FUERZA DE SANTA ISABEL 1667 AT TAYTAY PALAWAN

BACKPACKER'S DESTINATION: TAYTAY, PALAWAN

Story and Photos by Henry Libo-on, Touristang Pobre

* * * * * * * * 

Backpackers love adventures and going to places that are not commonly visited by travelers. One of those places is found in Palawan. That is the old provincial capital town of Taytay. It is in fact, the last town before El Nido. It can also be the traveler's link to the town of San Vicente where the longest beach in Palawan is located. 

The photo above shows the façade of Fuerza de Santa Isabel.  The three Philippine Flags represent the three (3) major island groups of the archipelago, Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

In this historic town of Taytay, there lies a very old structure called Fuerza de Santa Isabel or Fort of Santa Isabel. Locally known as "Kuta", this Fort was built in 1667 by the Augustinian Recollect Fathers in honor of the Spanish Queen Isabela II.

It was a practice during those times that Spanish settlements should be protected against pirates and marauders. So, its armed forces should be housed in a strong and high fortress to defend its territory and people. The earliest wave of Spanish explorers founded the town of Taytay in the year 1623. In 1859 it became the first capital of the island province of Palawan. It lasted until 1876 when the capital was moved to Cuyo Island.

The Fort of Santa Isabel was originally surrounded by water. It was a stronghold that monitored the outgoing and incoming of ships and boats. Since it is located high up in the coastal area, it has a very strategic view of the lowlands, the settlements, and the sea. The only link of the "Kuta" to the mainland is a bridge which is locally known as "Taytay". It is pronounced as "tie", as in 'coat-and-tie", just repeat the word "tie" twice - tie tie or Taytay.

Copyright photos by Henry Libo-on. 

No photos shall be used in other publication without the prior consent of the author. Thank you.

When I visited the Fort in September of 2013, I noticed that it has three levels. The first level has an existing reception area for tourists. This reception area is situated at the center of the Fort, I walked farther to a short stairway which was, I thought, carved from the earth. As I turned left to another stairway, I noticed picture frames hanging. These frames showed how the original Fort looked like.

This way leads to an office and a museum. I learned from my conversation with the attendant, that space used to be the office of the commanding officer of the Fort and his staff. There were also exhibits and souvenir items for sale. As I moved a bit farther from this office cum museum, I realized I was again moving up the stairways that were seemed to have been carved out of the earth. This level leads to a park. There were long benches and tables under several trees. The open space at the center with plants and greeneries provides a good view of Taytay town and a little farther to the Fort's wall is the view of the houses and buildings and the Port of Taytay.

Surrounding the corners of the top level of the Fort are Cannons with their long nose eternally aimed at the open sea as if saying "don't make a wrong move bad guy, or else you will explode". This is how I thought as I examined the cannons and I guess I am funny to justify their being there this way...haha...

Occupying the right side of the Fort, this side facing the Port of Taytay is the Aztec-influenced Church. The building looked like an Aztec male with a mouth, eyes, and head top looking straight to the open sea. Whether or not this was built to scare the pirates or to show power and superiority, the fact remains that this is how I reacted to it. I just do not know if the builders of this church on top of the Fort of Santa Isabel overseas workers from Mexico were or had Aztec lineage. I do not know.

When I went down from the Fort to explore the park in front of it, I discovered that there were three Philippine Flags flying on the top of the Fort. Why three flags? I just guess, again, that they probably represented the three main regions of the Philippines - Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

On the entrance of the Fort from the first level, I saw a seal or perhaps a coat of arms. The seal was carved on the walls above the main door and under that seal, it says Fuerza de Santa Isabel - 1667. I concluded that the Fort is already 346 years old when I visited it.

My side trip to the Fort of Santa Isabel was a wise decision. The "Kuta" is about an hour from El Nido, where I spent my beach and island hopping adventures.

How to get to Taytay and the Fuerza de Santa Isabel?

There are domestic flights to Puerto Princesa, the capital city of Palawan.  

Let us agree that you are at Puerto Princesa airport at the moment.  From there, hire a Tricycle to the Bus Terminal at Barangay San Jose.  This is also the terminal of the RORO Bus that ply the Puerto Princesa City to El Nido Palawan. Once on the bus, please tell the Conductor or the Driver that you are going to the Fuerza de Santa Isabel in Taytay Town.  Then, tell the driver, you will go down the bus terminal at Taytay. From there, take the Tricycle, a motorcycle with a sidecar, and tell your driver you are going to the Fort or "Kuta". Agree on the price. Travel time is about 10 - 15 
minutes.

It would also be nice if you make a side trip to Taytay Town after your island-hopping at El Nido.  

From Puerto Princesa, it takes 6-7 hours of travel time on board the bus or van to El Nido. 

What are the other things you can do when you are at El Nido or Taytay?

You can visit the town of San Vicente where you can find the longest beach in the Philippines and the famous Port Barton.  In the town of Roxas, there is a bus terminal.  At the back of the row of restaurants facing the bus terminal is the Jeepney Terminal going to Port Barton.  These are within the routes of Taytay and El Nido.

This is the municipal hall of Taytay.

History of Taytay

Source: Wikipedia. 

Before the arrival of the Spanish, the Kingdom of Taytay was ruled by a monarch noted as being followed everywhere at any given time by ten scribes. The crew of Ferdinand Magellan held the King of Taytay and his consort hostage for ransom after escaping the Battle of Mactan where Magellan was slain. They intended to secure more supplies as they plan to cross into the Moluccas to seek help from the Portuguese there. The king and his subjects complied with the Spaniards’ demands and even added more food supplies than what were asked for. This was duly recorded by Antonio Pigafetta, Magellan's chronicler, who was onboard one of the ships when these events took place.^{[citation needed]}

Pigafetta also noted a curious thing in the Kingdom: the natives were fond of cockfighting, long before this pastime was seen or even heard of in the Western Hemisphere.^{[citation needed]}

During the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, Taytay was formally founded in 1623. Taytay became the capital of the province of Calamianes, the entire territory of Paragua (now Palawan), in 1818; and the province of Castilla, a land area occupying the northern part of Palawan, in 1858.^[5]

Archived baptismal records in Cuyo, Palawan show that the last monarch of the Kingdom of Taytay was baptised into Catholic Church with the name Flores de los Santos Cabaylo (“Cabaylo, Flower of the Saints”). No other sovereign royal datu after him ruled the kingdom. King Cabaylo's descendants include the present clans of Cabaylo-Manlavi-Gabinete-Macolor as main genealogical roots. His Royal Highness Datu Dr. Fernando Macolor Cruz, who hailed from the Cabailo-Manlavi-Gabinete-Macolor line of the royal house, is the present and sole pretender to the throne of the Kingdom of Taytay.^{[citation needed]}

During the American era, Taytay ceased being Palawan's capital, and its administrative boundary was reduced by approximately 50,000 hectares upon the creation of the Municipality of El Nido in 1916.^[6]

The historic Taytay Fort, the Fuerza Santa Isabel de la Paragua, built in 1667 under the Augustinian Recollect Fathers and named in honor of Spain's Queen Isabela II in the 19th century, was used as a military station during that period. This famous relic was completed in 1738. It was mainly used to defend against Muslim warrior-raiders in their colorful war boats while the Spanish soldiers fire at them with their huge cannons. The fort's small chapel and cannons are still intact.^[7] The fort is now under the supervision of the Municipal Government of Taytay. The Moro action must be understood not as an act of piracy but as a showdown of power and challenge to Spanish hegemony over the islands. It can be viewed as the Tausug's efforts to recover what was once theirs. Similar raids were also carried out against Christian converts in Spanish Cuyo, Dumaran, Linapacan and Culion.^{[citation needed]}

In 1957, the Island of Debangan was constituted into a barrio.

* * * * * * * * * 

Disclaimer: The history of Taytay, the first capital of Palawan, was taken from Wikipedia. We do not own this article and we acknowledge that the source of this information is Wikipedia. Thank you. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * 

Before you go to the next Blog, please LIKE my Facebook Page and SHARE this story with your friends. Thank you. 

* * * * * * * * *  

Who is Touristang Pobre? 

*He has been a travel writer for WHAT'S ON (In the Visayas & Mindanao), a travel guide circulated in Cebu and other parts of the Vis-Min regions.

*He was a writer and columnist of Negros Daily Bulletin, a local newspaper in Bacolod City and circulated around the province and Western Visayas. 

*He was a former Tour Guide when BTTI or Bureau of Travel & Tourist Industry became the Department of Tourism, circa early '70s. 

*He was a former Executive Assistant to the then Governor of Negros Occidental and later on Mayor of Bacolod City, Honorable Alfredo L. Montelibano, Jr. 

*He was a former OIC-CPDO or City Planning & Development Officer of Bacolod City Government.

*He was a former College Instructor/Professor at Riverside College School of Nursing.

*He is currently based in the U.S. but calls Bacolod City and Negros Occidental his home. 

* * * * * * * * * * 
All photos by Henry Libo-on of Touristang Pobre.


Updated on June 7, 2018.
Updated on May 13, 2019. 
Updated on February 7, 2020.

Reviewed on April 11, 2021. 

Reviewed on December 26, 2022.