Phil history pics

Spanish era Philippines (reformatted)

2025-05-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

19th Century Philippines

Background

The Spanish colonization of the Philippines was initially planned to establish a base on the Silk Road and a platform for Spain's expansion into Asia. When the Crown realized its Asian ambitions were unfeasible, it chose to retain control of the islands. Due to their strategic importance, Spain linked the Philippines to the Mexican viceroyalty of New Spain and established a minimal colonial administration consisting of military personnel, civil servants, and religious orders.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Philippines transitioned from an agrarian subsistence economy to an intermediary economy, bridging Asia, America, and Europe through the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade. Trade, entrepreneurial activity, and investments surged in the second half of the 19th century, aided by the opening of the Panama Canal and foreign capital. However, the Spanish government failed to adapt colonial policies to the changing economic landscape, maintaining a stagnant administration resistant to reform.

Despite the negative aspects of colonial rule, Spanish integration fostered social cohesion, contributing to a nascent national identity. Catholicism deeply influenced Philippine society, while public works—such as lighthouses, the Manila Harbour Board, and the Hydrographic Committee of the Pacific—and scientific advancements (e.g., the Manila Observatory) were notable imperial contributions.

Contrary to idyllic portrayals, historical photographs reveal a complex, developing nation. A census from 1894, based on parish records, recorded 6,414,373 inhabitants, with an additional unregistered million consisting of indigenous groups, Chinese, Moros, and foreigners. The census also noted 2,751 clergy members and 21,513 military personnel, of whom fewer than 3,000 were Spanish-born. These figures highlight a colonial regime dominated by a small Spanish elite wielding ideological and coercive power.

1800s

The 1800s were a period of global upheaval, with shifting European power dynamics. In the Philippines, Spanish rule persisted, and native resistance remained ineffective due to policies that suppressed literacy and exploited ethnic divisions.

Below are snapshots of Philippine life before the 1896 revolution:

Scenes from Spanish Colonial Life

Society and Culture

Spanish Women and a Filipina Mestiza

Spanish women and a Filipina mestiza

Spanish Bullfighting Ring in Paco

Spanish bullfighting ring in Paco

Spanish Luxury

Spanish luxury in the old days

Spanish Civilians on the Manila-Dagupan Railway

Spanish civilians on the Manila-Dagupan line

Old Manila Map

Old Manila map

Dominican Friars in Cagayan

Spanish Dominican friars in Cagayan

Religion and Control

The Church maintained tight control over the population, using the pulpit to reinforce social hierarchies. Life for the indios (natives) was harsh, while the upper class enjoyed luxury.

Market Scene in Batangas (1886)

A typical market scene - Batangas market

Indio Children

Indio children

Chinese Influence

Chinese traders played a vital role in Manila's economy, despite Spanish distrust and periodic crackdowns.

Chinese Trader (Late 1800s)

A Chinese trader in the late 1800s

Chinese Merchants and Artisans

Chinese merchants and artisans

Urban Development

Escolta (Manila's Commercial District)

A street scene in Escolta, the commercial area of Spanish period Manila

Bridges Over the Pasig River

Bridges connecting Manila districts

Economic Activities

Tobacco Harvesting

Tobacco harvesting in Cagayan valley

Factory Operations

A Spanish-owned factory

Education and Science

Ateneo de Manila Classroom

A classroom in Ateneo de Municipal

Manila Observatory

Jesuit-owned Manila observatory

Military Presence

Spanish and Native Soldiers

Various types of Spanish and Indio soldiers

Mindanao and Spanish Resistance

Mindanao remained largely outside Spanish control due to fierce resistance from Muslim communities. The Moro Wars persisted throughout the colonial period, with Spain fortifying key positions like Zamboanga and Cotabato.

Fortifications in Mindanao

Fortifications in Cotabato

Spanish Campaigns in Mindanao

Spanish military campaigns in Mindanao

The Road to Revolution

In 1872, the Cavite Mutiny marked the beginning of organized resistance against Spanish rule. The execution of priests José Burgos, Mariano Gómez, and Jacinto Zamora galvanized nationalist sentiment, leading to the Propaganda Movement and, eventually, the 1896 revolution.

Historical Discoveries: The Oldest Philippine Photographs

In 2007, 18 rare daguerreotypes (early photographs) from the 1840s were discovered in the Hispanic Society of America. These images, the oldest known photographs of the Philippines, depict Manila, Marikina, and Laguna.

Manila (1840s)

Early photographs of Manila (1840s)

Laguna (1840s)

Laguna in the 1840s

Marikina (1840s)

Marikina in the 1840s

Capture of Aguinaldo

2011-01-22T20:53:00.005-08:00

The capture of the 1st Philippines Republic president, Emilio Aguinaldo, heralded the beginning of the end of Filipino resistance against the Americans. By the time of his capture, Filipinos were using guerilla warfare to resist and Aguinaldo served more as an inspirational leader than an operational one.

Soon after his capture, major portions of the Philippine army soon surrendered to the American authorities.

Below is the story of events that lead to Aguinaldo's capture:

May 1900

Funston's 4th district captures the headquarters of General Urbano Lacuna capturing personal letterheads and stationery

General Urbano Lacuna

September 1900

After lengthy trek to elude his pursuers, Aguinaldo and his entourage (by this time, reduced to a few dozen persons) established themselves in a small remote village of Palanan, Isabela province.

Aguinaldo maintained nominal control over the revolutionary leaders and communicated with local leaders of the resistance via correspondence carried by couriers. A tedious process which took 2 to 3 months to complete, if they are completed at all.

January 1901

In an effort to reinforce his forces, Aguinaldo dispatched a soldier, Cecilio Segismundo, from Palanan with letters for his second cousin, Baldomero Aguinaldo and several other guerilla commanders in central and southern Luzon.

February 8, 1901

After a month long trek, the courier and his twelve man escort was captured in Casignan, Nueva Vizcaya after being convinced by the mayor of Casignan to give up. He surrendered himself and his documents to the US commander of
the local garrison, 1st Lt. James Taylor.

Taylor realizing the importance of his find, immediately telegraphed his command located at San Isidro, 60 miles southwest of Casignan. The district commander was Brig. General Frederick Funston. Funston , a Medal of Honor recipient, commanded a force of 2,400 U.S. troops in the Fourth District. His command covered two provinces in north central Luzon.

Funston, quickly acted and exploited the potential intelligence windfall. He quickly instructed Lt. Taylor to send Segismundo and his documents to San Isidro under guard.

In San Isidro, the courier told the Americans that Aguinaldo was in Palanan. According to some accounts, the confession was extracted via water cure.

Palanan was a remote town, seven miles from the Philippine sea, about ninety miles to the north of Casiguran, the nearest village. It was impossible to approach Palanan via a few dirt trails without alerting Aguinaldo as the routes leading to the town is constantly under watch by Balugas (an Aborigine tribe who lived in the mountains). Capturing Aguinaldo thru conventional means is out of the question given the situation.

Funston's solution took advantage of the earlier capture of Gen. Urbano Lacuna's headquarters and the courier's packet of letters. Funston planned a raid on Palanan using a force of pro U.S. Filipinos with a few American officers who would disguise themselves as reinforcements. Carrying forged credentials from Lacuna and guided by Segismundo, the troops would openly march into Palanan.

The Americans in the group would pretend to be prisoners. Once in Palanan, the group will throw off their disguises, capture Aguinaldo and take him to the coast for pickup by Navy vessel.

The plan called for a long march to Palanan of about one hundred miles along the coast of unmapped wilderness from Casiguran to Palanan. This is necessary to maintain the deception that they are reinforcements coming from Central Luzon. A landing close to the objective would not have gone unnoticed. This meant that the troops would have subsisted on whatever food and supplies they can forage along the way. This would help maintain the deception.

Funston's route to Palanan

Last week of Feb 1901 With the plan approved by General MacArthur Sr., Funston assembled his
   raiding team. They came from Company D, 1st Battalion of the Macabebe
   scouts commanded by Captain Russell T. Hazzard. Hazzard was an officer
   detailed from the 11th U.S. Volunteer Cavalry. The unit was recruited
   from a Central Luzon minority tribe whose members served as colonial
   troops for the Spaniards.

Some of the Macabebe scouts from Company D

   Funston obtained Filipino peasant clothing and a mixture of Filipino weapons
   e.g. Mausers, Remingtons and U.S. Army Krag-Jorgensen rifles.

   To act as leaders of this supposed reinforcement team, Funston drafted
   former nationalist officers who were captured or have surrendered and

   have taken an oath of allegiance to the United States. They had worked
   for Funston as informers and scouts. Hilario Talplacido, a former Philippine
   army major, received the role of lieutenant colonel and nominal commander.
   Two former lieutenants, Gregorio Cadhit and Dionisio Bato played roles
   at that rank. Segismundo who also had sworn allegiance to Uncle Sam
   came along as a guide.

The US oath of allegiance

To act as captain and second in command of the supposed reinforcements,

another guerilla defector, an Iberian Spaniard who had come to the

Philippines as a Spanish sergeant but defected to the Filipinos later in the

revolution.

Segovia was among those taken captive and held prisoner by the forces of

General Urbano Lacuna in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija during the war against

Spain. Segovia's story of having been kind to Dr. Rizal as the guard

assigned to serve as escort when the hero was rearrested in Barcelona

and shipped back to Manila to stand trial for complicity in the Katipunan

uprisings endeared the former civil guard to Lacuna and became one of his

trusted aides.

In May 1900 he worked for the Americans as a scout and

an intelligence officer. He became a de facto member of Funston's staff.

Fluent in Tagalog and Spanish, he helped Funston decode and translate

captured letters. Physically tough, courageous and able to think fast on

his feet, he became the actual leader among the non-American officers and

served as Funston's deputy for the entire expedition.

   The American contingent was composed of Funston, Captain Hazzard
   and his brother and second-in-command, Lieutenant Oliver P.M. Hazzard.
   The brothers knew their men well and could coach them through the
   mission. Also included were Funston's cousin, Lt. Burton Mitchell and
   Captain Harry W. Newton. Newton was formerly stationed in Baler,
   the closest American garrison to the destination and was slightly familiar
   with the terrain on which they have to take.

March 6, 1901 The Vicksburg steamed out of Manila Bay. While out at sea, letters were written
   on the forged Lacuna papers.   The critical letters were composed in Spanish with
   the help of Segovia.

   The first letter contained the acknowledgement of Lacuna on
   the receipt of Aguinaldo's letter which Segismundo carried. He also
   reported great military successes against the Americans.

Stationaries and seals were difficult to forge such as the one above from Aguinaldo

   The second letter stated that Lacuna, on orders from Baldomero
   Aguinaldo, was sending a company of reinforcements to the president
   under the command of Hilario Talplacido. An officer with whom
   Aguinaldo was acquainted.

Sample of a seal

   The letters were to be sent in advance to Aguinaldo via courier after they
   have landed.

   While on the ship, all of those included in the mission rehearsed their roles.

March 13, 1901   Vicksburg approached Casiguran Bay with all lights screened.

Casiguran Bay

Casiguran was the point at which a column traveling over the mountains

from central Luzon would have to come down to the coast for the

   final leg of a march to Palanan. This is also the closest point where Funston
   can start their trek to Palanan without revealing their true identities.


March 14, 1901   At 2 o'clock in the morning, eighty-nine men from the Vicksburg landed
   along a remote beach of Casiguran. The soldiers wore ragtag clothing and
   were barefoot. The party went ashore unobserved in Vicksburg's small
   boats under cover of darkness and rain during the early hours of the day.
   Before dawn the Vicksburg had withdrawn out of sight of land.

USS Vicksburg

   Vicksburg had orders to approach the shore near Palanan on March 25
   to retrieve the raiders hopefully with the prisoners. Meanwhile, the
   Vicksburg will cruise up and down the coast and land parties at the
   few settlements to look for the five supposed captured Americans as cover
   for its presence in the area.

   At daybreak, the party proceeded to the nearby town of Casiguran. The town
   was guerilla controlled and rarely visited by American patrols. Ahead of
   the group, Cadhit, Segismundo and two Macabebes brought a letter signed by
   Talplacido to the mayor of Casiguran informing him of the party's mission and
   requesting for quarters and food for his men and their prisoners. The mayor
   they discovered had gone to Palanan to attend Aguinaldo's 32nd birthday
   but his deputy complied. Marching under a tumultuous welcome from the
   townsfolk, the group were housed in various houses, while Funston and the
   other "prisoners" were housed in the municipal building. Nearby were the
   Filipino officers. Segovia slipped into the American's room late at night for
   whispered conferences, while the Macabebes regaled the locals with stories
   of their supposed exploits against the Americans.

March 15 and 16   The group stayed in Casiguran while Funston and Segovia secretly prepared
   another letter. The forged letter was supposedly from Talplacido to Aguinaldo,
   informing Aguinaldo that he was on his way to Palanan with a company of
   troops from Lacuna. On the march, they encountered a detachment of
   Americans, killing two, wounding three and taking five prisoners. So as not
   to weaken his detachment, he will bring along the prisoners with him to
   Palanan.

   They requested from the deputy to send the new letter and the forged Lacuna
   letters to Palanan via two townsmen so that Aguinaldo would
   know that the approaching troops were friendlies.

   The couriers left Casiguran on the sixteenth and arrived in Palanan two days
   ahead of Funston and his column.

   Funston's concern during this time was having enough food and supplies for
   the hundred-mile trek to Palanan and he was trying to secure as much supplies
   as possible. Having been told by the mayor's deputy that he can secure the
   needed supplies can be secured in around 5 days, Funston decided that they
   will have to march within 2 days on whatever they have foraged, which by that
   time amounted to 4 days of short rations including dried carabao meat and
   6 live chickens. They also heard a rumor that General Tinio was in Palanan with
   four hundred troops. They decided to continue as they knew they had the
   element of surprise.

March 17 to 22   The column along with a dozen men from Casiguran together with a Baluga
   guide (who later deserted and was replaced by a local) marched out of
   Casiguran. The locals, although helpful made the journey harder as they
   had to keep up the masquerade throughout the trek.

   The march was brutal as the terrain was hardgoing for the shoeless Macabebes.
   Funston counted sixty streams forded during the trek. Rain was constant and
   after their supplies ran out, the column had to subsist on cooked corn mush with
   snails and small fish gathered along the beach.

   The inadequate diet, tension and physical exertion took its toll as the tough
   Macabebes became weak and ill. Funston suffered rheumatic pains, Mitchell
   who was unable to eat became emaciated and listless. Talplacido, terrified by
   the whole enterprise and overweight collapsed and had to be carried by
   Macabebe relays. By March 22, the force, according to Funston, "stumbled
   along in a half-dazed condition.... Our men were scattered for a mile along the
   beach, some of them so weak they reeled as they walked."

   Late in the afternoon of March 22, Funston and the exhausted group reached
   Dinundungan, a point where a trail branched inland from the beach toward
   Palanan, eight miles away. Here they encountered an outpost manned
   by an elderly Tagalog and several Balugas. The old man presented to
   Talplacido a letter from Aguinaldo's chief of staff, Simeon Villa, instructing
   Talplacido to bring his force to Palanan. It also directed Talplacido to leave
   the prisoners and a ten-man guard at Dinundungan for security reasons.
   Aguinaldo planned eventually to release the captives and did not want them
   to know the location of his headquarters. The old man told Segovia and
   Talplacido that Tinio was not in Palanan, much to the relief of the group.

Left to right- Barcelona, E. Aguinaldo and Simeon Villa

   Segovia sent a note to Palanan requesting for provisions to be able to
   complete the march.

March 23

   Early morning Porters arrived from Palanan with enough corn to give the troops a much
   needed breakfast.

   8:00 AM The main body of Macabebes, headed by Talplacido, Segovia, Cadhit,
   Bato and Segismundo accompanied by the bearers from Casiguran
   marched to Palanan.

   Around 9:00 AM Two Macabebes came back down the trail carrying a note from Segovia
   to the corporal in charge of the Americans. The corporal showed it to the
   elderly Tagalog. It stated that new orders were received that all were going
   to march to Palanan, including the prisoners.

   Halfway to Palanan, the main body met ten of Aguinaldo's soldiers sent
   to relieve the detachment guarding the prisoners so that everyone can join
   the welcome in Palanan. Segovia distracted Aguinaldo's soldiers and held
   them long enough while a Macabebe sergeant and a private were sent
   to Funston to warn them. Funston hid in the jungle until the detachment
   from Palanan marched past.

   2:00 PM The main body reaches the bank of the Palanan river opposite the village.

Diagram of Aguinaldo's headquarters.
KEYS TO NUMBERS: A. Aguinaldo's house. 1. Sitting room. 2. Hallway. 3. Bedroom used by Aguinaldo, Barcelona and Villa. 4. Kitchen. 5,6. Doorways. 7,9. Barracks. 8. Village church. 10,11. Bandstands. 12. Summer house. 13. Window from which Aguinaldo called to the Macabebes to cease firing. 14. Position of Aguinaldo's guard when fired on. 15, 16. Position of Funston's men at beginning of attack. The marks "- - - -" indicate trenches placed in the public square
around the bandstands.

In the meantime, the “rebel” officers of Funston’s column had crossed the

rain-swollen Palanan River and made their way to Aguinaldo’s headquarters.

Aguinaldo greeted Placido and Segovia and took them to his residence. Placido

gave a long, time consuming account of the Filipinos’ victory over the Americans.

At the same time, Segovia nervously watched the crossing of the rest of the

column, hoping that the plan would not be betrayed before the force was across

the river.

Once across, the Little Macs formed ranks and marched towards Aguinaldo’s

guards. At the right moment, Segovia gave the signal by waving his hat and

calling out to the men. In an instant, the Macabebes opened fire, killing two guards

and scattering the rest.

Aguinaldo, thinking that the shots were intended as a salute to the newcomers,

moved towards the window to order the guards to conserve their ammunition.

   As he did, Talplacido tackled him and wrestled him to the ground. At the same
   time, Segovia rushed back in from the balcony where he had given the signal.
   By then, Aguinaldo’s officers began to recover from their shock and started to
   draw their weapons. Segovia immediately fired six shots from his revolver, killing
   two rebels. The others quickly surrendered or jumped out the windows to
   escape.

   Funston’s small group arrived at the river crossing just as the gunfire erupted
   and crossed quickly. Funston’s intervention spared several of Aguinaldo’s
   men from the Little Macs who were more than willing to fight it out with the
   rebels. Inside the headquarters, Funston found Aguinaldo pinned to the floor
   with the stocky Talplacido sitting on him. Aguinaldo quickly realized what had
   happened and meekly surrendered. Two of his chief officers were also taken
   prisoner.

Aguinaldo and company before boarding the Vicksburg

   With the mission almost over, Funston and his party rested and helped
   themselves to food left behind by the villagers who had fled when the
   shooting began. On the morning of 25 March, Funston’s column
   rendezvoused with Vicksburg in Palanan Bay and set sail for Manila.

Aguinaldo's capture added to Funston's already high prestige. Later he bacame a major general,
commanding BGen. John Pershing during his operations against Pancho Villa. If he did not die
at age 51 (February 1917), he and not Pershing, would have commanded the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I.

Funston's sunflower pin in commemoration of the Philippine campaign

Philippine American War

2011-01-22T20:52:00.005-08:00

Pact of Biak na Bato

2011-01-22T20:52:00.003-08:00

Updates

2010-04-04T05:52:00.001-07:00

I've been updating earlier posts, you can visit from time to time.

The Katipunan

2010-02-01T21:39:00.001-08:00

The Katipunan

The Katipunan was a secret organization organized along Masonic lines. It was formed soon after Rizal's exile to Dapitan.

On the night of July 3, 1892, at a house in Tondo, Jose Rizal founded and inaugurated "La Liga Filipina". The organization lasted only after three days as, he was caught, convicted and deported in Dapitan. On July 7, 1892, upon learning that Rizal was deported, a secret council was called in at # 72 corner of Azcarraga Street and Elcano, San Nicolas/Binondo. In attendance were Andres Bonifacio, Deodato Arellano, Valentin Diaz, Teodoro Plata, Ladislao Diwa, Jose Dizon and few members of La Liga Filipina. The Liga membership split into two groups: the conservatives formed the "Cuerpo de Compromisarios" which pledged to continue supporting the reformist propaganda group "La Solidaridad." The radicals led by Bonifacio devoted themselves to a new and secret society, the Kataastaasang Kagalang-Kagalang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan was born. The objectives of the Katipunan, as a socialist brotherhood was popularly known, were:

1. To advocate complete independence from Spain, to be achieved through armed struggle.
2. To take back lands, gold, personal savings, personal properties "confiscated" by the church and Spanish Cortes from the poor masses. They also saw it as their personal responsibility to help the poor, the oppressed and to teach them good manners, hygiene and morality.
3. To dismiss the elite society and social classes, instead create an equal social status.

Andres Bonifacio, one of the more prominent founders of the Katipunan was not its first Supremo or the President of the Supreme Council. On July 15, 1892, the members of the Supreme Council were Deodato Arellano (Supremo), Andres Bonifacio (Comptroller), Ladislao Diwa (Fiscal), Teodoro Plata (Secretary) and Valentin Diaz (Treasurer). The legislative body of the Katipunan was known as the Katipunan Assembly and it was composed of the members of the Supreme Council, along with the presidents of the popular and provincial councils. Judicial power rested in the "Sangguniang Hukuman," which were provincial courts that decided on internal matters; however, judgement on grave matters (such as betraying the Katipunan or committing acts penalized by the organization’s laws) were meted by the "Secret Chamber," composed of Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto and Dr. Pio Valenzuela.

Members of the Katipunan were unsatisfied with Arellano's performance as Supremo, Bonifacio and the Sangguniang Hukuman later had him deposed and elected Roman Basa as Supremo on February 1, 1893. The Supreme Council was then composed of Basa, Jose Turiano Santiago (Secretary), Andres Bonifacio (Fiscal) and Vicente Molina (Treasurer).

Bonifacio would only become the Supremo on January 5, 1894, with Santiago (Secretary), Emilio Jacinto (Fiscal) and Vicente Molina (Treasurer). Further reorganization in 1896 led to Jacinto becoming Secretary and Pio Valenzuela as Fiscal. The Supreme Council in August 1896, preceding the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution, was led by Bonifacio as the Supremo with Jacinto as Secretary of State, Teodoro Plata as Secretary of War, Briccio Pantas as Secretary of Justice, Aguedo del Rosario as Secretary of Interior, and Enrique Pacheco as Secretary of Finance. Before the outbreak of the revolution, therefore, Bonifacio organized the Katipunan into a government revolving around a "cabinet" composed of his trusted men.

A meeting was held on August 24 and was decided to notify the Katipunan councils of the surrounding towns that a general attack on the capital Manila was planned for August 29. Bonifacio appointed generals to lead rebel forces to Manila. Before hostilities erupted, Bonifacio also reorganized the Katipunan into an open Revolutionary Government, him as President and the Supreme Council of the Katipunan as his cabinet. The Supremo formed the "Kataastaasang Kapulungan" (Supreme Council), declaring an armed revolution against Spain. It was in the same meeting that they established the Katipunan as a national government and held an election of officials to lead the army and the nation. The intention of Supremo Bonifacio was to have the Katipunan govern the whole Philippines after the overthrow of Spanish rule.

Official letters and one appointment paper of Bonifacio addressed to Emilio Jacinto reveal Bonifacio's various titles and designations, as follows:

# President of the Supreme Council
# Supreme President
# President of "Haring Bayang Katagalugan" (Sovereign Nation of Katagalugan or Sovereign Tagalog Nation)
# President of the Sovereign Nation, Founder of the Katipunan, Initiator of the Revolution
# Office of the Supreme President, Government of the RevolutionThe Katipunan** was a Philippine revolutionary society founded by anti-Spanish Filipinos in Manila in 1892, which aimed primarily to gain independence from Spain through revolution. The society was initiated by Filipino patriots Andrés Bonifacio, Teodoro Plata, Ladislao Diwa, and others on the night of July 7, when Filipino writer José Rizal was to be banished to Dapitan. Initially, Katipunan was a secret organization until its discovery in 1896 that led to the outbreak of Philippine Revolution.

Andres Bonifacio

Ladislao Diwa

Through the efforts of Katipunan members like Emilio Jacinto and Macario Sakay and hundreds of nameless contributors to the cause, the organization grew from a small, Luzon based organization, to a national organization which the Spaniards were unable to completely defeat.

The earliest dated and only known 1892 Katipunan document, authorizing the establishment of a Katipunan Sangunian balangay or chapter council, in Mindanao. Sworn statement of Restituto Javier dated 2 September 1892, with Andres Bonifacio signing as the society’s Secretary for Deodato Arellano, President, among others.

The Katipunan newspaper - "Ang Kalayaan"

An account on the start of the 1896 revolt

(From General Santiago Alvarez's account)

On August 21 1896, at the home of Katipunera Vidal Acab in Caloocan, a general meeting of Katipuneros was held to discuss the plans for the uprising. This meeting was disrupted by a false alarm when Katipunero guards stopped an Englishman riding in a rig. As the atmosphere was already tense, it was decided to move the meeting to Kangkong, Caloocan. In Kangkong, letters were written to the head of various Katipunan councils, inviting them to a meeting. By August 24, the Katipuneros in Kangkong swelled to more than a thousand. A meeting was then conducted, in it the following were approved:

1. An uprising to defend the people's freedom was to start Saturday, August 29, 1896.

2. The organization of the revolutionary forces under the following recently named brigadier generals:

Aguedo del Rosario
Vicente Fernandez
Ramon Bernardo
Gregorio Coronel

3. The planning of tactics for taking of Manila at an agreed time by the four generals

4. To be in a state of alert so Katipunan could strike should the situation arise even before August 29.

Everyone should steel himself and be resolute in the imminent struggle.

5. The immediate objective was the capture of Manila.

After the adjournment of the meeting at twelve noon, there were tumultuous shouts of "Mabuhay ang mga Anak ng Bayan!"

The following is a partial list of people and their occupation who attended the meeting and notes from the source:

Amidst all the debate about precisely when and where the revolution started, historians have often neglected to ask exactly who gathered in Balintawak or thereabouts in August 1896. In the absence of a complete roster – clearly an impossibility at this distance in time – the fullest listing is to be found in an interview given by the KKK veteran Guillermo Masangkay to the Manila newspaper Bagong Buhay in 1952. In this interview, Masangkay recalled the names of 56 men who had met in Balintawak prior to the first encounters with Spanish forces. In the great majority of cases, he also recalled their occupations, and it is fascinating to note that nearly half the patriots on his list worked in some capacity or other for branches of the Spanish administration. The three ‘government secret agents’, it is presumed, had in the preceding months been supplying useful information to the Katipunan and misinformation to the Spaniards.

Masangkay’s list is reproduced below; the occupational descriptions have been translated into English from the original mix of Tagalog and Spanish, and in a few cases have been amplified. Since the list was reconstructed from memory more than fifty years after the event, erroneous inclusions are likely and omissions are inevitable. Any corrections or other comments will be most welcome. Pictures if available are placed above their respective names.

Katipunan Member	Occupation	Known image
Aguedo del Rosario	Printer at the Diario de Manila
Apolonio Cruz	Printer at the Diario de Manila
Alejandro Santiago	Printer at El Resumen
Deogracias Fajardo	Printer
Juan Fajardo	Printer
Tomas Alegre	Master cigar maker
Pio H. Santos	Master tobacco worker
Patricio Belen	Tobacco worker
Crispulo Chacon	Tobacco worker
Lorenzo Martinez	Tobacco worker
Tomas Villanueva	Tobacco worker
Procopio Bonifacio	Railway baggage-master
Rogelio Borja	Mechanic
Isaac del Carmen	Mechanic
Hilario Sayo	Mechanic
Melecio Ruestra	Draftsman
Pastor Santos	Draftsman
Guillermo Masangkay	Kuridor [buyer and seller]
Pedro Zabala	Kuridor [buyer and seller]
Macario Sakay	Sales agent [personero]
Salustiano Cruz	Master tailor
Juan de la Cruz	Barber; playwright
Emilio Jacinto	Student
Andres Bonifacio	Warehouse employee at Fressel & Co.; walking cane maker; calligrapher
Nicomedes Carreon	Cobrador, salesman at Casa Chofre
Miguel Resurreccion	Grass (fodder) cutter
Vicente Leyva “Heneral Kalentong”	Milk seller
Cipriano Pacheco	Clerk
Briccio Pantas	Assistant to Court of First Instance judge
Teodoro Plata	Clerk, Mindoro Court of First Instance
Jose Trinidad	Clerk, Tondo Court of First Instance
Hermogenes Plata	Court clerk
Tomas Remigio	Government treasury clerk
Pantaleon Torres	Government treasury clerk
Vicente Molina	Government treasury caretaker
Enrique Pacheco	Manila city government clerk
Faustino Manalac	Manila port administration clerk
Calixto Santiago	Customs official
Restituto Javier	Customs official
Hermenegildo Reyes	Customs official
Valentin Lagasca	Customs guard sergeant
Eugenio Santos	Customs guard sergeant
Francisco Carreon	Customs guard
Sarhento Marcelo	Customs guard
Roman Ramos	Government arsenal employee
Tito Miguel	Government arsenal employee
Julio Navarro	Government secret agent
Alejandro Andaya	Government secret agent
Marcelo Badell	Government secret agent
Geronimo Medina y Cristobal	Army corporal
Cosme Taguyod	Fire Department lieutenant
Rafael Gutierrerez	Fire Department captain
Estanislao Vargas	Property owner
Apolonio Samson	Property owner
Pio Valenzuela	Physician
Ramon Bernardo	Municipal captain of Pandacan

Highlighted are names of familiar personalities from Philippine history textbooks.

Guardia Civil with a captured Katipunero from the 1st skirmishes

1917 marker of the 23 August Cry at Kangkong, installed by the veterans of the revolution.

Gathering of Katipunan veterans

The Katipunan met its demise at the hands of one of its members, who during the Tejeros Convention, succeeded in forming a new government under the most controversial of circumstances. This ultimately led to the capture and execution of the Katipunan's supremo- Andres Bonifacio.

The impunity at Tejeros convention and its aftermath—the slaying of the Bonifacio brothers—were apparently done not to pursue the revolution to its successful conclusion but to stop it. It is not for the sake of unity that the Bonifacio brothers were killed as Aguinaldo and his apologists later claimed.

In an interview with the newspaper El Imparcial on Dec. 27, 1897, a few months after ordering the death of Bonifacio and 13 days after the signing of the Pact of Biak na Bato where he sold out the Kawit revolt, Aguinaldo explained “the patriotism I speak of today will be unchangeable. We took to the field, not because we wished for separation from the mother country [Spain]. But because we are tired of bearing the material and moral burden of that arch, the keystone of which in our country is the friars.”

“It is quite true that the Katipunan instilled in us another desire—that of independence —but that desire was unattainable, and moreover, it was in opposition to our sentiments. It served as the banner of Andres Bonifacio, a cruel man whom I ordered shot, and with his death the Katipunan disappeared,” Aguinaldo said.

This interview made crystal clear why Bonifacio had to be murdered. It is now also no longer surprising that Aguinaldo immediately ended the revolt and agreed to live in exile in Hong Kong after Bonifacio’s death. The end of the revolution ensured that Aguinaldo and his men will never be prosecuted for any crimes against Spain and more especially the killing of Bonifacio.

Suppressing the revolution

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Top. Execution of La Liga Filipina members

Execution of captured Katipuneros

Above. The first Katipuna casualties of the 1896 revolution.

Above. The arrival of Spanish reinforcements in 1896, a big event during that time based on the amount of coverage it got from the local press.

Above. Spanish soldiers out on the field

Above. A Spanish soldier in the Philippines and a Filipino auxillary in Spanish service.

Both soldiers seem to be equipped with the The Spanish 7x57 mm Mauser, Model 1893, sometimes incorrectly referred to as Remingtons.

A number of Filipino auxillaries were members of the Katipunan, which led to several defections to the Katipunan side. Gen. Santiago Alvarez in his memoirs recount that in the early hours of August 30, 1896, after several successful skirmishes against the civil guards, Andres Bonifacio received several defectors in Cubao together with their rifles prior to attacking the Spanish polvorin in Sta. Mesa. In some cases, during firefights, some of the Filipino auxilliaries aimed high or low, so as not to hit the Katipuneros. One can also note that during Rizal's execution, there is a second line of Spanish soldiers, behind the auxilliaries to finish the job just in case.

Spanish response to the discovery of the Katipunan was swift and brutal.

Spanish troops in the Territorial Division of the Philippines in May 1898, when the war between the U.S. and Spain erupted, were commanded by General Fermin Jaudenes y Alvarez, and consisted of seven regiments of native infantry, 15 expeditionary battalions organized in Spain and sent to the islands to assist in the suppression of the insurrection; one native cavalry regiment; one expeditionary cavalry squadron; one regiment of fortress artillery; one regiment of mountain artillery; a regiment of native engineers; one company of Marine Infantry; a single ordnance detachment; three tercia, or regiments, of native Civil Guard; one detachment of native Carabineros, or custom guards; a native train, or transport, unit; a sanitary detachment, plus at least 12 companies of militia and guerrillas.

Spanish colonial troops had worn a lightweight uniform of linen, or lienzo, since the 1770s. This became their multi-purpose uniform in Cuba when the full dress uniform was abolished on June 3, 1876, subsequent to the Royal Decree of June 11, 1874. This law appears to have been extended to the garrison on Puerto Rico via the Royal Order of October 8, 1880. On November 11, 1892, the same style of campaign uniform as described in the Decrees of 1876 and 1880 were extended to the troops in the Philippines.

Below is the Spanish Orbat as of October 1897.

Spanish Order of Battle (1897)
source: http://www.spanamwar.com/spoobphil.htm

Native Regiment # 68 (Legaspi). 2 Battalions.

(Headquartered in Jolo; in the field in Luzon and Mindanao, with detachments in Carolina and Paragua Islands)

Native Regiment # 69 (Iberia). 2 Battalions.

(Headquartered in Zamboanga; in the field in Luzon)

Native Regiment # 70 (Magallanes). 1 Battalion.

(Headquartered in Manila; in the field in Luzon)

Native Regiment t#71 (Mindanao). 2 Battalions.

(Headquartered in Iligan; at Manila, and in the field in Mindanao)

Native Regiment #72 (Visayas). 1 Battalion.

(Headquartered in Manila; and in the field in Mindanao)

Native Regiment #73 (Jolo). 2 Battalions.

(Headquartered in Manila; in the field in Luzon and Mindanao)

Native Regiment t#74 ((Manila). 2 Battalions.

(Headquartered in Manila; in the field in Luzon and Mindanao)

Probable Total, Native Regiments: 372 Spanish, 11,368 native¹

Expeditionary Battalions (Battalones cazadores expedicionarios)

#1 thru #15, from Spain, (461 officers, 20,149 men)⁵consisting of:

1st Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
2nd Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
3rd Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
4th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
5th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
6th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
7th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
8th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
9th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
10th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
11th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
12th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
13th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
14th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)
15th Expeditionary Rifle Battalion (Military District of Luzon)

1st Regiment of Marine Infantry (45 officers, 1,743 men)

Cavalry (Caballeria de Filipinas) Regiment #31 (31 officers, 161 Spanish troopers, 453 native troopers)

Cavalry Squadron (Lanceros Expedicionario, No.1) (11 officers, 162 Spanish troopers)

Regiment de la Plaza (fortress artillery) (40 officers, 1,500 men)

6th Regiment of Artillery (mountain artillery) (21 officers, 696 men)

Battalion of Engineers (31 Spanish officers, 1,266 natives)

One Battalion Carabineros (volunteer riflemen, listed in some sources as Customs Guards)(14 Spanish officers, 415 natives)

Guardia Civil Regiments (three regiments)(155 Spanish officers, 3,530 natives)⁶

Guardia Civil Regiment #20
Guardia Civil Regiment #21
Guardia Civil Regiment #22

One Transport Brigade (Unknown; probably 15 Spanish officers and innumerable native drivers)

One Sanitary Detachment (4 officers, 345 Spaniards)

One Ordnance Detachment (Maestranza) (4 officers, 72 Spaniards)

Probable Total, Spanish Forces: 25,660 Spanish, 5,664 natives²

Revolutionary Leaders and Generals

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Early Filipino revolutionary leaders underwent their baptism of fire during the early stages of the revolution. Forced to act after the discovery of the Katipunan resulting from the ever tightening police surveillance since January 1896. The discovery led to the decimation by arrest and exile of Bonifacio's own Katipunan chapter, Ang Katagalugan, and its sister chapter the Maghiganti in the Diario de Manila printing plant, by late July 1896. High casualty rates and defeats were exacted upon these early leaders and their forces as they fought well armed, well organized and disciplined Spanish forces. Various accounts tell us about the organization (or lack of it) of Filipinos during the the first skirmishes.

"The exposure of key chapters of the Katipunan forced the outbreak of the Revolution in August. His Tondo chapters gone, Bonifacio headed a motley band of Katipuneros in his base in Balara. His troop was to link up in Sta. Mesa at 11 P.M. of Saturday, August 29th, with the column of Ramon Bernardo of Pandacan for a joint assault on the Intramuros at midnight. Bernardo waited in vain in Sta. Mesa. Bonifacio did not keep track of the hour, and marched from San Juan back to Balara. Bernardo's troop was cut to pieces early Sunday morning by a composite enemy force of Guardia Civil Veterana, artillery troops, infantry, cavalry, and carabineros. The noise of battle reached Balara, and Bonifacio rushed to succor Bernardo; in San Juan his column met the same fate as Bernardo's at the hands of the wheeling enemy force." [Onofre Corpuz]

The Katipunan members were organized around Katipunan leaders whose members came from the general population who largely are bereft of any military background (except for members of the colonial units). Lacking weaponry, training, logistical support, the individual soldier was expected to proceed to battle unsupported, drawing their strength from on numbers and surprise to win. As an organization the Katipunan had unwieldy communications, largely ineffective command structure and loose control over organized groups. It truly was a ragtag army whose only strength was their aspiration to free the Philippines from Spanish control.

Under the above mentioned circumstances, it is a truly admirable feat that the early and later leaders of the Katipunan manage to win some battles and bring the first phase of the revolution to a stalemate.

Andres Bonifacio

Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro (November 30, 1863 – May 10, 1897) was a former member of the La Liga Filipina. He was a founder and leader of the Kataastaasan Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK or Katipunan for short) which advocated Philippine independence by armed struggle. He was known as the "Supremo".

In 1892 he joined La Liga Filipina (The Philippine League), an organization which called for political reforms in the Spanish government of the Philippines. Bonifacio was a Freemason and a member of the Gran Oriente Español (Spanish Grand Lodge). However, La Liga Filipina disbanded after one meeting as Rizal was arrested and deported to the town of Dapitan in Mindanao. Bonifacio, Apolinario Mabini and others revived La Liga Filipina in Rizal’s absence. Bonifacio was active at organizing local chapters in Manila.La Liga Filipina contributed moral and financial support to Filipino reformists in Spain.

On July 7, 1892, the day after Rizal’s deportation was announced, Bonifacio and others founded the Katipunan, or in full, Kataastaasan(g) Kagalanggalang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (“Highest and Most Respected Society of the Sons of the Country”).The secret society sought independence from Spain through armed revolt.It was influenced by Freemasonry through its rituals and organization, and several members aside from Bonifacio were also Freemasons.

From the beginning, Bonifacio was one of the chief Katipunan officers, though he did not become its Supremo (supreme leader) or Presidente Supremo(Supreme President)until 1895. Bonifacio was the third head of the Katipunan after Deodato Arellano and Roman Basa. Prior to this, he served as the society’s comptroller and then its fiscal. The society had its own laws, bureaucratic structure and elective leadership. For each province it involved, the Katipunan Supreme Council coordinated provincial councils in charge of public administration and military affairs and local councils in charge of affairs on the district or barrio level. Bonifacio was a member and eventually head of theKatipunan Supreme Council.

After the early battles in Manila which resulted in defeats but had the effect of tying up Spanish Forces in Manila, Bonfacio, on Gen. Mariano Alvarez's invitation (Magdiwang chief) went to Cavite. The Filipino forces in Cavite under both the Magdiwang and Magdalo factions had early successes and gained control. Events did not turn out in favor of the Supremo as he was subsequently executed on charges of treason after the Tejeros Convention. According to some accounts, this was the culmination of a long running feud between Emilio Aguinaldo and Andres Bonifacio.

General Paciano Rizal, brother of patriot Jose Rizal.

Gen. Lucerio Geronimo (courtesy of Macky Hosalla)

Gen. Artemio Ricarte "Vibora"

General Santiago Alvarez Emilio Aguinaldo

General Mariano Alvarez Dr. Pio Valenzuela

The first four brigadier generals of the revolution:

Aguedo del Rosario
Vicente Fernandez
Ramon Bernardo
Gregorio Coronel

Jose Rizal

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A copy or Rizal's business card in Hongkong

JOSE RIZAL

Jose Rizal was the foremost Philippine patriot and, to quote the Spanish court who tried him, was the "spirit of the revolution". Shown below are not your everyday Rizal pictures.

Rizal sketches

The then considered subversive writings and documents (below)

Original handrwritten text of the Mi Ultimo Adios

The original grave of Rizal at the Paco cemetery. Rizal's burial location was kept secret by the Spanish authorities but was found and marked with RPJ - reverse of Rizal's initials

Spanish era Philippines

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19th Century Philippines

Background

The Spanish colonisation of the Philippines was planned for Spain to have a base on the Silk Road and a platform for her expansion towards Asia. Once the Crown realised that its Asian projection was unfeasible, it decided to remain on the islands. Because of their strategic importance, Spain linked her new territory to the Mexican viceroyalty of New Spain and set up a minimum colonial administration made up of military, civil servants and religious orders. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Philippines went from being an agrarian subsistence economy to an intermediating economy, bridging the gap between Asia, America and Europe by means of the commercial route of the galleon that joined Manila and Acapulco. The impulse of trade, entrepreneurial activity and investments in the archipelago are steadily, above all in the second half of the nineteenth century, thanks to the opening of the Panama Canal and to foreign capital. The Spanish government was incapable of adapting colonial policy to the new situation and of maintaining itself as the preferential market, preserving instead a stagnant administration opposed to autonomist reforms. Nevertheless, in contrast with the negative and unfair outlook that all colonial processes entail, the integration of the Philippines in the Spanish Empire brought about the social cohesion that favoured the construction of a national identity. In addition to the contribution of Catholicism—which exerted a great influence in Philippine society—and to the immersion of the islands in an international economy, the empire also promoted public works such as the building of lighthouses, the Manila Harbour Board and the Hydrographic Committee of the Pacific, and favoured incipient scientific development with the construction of the Manila Observatory.

In contrast with the idyllic picturesque vision of the Philippines we discover a series of much more complex photographs that show us a developing country. Many of these technical advances were captured by photographic cameras; in actual fact this is a global phenomenon.

A census drawn up in 1894 based on parish registrations shows a population of 6,414373 inhabitants, to whom we should add another million who were not registered, made up of ‘heathen’ natives, Chinese, Moros and foreigners. This same census also includes another reference, that of the Regular and Lay Clergy, comprising 2,751 members, while Military Personnel comprised 21,513 individuals, under three thousand of whom were from the Spanish peninsula and the rest were natives.59 These figures inform us of the religious and military imperialist régime, dominated by an organised Spanish minority that used all the ideological and coercive resources at its disposal.

1800s

The 1800's was a time of change for the global world order. A time of flux among different European powers. In the Philippines, the Filipinos were still under Spanish rule and resistance to it were largely ineffective owing largely to the Spaniards' policy of keeping the natives illiterate and divided along ethnic lines.

The following are snapshots of scenes in the Philippines prior to the 1896 revolution.

Spanish women and a Filipina mestiza

Spanish bullfighting ring in Paco

Spanish luxury in the old days

Spanish civilians on the Manila-Dagupan line

Old Manila map

Spanish Dominican friars in Cagayan (Padre Damaso ?)

The church kept a tight grip over the population using the pulpit to "brain wash" the indios into accepting the social situation. Life for the indio was indeed tough in these times. On the other hand, life for the upper class was luxurious.

A typical market scene - Batangas market

Indio children

A Chinese trader in the late 1800s

The thriving Manila-Acapulco trade quickly attracted growing numbers of Chinese to Manila. The Chinese, in addition to managing trade transactions, were the source of some necessary provisions and services for the capital. The Spanish regarded them with mixed distrust and acknowledgment of their indispensable role. During the first decades of Spanish rule, the Chinese in Manila became more numerous than the Spanish, who tried to control them with residence restrictions, periodic deportations, and actual or threatened violence that sometimes degenerated into riots and massacres of Chinese during the period between 1603 and 1762.

An execution scene (executing pirates), one of the oldest picture taken in the Philippines

A street scene in Escolta (above), the commercial area of Spanish period Manila. A view of Escolta from the Pasig river(below left)

The main commercial thoroughfare was calle Escolta in the Binondo district, which was connected to the old walled city by the Bridge of Spain. Its heyday was around the end of the nineteenth century, after the commercial and economic centre had moved from
Intramuros to the other side of the River Pasig, in the middle of that century. Other important streets were La Calzada del General Solano, where the houses of the local bourgeoisie emerged, La Calzada de Malacañang, which led to the residential palace of the Captain-General of the Philippines, La Calzada de San Sebastián and the street known as Sampaloc. Important civil buildings included the Prince Alfonso theatre in Arroceros, the Jesuit Observatory at Ermita, the prison in Bilibid and the tobacco factory at Tondo. Urban development in the nineteenth century yielded diverse and beautiful leisure spots, interesting among which were the avenues of Malecón, Sampaloc, Magallanes and the famous Luneta. These were all outside the walled city, as were the three main roads that were linked to the old city, the Bridge of Spain, the suspension bridge and the Ayala Bridge. The first of these dates from 1630 and was the first bridge to join both banks of the River Pasig. The photograph shows the stone and iron bridge, built to replace that destroyed in the 1863 earthquake, which joined paseo Magallanes with the new street in Binondo. The suspension bridge, a work of advanced technological development, was privately owned and to cross it a toll had to be paid. It joined the suburbs of Quiapo and Arroceros. Lastly, the Ayala Bridge, so named after the former Overseas Minister, was opened in 1880 and joined the districts of San Miguel and Concepción. It was made of two sections, the central section of which had supports on the island of San Andrés. Another bridge, the Misericordia Bridge, was made of iron and built using a system patented by the Eiffel company. (See below)

Tobacco harvesting

Spanish guards and civilians at the Isabel gate (Intramuros). Note the tall civilian on the right

A private picture taken in Escolta. The oldest photographic studio known in the Philippines was active in 1865 and was owned by Albert Honiss, a British photographer resident in Manila. Examples of such commercial work is this visiting cards reproduced here, an elegant portrait of the Spaniard Bartolo

Church and state were inseparably linked in carrying out Spanish policy. The state assumed administrative responsibility--funding expenditures and selecting personnel--for the new ecclesiastical establishments. Responsibility for conversion of the indigenous population to Christianity was assigned to several religious orders: the Dominicans, Franciscans, and Augustinians, known collectively as the friars-- and to the Jesuits. At the lower levels of colonial administration, the Spanish built on traditional village organization by co-opting the traditional local leaders, thereby ruling indirectly.

This system of indirect rule helped create in rural areas a Filipino upper class, referred to as the principalía or the principales (principal ones). This group had local wealth; high status and prestige; and certain privileges, such as exemption from taxes, lesser roles in the parish church, and appointment to local offices. The principalía was larger and more influential than the preconquest nobility, and it created and perpetuated an oligarchic system of local control. Among the most significant and enduring changes that occurred under Spanish rule was that the Filipino idea of communal use and ownership of land was replaced with the concept of private, individual ownership and the conferring of titles on members of the principalía.

Spanish missionaries

Lighthouse construction

In the late 1800s, several construction projects were undertaken by the Spanish colonial government including the building of roads, bridges, lighthouses and railways.

Another part of Escolta

Manila outskirts

Pasig docks

A Spanish owned factory

Jesuit owned Manila observatory

Malabon

A scene in Malabon, note the tranvia tracks

A view of the Manila Cathedral

A Spanish tranvia in Malabon

   The first steps to create a railway network for the island of Luzon were taken in 1875 in the shape of a royal decree that established three different lines from Manila to Dugapan, to Bicol and to Batangas. Three years later, the Philippine Light Railway Company was founded and by 1889 it owned four lines that joined Santa Cruz to Tondo, Sampoloc, Intramuros and Malate. On July 31 1887 the first stone was laid on the Manila to Dagupan railway, of which there is a photograph taken by Francisco Pertierra. Images of this first line have also been conserved by E. M. Barretto’s Centre for Artistic Photography

   At the mouth of the Pasig River

   Fort Santiago

   Barrio Meisic in Tondo

Manila Plaza scene

A classroom in Ateneo de Municipal

The expedition to the Carolines to establish Spanish sovereignity

A picture of a Chinese mestiza and an Indio

A group picture of mestizos

A family of mestizos

Philippine Normal School

Constructed of lighthouses

The album below is a comprehensive photographic display of the different military bodies in the Philippines (Cavalry, Civil Guard, Infantry, Halberdiers, Police Force, Artillery and Engineers) that inform us of the condition of the Spanish army in the colony around the year 1885.

Various types of Spanish and Indio soldiers

The Mindanao problem

Not all of the Philippines were under effective Spanish control. Mindanao, was particularly a problem. Mindanao and the Jolo archipelago particularly were very conflictive zones because of the fierce resistance of these communities, which did not only resist conversion to Christianity, but also attempted to convert the inhabitants of the mountains and inland areas of Mindanao island to Islam. This, together with their continuous attacks on the coast of Visayas, and even Luzon, which they sacked, while killing and enslaving the people, made the Moro problem a constant source of conflict that Spain did not manage to control until the end of its colonial presence. From the sixteenth century onwards, fortifications were built that made Zamboanga the main Spanish military centre in the southern Philippines and in the second half of the nineteenth century Spain began the military enforcement of its rights over Mindanao and Jolo, stepped up military campaigns and built more fortifications.

The National Library in Madrid preserves an album of photographs entitled Recuerdos de Mindanao (Memories of Mindanao) that illustrates the establishment of missions (in this case Jesuit) in the island’s five districts: Zamboanga, Cottabato, Davao, Surigao and the Jolo archipelago. The images show how the work of religious indoctrination is associated with the establishment of a colonial social and administrative structure: photographs of missionaries and churches are alternated with portraits of local governors and labourers, with a backdrop of Spanish military detachments. These initial settlements enabled the missions and the colonial authorities to gradually penetrate inland and extend their influence, even though their efforts were constantly hindered by Moro incursions. The last quarter of the century was especially conflictive, as proven by the campaigns by General Malcampo in 1876 and by the Governor of the Philippines, Don Fernando Primo de Rivera, in 1882. In 1891, Governor Don Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau began the systematic military occupation and fortification of the main strategic sites. The provinces of Surigao, Misamis, Dapitan and Davao were thus incorporated into the Spanish administration, although the area enclosed by the Iliana and Iligan bays, which included River Grande in Mindanao, put up resistance and represented an ongoing source of instability and conflict. Fortification was therefore intensified in this zone and the capital was moved from Zamboanga to Cotabato, a transfer prompted by the area’s remarkable strategic value in the region

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In 1872 a mutiny in protest for the repression exercised in the colony took place in Cavite, a military citadel at the entrance to the bay of Manila. The uprising was stifled and the Spanish colonial government executed the Philippine priests José Burgos, Mariano Gómez and Jacinto Zamora, who became martyrs of the nationalist cause. Countless sympathisers of the mutiny were imprisoned, deported or exiled out of the country. This episode marked the birth of a current of opposition to colonial rule known as the Propaganda Movement which became the catalyst for a full-blown revolt.

Tobacco harvesting in Cagayan valley

** Updates

Newly discovered pictures tucked away in a cabinet at the 7th floor of the Hispanic Society of America, discovered in 2007 ar shown here. It included 18 rare daguerreotypes of Manila from the 1840s, possibly the oldest photographic record of the Philippines ever discovered.

At that time, Casella and Herrera were both Andrew W. Mellon Fellows from the Advanced Residency Program in Photograph Conservation (ARP). Their original plan was to rummage HSA’s photo collection and preserve what’s left. Things turned into a different direction when they found the Manila daguerreotypes inside a cardboard box.

Discovery of Manila daguerreotypes in their storage box. Photo Credit: Rosina Herrera/George Eastman House.

Composed of 13 whole plates and 5 half-plates, the photos show incredibly preserved views of Manila, Marikina and Laguna never seen before by the public. Aware of the very nature of these early photographs, they soon embarked on a painstaking project to prevent the artifacts from suffering permanent damage.

To accomplish the mission, they sought the help of the oldest museum dedicated to photography–the George Eastman House. The latter’s Photograph Conservation Department worked closely with different conservation scientists, putting all the work for 18 straight months just to ensure the housings and the photos themselves would be in tiptop shape.

A compilation of Philippine historical pics

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from the Spanish era up until World War II
This is a compilation of pictures that can be found all over the net and some private collections. Enjoy!