The most important event in the history of Cagayan Valley took place in 1572 when Spanish Conquistador Don Juan de Salcedo traced the northern coast and landed at the mouth of the Pamplona River. Before his visit, early Cagayanos revelled in a civilization of their own.

The Spanish occupation in Cagayan was recorded to have started in 1581 when Gobernador Gonzalo Ronquillo de Penaloza sent Juan Pablo Carreon to the north to drive away a Japanese fleet under the command of Taifusa. Carreon succeeded in his mission and proceeded upriver to look for pueblo sites and thus making a name for himself in the process.

Lal-lo-c, one of the first four (4) cities in the Philippines.( Manila-I571;Cebu-1565; Naga-1575) was named Ciudad Nueva Segovia in 1581 by Carreon. It was chosen as capital of Cagayan Valley because of its favorable location and navigable river. It was also the seat of the Diocese created by Pope Clement VIII on August 15, 1595 until the seat was transferred to Vigan, lIocos Sur in 1755. Very famous among the missionaries at that time was Bishop Miguel de Benavidez, OP, the first bishop elected to the Diocesan in Nueva Segovia. He later founded the University of Sto. Tomas.

It was from Lal-lo that authorities governed the province and was the capital of Cagayan up to 1839 when Cagayan Valley was subdivided. On May 24, 1839 the province of lsabela was created comprising the towns of Cordon to Ilagan, including the sitio of Palanan. Nueva Vlzcaya :omprised the region from Aritao to Bayombong and later to Dladl. Cagayan comprised that part of the valley from Tuguegarao to Aparrl and the Babuyanes. And the provincial government was moved to Tuguegarao from Lal-lo.

Cagayan Valley abounds with natural resources and exudes with development potentials that consist of rich agricultural areas, forestland and grasslands, inland and marine resources.Geographically, the valley is located at the northeastern part of mainland Luzon covering an area of about 26,858.79 square kilometers making it the 4th largest region in the country. Bounded with the Pacific Ocean in the east and the protective mountain ranges of Caraballo and Cordillera ranges on the west and the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Aurora on the south. Between the ranges is the valley where most of the population live and is criss-crossed by the mighty Cagayan River, the longest and widest in the country and its tributaries which in turn flow into the Balintang Channel. The mainland is also skirted by the Pacific Ocean on the east coast and the Bashi Channel on the north.

The Batanes group of Islands is located at the northernmost tip of the Philippine Archipelago between the China Sea and the Pacific Ocean.It has more than 890 kilometers of coastline and rich fishing grounds, particularly with the Babuyan and Balintang Channels on the north and the Palanan and Divilacan Bays on the east including in territorial seas within the 200 km Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The region has four (4) minor volcanos with several inactive faultlines, which include the Digdig Fault.The climate in the valley falls under Type 3 characterized by not very pronounced seasons - relatively dry from November to June and wet during the rest of the year.