Mid-19th century Manila

During the Ateneo de Manila's grand sesquicentennial kick-off event last Sunday, student-actors were recruited to re-create the atmosphere of 1859 Manila. They came in period costumes, walked around the Plaza de Roma and the Manila Cathedral, talked to each other about things that would have mattered to people at the time, and generally acted as if they were residents of mid-19th century Manila. Meet some of the very interesting characters of old Manila:


The pious and devout female Indios (natives), probably spinsters, were walking around the plaza praying the rosary. Sometimes, they entered the Manila Cathedral to pray inside too.



I forgot to ask if she was a Peninsulare (Spaniard born in Spain) or an Insulare (Spaniard born in the Philippines). She could even have been an Indio from a wealthy family who has traveled to Europe. On second thought, scratch that last guess. I don't think she would have been allowed to walk around unescorted if she weren't European.



When it comes to cockfighting, race and education don't matter. It brought together these Mestizos (half Spaniard, half Indio) and Indios. The three on the left are obviously Ilustrados (educated) while the one on the right looks like a peasant.



Two members of the Guardia Civil (civil guard) were patrolling the area the entire time.



A wealthy Chinese merchant was also walking around the plaza, probably to meet with European traders. He wouldn't have had his home in Intramuros though. If he were a Catholic Chinese, he would have lived in Binondo just across the Pasig River.



Two students of the Escuela Municipal de Manila, a primary school for about 30 sons of Peninsulares and Insulares, were running all over the place. Neither the Guardia Civil nor the strict spinster friends caught them.



In 1859, the city-subsidized school was turned over to the Jesuits. In 1865, when it was elevated to a secondary school, its name was changed into the Ateneo Municipal de Manila. In 1902, during the American colonial period, the government stopped its subsidy and it became a private school for boys. Six years later, in 1908, the school finally dropped the word 'Municipal' from its name. It has been known as the Ateneo de Manila since then.