Miguel López de Legazpi

(1502-1572)

16th-century Spanish conquistador, navigator, and colonial governor

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Miguel López de Legazpi (c. 1502 – August 20, 1572), also known as El Adelantado and El Viejo (The Elder), was a Spanish navigator and governor who established the first Spanish settlement in the East Indies when his expedition crossed the Pacific Ocean from the Viceroyalty of New Spain in modern-day Mexico, arriving in Cebu in the Philippine Islands in 1565. He was the first Governor-General of the Spanish East Indies, which was governed and mainly located in the Philippines. It also encompassed other Pacific islands namely Guam and the Mariana Islands. After obtaining peace with various indigenous nations and kingdoms, he made Cebu City the capital of the Spanish East Indies in 1565 and later transferred to Manila in 1571. The capital city of the province of Albay bears his name.