The Santa Cruz district is located on the right bank of the Pasig River in the northern part of Manila. Before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors to the Philippine Islands, the present urban area was made up of swamps, grasslands, and some rice fields. The Spanish expedition of 1581 declared these lands the property of the crown and gave it to the Jesuit Order. In 1619, the Jesuits built the first Roman Catholic church here, and in 1643 they placed in it an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Pilar, around which a whole cult was later formed.
In 1784, on behalf of the King of Spain, the Hospital of St. Lazarus was built on the territory of the current Santa Cruz district, which housed leprosy patients. They were cared for by Franciscan monks. Later, a small parish near the church parish, a small park was laid out to connect the area with the Spanish cavalry headquarters. During the same years, a slaughterhouse and a meat market, and a Chinese cemetery in the northern part.
During World War II, Japanese occupying forces were surprised by American and Filipino soldiers approaching from the north and fled. The entire Santa Cruz neighbourhood and the northern part of Manila remained virtually untouched, happily escaping the shelling that had heavily damaged the rest of the city. That's why even today in Santa Cruz you can still see a number of of pre-World War II buildings can still be seen in Santa Cruz today.
For example, on Escolta Street you can see two stunning houses facing each other: Regina and Perez Samanillo. The former is characterised by a neoclassical facade, similar to the government buildings in New Delhi. And the Samanillo house is a masterpiece of Filipino Art Deco architecture. It was designed by the son Juan Luna Andres Luna de San Pedro. In this luxurious structure you can find some hint of the majestic building of the Cambodian temple of Angkor Wat and even Meso-American motifs.
The ancient Santa Cruz Church rises on Plaça Lacson, and nearby is the Carriedo Fountain. The church was built by the Jesuits in 1768, then it was was in the possession of the Dominican order.
When the independence of the Republic of the Philippines, the former building of St Lazarus Hospital housed the office of Department of Health.
