1 Peso Douglas MacArthur

Authorized by the Philippine government in the first full year of independence, this coin commemorates MacArthur's role in the liberation of the archipelago from Japanese occupation — a campaign that included the controversial reconquest of Manila in early 1945, during which the city suffered catastrophic destruction. It was the first commemorative issue struck by the new republic, and production was contracted to the United States Mint at Philadelphia, as the Manila Mint had been destroyed during the war.