History of Davao

hilippine Commonwealth forces liberated Davao City from the Japanese. The longest and bloodiest battle during the Philippine Liberation occurred in the city at the time of the Battle of Mindanao. World War II brought destruction to the new city, and set back the economic and physical strides made before the Japanese occupation. Davao was among the earliest to be occupied by Japanese forces, and the city was immediately fortified as a bastion of Japanese defense. It was subjected to extensive bombing by forces led by Douglas MacArthur before American liberation forces landed in Leyte in October 1944.

Philippine administration

After the Second World War, although the Japanese Imperial Army had inflicted a heavy toll on the city, it continued its economic growth. Its population rose to 112,000 in 1946; some Japanese inhabitants (80 percent of the city's population at the time) assimilated with the Filipino population, while others were expelled from the country. The city resumed its role as the agricultural and economic hub of Mindanao. Logs, lumber, plywood, copra and banana products gradually replaced abacá as major exports.

Thirty years later, in 1967, the Province of Davao was divided into three provinces: Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental and Davao del Sur. The city of Davao became part of Davao del Sur; no longer the provincial capital, it became a commercial center of southern Mindanao. Davao has become an ethnic melting pot; it attracts migrants from throughout the Philippines, lured by prospects for prosperity in the country's second-largest city. During the 1970s, Davao became regional capital of southern Mindanao; with the reorganization, it became the regional capital of the Davao Region (Region XI) and highly urbanized city in the province of Davao del Sur.

The city witnessed mayhem as it entered the early