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The site of Intramuros was originally a large and prosperous Malayan Muslim settlement named Maynilad. The name came from may nilad, nilad being a water plant whose star-shaped flowers clustered in abundance along the low-lying riverbanks. The strategic location of Maynilad, being on the Pasig River and the Manila Bay, made it an ideal location for the locals to trade crafts and produce with other peoples of then pre-Hispanic Philippines and other Asian countries, especially with Chinese merchants. Maynilad was also the seat of power for native chiefs that ruled the area before the Spaniards set foot on Philippine soil.
In 1565, Spanish conquistadors led by Miguel Lopez de Legaspi began to set foot on Maynilad. Legaspi and his men waged clashes with the natives before they were able to finally establish themselves in the area and have a peace agreement with the local leaders, who, in turn, turned over Maynilad to the Spanish. Citing the strategic economic, political and military importance of Manila, Legaspi promptly declared Manila as the capital of the then new Spanish colony of the Philippines on June 24, 1571. The King of Spain, delighted at the new conquest done by Legaspi and his men, awarded Manila a coat of arms and declared it Insigne y Siempre Leal Ciudad ("Distinguished and ever loyal city"). Planning in the City of Manila was first manifested in the Spanish period plan for Intramuros, which was based on King Philip II's Royal Ordinance issued on July 3, 1573 in San Lorenzo, Spain.
Intramuros served as the center of political, military and religious power of the Spaniards during the time that the Philippines was a colony of Spain. Inside Intramuros were Roman Catholic churches, like the Manila Cathedral and the San Agustin Church , and convents and church-run schools, which were usually being run by religious orders such as the Dominicans, Augustinians and Franciscans; the Governor's Palace, the official residence of the Spanish governor-general to the Philippines before it was officially moved to Malacaņang PalaceMalacanang Palace is the official residence of the president of the Philippines. The palace is located along the north bank of the Pasig River in Manila. It is called Palasyo ng Malakanyang in Filipino, and is depicted on the verso (back) side of the 20-; and Fort SantiagoA defence fortress built by Miguel Lopez de Legaspi. Originally, it stoods the palisade of Rajah Soliman, chieftain of Maynilad. Located at the mouth of the Pasig River, it was once the primer defence fort of the Spanish Empire in the Philippines. It was, the main Spanish garrison in the archipelago where martyr Jose Rizal was once held by Spanish authorities. Only Spaniards were allowed inside Intramuros; the natives and Chinese residents were only limited by the Spanish authorities to live outside the walls of Intramuros.
During World War IIWorld War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the world's nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. The war was fough, Intramuros was used by the JapanJapan (, Nippon/Nihon literally "the origin of the sun") is a country in East Asia situated on a chain of islands east of the Asian continent on the western edge of the Pacific Ocean. The largest of these islands are, from north to south, Hokkaido , Honshese as their garrison and prison and was severely damaged, along with most parts of Manila, during the Allied bombings to liberate the city from Japanese occupation.