Significant Events in December in Filipino History

On December 3, 1957, the first milk processing plant in the country was inaugurated. Located in Highway 54 (present day EDSA) in Mandaluyong Rizal (now Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila).

On December 3, 1574, the notorious Chinese pirate Limahong (Lin Feng) and his fleet retreated from Manila after failing to conquer the city. Following his defeat, Limahong set sail for Pangasinan, where he sought to establish a new kingdom near the mouth of the Agno River.

On December 4, 2009, in the wake of the Maguindanao massacre, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo placed Maguindanao province under a state of martial law, through Proclamation No. 1959. The declaration also suspended the writ of habeas corpus in the province.

On December 4, 1594, Msgr. Domingo de Salazar, the pioneering first Bishop of Manila and a key figure in the early Spanish colonial era of the Philippines, died in Madrid, Spain, at the age of 80. His life was marked by a deep commitment to his faith, a fierce advocacy for justice, and significant contributions to the establishment of the Catholic Church in the archipelago.

On December 5, 1573, Martin Enriquez, viceroy of New Spain, wrote King Felipe II, announcing the arrival of ships with dispatches from the Philippines. With them was the Augustinian friar Diego de Herrera, who was on his way to Spain to inform the king of the violence and injustice which were being committed in the islands specially by soldiers who received no pay and maintained themselves by raids on the native villages.

On December 5, 1837, the first postal service in the Philippines, established by a royal decree in 1767, 70 years earlier, was reorganized. A year later, Manila became known as a leading center of postal services within Asia.

On December 6, 1956, at ceremonies in Malacañang, the United States government delivered to the Philippine government all title papers and title claims to land in the US base areas held by the United States.

On December 6, 1896, the trial of Dr. Jose Rizal by a Spanish military court for sedition, rebellion and conspiracy, began. This trial led to his execution and martyrdom.

On December 7, 1910, Ambrosio Bibby Padilla was born in Lingayen, Pangasinan, Philippines. He was the eighth of eleven children of Dr. Nicanor Padilla and Ysabel Bibby. From a young age, Padilla exhibited exceptional academic and athletic prowess. He attended the Ateneo de Manila University for his high school and college education, where he graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He later pursued law at the University of the Philippines and placed third in the 1934 bar examinations.

On December 7, 1987, Former Finance Secretary Jaime Ongpin, among the most controversial and influential Cabinet members of the Cory Aquino administration until his September removal, was found fatally shot today in what his son said appeared to be suicide.