His ambassador "Ali Bakti" and that of Butuan's "Likan-hsieh" is recorded to have visited the Chinese imperial court with gifts and trade goods in AD 1011.

A majority of the Yakan, the Balanguingui, and the Sama-Bajau were also Islamized, though most of the Subanen remained animist (with the exception of the Kolibugan subgroup in southwestern Zamboanga).

[38] Spain granted the former Rajahnate of Sanmalan protectorate status against the Sulu Sultanate, its former overlord[39] and the kingdom's name was hispanized into Zamboanga and made a city.

Zamboanga City was one of the main strongholds in Mindanao, supporting colonizing efforts in the south of the island and making way for Christian settlements.

After having abandoned the city, the Spaniards as well as some Spanish-American soldiers from Peru[40] and New Spain (Mexico) led by the former Governor of Panama, Don Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera, who also brought along Genoese crusaders[41] who had settled in Panama, joined forces with troops from Pampanga and Visayan soldiers (from Bohol, Cebu and Iloilo) and reached the shore of Zamboanga to bring peace to the island against Moro Muslim pirates.

Specifically at April 5, 1635: it was Cebu that sent a force of 300 Spanish and 1,000 Visayan troops to settle and colonize at Zamboanga City under the command of Captain Juan de Chavez.

[43] Zamboanga became the main headquarters of the Spaniards on June 23, 1635, upon approval of King Philip IV of Spain, and the Spanish officially founded the city.

Spain was forced to abandon Zamboanga temporarily and withdraw its soldiers to Manila in 1662 after the Chinese under Koxinga threatened to invade the Spanish Philippines.

[56] The American invaders arrived in the Philippines during the time of Spanish Governor General Valeriano Weyler, with thousands of troops to defeat the Spaniards who ruled for over three centuries.

[58] This republic continued to exist until 1903, with Isidoro Midel as its second president under a puppet government of the United States; he was succeeded by Mariano Arquiza.

[60] During this period, Zamboanga hosted a number of American regional governors, including General John J. Pershing, who was military commander/governor of the Moro Province from 1909 to 1914.

[citation needed] After the war, citizens on the island of Basilan found it difficult to appear in courts, pay their taxes, or seek help from the mayor and other officials.

[73] Climaco's funeral at Abong-Abong Park in Zamboanga City was estimated as ranging from fifteen thousand people to up to two hundred thousand people,[73] and he was later honored by having his name inscribed on the wall of remembrance of the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani (Memorial of Heroes), which honors the martyrs and heroes who fought the dictatorship.

An air strike by the military began on November 27 in which the hostages were later released after the government agreed to escort the rebels to a safe zone in Panubigan where they were allowed to go free.

[76] On September 9, 2013, a faction of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) under the leadership of Nur Misuari seized hostages in Zamboanga City and attempted to raise the flag of the self-proclaimed Bangsamoro Republik, a state which declared its independence earlier in August, in Talipao, Sulu.

[77] Mayor Climaco-Salazar and her administration are relocating the internal displaced persons (IDPs) affected by the crisis to transitory sites and later, permanent housings in various places around Zamboanga City.

[79] The southwest and eastern sides of Zamboanga City are bounded by irregular coastlines with generally rocky terrain and occasional stretches of sandy or gravelly beaches.

Where rivers enter the sea, bays have formed, and the surrounding area has filled up with alluvial soils, producing small to large coastal plains.

[90] According to statistics compiled by the Philippine government,[91] one of the most dominant religion in Zamboanga City is Roman Catholicism, followed by Islam and Evangelical Protestantism.

[96] The titular patroness is Nuestra Señora La Virgen del Pilar de Zaragoza, and its secondary patron is Pope Pius X.

The ancestral Subanon language is spoken by some people in the city although not many understand it due to a lack of practitioners, who have been heavily influenced under colonial rule.

[122] The Special Economic Zone was enacted into law on February 23, 1995, and made operational a year later with the appointment of a chairman and administrator and the members of the Board by former President Fidel V. Ramos.

Zamboanga City is a member of East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), a regional economic cooperation initiative between the several countries in Southeast Asia.

The current local Sangguniang Panglungsod is composed of 19 members: House Bill 1455 entitled "An Act Amending Sections 14 (J) and 29 of Batas Pambansa Blg.

[135][136] The Camp General Basilio Navarro in Upper Calarian, is the main operating base of the Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom).

[139][140] Zamboanga City also hosts Bureau of Corrections' San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm, which is one of the oldest penitentiaries in the country.

Mabuhay Satellite Corporation and DITO has set up a facility in Zamboanga City in order to improve existing communications infrastructure.

[153][154] InfiniVAN Inc, with its partnership with Eastern Telecommunications and Globe Telecom, owns the Philippine Domestic Submarine Cable Network (PDSCN) in which they have Zamboanga City as one of their landing stations.

Conrado Alcantara and Sons Holdings (Conal) constructed a coal-fired power plant with an initial capacity of 105 megawatt on a 60-hectare land inside the Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority.

Ongoing construction of an annex is to increase bed capacity to 190, making it the largest private hospital in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Archipelago.