Editing Corregidor (section)

===Spanish colonial era===
The island came under Spanish sovereignty on May 19, 1570, when [[Miguel Lopez de Legazpi]] and his forces arrived in Manila Bay.  Legazpi was authorized by the Spanish Crown to establish the capital of the Philippines in Manila, and to convert the Muslims in Luzon and [[Mindanao]] to [[Christianity]]. Corregidor was used as a support site for the nine Spanish [[galleon]]s used during the campaign.

Under [[Spain|Spanish]] rule, Corregidor served not only as a fortress of defense, a penal institution, and a station for [[customs]] inspection, but also as a signal outpost to warn [[Manila]] of the approach of hostile ships.

The name "Corregidor" comes from the Spanish word ''corregir'', meaning "to correct". ''Isla del Corregidor'', the old name of the place, literally means "the Corregidor's island".

Several explanations for how the island was named have been suggested. One story states that the island was called ''Isla del Corregidor'' (literally, Island of the Corrector) due to the Spanish customs system, wherein all ships entering Manila Bay were required to stop and have their documents checked and "corrected". Another version claims that the island was used as a penitentiary or correctional institution by the Spanish government, and thus came to be called ''El Corregidor''.<ref name="site">[http://www.corregidorisland.com/history.html History], Corregidor Island.com.</ref> ''[[Corregidor (position)|Corregidor]]'' is also a specific position of authority within the former Spanish administrative structure, the title for the man who was the head of a territorial unit known as ''un [[corregimiento]]''. The institution of administrative districts called ''corregimientos'' (with each district chief known as ''El Corregidor'') was in use throughout Spanish America and the Philippines. For example, the Philippines had "''corregidores''" in charge of Bataan and Zambales, among others.<ref>Felipe M. de Govantes. Compendio de la Historia de Filipinas. Manila, 1877, [https://archive.org/stream/compendiodelahis00gova#page/294/mode/2up p.294] (in Spanish).</ref>

On November 23, 1574, the Chinese pirate [[Limahong]] and his 65-vessel fleet with 3,000 men anchored between Corregidor and Mariveles. From that site, he launched two successive attacks against Manila, commanded either by Limahong himself or by the Japanese pirate Sioco. Both attacks failed due to a fierce battle defense led by the governor, [[Juan de Salcedo]].

In November and December 1600, during the [[Eighty Years' War]] between the Netherlands and Spain, the Dutch privateer and Admiral [[Olivier van Noort]] used the surroundings of Corregidor Island as an anchorage for his last two ships, ''Mauritius'' and ''Eendracht''. From there he engaged in activities that the Spanish considered to be piracy, targeting ships on the sailing route to and from Manila. This situation ended after the naval combat of [[Fortune Island (Philippines)|Fortune Island]] on December 14, 1600. The Spanish lost their flagship, the hastily converted [[Manila galleon]] [[San Diego (ship)|''San Diego'']], as the unbalanced weight of her extra cannon caused a permanent list and put her gun ports below the waterline. But they captured the Dutch ship ''Eendracht'', and Admiral van Noort retreated from the Philippines. Continuing the three-year voyage in his one remaining ship and arriving home with 45 men still alive, van Noort became the first Dutch sea captain to [[Circumnavigation|circumnavigate]] the world.<ref name=Quanchi>Quanchi, ''Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Pacific Islands'', page 246</ref> The [[Dutch East India Company]] was formed a few months later.

In response to these events, and also to prevent sudden attack by Muslims from Mindanao, a watch vessel was posted at Corregidor to control the entrance to the bay. According to data from 1637, this vessel had a crew of twenty men, who were paid 540 pesos a year for this task.

Corregidor Island was taken over by the Dutch in June 1647, and from there they launched an offensive against [[Cavite]] which was repelled by the Spanish garrison under the command of Andre Lopez de Azalduigui. The Dutch would remain on the island for seven more months, however, as it served them well as an operations base from which to intercept Chinese merchant traffic in the vicinity of [[Luzon]] and [[Cebu]]. Finally they withdrew with few of their expectations fulfilled.

In October 1762, during the [[Battle of Manila (1762)|British invasion of Manila and Cavite]] led by [[Sir Samuel Cornish, 1st Baronet|Samuel Cornish]] and  [[William Draper (British Army officer)|William Draper]], Corregidor was used as an anchorage for warships, particularly [[HMS Panther (1758)|HMS ''Panther'']] and [[HMS Argo (1758)|HMS ''Argo'']]. It was also used as an anchorage for the fully loaded Spanish treasure galleon ''[[Spanish ship Santísima Trinidad (1751)|Santisima Trinidad]]'' [[Action of 30 October 1762|they had captured]], during November 1762. The British sailed the captured galleon to [[Portsmouth]], [[England]], where it was sold for a fortune.

The arrival of the Spanish fleet led by General Ignacio Mario de Alava, with the mission to place the Philippine Islands on alert, did not affect the fortunes of Corregidor Island. He limited his activity to the setting up of a [[naval station]] at [[Cavite]].

On January 18, 1853, the [[Corregidor Island Lighthouse]] was first lit on the highest part of the island, to mark the entrance of Manila Bay for vessels coming in from the South China Sea. The Spanish government built this [[Lighthouse#Fresnel lens|Second-Order]] light, which is situated {{convert|639|ft|m}} above [[sea level]] and visible for {{convert|20|miles}}.<ref name="Archipielago">"El Archipielago Filipino", pp.525–527. Washington: Impriento del Gobierno, 1900.</ref>