Micronesia Milestones

CHamoru Proa from the
Guam Public Library System collection.

The Marianas are home to one of the oldest Pacific Island cultures. The Marianas were settled by seafaring peoples from Island Southeast Asia more than 3,500 years ago. It is uncertain whether the islands were settled in waves of migration or all at once, though it is known that the Marianas were continuously occupied by people who became known as CHamorus.

The Palauan archipelago was settled in a series of migrations originating from Island Southeast Asia around 1100 BC. Palau’s geographic location made it an easy stepping stone into the Pacific from Asia.

Lao-tzu, founder of Taoism, was born in 604 BC. Lao-Tzu, also Laozi, (literally “Old Master”) was a Chinese philosopher and writer. He was a scholar, the Keeper of the Archives for the royal court, and is the reputed author of the Tao Te Ching, the foundation of philosophical Taoism. A semi-legendary figure and contemporary of Confucius, Lao-tzu is a deity in religious Taoism and traditional Chinese religions.

Jesus of Nazareth, the founder of Christianity, was born around 4 BC. Jesus is a religious leader revered in Christianity, one of the world’s major religions. He is regarded by most Christians as the incarnation of God.

Kiribati was first inhabited by Micronesian people about 500 AD. Later, invasions by Samoans and Tongans introduced Polynesian elements into the culture and invasions by Fijians introduced Melanesian elements too.

Muhammad was born at Mecca, Arabia (now in Saudi Arabia). He is the founder of Islam and the proclaimer of the Qurʾān. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet and God’s messenger, sent to present and confirm the teachings preached previously by Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets.

The oldest Marianas redware pottery was small thin walled bowls sometimes decorated with impressively fine designs. Over the years, though, pottery styles changed. Pottery became coarser, thicker and larger. By 1000 AD CHamorus were making large bowls with thickened rims, many with combing marks.

The original settlement of Hawai`i was by Polynesians who migrated northwest from the Marquesas Islands, followed by a second wave of people that sailed from Tahiti during the 9th or 10th century.

Two ancient stone settlements, Leluh in Kosrae and Nan Madol in Pohnpei, were govern­mental centers and home to kings and high chiefs.

Early historic accounts about the Marianas say rice was produced in large quantities in pre-Spanish times. It was used as a commodity for trade between islands and later, with the Europeans to obtain metal and other goods. The CHamorus were the only Pacific Island people known to have cultivated rice dating back to pre-contact times. 

The Ming emperor orders rebuilding of the Great Wall as protection against northern invaders. Building the Great Wall began when fortifications, built by various states from 771 BC on, were connected by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, to protect against incursions by nomads from Inner Asia.

The Treaty of Tordesillas is signed by Pope Alexander VI, dividing the world between Spain and Portugal. The Mariana Islands are placed on the Spanish side.

The first European encounter for CHamorus in the Marianas was with Spain’s Ferdinand Magellan and his crew aboard three ships attempting to circumnavigate the world.

This peace treaty did not modify the line of demarcation established by the Treaty of Tordesillas. However, Portugal gained control of all lands and seas west of the line, including all of Asia and its neighboring islands so far “discovered,” leaving Spain with most of the Pacific.

Miguel López de Legazpi, a colonial official in Mexico, Pacific explorer and conquistador, led the 1565 expedition that visited Guam on its westward voyage from Mexico to Cebu in the Philippines. Legazpi claimed Guam for Spain, and was later granted possession of Guam and Rota by the Spanish King Philip II.

The Manila Galleon (“Nao de China” or “Nao de Acapulco”) brings porcelain, silk, ivory, spices, and myriad other exotic goods from China to Mexico via Manila in exchange for New World silver. The Galleons stopped in the Marianas on the return trip to Manila, once or twice a year.

The Spanish Armada, a fleet of 130 ships, tries to overthrow England and the establishment of Protestantism in 1588. The attack was Spain’s attempt to stop English interference in the Spanish Netherlands and the harm caused to Spanish interests by English and Dutch privateering. The armada was defeated, however, losing one third of the ships.

The Qing dynasty is established, becoming the last imperial dynasty of China. It ruled China until 1912, when it was succeeded by the Republic of China. It lasted for almost three centuries and formed the territorial base for modern China. It was the fourth largest empire in world history.

The Colegio de San Juan de Letrán, a boy’s school or seminary, is established in 1669 in Hagåtña by Father Diego Luis de San Vitores, the Jesuit priest who started the first Catholic mission in the Marianas. It was still in existence in 1899 when the Americans claimed the island.

Matå’pang from Tomhom (Tumon) killed Father Diego Luís de San Vitores, the Spanish priest who brought Christianity to the Marianas. At first a Christian convert, Matå’pang rejected Christianity because he saw that it was being used as a tool to control his people and obliterate CHamoru traditions and beliefs.

Chief Metacom, of the Wampanoag people, stood up to the British colonists in America. Metacom used his tribal alliances to coordinate efforts to push European colonists out of New England. Conflicts over land use, diminished game as a consequence of expanding European settlement, and other tensions, were behind their dissatisfaction.

Hineti by Raph Unpingco.

Hineti, a clan leader from Sinajana, chose to protect the Spanish in hopes of improving his personal status and gain power. Hineti defended the Spanish against CHamoru revolts, and is most known for curbing a CHamoru uprising in Hagåtña in 1684.

Santa Marian Kamalen statue is found in Merizo after the galleon Nuestra Señora del Pilar shipwrecked off Cocos Island.

Map of the Marianas, 1605. Donald Rubinstein collection.

CHamorus fought the Spanish for control of the Marianas for almost 30 years. At the same time introduced diseases were taking their toll on people as they had no resistance to diseases. After the rebellion was quelled the Spanish forced CHamorus from the northern islands to relocate to Guam and Rota.

This declaration announced that the 13 colonies at war with the Kingdom of Great Britain would regard themselves as no longer under British rule. With the declaration, these new states took a collective first step toward forming the United States of America. It has become a well-known statement on human rights.