did they enlist filipinos in the us navy during the vietnam war

With the help of the documents found at the National Archives in Washington and military records in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, Nestor Palugod Enriquez, a former US Navy man, discovered that there were at least 31 Filipinos who joined the Civil War.Īlso Read: Larry Itliong: A Forgotten Badass Hero of Filipino ImmigrantsĪmong them were Caystana Baltazar, Andrew Belino, Antonio Ducasin, and Sabas Pilisardo. It is said that some of these Filipino workers eventually jumped ship and settled in Mexico and the Americas. These were the trading ships which sailed back and forth between Manila and Acapulco. Mercene, a story is told about the Filipino crew who worked inside the Manila Galleons. In the book “Manila Men in the New World” by Floro L. Owing to their integration, many already had English-sounding names when the Civil War took place however, others retained their Hispanic or Chinese surnames, hence the reason why some were designated as either Spanish or Chinese.

However, the conflict also devastated much of the United States and left more than half a million Americans dead.ĭuring this time, a good number of Filipinos aside from the Manilamen fought for either the Union or the Confederacy. The secession eventually culminated in a bloody four-year civil war which the Union won in the end. As we can recall, several prickly issues-including the abolition of slavery-paved the way for several southern states to break from the Union and form the Confederate States of America. A good number of Filipinos found themselves on both sides of the fence during the American Civil War which pitted the Union against the Confederacy.

Did they enlist filipinos in the us navy during the vietnam war