page_title: University of the City of Manila
section_title: Geographical History
hierarchical_section_title: University of the City of Manila / History / Geographical History
caption_attribution_description: Richard Relucio
context_page_description: Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, or the University of the City of Manila, is a university in the city of Manila. It is funded by the government of the city and it does not have any tuition fees. It is in the district of Intramuros in Manila, the Philippines. It was established on June 19, 1965 and opened on July 17, 1967 to 556 scholars, all coming from the top ten percent of graduates of Manila's public high schools. and opened on July 17, 1967.
  PLM holds the distinction of being the first in several ways— the first institution of higher learning in the country and perhaps in Asia to offer tuition-free tertiary education; the first university funded solely by a city government; and the first institution of higher learning in the country to have its official name in Filipino.
  From its first enrollment record of 556 freshman scholars coming from the top ten percent of the graduating classes of Manila's twenty-nine public high schools, total semestral enrollment has grown to an average of 11,000.
context_section_description: The site of the PLM campus at Intramuros used to be occupied by the Colegio de Manila (also known as Colegio Seminario de San Ignacio), which was founded in 1590 by Fr. Antonio  Sedeño, S.J.  The Colegio de Manila formally opened in 1595, and was the first school in the Philippines.
  Aside from Colegio de Manila, there were other structures that were built in the site. Iglesia de Santa Ana, the first stone church in the Philippines, was built in 1590 and opened in 1596. However, an earthquake destroyed it, and another church was built in honor of St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1626.
  In 1601, the Colegio de San José was set up as an annex of Colegio Seminario de San Ignacio. Twenty years later, Pope Gregory XV, through the Archbishop of Manila, authorized the Colegio Seminario de San Ignacio to confer degrees in theology and arts and elevated it into a university.  In 1623, Philip IV of Spain confirmed the authorization, making the school both a pontifical and a royal university, and the very first university in the Philippines and in Asia.  In 1722, the Colegio de San José was granted royal patronage.
  In 1768, the Jesuits surrendered the Universidad Maximo de San Ignacio to the Spanish authorities after their suppression and expulsion from Spain and its territories.  Later, the Universidad Maximo de San Ignacio was placed under secular administration and converted into a seminary and a liberal arts college. In 1773, Pope Clement XIV formally declared the dissolution of the Society of Jesus. In 1895, the Universidad Maximo de San Ignacio merged with the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of the University of Santo Tomas. The Colegio de San José is now the San José Major Seminary at the Ateneo de Manila University.
  The buildings of what was the Universidad Maximo de San Ignacio were transformed into military headquarters called Cuartel del Rey, which eventually became known as Cuartel de España. José Rizal was placed on trial for sedition here on December 26, 1896.
  During the American occupation, part of the barracks was razed, and a gymnasium was built on it. In early 1930s, one of first games of the NCAA was played in the 31st Infantry Quonset Gym.  The buildings and the whole premises served as military headquarters for the 31st Infantry of the United States Army until 1941. During World War II, General Douglas McArthur held command post here, but the entire area was later destroyed by the ongoing military conflict.
  In early 1960s, the site was rehabilitated by the city government and a building was constructed at General Luna Street to house the students of Manila High School. However, on April 24, 1965, the late President Diosdado Macapagal issued Proclamation 392-A, giving to the proposed city university the three-hectare lot being occupied by Manila High School. On February 26, 1967, the new complex along Victoria Street was inaugurated, and the students of Manila High School was transferred there. On July 17, 1967, the first group of PLM scholars began studying on the site where the modern educational system in the Philippines started.
caption: Gusaling Don Pepe Atienza (Don Pepe Atienza Hall), the PLM graduate school building.
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