Magalang

July 25, 2022

1,279

The Municipality of Magalang is a first-class municipality in the coastal province of Pampanga part of Central Luzon or Region III of the Philippines.

The Municipality of Magalang is situated in northern part of Pampanga. The metropolises closest to Magalang are Mabalacat City, Angeles City, City of Tarlac City, Tarlac, Gapan, Nueva Ecija, and Malolos, Bulacan. The nearest towns are Concepcion, Tarlac, Bamban, Tarlac, Arayat, Pampanga, Capas, Tarlac, Santa Ana, Pampanga, and Mexico, Pampanga

The agricultural town of Magalang, Pampanga is one of the oldest towns found in Pampanga,

The name Magalang originated from the word ‘Magalo’ which means a way of moving and waving from one place to another.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magalang#/media/File:Ph_locator_pampanga_magalang.pn

History

The town of Magalang is considered one of the oldest towns that you can find in the province of Pampanga. The town was founded by the Augustinians under the administration of Pedro Bravo de Acuña on the 30^th of April, 1605 at the western part of the distinguished Mount Arayat. The initial site of the town of Magalang was an area known as Macapsa, which was eventually relocated to Barangay San Bartolome.

The leaders of Magalang specifically the Cortez, Suing, Luciano, and Pineda clans, agreed to split up the town into two: some clans relocated up north of the river to a location named Sto. Niño, which later on was renamed Conception; the other clans stayed in San Bartolome and maintained the name ‘Magalang.’ The floods converted the town of Magalang into a lake on September 22, 1858.

Once again, the town was moved in 1734, however, this time it’s already in the present-day location farther south. The original location of Magalang came to be known as the “Balen Melacuan” (The abandoned town) and is right now a barrio of Conception; The present site of Magalang is located in Talimundoc or San Pedro, which is the reason why the entire name of the town is San Pedro de Magalang. Re-settled in Barrio San Pedro on December13, 1863 by Gobernadorcillo Pablo M. Luciano.

Back in early 1660, the town of Magalang was only one of the 15 municipalities in Pampanga to have an Augustinian church and convent to manage the spiritual needs of the townsfolks. The first prior assigned to the church was Father Gonzalo de Salazar. Similar info was provided in the 1738 and 1763 reported records of the Augustinian Order.

By the 1660s, the undisturbed residents of Magalang were disturbed by Francisco Maniago in his revolt opposing the Spanish regime-, and in that year, the folks of the Magalang town were dispersed by the army of Andres Malong commanded by Melchor de Vega. During that period, Magalang was one of the centers of revolutions in Pampanga due to its closeness to Camansi, a headquarters of the insurgents situated in Mt. Arayat.

In 1885, the agricultural experiment station ‘La Granja Modelo de Luzon’ was relocated from San Isidro, Nueva Ecija to the slopes in Mt. Arayat, which become the present-day site of Pampanga State Agricultural University.

The armies of Major General Servillano Aquino guarded the town of Magalang against the American forces. The Revolutionary Government took over, from the 12^th of June 1898 until the 5^th of November 1899, when the Americans prevailed, commanded by Major General Arthur MacArthur and Colonel Jacob H. Smith.

On the 1st of January in 1942, the Imperial Japanese armies overwhelmed the Filipino-American armies formed of Igorot soldiers guided by Major Helmert Duisterhof and Capt. Russell W. Volckmann, paving the way for the seizure of Magalang. Then, the town was occupied by the Japanese, on the 3^rd of January 1942.

Liberated by the Americans composed of 148th Infantry of 37th Division, US Army with the help of Hukbalahap on January 25 in 1945. The town was turned over to the Republic of the Philippines on the 4^th of July 1946. It was one of the command posts of the Huk rebellion until the insurgence was destroyed in 1954.

Barangay

The Municipality of Magalang is subdivided into 27 barangays.

Ayala	Bucanan	Camias	Dolores	Escaler
La Paz	Navaling	San Agustin	San Antonio	San Francisco
San Ildefonso	San Isidro	San Jose	San Miguel	San Nicolas I
San Nicolas II (Concepcion)	San Pablo	San Pedro I	San Pedro II	San Roque
San Vicente	Santa Cruz	Santa Lucia	Santa Maria	Santo Nino
Santo Rosario	Turu

Festivals

Kamaru Festival

The Kamaru Festival or often called as ‘Camaru festival’ is held every month of August.

Magalang Town Fiesta

The festival is held every August 24, honoring the sainthood of St. Bartholomew, the Apostles.

Landmark and Attractions

San Bartolome Parish Church

St. Bartholomew Parish Church (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando, Vicariate of St. John the Beloved) was founded in 1605 by the Augustinians. The church was swept by the Parua River in the flood in the year 1863. On December 13, 1863, the church was re-established in Barrio San Pedro.

Sources:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magalang#/media/File:Facade_of_San_Bartolome_Church_(Magalang).jpg

Lord’s Epiphany Parish

This parish church is situated in Magalang and was founded in 1996. The first-class artifact of St. Francis of Assisi consisting of a piece of bone and his staff was consecrated in the church last 2016. The homage to the relic is open to the public on Tuesdays.

Sources:https://www.facebook.com/PLEOfficialPage/photos/a.109125843944350/109125823944352

Banal A Bunduk, Dalan Ning Krus

This magnificent vision of spreading out the Fourteen (14) Stations of the Cross on the foot of Mt. Arayat, going uphill, with a remarkable overlooking view of Pampanga and nearby provinces.