Plaza Moraga is a

public square A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Serving as the gateway to Manila's Chinatown of

Binondo Binondo () is a district in Manila and is referred to as the city's Chinatown. Its influence extends beyond to the places of Quiapo, Santa Cruz, San Nicolas and Tondo. It is the oldest Chinatown in the world, established in 1594 by the ...

, the plaza is located at the foot of

Jones Bridge The William A. Jones Memorial Bridge, commonly known as the Jones Bridge, is an arched girder bridge that spans the Pasig River in the City of Manila, Philippines. It is named after the United States legislator William Atkinson Jones, who served ...

at the west end of

Escolta Street Escolta Street (lit: Escort) is a historic east–west street located in the old downtown district of Binondo in Manila, Philippines. It runs parallel to the Pasig River, from Plaza Santa Cruz to Plaza Moraga and Quintin Paredes Street. The s ...

. It was named after a Franciscan friar, Fr. Fernando de Moraga and it is by the opinion of many, that were it not for him, the history of the Philippines would turn out differently from what it is now.

History

Plaza Moraga came to develop during the American colonization period. It was the place where superb restaurants, commercial establishments and foreign embassies could be found. One of the familiar places-to-visit here was the Clarke's Cafe which opened in 1899. They were known for selling ice cream.

Fernando de Moraga

The Venerable Fernando de Moraga was born in one of the towns in the province of

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. In 1597, he visited the Philippines and stayed for a short period near

Plaza Dilao Plaza Dilao is a public square in Paco, Manila, bounded by Quirino Avenue to the east, and the rest of the plaza surrounded by the Plaza Dilao Road and Quirino Avenue Extension. The former site of a Spanish colonial era Japanese settlement, it prom ...

Paco Paco is a Spanish nickname for Francisco. According to folk etymology, the nickname has its origins in Saint Francis of Assisi, who was the father of the Franciscan order; his name was written in Latin by the order as ''Pater Communitatis'' (fath ...

and some of the towns in the provinces of

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan ( tl, Lalawigan ng Bulacan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on August 15, 1578, and part of the Me ...

and Laguna. In 1607, he was appointed as the parish priest of Santa Ana. In

Intramuros Intramuros (Latin for "inside the walls") is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila. Present-day I ...

, he also became the local Superior of the San Francisco Convent some years after his duty in Santa Ana. He was elected as the Chapter president before being delegated to the General Chapter in Spain in 1616. He reached Spain in 1619 while traveling barefooted through the Middle East while begging, evangelizing and baptizing along the way. Fr. Moraga has convinced the King, through his persuasion and knowledge on the colony to revoke the decree and keep the Philippines during that time when King Philip III of Spain had issued a decree that included surrendering the Philippines.

In recent years

Plaza Moraga has now become a plaza occupied mostly by cars and a big parking space is designated on one of the corners. There are still commercial buildings surrounding the plaza including The Original Savory Restaurant, a Chinese restaurant known for their chicken. It succeeded the famed Savory Restaurant that was razed by fire in 2015. However, the famous ice cream parlor is already closed. In June 2015, the world's largest Chinatown arch was built on the south side of Plaza Moraga at the entrance to Binondo from Jones Bridge in celebration of the city's 444th founding anniversary as well as the 40th anniversary of Philippines-China diplomatic ties. Funded as a gift from the city government of

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

, it measures high and wide, higher than Washington, D.C. Chinatown's Friendship Archway.

References

{{Parks and plazas in Manila Moraga, Plaza Buildings and structures in Binondo