Mount Samat () is a mountain in the

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

of Pilar,

Bataan Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula ...

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 ...

. Located near its summit is the Mount Samat National Shrine, a national

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

dedicated to the fallen Filipino and American fallen during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Geology

Mount Samat is a parasitic cone of Mount Mariveles with no record of historical eruption. The summit of Mount Samat is NNE of the Mariveles

caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcanic eruption. An eruption that ejects large volumes of magma over a short period of time can cause significant detriment to the str ...

."Mariveles Synonyms & Subfeatures"

Global Volcanism Program The Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program (GVP) documents Earth's volcanoes and their eruptive history during the Quaternary Period of Earth's geologic history, with particular emphasis on volcanic activity during the Holocene Epoc ...

. Retrieved on June 8, 2012. Mount Samat itself has a wide crater that opens to the northeast. The Mount Samat Cross is situated near the edge of the crater rim.

Historical significance

At the start of

in 1942 after suffering heavy losses against the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

all over

Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

, the Filipino and American soldiers retreated to

Bataan Peninsula Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga, Bataan, Balanga while Mariveles, ...

to regroup for a last valiant but futile stand. After four months of fighting, the 78,000 exhausted, sick and starving soldiers under Major General Edward P. King surrendered to the Japanese on April 9, 1942, known as the fall of Bataan. It is the single largest surrender of U.S. soldiers in history and

Mariveles Mariveles, officially the Municipality of Mariveles (), is a municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Bataan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 149,879 people making it ...

, a town in the Bataan province, was their last stronghold after which, together with the Philippine soldiers, they were led on to the march to

Capas, Tarlac Capas, officially the Municipality of Capas (; ), is a municipality in the province of Tarlac, Philippines, and one of the richest towns in the province. The town also consists of numerous subdivisions and exclusive villages. Capas is knon a ...

known as the

Bataan Death March The Bataan Death March was the Death march, forcible transfer by the Imperial Japanese Army of around 72,000 to 78,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war (POWs) from the municipalities of Bagac and Mariveles on the Bataan Peninsula to Camp ...

. The Mount Samat National Shrine was erected as a memorial to the Filipino and American soldiers who fought against the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II.Government of Province of Bataan (2006
"Dambana ng Kagitingan"
. Bataan...A Raging Peninsula. Retrieved on March 27, 2011.

Dunsulan Falls

Dunsulan Falls () is a waterfall located at the foot of Mount Samat, northeast of the National Shrine in Brgy Liyang, also in Pilar town. Dunsulan falls and river is the main

drainage Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of a surface's water and sub-surface water from an area with excess water. The internal drainage of most agricultural soils can prevent severe waterlogging (anaerobic conditions that harm root gro ...

on the crater side of Mount Samat.

Gallery

File:02001jfRoads Orion Pilar Limay Bataan Bridge Landmarksfvf 10.JPG, Mount Samat viewed from Orion, Bataan More Sceneries Along the Way to the Summit of Mt. Samat - panoramio.jpg, View from Mount Samat File:Steep Pathway Leading to the Memorial Cross - panoramio.jpg, Steep pathway leading to the Shrine's Memorial Cross

References

External links

*
Photo of Dunsulan Falls
from Panoramio {{DEFAULTSORT:Samat Landforms of Bataan Mountains of the Philippines Volcanoes of Luzon Parasitic cones Zambales Mountains