Introduction Hacienda Luisita
Introduction
Hacienda Luisita was once part of the holdings of Compañia General de Tabacos de Filipinas, Sociedad Anónima, better known as Tabacalera, which was founded on November 26, 1881 by a Spaniard from Santander, Cantabria and Santiago de Cuba, Don Antonio López y López. He was the first Marques de Comillas and was famous for being an associate of the first Spanish Prime Minister with foreign blood, the Spanish-Filipino mestizo Don Marcelo Azcárraga y Palmero. His relative on his Spanish side, Ricardo Padilla, married Gloria Zóbel y Montojo (younger half sister of Mercedes Zóbel de Ayala de McMicking, largest Zóbel owner in the Ayala group of companies) and was an aide-de-camp of Juan de Borbón, Count of Barcelona, father of the current King of Spain, His Majesty DonJuan Carlos de todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias. The estate was named after Antonio's wife, Luisa Bru y Lassús. Their son, Claudio López, the second to hold the title , donated some of the profits to the Jesuits to create the Pontifical University of Comillas, a university outside Madrid. López acquired the estate in 1882, a year before his death. López was a financial genius who parlayed his work adventures in Cuba and Latin America into a steamship, companies and trading businesses. He was the most influential Spanish businessman of his generation and counted the Prime Minister and the King of Spain as his personal friends. Tabacalera was a private enterprise he founded with the sole intention of taking over the Philippine Tobacco Monopoly from the Spanish colonial government. This included the Hacienda Antonio (named after his eldest son), Hacienda San Fernando and Hacienda Isabel (named after his eldest daughter) in Cagayan and Isabela provinces where the legendary La Flor de Isabela cigar was cultivated. Tabacalera’s incorporators were the Sociedad General de Crédito Inmobiliario Español, Banque de Paris which is now Paribas and Bank of the Netherlands which is now
Hacienda Luisita was once part of the holdings of Compañia General de Tabacos de Filipinas, Sociedad Anónima, better known as Tabacalera, which was founded on November 26, 1881 by a Spaniard from Santander, Cantabria and Santiago de Cuba, Don Antonio López y López. He was the first Marques de Comillas and was famous for being an associate of the first Spanish Prime Minister with foreign blood, the Spanish-Filipino mestizo Don Marcelo Azcárraga y Palmero. His relative on his Spanish side, Ricardo Padilla, married Gloria Zóbel y Montojo (younger half sister of Mercedes Zóbel de Ayala de McMicking, largest Zóbel owner in the Ayala group of companies) and was an aide-de-camp of Juan de Borbón, Count of Barcelona, father of the current King of Spain, His Majesty DonJuan Carlos de todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias. The estate was named after Antonio's wife, Luisa Bru y Lassús. Their son, Claudio López, the second to hold the title , donated some of the profits to the Jesuits to create the Pontifical University of Comillas, a university outside Madrid. López acquired the estate in 1882, a year before his death. López was a financial genius who parlayed his work adventures in Cuba and Latin America into a steamship, companies and trading businesses. He was the most influential Spanish businessman of his generation and counted the Prime Minister and the King of Spain as his personal friends. Tabacalera was a private enterprise he founded with the sole intention of taking over the Philippine Tobacco Monopoly from the Spanish colonial government. This included the Hacienda Antonio (named after his eldest son), Hacienda San Fernando and Hacienda Isabel (named after his eldest daughter) in Cagayan and Isabela provinces where the legendary La Flor de Isabela cigar was cultivated. Tabacalera’s incorporators were the Sociedad General de Crédito Inmobiliario Español, Banque de Paris which is now Paribas and Bank of the Netherlands which is now