February 10, 2025

Wednesday War Stories ~ Battle of Manila…less the Bay – 4 February 1899

RockyMountainNavy, 5 February 2025

When Regimental Commander Brant sent out the list of battles for this year’s new history column, I jumped when I saw “The Battle of Manila.” As naval historians know the Battle of Manila Bay is famous for the great quote, “You may fire when ready, Gridley.” I should have known, however, that the U.S. Army veteran in Brant would not miss a chance to showcase a military battle that features his beloved Army. That means today I am not writing about the Battle of Manila Bay fought on 1 May 1898 but the Battle of Manila—the city—fought on 4 February 1899 that heralded the start of the Philippine-American War.1

I am also fortunate that my personal library has a book on this topic. The Philippine War: 1899-1902 written by Brian McAllister Linn was published by the University of Kansas Press in 2000. The book divides its study into two periods; the “conventional operations” and the later “guerrilla or pacification campaigns.” Publishing just a few years before Operation Iraqi Freedom, I wonder just how many “lessons learned” from this book, or even war, were studied—or not. 

Courtesy goodreads.com

Who’s on first

Interestingly, another Battle of Manila—the first—fought on 13 August 1898 ended the Spanish-American War. The peace, however, was fragile. The victorious but occupying Americans were forbidden to cooperate with Philippine insurgents, especially those led by Emilio Aguinaldo who was the most important leader of the nationalist movement in Luzon.

 

What’s on second

In the six months since the end of the Spanish-American War, U.S. forces in the form of 8th Corps took up positions around Manila to carry out their charge to protect the persons and property of all within limits of the city and its environs. The conditions for the Americans was not pretty; the city was described by one soldier as, “A more filthy place I never saw . . . . The stench is something awful” (Linn, p. 26). Further, the local insurgents led by Aguinaldo were not cooperating and cut off the water supply to the city leading to typhus, malaria, dengue, and numerous other diseases affecting not only U.S. troops but also the citizens of the city. Come February 1899, Aguinaldo’s Army of Liberation was estimated to have between 15,000 to 40,000 soldiers and was loosely arranged around the 16 miles of defensive lines of the U.S. 8th Corps. Though the Americans had over 20,000 troops throughout the Philippines only about 11,000 manned the lines around Manila. 

To call the U.S. defenses of Manila a “line” is actually something of a misnomer. As Linn explains:

Despite frequent references to “lines,” the 8th Corps’ defensive system was a series of semiautonomous regimental commands stationed to guard the most obvious avenues of attack. Units were separated by islands and mudflats, creeks, bamboo and scrub thickets, villages, rice fields, and swamps. Each regiment kept the bulk of its troops back several hundred yards in prepared positions, relying on outposts and patrols to warn of attack. A network of telegraph lines and prearranged rocket signals kept the commanders in contact with brigade and division. Although the only tactical disposition possible given 8th Corps’ limited manpower, it formed a very porous front. Some outposts of the opposing forces were hundreds of yards apart, separated by swamps, water, or bamboo groves. In other areas, particularly at bridges, villages, and roads, sentries stood almost face-to-face and could, as their temperaments suited, trade insults or cigars. Patrols were continually moving into disputed zones and, if not challenged might soon be followed by outposts and then a permanent garrison behind field fortifications. Thus soldiers, especially sentries, knew they could easily be surrounded and cut off, a recognition that encouraged a great deal of shooting at shadows and noises. Officers, aware that their unit might face a major attack without immediate support, jealously guarded any position that might prove crucial in a fight and were quick to react to what they viewed as encroachments. (Linn, p. 44)

Linn, p. 43

 

Thus the stage was set for confrontation. In late January, Aguinaldo smuggled arms and organized militias into several neighborhoods and issued orders for city residents to assist the Army of Liberation in an upcoming attack. All it would take to start the battle was a spark, provided on the night of 4 February when a U.S. patrol near Blockhouse 7 in the village of Santol along the northeast edge of the perimeter came under fire. Filipino patrols crossed into what the U.S. considered a neutral zone in Santol on the night of 1-2 February and on 4 February the U.S. swept the village but found it deserted. Around 8 p.m. that evening there was an encounter between U.S. and Filipino patrols. Who fired first has never officially been determined but the exchange of gunfire by the two patrols quickly escalated into a general firefight that continued through the night.

The fighting on the northeast outskirts of Manila should have signaled the start of a general insurrection for the insurgents; the reality is the start of the fighting took Aguinaldo by surprise. Instead of a general uprising as part of a coordinated revolt there were only random acts of arson and sniping—which the U.S. Provost Guard handled. Much credit must be given to the action of the Provost Guard which sealed the city and suppressed disturbances though the U.S. actions were harsh and described as, “when the police company got though with them the undertaker had enough business for the day” (Linn, p. 47).

The fighting in Manila continued into 5 February with the support of U.S. Navy ships in Manila Bay. By the end of that day the Americans had broken through the Army of Liberation lines to the north of the city. To the south, the battle was much more fierce but ultimately a victory for the Americans.

The battles on 5 February were, as Linn describes:

. . . the biggest of the entire Philippine War. Fought along a sixteen-mile front, it involved all or part of thirteen regiments and thousands of Filipinos. It was also the bloodiest battle of the war: American casualties totaled 238, of whom 44 were killed in action or died of wounds; almost half the fatalities were in two Regular regiments, the 14th Infantry and 3rd Artillery. The more important Volunteers had far fewer casualties. Filipino casualties can only be estimated. Anderson claimed his division buried 238 in trenches and took 306 prisoners. The army’s official report listed total Army of Liberation casualties as 4,000, of whom 700 were killed, but this is guesswork. (Linn, p. 52)

This Second Battle of Manila, which began on the night of 4 February, did not completely end for another two weeks. While this Battle of Manila inaugurated the start of the Philippine-American War it was a battle of lost opportunity. The Army of Liberation would never again have the opportunity to decisively defeat the Americans; their power was at its peak in early February 1899. At the end of the two weeks of fighting Filipino forces had no morale while the U.S. troops, especially the Volunteers, had proven quite capable. Yet, while the 8th Corps was clearly superior in city fighting, there was less certainty as to their ability to fight guerrilla insurgency battles in the interior of the country, especially in the approaching rainy season. That, of course, is where the war went—and it would not end until June 1902.

 

I don’t know’s [but you will] on third

It deserves to be mentioned that, as bloody the First and Second Battles of Manila were, they both pale in comparison to the Third Battle of Manila fought February – March 1945. There is good reason the Third Battle of Manila is sometimes referred to as the “Stalingrad of Asia.”

 

Wargaming Second Manila

I personally own no wargames covering the Second Battle of Manila. A review of BoardGameGeek shows more than a few naval wargames covering the Battle of Manila Bay. There are other wargames that cover land combat in Cuba during the Spanish-American War that could possibly be adopted. There are also more than a few wargames on the World War II Battle of Manila. Among the few wargames that may include the Second Battle of Manila are

Courtesy BGG
Bolos and Krags: The Philippine American War 1899-1902 (designer Terrance Co, Platinum Dragon Productions, NEVER PUBLISHED)

Courtesy BGG
Amigos and Insurrectos: The Philippine Insurrection 1899-1902 (designer John Poinske, Battles Magazine, 2016)

Courtesy BGG
Philippines Ablaze: A Solitaire Game of the Philippine Insurrection (1899-1902) (designer Erik von Rossing, web-published by Berserker Games, 2014)

Courtesy BGG
Most interestingly, BGG also lists four Parker Brothers games from the late 1890’s all about the Spanish-American War. As the BGG entry notes, “Although not a commercial success, the series of four games contributed greatly to Parker Brothers image as a patriotic American company.”

 

Feature image from Linn, p. 47

 


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Footnotes

  1. ed note: mwuahahahah!

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