Bataan: A Landscape of Remembrance

Bataan occupies an important place in the history of the Second World War in the Philippines. The fighting on the peninsula and the suffering of Filipino and American prisoners during the Bataan Death March remain central to its public memory.

At Mount Samat, the Dambana ng Kagitingan, or Shrine of Valor, commemorates those who fought and died. Its memorial cross rises above a complex devoted to remembrance, giving the landscape a solemn significance beyond the view from the mountain.

Markers and memorial sites elsewhere in Bataan connect the larger historical account to particular places. Visiting them is an opportunity to reflect on people rather than simply battles: soldiers, civilians and families whose lives were changed by war, and whose experiences remain part of the province’s story.

Further reading

Bataan Historical Landmarks