The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume 52, 1841-1898 Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century

This volume gathers a remarkable set of 19th‑century records that illuminate life in the Philippine Islands during the final decades of Spanish rule. Illustrated with rare maps—from James Bell’s 1836 East India chart to Juan Antonio Cantova’s 1731 depiction of the Garbanzos Islands—the book also reproduces eyewitness reports by a civil official and a military commander describing politics, economy, and society in 1842‑43. A scholarly essay by James A. LeRoy offers a clear overview of the era, while unpublished manuscripts such as Rizal’s draft constitution for the Liga Filipina and an 1898 friar memorial add personal voices to the historical narrative.

Readers will also find concise appendices on agricultural conditions in 1784 and 1866, and a snapshot of the Economic Society of Manila’s projects, all supported by careful bibliographic notes for further research. By presenting these primary sources together, the volume lets listeners hear the debates over colonial policy—whether Spain would retain, abandon, or liberate the islands—and glimpse the complex interactions among native Filipinos, Chinese mestizos, and Spanish officials. It offers a vivid, document‑driven portrait of a pivotal half‑century.