This article's lead sectionmay be too short to adequately summarize the key points. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article.(December 2013)
During the time of the United States' purchase of the Philippines (1898), the Republic of Zamboanga had its own independence and jurisdiction on what is now Zamboanga City. After the dissolution of the republic, Zamboanga was eventually consolidated into one major administrative area by the American government of the Philippines, consisting of an enormous region that was the Mindanao island's western peninsula, Basilan Island, and the entire Sulu archipelago, with the ancient namesake town/fort of Zamboanga as the seat of its government, and was called the Moro Province of the Philippines.
In 1920, the Department of Mindanao and Sulu was officially dissolved and Zamboanga became an independent province. In 1922, elections were held for the first elected provincial officials of Zamboanga. Florentino Saguin was elected as first elected governor.
At that time, the province was composed of five municipalities:
When the Japanese invaded the Philippines, Zamboanga acting Governor Felipe Azcuna moved the capital from Zamboanga City to Dipolog. After the defeat of the American-Filipino forces in Corregidor, most of the province went under Japanese control.
After the war, on June 16, 1948, Molave was designated as Zamboanga's capital by the virtue of Republic Act No. 286[2] signed by President Elpidio Quirino.
Ranillo was later elected representative of Zamboanga's Lone District in 1941. When war broke out, he was appointed as the province's military governor.
1970 – Local Government troops invaded Zamboanga and cleared the fields against the Islamic rebels of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that began the Islamic Insurgencies.
November 14, 1984 – Then Zamboanga City Mayor Cesar Climaco was assassinated and shot dead in downtown Zamboanga City.
February 22–25, 1986 – EDSA People Power Revolution. Corazon A. Aquino was the first woman president and 11th President of the Philippines when she was declared as the winner of the 1986 presidential election after the EDSA People Power Revolution.
January 5, 1989 – Camp Cawa-Cawa siege in Zamboanga City; government forces assaulted the camp where Gen. Eduardo Batalla and Col. Romeo Abendan of the Philippine Constabulary were being held hostage by rogue Muslim policemen led by Rizal Alih.
2Dissolved and divided between neighboring (sub-)provinces.
3Became the only sub-province left comprising Mountain Province in 1966, and therefore assumed the name of the mother province.
4Became the only sub-province left comprising Agusan in 1914, and therefore assumed the name of the mother province.
5Delimited to the downtown area of present-day Isabela City in 1973; dissolved in 1975.
6Legazpi City from 1948 to 1954 consisted of the present-day territories of Legazpi City and Daraga; this city was dissolved in 1954 into its two former constituent municipalities. Legazpi became a city on its own in 1959.
