Having served the Spanish army as a captain of Fort Santiago, and later as commander-in-chief of the armed forces later in his life. Andres II was a proficient military officer, having served, approximately when he was either a cadet just like his brother, or was promoted as a lieutenant in an unknown post.
Thus, when he became emperor in 1829, he was disillusioned with the army that once defeated the decaying Spanish, by 1827 the army plummeted to just 9,000 men, and most of the generals and senior officers have been out of service after the war. He feared that a resurgent Spain, accompanied by potential royalists shall reconquer the empire. As such, his top priority was to modernize and refurbish the military, especially the army. He also worked for the improvement of the navy, something that he could use for the future conquest of Mindanao.
In 1831, he ordered the establishment of the Instituto Militar de Filipinas, officed at the Cuartel de Santa Lucia in the capital. Its main branches were the recently established Escuela Tierra and Escuela Policia, along with the already established Escuela Nautica de Manila (shortened to just Escuela Nautica in 1827) and became the primer military academy of both the military and police in the Philippines. Calba (of the Escuela Tierra), Ynchausti (of the Escuela Nautica) and Parang (of the Escuela Policia, after he became the lieutenant of the cuadrilleros in Imus as of 1834) were the first chief-principals of each branch. Training grounds of the army and police was in Fort Santiago, other forts, military bases in Tondo and Cavite, and few training grounds made from the acquired property seized back in the 1820s. The navy on the other hand, have the shipyards of Bicol and Cavite, and of the surrounding waters as its own training grounds. In its first year, the number of enrollees were about 20,000 from different parts of Luzon and Visayas.
The ruins of the Cuartel after it was destroyed during the Liberation of Manila in 1945
He also prescribed a new set of uniform from the plain baro-salaual set on 1832, which the latter was used from 1823 to 1831.
The standard uniform of the Philippine forces. Here, those of the infantry were shown
The recruitment efforts led to the numbers of the Philippine forces increasing to about 83,000 (41,000 in the army, 32,000 in the police, 10,000 in the navy) by 1836. To accommodate the ever growing number of marines, Andres ordered the establishment of shipyards in Bicol, as the region had the most number of shipyards, and that shipbuilding was considered a tradition by the Bicolanos ever since the 1560s. Shipyards were also established in Iloilo.
With the army reaching 41,000, he thus also reorganized the number of regiments and the number of soldiers in it. By 1833, the number of regiments were 41, in which each regiment had about 1,000 soldiers. The regiments were further subdivided into 4 battalions each. The Cuerpos Arqueros were renamed to Elites Tiradores since at this point, most of the soldiers enlisted in this corps were mostly marksmen and arquebusiers. Despite this, the common folk continued to call them Arqueros. The Imperial Regiment was merged with the Emperor's Guard, to become the Imperial Militia of Manila.
In 1834, he officially established the ranks of each officer in the army. A manual was also written for the duties, his responsibilities and what actions shall be executed by the said officer. A year later, he gave permission to British investors and merchants to establish a weapon factory on the interiors of San Pedro Macati[1]. However, in later years, the provinces of the Bicol and Cebu shall be the center of weapon manufacturing due to rapid industrialization thanks to the discovery of coal in the late 1830s. Military bases were established across the country, while forts constructed by the Spanish were well maintained and refurbished.
While the British became the primary manufacturer for Andres's rifles and cartridges, on the other hand he ordered the establishment of cannon foundries for the construction of homemade cannons, whilst incorporating European aspects to it. Such foundries were later dubbed as "Piras" as homage to the first, and probably the oldest well known blacksmith, Panday Pira which casted cannons for both the city-states of Tondo and Maynila, and later the Spanish.
Despite the heavy cost and a debt numbering 3,000,000, Andres was able to pay these by using the loads of gold mined from the Cordilleras, as well as from the taxes they collected from the major industries. Thus, for the most part, the treasury was stable although it has flaws to overcome in the future.
Thus, when he became emperor in 1829, he was disillusioned with the army that once defeated the decaying Spanish, by 1827 the army plummeted to just 9,000 men, and most of the generals and senior officers have been out of service after the war. He feared that a resurgent Spain, accompanied by potential royalists shall reconquer the empire. As such, his top priority was to modernize and refurbish the military, especially the army. He also worked for the improvement of the navy, something that he could use for the future conquest of Mindanao.
In 1831, he ordered the establishment of the Instituto Militar de Filipinas, officed at the Cuartel de Santa Lucia in the capital. Its main branches were the recently established Escuela Tierra and Escuela Policia, along with the already established Escuela Nautica de Manila (shortened to just Escuela Nautica in 1827) and became the primer military academy of both the military and police in the Philippines. Calba (of the Escuela Tierra), Ynchausti (of the Escuela Nautica) and Parang (of the Escuela Policia, after he became the lieutenant of the cuadrilleros in Imus as of 1834) were the first chief-principals of each branch. Training grounds of the army and police was in Fort Santiago, other forts, military bases in Tondo and Cavite, and few training grounds made from the acquired property seized back in the 1820s. The navy on the other hand, have the shipyards of Bicol and Cavite, and of the surrounding waters as its own training grounds. In its first year, the number of enrollees were about 20,000 from different parts of Luzon and Visayas.
The ruins of the Cuartel after it was destroyed during the Liberation of Manila in 1945
He also prescribed a new set of uniform from the plain baro-salaual set on 1832, which the latter was used from 1823 to 1831.
The standard uniform of the Philippine forces. Here, those of the infantry were shown
With the army reaching 41,000, he thus also reorganized the number of regiments and the number of soldiers in it. By 1833, the number of regiments were 41, in which each regiment had about 1,000 soldiers. The regiments were further subdivided into 4 battalions each. The Cuerpos Arqueros were renamed to Elites Tiradores since at this point, most of the soldiers enlisted in this corps were mostly marksmen and arquebusiers. Despite this, the common folk continued to call them Arqueros. The Imperial Regiment was merged with the Emperor's Guard, to become the Imperial Militia of Manila.
In 1834, he officially established the ranks of each officer in the army. A manual was also written for the duties, his responsibilities and what actions shall be executed by the said officer. A year later, he gave permission to British investors and merchants to establish a weapon factory on the interiors of San Pedro Macati[1]. However, in later years, the provinces of the Bicol and Cebu shall be the center of weapon manufacturing due to rapid industrialization thanks to the discovery of coal in the late 1830s. Military bases were established across the country, while forts constructed by the Spanish were well maintained and refurbished.
While the British became the primary manufacturer for Andres's rifles and cartridges, on the other hand he ordered the establishment of cannon foundries for the construction of homemade cannons, whilst incorporating European aspects to it. Such foundries were later dubbed as "Piras" as homage to the first, and probably the oldest well known blacksmith, Panday Pira which casted cannons for both the city-states of Tondo and Maynila, and later the Spanish.
Despite the heavy cost and a debt numbering 3,000,000, Andres was able to pay these by using the loads of gold mined from the Cordilleras, as well as from the taxes they collected from the major industries. Thus, for the most part, the treasury was stable although it has flaws to overcome in the future.
