Philippine Revolution
The Philippine Revolution[6] was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against Spain from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year colonial rule of Spain to the archipelago. The Philippines were among the last colonies of the Spanish Empire, which saw a massive decline particularly in the 1890s. Cuba rebelled in 1895, and the empire soon fought against the United States in a war that they lost. In June 1898, Philippine revolutionaries declared independence. However, this was not recognized by Spain, which sold the islands to the United States in the Treaty of Paris.
For the 1986 revolution, see People Power Revolution.
Led by Andrés Bonifacio, the Katipunan was formed in secrecy in 1892 in the wake of the nascent La Liga Filipina, an organization created by Filipino nationalist José Rizal and others in Spain with goals of Philippine representation to the Spanish Parliament. Katipunan's influence soon gained traction across the islands, and seeks for an armed revolution. However, that revolution started prematurely in August 1896 upon its discovery by Spanish authorities in Manila. The organization soon declared war against Spain in Caloocan.[7] Early battles and skirmishes were centered around sieging the capital city of Manila led by Bonifacio himself, which ultimately failed. However, revolutionaries in the neighboring provinces fared better, particularly in Cavite, where rebels led by Mariano Álvarez and cousins Baldomero and Emilio Aguinaldo won early major victories. This disparity in success, along with multiple factors, contributed to the eventual power struggle from within Katipunan's leadership. Two factions formed: Bonifacio's Magdiwang and Aguinaldo's Magdalo. This struggle culminated in the 1897 elections in Tejeros, which saw Emilio Aguinaldo elected as president in absentia. Bonifacio nullified the results after a Magdalo member questioned his election as the Secretary of the Interior. This resulted in a schism, with Bonifacio's supporters alleging that the elections was fraudulent, with Bonifacio himself refusing to recognize the results. In April 1897, Aguinaldo ordered the arrest of Bonifacio. A trial was set in Maragondon, where the Magdalo-led jury found Bonifacio and his brother Procopio guilty of treason, sentencing both of them to death. Despite calls for commuting the sentence for the sake of national unity, the brothers were executed in May 1897. Later that year, Aguinaldo's government and Spanish authorities signed the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, which temporarily reduced hostilities. Filipino revolutionary officers exiled themselves to Hong Kong. However, the hostilities never completely ceased.[8]
On April 21, 1898, after the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor, the United States declared war against the Spanish Empire, starting the Spanish-American war.[9] On May 1, the U.S. Navy's Asiatic Squadron, under George Dewey, decisively defeated the Spanish Navy in the Battle of Manila Bay, effectively seizing control of the area surrounding Manila. On May 19, Aguinaldo, unofficially allied with the United States, returned to the Philippines and resumed attacks against the Spaniards. By June, the rebels had gained control of nearly the entirety of the countryside, while the cities remained under Spanish control. On June 12, Aguinaldo issued the Philippine Declaration of Independence in Kawit.[10] Although this signified the end date of the revolution, neither Spain nor the United States recognized Philippine independence.[11] The Treaty of Paris was signed between Spain and the United States, formally ending Spanish rule to the islands and the Spanish-American war.[8] Despite attempts by the Filipino government, there were no Filipinos in the treaty.
On February 4, 1899, fighting broke out between the Filipino and American forces, beginning the Philippine–American War. Aguinaldo immediately declared war, ordering "that peace and friendly relations with the Americans be broken and that the latter be treated as enemies".[12] In June 1899, the First Philippine Republic formally declared war against the United States,[13][14] which ended with Aguinaldo's capture and surrender by the Americans in April 1901. As a result, the islands become a colony of the United States. A commonwealth government was formed in 1936, with Manuel L. Quezon, Aguinaldo's aide-de-camp during the revolution, assuming presidency. The Philippines was intended to become independent after a ten-year commonwealth period, but was cut short in the advent of the Second World War in the Pacific. The country finally became fully independent on July 4, 1946, 50 years after the start of the revolution.
Summary[edit]
The main influx of the revolutionary ideas came at the start of the 19th century when the Philippines was opened for world trade. In 1809, the first British firms were established in Manila, followed by a royal decree in 1834 which officially opened the city to world trade. The Philippines had been governed from Mexico since 1565,[15] with colonial administrative costs sustained by subsidies from the galleon trade. Increased competition with foreign traders brought the galleon trade to an end in 1815. After Mexico became independent in 1821, Spain was forced to govern the Philippines directly from Madrid and to find new sources of revenue to pay for the colonial administration.[16] At this point, post-French Revolution ideas entered the country through literature, which resulted in the rise of an enlightened principalía class in the society.
The 1868 Spanish Revolution brought the rule of Queen Isabella II to an end. The conservative government was replaced by a liberal government led by General Francisco Serrano.[17] In 1869, Serrano appointed Carlos María de la Torre as the 91st governor-general. The leadership of de la Torre introduced the idea of liberalism to the Philippines.[17]
The election of Amadeo of Savoy to the throne of Spain led to the replacement of de la Torre in 1871.[18] In 1872, the government of the succeeding governor-general, Rafael de Izquierdo, experienced the uprising of Filipino soldiers at the Fort San Felipe arsenal in Cavite el Viejo. Seven days after the mutiny, many people were arrested and tried. Three of these were secular priests: José Burgos, Mariano Gomez and friar Jacinto Zamora, who were hanged by Spanish authorities in Bagumbayan.[19] Their execution had a profound effect on many Filipinos; José Rizal, the national hero, would dedicate his novel El filibusterismo to their memory.[20]
Many Filipinos who were arrested for possible rebellion were deported to Spanish penal colonies.[21] Some of them, however, managed to escape to Hong Kong, Yokohama, Singapore, Paris, London, Vienna, Berlin, and some parts of Spain. These people met fellow Filipino students and other exiles who had escaped from penal colonies. Bound together by common fate, they established an organization known as the Propaganda Movement. These émigrés used their writings primarily to condemn Spanish abuses and seek reforms to the colonial government.
José Rizal's novels, Noli Me Tángere (Touch Me Not, 1887) and El Filibusterismo (The Filibuster, 1891), exposed Spanish abuses in sociopolitical and religious aspects. The publication of his first novel brought the infamous agrarian conflict in his hometown of Calamba, Laguna in 1888, when Dominican haciendas fell into trouble of submitting government taxes. In 1892, after his return from the Americas, Rizal established La Liga Filipina (The Filipino League), a Filipino association organized to seek reforms in the colonial government. When the Spaniards learned that Rizal was in the Philippines, they arrested and deported him a few days after the Liga was established.
Upon hearing that Rizal had been deported to Dapitan, Liga member Andrés Bonifacio and his fellows established a secret organization named Katipunan in a house located in Tondo, Manila, while more conservative members led by Domingo Franco and Numeriano Adriano would later establish the Cuerpo de Compromisarios. The Katipunan obtained overwhelming number of members and attracted the lowly classes. In June 1896, Bonifacio sent an emissary to Dapitan to obtain Rizal's support, but Rizal refused to participate in an armed revolution. On August 19, 1896, Katipunan was discovered by a Spanish friar, which resulted in the start of the Philippine Revolution.
The revolution initially flared up in Central Luzon. The armed resistance eventually spread throughout the Southern Tagalog region, particularly in Cavite province, where towns were gradually liberated during the early months of the uprising. In 1896 and 1897, successive conventions at Imus and Tejeros decided the new republic's fate. In November 1897, the Republic of Biak-na-Bato was established, and the insurgent government promulgated a constitution. On May 1, 1898, the Battle of Manila Bay took place as part of the Spanish–American War. On May 24, Emilio Aguinaldo, who had returned from voluntary exile on May 19, announced in Cavite, "...I return to assume command of all the forces for the attainment of our lofty aspirations, establishing a dictatorial government which will set forth decrees under my sole responsibility, ...".[22] On June 12, Aguinaldo proclaimed Philippine independence.[23] On June 18, Aguinaldo issued a decree proclaiming a Dictatorial Government led by himself.[24] On June 23, Aguinaldo issued another decree, which replaced the Dictatorial Government with a Revolutionary Government.[25] In 1898, between June and September 10, the Malolos Congress elections were held by the Revolutionary Government, resulting in Emilio Aguinaldo being elected as President of the Philippines. On February 2, 1899, hostilities broke out between U.S. and Filipino forces.[26] The Malolos Constitution was adopted in a session convened on September 15, 1898. It was promulgated on January 21, 1899, creating the First Philippine Republic with Aguinaldo as President. On June 12, 1899, Aguinaldo promulgated a declaration of war against the U.S., beginning the Philippine–American War. U.S. forces captured Aguinaldo on March 23, 1901, and he swore allegiance to the U.S. on April 1. On July 4, 1902, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed a complete pardon and amnesty for all Filipinos who had participated in the conflict, effectively ending the war.[27][28]
Death toll[edit]
The Correlates of War project estimates that both sides suffered over 2000 combat deaths while losing many more to disease.[5]