June 11 marks the day Malacañan Palace became the official residence of the chief executive of the Philippines.
In 1863, after a strong earthquake hit the Palacio del Gobernador in Intramuros, Manila, the governor-general had to move to Malacañan Palace in San Miguel, Manila.
At that time, it was the temporary residence of outgoing governors-general awaiting the next ship to Spain.
The first recorded owner of the property was Luis Rocha, a Spaniard in the Galleon trade. He sold the property in 1802 to Col. Jose Miguel Fomento of the Spanish Army.
Fomento’s testamentary executors in turn sold it to the government upon his death in 1825.
—Marielle Medina, Inquirer Research
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