Manila City was discovered by Spanish

Conqueror, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi.

Then allocated a piece of land

where a church was established under the

name of La Purisima Immaculada Conception.

After a year, a parish stood in the place

which later on lead to the inauguration

of a Cathedral— built from different

materials such as wood, bamboo, and nipa.

On 1583, a fire razed the city which

burnt the easily combustible Cathedral.

Almost two centuries went by, a Baroque

Themed Cathedral stood under the headship

of a Florentine Architect named

Juan de Uguccioni.

Beside it was an octagonal bell-clock

tower and a Truncated Cupola

at its transept.

Its facade closely resembled the

Church of II Gesu in Rome, Italy.

On September 16, 1852, an earthquake hit

Manila that collapsed the Cathedral

to the ground.

In 1858, the Cathedral sported

an entirely new look.

Engineer Don Nicolas Valdes renounced the

Baroque design and introduced Neoclassism.

The octagonal bell-clock tower was

retained beside the Cathedral

and had a new paint job.

Its Cupola was redesigned from a

truncated form to a hemispherical dome.

On June 3, 1863, a strong earthquake

struck Manila again, shattering

the Cathedral into rubbles.

In 1879, the Cathedral rose once again

to become the city's premier temple.

Architect Don Vicente Serrano y Salaverri

employed a Romanesque-Byzantine edifice.

The octagonal bell-clock tower stood

still beside the Cathedral

despite the number of earthquakes

the city experienced.

A dome raised on a fenestrated drum

marked the nave and transept crossing

of the Cathedral.

The main façade is graced by statues

of famous saints sculpted in Molave wood.

In 1945, the Cathedral was ruthlessly

bombed along with the rest of Intramuros

during the Battle of Liberation.

In 1958, the Cathedral rose phoenix-like

from the desolate ruins of

the old cathedral.

Architect Fernando Ocampo designed it

based from the previous structure

but avoided meticulously duplicating it.

The Cathedral featured a new bell-clock

tower replacing the long-lived

octagonal tower.

Its octagonal cupola was characterized by

eight pairs of stained glass windows

enabling a dramatic light

to enter its interior.

Viewing from the top, the Cathedral

is in cruciform with three-naves.

The statues of the saints were recreated

using Roman travertine stone.

In April 27, 1981, Pope John Paul II

elevated the cathedral into a minor

basilica as it witnessed important

religious activities.

Like all successful stories,

the Manila Cathedral has always managed

to withstand all the hurdles thrown at it.

It is the cycle of life that defined

history and will always be a constant

continuance of our story.