section_path: History/Spanish colonial period
section_name: Spanish colonial period
paragraph_text: Spanish colonial period
  
  On May 19, 1571, Miguel López de Legazpi took formal possession of the Rajahnate of Maynila and its surrounding polities in the name of the Spanish crown.
  
  Of the many religious orders that came, it was the Augustinian Order who would figure predominantly in the evangelisation of Pasay. Having control over Pasay, they converted the area into an extensive agricultural estate known as the Hacienda de Meysapan. The parish of Pasay was governed from the old Namayan capital, since renamed Santa Ana de Sapa, which was under the jurisdiction of the Franciscans. The promise of space in Heaven prompted early native converts to donate their possessions to the Church, with folklore recounting how a baptized Pasay on her deathbed donated her vast estate to the Augustinians. Most of Pasay went to friar's hands either via donation or by purchase; many natives were also forced to divest of their properties to cope with stringent colonial impositions.
  
  In 1727, the Augustinians formally took over Pasay and transferred it from Santa Ana de Sapa to Malate, particularly under the jurisdiction of the Parish of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios. In 1815, it was separated from Malate.
  
  In 1862, notable residents of Pasay submitted a petition to handle their political and religious matters independently, proposing to rename the town "Pineda", in honor of Don Cornelio Pineda, a Spanish horticulturist who was their benefactor. On December 2, 1863, with the recommendation of Manila Archbishop Gregorio Melitón Martínez Santa Cruz, Pineda was granted its own municipal charter, and this date is celebrated yearly as the city's official foundation day.