Panday Pira
Blacksmith and First Filipino Cannon Maker
(1488 - 1576)
Panday Pira is the first Filipino cannon-maker whose cannon foundry was established in Santa Ana during the 1500s. Unfortunately, his foundry disappeared after the Spaniards settled in Manila, and its exact location is unknown today. His name literally translates as Blacksmith Pira, panday being a Tagalog word for "blacksmith".
According to Filipino historian Jaime de Veyra, "Panday Pira's cannons are as good as those produced in Spain and became the official cannon-maker for the Spanish army in the Philippines. His works contributed much to the defense of the Philippine islands against pirates and marauders.
Panday Pira's Early Years
Panday Pira was born in 1488. No one can be sure of the exact date of his birth except the place of his origin, in one of the windy islands in Sulu and born to the wife of a Muslim warrior.
The young Pira grew up in the shade of colorful stilt houses on the shallow banks of a small lake. The quiet life in the village disturbed him. He often spends hours alone and throws stones into the ocean. He is a good aimer, and he can often hit with stones the fishes and eels that struggle to get away. He thought, if the stones were light, the farther the distance it can reach.
Work and Efforts as a Blacksmith
Panday Pira is acknowledged as the first Filipino metallurgist. Old tradition maintains that Panday Pira went as far as Ilocos and Isabela in the north and Batangas in the south of Luzon in training the early villagers in the metal smith industry.
He devised his cannons using a mold of clay and wax which Muslim leader Rajah Sulayman used to protect Manila against the invading Spanish troops. This legendary metalsmith was later recruited to equip the walled city of Intramuros.
In 1508 at the age of 20, Pira and his relatives went to Maynilad where he established a foundry on the north bank of the Pasig River now known as the District of San Nicolas.
Rajah Sulayman commissioned Panday Pira to make several pieces of cannons to be mounted on the palisades surrounding his kingdom and on the seaside portion of his wooden fort to serve as defense of Maynilad. These pieces were as large as the largest Malaga cannons that the Spaniards used.
Maynilad was not taken easily when the Spanish forces led by Captain Martin de Goiti and Juan de Salcedo attempted to explore Maynilad in May 1570 anchoring at the mouth of Pasig River, they were surprised when they were greeted by salvos from the cannons made by Panday Pira. These artillery pieces were hidden behind a network of wooden rattan and bamboo mattings supported by logs and timber of the native's wooden fort.
The superior artillery guns of the Spanish flotilla bombarded incessantly the Kuta and its palisades. The defeat of Rajah Sulayman was due to the inferior kind of gunpowder they used which they learn from the Chinese.
Goiti won the first Battle of Manila on May 24, 1570, with the help of its superior artillery and well-armed disciplined men. After the brief battle, Goiti took Panday Pira's cannon as a war booty and presented them to Adelantado Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in Panay Island (most probably Iloilo near Capiz) on which Legazpi subjected these captured artilleries to rigorous test for examination, comparison and later adopted to use. These native cannons made by Pira were proven strong and reliable. They did not crack or burst after continuous firing and in spite of a much greater quantity of powder used. In conclusion, Panday Pira's cannons were found way superior to the Spanish cannons mounted on Legazpi's ships
On May 19, 1571, Legazpi eventually took Maynilad and established a permanent Spanish settlement. Due to lack of artillery pieces, which were not only necessary for the city's defense but also for conquering independent barangays of the land, he sought Panday Pira for his valuable technical knowledge. However, Panday Pira is nowhere to be found because after the Battle of Manila he fled to Bulacan in the middle of 1570 then to Apalit, Pampanga where he eventually settled.
Settling in Pampanga and Other Works
After the Battle of Bangkusay Channel off the coast of Tondo, Panday Pira's family and ten of his relatives lived in Pampanga. He established a foundry shop of farm tools producing the first native plowshare and mold board. Before long, he was manufacturing other farm and household implements such as bolos and knives. Here he taught his sons as well as young Kapampangans to make tools and weapons made of iron or metal. Their creations are known for their quality and durability, so they are known throughout Luzon.
He used for mould the Apalit clay then abundant in the barrio now called Kapalagan in manufacturing native farm implements. One valuable thing he left was his method of casting and tempering iron to make it harder, more durable and flexible.
Working for Legazpi and Death
His popularity and skillful craftmanship soon reach Manila. Legazpi summoned Pira to build cannons for the Spanish army. In exchange for his services, he and his family were exempted from tribute and forced labor and also the freedom of living and mingling with Spaniards and freedom from other obligations to the church. Panday Pira, often called by the Spaniards as Pandapira, established his foundry in Lamayan now Santa Ana, Manila with the help from his sons.
Panday Pira is the inventor of the lantaka, a small cannon that can be rotated or maneuvered at any desired angle and direction. He was requested by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi to manufacture lantakas for galleons and frigates as the Spanish forces is preparing to conquer more lands in the archipelago and the entire Southeast Asian region.
After Legazpi's death of heart attack on August 20, 1572, Panday Pira continued his services to the Spanish army. The cannons he built were not only used for the fortifications of Manila but also in the Spanish military expeditions of Borneo and Moluccas.
Panday Pira died in 1576 at the age of 88 and he was mourned by the Spaniards and Filipinos. His death was a great loss to the Spaniards for nobody including his sons could make similar astounding cannons.
The Spanish authorities not able to find an excellent cannon-maker like Panday Pira appealed to the Spanish monarch saying:
"Pandapira our cannon maker is dead. We cannot find a single man among us to take his place." This was answered in 1584, when a Spanish smith from Mexico arrived in the country and took the cannon maker's foundry.
Fray Gaspar de San Agustin, an anti-Filipino chronicler and friar even admitted that "Pira's cannons were as good as those in Malaga (a town in Spain). Panday Pira's foundry was expanded in 1584 when a Spanish blacksmith came from Mexico. It was later transferred within the city in 1590 and eventually abolished in 1805.
Sources:
Biliran Island Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/biliranisland/photos/panday-pira-the-first-filipino-cannon-makerpanday-pira-1483-1576-was-the-first-f/10156304763535131/
Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panday_Pira
Kahimyang Project - https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2747/panday-pira-rajah-sulaymans-cannon-maker
Pilipinas Kong Mahal Blog - https://pilipinaskongminamahal.blogspot.com/2011/08/panday-pira-1488-1576.html?m=1
Panday Pira (1488-1576) First Filipino Cannon Maker by Yumpu - https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/12193721/panday-pira-1488-1576-first-filipino-cannon-maker-the-
Image Source:
Discover Philippines Google Sites - https://sites.google.com/site/discoverphilippineswithus/dr-jose-p-rizal/andres-bonifacio-1863-1897/general-gregorio-del-pilar-1875-1899/general-emilio-aguinaldo-1899-1964/apolinario-mabini-1864-1903/emilio-jacinto-1875-1899/general-antonio-luna-1866-1899/melchora-aquino/graciano-lopez-jaena/panday-pira-1483-1576
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