Mactan Shrine Lapu-Lapu

The Mactan Shrine, located on Mactan Island, just of the coast from Cebu City, is a must-see for everyone interested in Filipino history. It commemorates the Battle of Mactan that took place in 1521 between the Spanish and the Visayan (central Philippines) native people in April 1521 and, along with paintings and plaques about that battle, it also contains two other important shrines - the Lapu Lapu Shrine and the Magellan Shrine

The Lapu Lapu shrine is a 20 meter (65.5 feet) high, bronze statue of Lapu Lapu (circa 1491-1547 AD), the Filipino warrior king who commanded the native forces that fought the invading Spanish forces in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and killed their leader, the navigator Ferdinand Magellan.
The Lapu Lapu statue is said to be on the exact spot where the battle was fought and where Magellan was killed.
The statue shows Lapu Lapu holding a sword in one hand and a shield on the other (these two weapons are said to have been used by Lapu Lapu in his combat with Magellan).
Lapu Lapu was one of two chieftains and kings (datu) of Mactan Island, and he vigorously resisted the early Spanish colonists in their attempts to conquer the Philippines and convert them to Christianity.
When Ferdinand Magellan arrived in the Philippines in 1521, he took possession of the Philippines in the name of Spain.