In 1646, the invading Dutch greatly surprised the then Spanish colony that in the ensuing naval battles, 5 to be exact, the combined Filipino-Spanish forces consisting of two merchant galleons faced eighteen warships of the Dutch. The outnumbered defenders fought and triumphantly won. This encounter is historically known as the Battle of La Naval.

The victory was attributed to the intervention of the Blessed Virgin Mary that the commander and crew of the victorious defenders made a pilgrimage to Sto. Domingo, Intramuros. In 1662, the Cathedral Chapter of the Archdiocese of Manila declared it a miracle.

Upon the orders of Pope Pius X, the image of the Nuestra Senora del Rosario – La Naval de Manila was canonically crowned in 5 October 1907. This is the first Marian image to be accorded this acclamation in the Philippines and in Asia.

To celebrate the centenary of this momentous event, a reenactment of the canonical coronation was done last 4 October in the Sto. Domingo Church which was transferred to its present site in Quezon City in 1956 after the war totally destroyed the one in Intramuros.

I prepared a multimedia slideshow of the reenactment as well as the procession and this can be accessed at my ESTANCABIGAS PHOTOGRAPHY portfolio site.

This is also featured at Pinoycentric.

Estan Cabigas is a multiawarded blogger and freelance photographer based in Makati City, the Philippines. A true blue Cebuano, he makes stunning images and meaningful photo stories. He has writtten for CNN Go and his photograph will be published in the May 2010 issue of the National Geographic Magazine.

To know more about him and his photography, visit estancabigas.com.

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