[20][21] Iloilo City is also popular for the Dinagyang Festival, well-preserved heritage houses, centuries-old Catholic churches, museums, river esplanades, and Spanish colonial and American-era architecture buildings, as well as being the center of Candelaria devotion in the Philippines.
The warriors sacked the city, killed Makatunaw and his family, retrieved the stolen properties of the 10 datus, enslaved the remaining population of Odtojan, and sailed back to Panay.
[44][45] In 1581, Ronquillo moved the colonial center from Ogtong to approximately 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) eastward due to recurrent raids by Moro pirates and Dutch and English privateers.
However, the attack was repulsed by a force of 1,000 Visayan warriors and 70 Mexican arquebusiers under the command of the Don Juan Garcia de Sierra (the Spanish alcalde mayor), who died in battle.
[50] With the increase in Moro incursions toward the end of the sixteenth century, Spanish defenses in the Visayas were strengthened by the construction of a fort at Iloilo staffed by two companies of (Mexican) soldiers.
In 1700, due to ever-increasing attacks especially from the Dutch and the Moros, the Spaniards again moved their seat of power some 25 kilometres (16 miles) eastward to the village of Irong-Irong, which had natural and strategic defense against raids.
Nicholas Loney, the British vice-consul in Iloilo, developed the industry by giving loans, constructing warehouses in the port, and introducing new technologies in sugar farming.
On October 5, 1889, a royal decree raised Iloilo's status from a town to a city, this on account of growing development in commerce and industry making her second to Manila in importance.
Condemning the uprising, the city's letter to the Governor General says: "Those dark betrayals, the mere notion of which embarrasses good and loyal Filipinos, have produced a unanimous sentiment of protest and indignation among the Ilongo people, who engrave its most honorable blazon in the sacred and inextinguishable love that it professes to the glorious Spanish nationality that it legitimately feels proud of.
[77] By October 1898, fresh Tagalog expeditions were sent to Panay and coerced or persuaded its people to rise in greater force than ever, until finally, General de los Rios had to fall back to Iloilo.
The American forces arrived in Iloilo on December 27, 1898, under the command of General Marcus P. Miller, and were afterwards reinforced up to a total strength of about 3,000 troops and two ships,[80] to take possession of the territory in accordance with the Treaty of Paris.
Two British warships in the roadstead sent boats ashore and landed a party of marines, who made a gallant effort to save foreign properties,[85] as the United Kingdom had a strong business interest in Iloilo and a Consulate.
It was observed by Juan de León y Benedicto, judge of the Court of First Instance that there existed a rivalry between the pueblos of Iloilo, Jaro and Molo, which are adjacent to and are only half an hour travel by carriage from each other.
The Thomasites tolerated religious freedom, which is one of the foundations of the United States constitution and legacy to the Philippines, while commissioned and under their tutelage to teach in public schools during the colonial period.
[117]: 110 When Iloilo was liberated by Filipino and American forces from Japanese military occupation on March 25, 1945, the remnants of these battalions were held in Jaro Plaza as a makeshift detention facility.
However, the continuing conflict between the labor unions in the port area, declining sugar economy, and the deteriorating peace and order situation in the countryside, the exodus of Ilonggos to other cities, provinces/regions and islands that offered better opportunities and business.
The Seventh-day Adventists did not join the comity agreement with the early Protestant sects for jurisdictional division on the Philippine islands for missionary works, because they wanted to go to any parts of the country.
Major industries in the city include management of port facilities, telecommunications infrastructure and utilities, banking and finance, retail trading, real estate, tourism and business process outsourcing.
The acquisition of the old airport after it was decommissioned and the construction of a business park on its site by the real estate giant Megaworld Corporation, became a catalyst for some land developers to invest in Iloilo.
Centuries old churches, old edifices and mansions of well known Ilonggo families, magnets sightseers from different places who wants to discover Iloilo City's rich and glorious past.
The city's actual existence dates back to its founding in 1566 through a settlement established by the Spaniards in the areas of Oton and Villa de Arevalo and received its cityhood status thrice – first on October 5, 1889 (effectivity in 1890) through a Spanish royal decree issued by the Queen Regent of Spain, Maria Christina, secondly in 1893 through a legal declaration by the virtue of Bacura/Becerra Law ratifying the first royal decree and establishing the city government of Iloilo, and the third through a virtue of Commonwealth Act No.
Trees, major edifices, and places of interests like the CPU Church on the university's 24 hectare main campus in Jaro, Iloilo City are festooned with holiday lights and displays of Christmas icons like Santa Claus, Nativity Scene, and Pasko sa Nayon.
It has established several programs through the help of local artists like turning the blank and public spaces in the metropolis as canvasses for murals and paintings depicting the city's rich history and culture.
Real estate developers also play a role in supporting such programs by rolling out plans to elevate the cultural consciousness of the Ilonggos through public art displays and mural paintings.
Other services include, phone calls for emergency rescue, device charging stations, local wayfinding, free housing in Sooc, Lanit and San Isidro and more.
In 2024, Iloilo ranked number 6 and was considered one of the top 18 most fitness-friendly cities in the world by Headline Bulletin, one of the oldest fitness and wellness journals since 1996, which has been cited by the BBC and Harvard University.
The city provides free immunization programs for children, specifically targeted against the seven major diseases – smallpox, diphtheria, tetanus, yellow fever, whooping cough, polio, and measles.
Buses bound for Metro Manila, Mindoro, Batangas, Cebu, Negros and Mindanao are also available via the Roll-on, Roll-off ferry services of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway.
The colloquial name "Fort San Pedro" refers to the old Spanish fortress beside it that was destroyed during World War II and soon to be restored by the Department of Tourism (DOT) under TIEZA.
The university boasts notable alumni, including Rodolfo Ganzon (Senator and the first popularly elected Mayor of Iloilo City), Jovito Salonga (Senator), Perfecto Yasay Jr. (Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines), National Artists Ramon Muzones (for Literature) and Leonor Orosa-Goquingco (for Dance), Leonor Briones (Secretary of Education of the Philippines under President Duterte's administration), Gilopez Kabayao (Musician and Ramon Magsaysay Award laureate, often referred to as the 'Asian Nobel Prize'), and Jose Vasquez Aguilar (The first Filipino recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award, also the first recipient of the award in the Government Service category for his work as the 'Father of the Community School Movement')."