Vigan CityHood - Vigan as a Municipality then and Vigan as a City Now
According to its past history, Vigan was a significant land during the pre-colonial period in the Philippines. Many Chinese traders and merchants sail in the South China Sea and Mestizo River in order to arrived at Isla de Bigan to gain more profit. From there, they meet the Filipino traders and exchange goods such as honeycomb, gold, mountain products and exotic goods. On the other hand, most Chinese merchants stayed in Vigan for many years and it resulted in the diversity bloodline of the Biguenos through marriage.
In the year 1572, King Philip Il of Spain command the Spanish soldiers to reach the shores of Vigan during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines. Afterward the exploration and voyage of Spanish soldiers in the Northern Luzon has been thriving. At the same year Vigan was captured and founded. For this reason, conquistador Juan de Salcedo establish Villa Fernandina de Vigan to dignified the late Prince Ferdinand who died at the age of four and is the son of King Philip II.
In return for his services to King Philip II, Juan de Salcedo was granted and take control of different provinces in the Northern Luzon such as llocos Sur, locos Norte and Abra. Two years later, Juan de Salcedo returned to Vigan accompanying some Augustinian Missionaries in order to start the Christian preaching evangelization in llocos region. Soon, llocos Sur became a Spanish colonial religious and a political power in the Northern Luzon.
Fast forward in December 1941, Vigan was invaded by the Japanese Imperial Army during the
In the year 2015, Vigan City was acknowledge as one of the Seven Wonder Cities of the World conjoined with La Paz in Bolivia, Beirut in Lebanon, Doha in Qatar, Durban in South Africa, Havana in Cuba and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The ceremony took place in the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Conversion of St. Paul where founder and president of New 7 Wonders Bernard Weber gave a bronze plaque to Vigan City Mayor Eva Grace Singson-Medina which embodies the heritage city's election.
On July 27, 2022, Vigan City felt the magnitude seven earthquake with its epicenter on Abra province. Much of the historical places have been damaged including the iconic Bantay Bell Tower, Vigan Cathedral and some houses in Calle Crisologo. Nevertheless, the local government unit (LGU) of Ilocos Sur and the Philippines government agencies quickly responded, gave necessary aid to the families affected and restored much of the historical places and houses.
Vigan, the UNESCO colonial city, the capital of Ilocos Sur province located on the western coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines features well-preserved Spanish-era architecture and every year attracts more than a million of local and foreign visitors.
Vigan is a small city charmingly combining the colonial and peaceful atmosphere you will unlikely find anywhere else in the Philippines with traditional noise and buzz of Asian cities.
There are at least three main reasons why you should consider to visit Vigan. Firstly, Vigan is the best-preserved planned Spanish colonial city in Asia and is a part of the UNESCO World Heritage List; secondly, the cobblestone streets of well-restored Calle Crisologo are traffic free which is such a relief when traveling in Asia so you can focus only on sightseeing and do not worry about your life all the time;and thirdly, fresh empanadas on the night market are too good to give Vigan a miss.
In a nutshell, if you’re traveling north of Manila and want to explore the Philippines from a different perspective, Vigan is a right place where to start as the country is not only about beaches and rice terraces.
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