Home of the country’s leaders, servants

Malacañan Palace is the official residence of the president of the Republic of the Philippines.

Established in 1750, the complex of buildings found in the Old Manila district of San Miguel has been home to past leaders of the land in over 175 years. The palace grounds, which have been expanded over the years, remained a valuable government possession that is now occupied by President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

The Malacañan property was first owned by Luis Rocha, a Spaniard in the Galleon Trade.

The property was said to have a big country house built of stone with gardens and a bath house on the river, all enclosed in stone fence. It was one of the weekend houses of the elite during that time.

Rocha later sold it to Jose Miguel Fomento of the Spanish Army. Upon the death of Fomento, his testamentary executors sold Malacañan to the Spanish government in 1825.

The property then served as the temporary home of outgoing governor generals awaiting their ships going to Spain.

It became the residence of the governor general after the 1863 earthquake when the Palacio del Gobernador in Intramuros, home of Spanish Governors in the 17th century, was destroyed.

Since then, the Malacañan Palace has seen a number of repairs, renovations, rebuilding, improvements and additional constructions.

From the Spanish to the American rule, roofs and tiles were replaced, wood became concrete, posts were strengthened, rooms added, and lands were bought for expansion.

Governor General Leonard Wood was the first to hold office in Malacañan while Governor General Dwight Davis extensively rebuilt the palace.

Improvements continued until the Philippine Commonwealth President, Manuel L. Quezon moved in.

A chapel was built under his term with the close supervision of the First Lady. Malacañan remained a beauty in the fashionable district of San Miguel, spared from the devastation of  World War II.

Palace renovations were even more grandiose in the years that followed. Additional rooms and halls were built in 1972 and 1975 which included the executive building’s second floor converted into the Maharlika Hall that served as a social hall for many state functions and official gatherings; the Premier Guest House; and the Arlegui Guest House.

Notable during the time of former President Ferdinand Marcos was the remodeling supervised by former First Lady Imelda Marcos: all four sides of the structure were moved and the entire Palace was expanded. The concrete building was bullet proofed and airconditioned.

Following the Marcoses exile in 1986, several presidents lived in Malacañan Palace.

Former Presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel Ramos lived at the Arlegui Guest House; former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada lived and held office at the Premier Guest House; while former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was the first after the Marcoses to make the Palace her residence and office.

Former President Benigno S. Aquino III, decided to live at Bahay Pangarap within the Malacañan Park during his term.

Today, President Duterte, the 15th president to work in Malacañan, chose Bahay Pangarap across the palace, as his official residence.

Witness to many significant historical events over time, this property close to the river, remains as the sanctuary to the leader of the land.