 4.2 Calculating Profit Margins for Investments in Galleon Trade for 1740 146 4.3 Top Individual Creditors in the Galleon Trade for 1740 149 4.4 Top Eight Debtors for 1740 150 4.5 Chinese who took Loans for the China and Java Trade in 1740 152 4.6 Chinese who repaid Loans taken for the China and Java Trade, 1738- 153 1740 x Introduction “Who built the seven gates of Thebes? The books are filled with names of kings. Was it the kings who hauled the craggy blocks of stone?”~ Bertolt Brecht, “Fragen eines lesenden Arbeiters” “There is no Spaniard, secular or religious, who obtains his food, clothing or shoes, except through them.”~ Governor Tavora to Philip IV (1628) “It is very noticeable with these Sangley 1 people that they intermix with any other people who are here, in a very singular fashion; for at once they intermarry with the women of these nations, adopt their customs and live like Indians.”~ Fray Miguel de Benavides (1605) By Manila Bay, not far from where the South China Sea meets the Pasig River in swirls of dark turquoise and milky brown, lies an old city surrounded by walls of dark, wizened stone and fresh green moss. This is Intramuros , the location from which a small group of Spaniards claimed to rule over the Pacific. Yet in this seat of colonial power, amongst the churches and monuments to Spanish glory, are signs of another culture’s influence.