The Independence Flagpole or the Philippine National Flagpole is a flagpole located near the Rizal Monument in

Rizal Park Rizal Park (), also known as Luneta Park or simply Luneta, is a historic urban park located in Ermita, Manila. It is considered one of the largest urban parks in the Philippines, covering an area of . The site on where the park is situated was ...

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. It is the highest flagpole in the country.

History

The Independence Flagpole was the location where the Philippine flag was hoisted on July 4, 1946, when full independence was achieved from the United States. The flagpole was designed to be at high but was damaged by Typhoon Angela (Rosing) in 1995 reducing the flagpole's height to just .

Restoration

Plans to restore the flagpole's original height was proposed in 2011 by the National Parks Development Committee (NPDC) of the Department of Tourism. The renovation project is one of the government body's commemorative projects for the 150th anniversary of

Jose Rizal Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. Given name Mishnaic and Talmudic periods * Jose ben Abin * Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galilean * Jose ben Halaft ...

's birth. The NPDC requested funds and assistance from the

Department of Public Works and Highways The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH; ) is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for serving as the country's engineering and construction arm. It is tasked with implementing the government's policy to ...

(DPWH) for the project which later underwent a public bidding that amounted to . The flagpole's structural integrity was reinforced and a mechanized pulley in lieu of the manual pulley was installed along with a marble base. The renovation project was implemented by the DPWH's Manila South Engineering District while the project contractor was AKH Construction. The material used for the new flagpole is Q345 steel. The steel and two cranes of the flag pole were both imported from Hong Kong. The flagpole's construction took less than a month and was finished in September 2013. The newer flagpole was divided into three segments. The old flagpole was moved to the

Aguinaldo Shrine The Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine (or the Cavite El Viejo Shrine) is a national shrine located in Kawit, Cavite in the Philippines, where the Philippine Declaration of Independence from Spain was declared on June 12, 1898, or Independence Day (Philip ...

Kawit Kawit, officially the Municipality of Kawit (), is an urban municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 107,535. It is one of ...

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

. The project details of the flagpole restoration went viral and was a subject of controversy due to its price which critics found overpriced. There were also concerns regarding the structural integrity of the newer flagpole. The DPWH defended the project emphasizing the flag's historical value and assured the public that a structural analysis has been conducted. They also emphasized that the renovation project planned as early as since 2011 went through a bidding process and justified the cost citing the improvements then to be made for the flagpole. In February 2016, another renovation work was commenced. The marble based was demolished and new lighting were installed at the flagpole's base. The contractor was G.F. Fabian Construction and the cost of the project was . Since October 2019 a monthly national flag raising ceremony has been held there every first Monday of the month, open to the public, echoing similar ceremonies in Beijing's Tiananmen Square and Santiago's Plaza de la Ciudadania.

Markers

The base of the Independence Flagpole contains the following markers:

References

{{Rizal Park Buildings and structures in Ermita Flagpoles