Resistance Against Spanish Rule
-Filipinos opposed the imposition of Spanish sovereignty and their reduction to vassalage
-Spaniards triumphed because the native institutions, skills and ideas which the people employed to resist them were
pathetically inadequate against the latter’s military superiority and political organization.
-The miserable conditions brought about by Spanish political and economic policies threw the natives into rebellion
against the ruling power.
-19th century-development of national consciousness
Causes of Uprising against Spain
A. Personal Grievances
Lakan Dula & Sulayman (1574)
-Disenchanted with ill-kept promises of the Spaniards that they and their descendants would be exempted from taxation,
they attacked the newly established Spanish citadel in Maynila.
Martin Panga & Agustin de Legaspi (1587-1588)
-they led a conspiracy to overthrow Spanish sovereignty in the Philippines
-former Rulers of Tondo, Polo, Pandacan, Navotas, Candaba, Cuyo & Calamianes joined the attempt to regain the
freedom and lordship that their fathers have enjoyed before them
-the conspiracy was unsuccessful because of Antonio Surabao, a native spy who informed the Spaniards of the plot
Tamblot (1621-1622)
-Tamblot rallied hundreds of Boholanos to join his cause (to bring back the native religion of Bohol)
Bankaw, Chief of Limasawa (1622)
-led a revolt in Leyte to restore the old religion
Dagohoy (1744-1828)
-led the natives of Bohol to revolt because of the Jesuit’s refusal to give a Christian burial to his brother
B. Opposition to Spanish Impositions
Magalat (1596)
-he fomented a revolt in Cagayan because of the arbitrary and illegal collection of tribute
Sumoroy (1649-1650)
-he led an uprising against Governor Diego Fajardo’s order requiring the conscription of polistas from the Visayas and the
shipyards of Cavite
Francisco Maniago (1660)
-led the natives of the province in a revolt against the government practice of forcing them to cut timber and hauling them
to Cavite for the construction of galleons
-the natives also revolted because of the arrears in pay due them for the rice forcibly collected from them through the
bandala system & the labor services that remained unpaid
Pampango-Pangasinan-Ilokos uprising (1660-1661)
-Andres Malong headed the uprising
-when Malong died, the leader of the Ilokanos, Pedro Almazan led the rebels
Diego Silang Revolt (1762-1763)
-Silang started the revolt in Vigan, Ilocos Sur because of the anomalous collection of tribute and the excesses of the
alcaldes mayores in the exercise of the indulto de comercio
-Diego Silang offered his services to the British so he was appointed as the alcalde mayor and sargento mayor of the
Ilocos
-Miguel Vicos & Pedro Becbec conspired to assassinate Silang
-the revolt did not end when Silang died because his wife Gabriela and his uncle Nicolas Cariño continued the resistance
Palaris Revolt (1762-1764)
-Juan de la Cruz Palaris led the uprising in Pangasinan
-natives are demanding for the abolition of the tribute and the removal of Joaquin Gamboa (alcalde mayor of the province)
C. Religious Uprisings
1601 – Ilongots revolted against the insistent Spanish attempts to convert them to Christianity
*racial prejudice of Spanish friars alienated countless Filipinos from Christianity
1840 – Dominicans refused to admit Apolinario de la Cruz who wanted to pursue a priestly vocation under the religious
order because of the fact that he was a native
-De la Cruz also known as Hernando Pule established a religious brotherhood called the Cofradia de San Jose in
Tayabas
-the brotherhood gained thousands of adherents in Tayabas, Laguna & Batangas
1841 – De la Cruz and his followers took up arms and murdered the provincial governor
D. Agrarian Complaints
-lands were accumulated in the hands of the money lenders because of mounting debts that could not be paid by small
cultivators
-peasant debtors who remained on the lands were burdened by the harsh land taxes so money lenders were able to
evade it
-absence of a proper land title system aggravated the problem of the ignorant Filipinos
Matienza – under his leadership, natives of Lian & Nasugbu in Batangas raised the standard of revolt in protest against
the unconditional appropriation of their land by the Jesuits
Friars – increased the acreage of their estates by arbitrary alienation of land occupied by hundreds of farmers in Bulacan
- increased land rentals and prohibited the natives from enjoying the feudal privileges of gathering forest products and
fishing in the rivers and streams without paying taxes
Pedro Calderon – he was sent to investigate the agrarian conditions in the province
- lands without legal titles were converted into crown lands or relengas
1888 – tenants of Kalamba estate took their grievances to court but lost their case to the Dominicans
- Governor Valeriano Weyler took the side of the Dominicans and ordered the neighboring towns of Kalamba not to give
any hospitality to the Kalambeños
Muslim Resistance to Spanish Rule
Cesar A. Majul, the late Dean of the University of the Philippines' Asian Center, divided the war into six stages.
FIRST PHASE
-began with the arrival of Legaspi
in 1571
-ended with the invasion of Brunei
SECOND PHASE
the need to make vassals of the chiefs of
Sulu and Maguindanao
-Spaniards explored Sulu archipelago and
even threatened to attack Sulu
-they conducted military missions to
Maguindanao and then the Cotabato
area
Intentions
-to make the Muslims pay tribute
-induce them not to allow foreign missionaries
-gather information about Muslims
-to know the relationship between the
Maguindanao and the Ternatans and other
people in Indonesia
• military garrison was established in Tampakan
(1596) but it was short-lived so the Spaniards
abandoned it and repositioned themselves at
La Caldera in Zamboanga Peninsula
THIRD PHASE
-Muslims changes their military strategy
from defensive to offensive
1599 – Datu Salikula and Datu Sirungan
(chiefs of Maguindanao and Buayan)
respectively launched a joint force
attacking a major Spanish base in Central
Visayas
1602 – another offensive was carried out by the Muslims
and the forces were commanded by Datu Buisan
(successor of Datu Salikula & Datu Sirungan)
October 29, 1603 – Rajah Buisan together with his allies
from Sangila & Ternate invaded Dulag, Leyte
September 8, 1605 – peace treaty was signed (did not
hold long because of the Spanish invasion of Ternate in
April 1608)
March 1609 – signing of another peace treaty (put the war
to rest for at least 25 years)
1627 – war resumed but now with the Sulu sultanate
-triggered by a maltreatment suffered by Sulu envoy, Datu
Ache
Rajah Bungsu (sultan of Sulu) – led 2000 warriors
and attacked the Spanish base and ship yard in
Camarines Sur and Central Visayas
1628 – Spaniards retaliated against the Sulu attack
1629 – Sulu sultanate sent another expedition led by
Datu Ache
- They attacked the Spanish settlements in
Camarines, Samar, Leyte and Bohol
March 17, 1630 – Spaniards invaded Sulu (again)
- Commander Lorenzo de Olaso was wounded
1631 – Sulu warriors launched another invasion
aimed at Leyte (seat of Spanish power in Visayas)
Rajah Bungsu (sultan of Sulu) – led 2000 warriors
and attacked the Spanish base and ship yard in
Camarines Sur and Central Visayas
1628 – Spaniards retaliated against the Sulu attack
1629 – Sulu sultanate sent another expedition led by
Datu Ache
- They attacked the Spanish settlements in
Camarines, Samar, Leyte and Bohol
March 17, 1630 – Spaniards invaded Sulu (again)
- Commander Lorenzo de Olaso was wounded
1631 – Sulu warriors launched another invasion
aimed at Leyte (seat of Spanish power in Visayas)
Sultan Qudarat – Buayan & Sangil leaders were
brought under his control
- Married the daughter of Rajah Bungsu (sultan
of Sulu in 1632)
-the Sultanates of Mindanao and Sulu mustered
a coordinated military attack and joint
invasion of Central Visayas
1634 – they mobilized 1500 warriors who landes
at Dapitan, Leyte and Bohol
FOURTH PHASE
-Spaniards changed their approach by
establishing a forward force at the enemy’s
territory
April 6, 1635 – military base was established
in Zamboanga (lasted for 29 years)
March 13, 1637 – Spaniards captured
Lamitan (the seat of Maguindanao
sultanate)
January 1, 1638 – Jolo (sultanate capital of
Sulu) fell after the three-month battle
1639 – Sultan Qudarat re-established his
forces and held his court at Pulangi
***Sulu sultanate was able to secure the
support of the Butch in Batavia,
Indonesia
March 25, 1644 – Rajah Bungsu dispatched
his son, Pangiran Salikala
-the sultanate ordered a final offensive
against the Spaniards with the Dutch
navy which bombarded the Spanish
garrison at Jolo
***Spaniards signed a peace treaty and
evacuated all their forces from
Zamboanga to Manila
FIFTH PHASE
1718 – Spaniards occupied Zamboanga
- Fort Pillar was built
Sultan Badar-uddin – asked the support of
Maguindanao sultanate and the Dutch at
Batavia
December 1720 – Sulu and Maguindanao
sultanate made a new offensive in
Zamboanga
December 11, 1726 – peace treaty was signed
between the Sulu sultanate and Spanish
colonial government in Manila
1717 & 1733 – Sultan Badar-uddin sent an
ambassador to China
1734 – Sultan Badar-uddin attempted to capture
Zamboanga
1735 – Spaniards invaded Jolo and drove out the
sultanate court
February 1, 1737 – another peace treaty was
signed
SIXTH PHASE
Dream of Mindanao conquest
1851 – beginning of the Spanish invasion in
Sulu
April 30, 1851 – peace treaty was signed
between Sultan Pulalun and the Spanish
forces
Roman Martinez Vigil – a Spanish priest
who wrote the theory of a just war
February 21, 1876 – troops were sent to
Sulu led by Governor-General Jose
Malcampo
Sulu Sultan Jamalul Azam – proclaimed the
jihad and ordered the use of the concept
of parrang sabil as last recourse
July 22, 1878 – another treaty was
negotiated
Datu Amai Pakpak – led one of the best
wars in defense of Marawi in 1891 and
1895
Consequences of Fragmented Resistance
Revolts and peasants outburst of violence were the principal actions engaged by the Filipinos to protest their
economic exploitation and social degradation. Different rebellions occur but their causes and development remained
basically the same. The Spaniards possessed not only a superior military technology and strategy, but they also
employed native volunteer or mercenary soldiers from one part of the country to suppress the rebels in another. Colonial
masters particularly the friars kept the natives hopelessly ignorant and divided. Due to the lack of unity and leadership, the
revolts failed to sensitize the people to a new spectrum of common identities and purposes. Spaniards were able to
maintain their sovereignty in the colony despite their scarcity in number. The presence of clergy kept the natives in docile
and abject submission. They successfully conditioned the Filipino minds into accepting the existing arrangements of
power and authority in society.
Belated Development of Philippine Nationalism (Cause)
Nationalism – devotion to advocacy of national unity and independence
- most important prerequisite to the formation of national consciousness
- a sentiment forged by a common history, language, literature, customs and traditions and even by a common religion
- a product of the ferment and political upheavals of the 18th century and a child of the French revolution
- did not exist in the Philippines before the 19th century
Different ethnics group in the country shared the same basic elements of nationalism such as such as similarities
in racial and cultural features but Spanish colonial policy as well as certain natural barriers retarded the development of
nationalistic feeling among the Filipinos. The insular and mountainous character of Philippine geography limited social
contact and communication thus the Filipinos in different parts of the country failed to realize the similarities of their
grievances and the existence of a common source of suffering and misery. Linguistic differences and the absence of a
common language aggravated by the deliberate refusal of the regionalism and prevented the people from developing a
national language that would have unified them.
Contributory Factors of Filipino Nationalism
A. Opening of the Philippines to International trade
-it stimulated the commercial cultivation of certain export crops for the world market
-brought prosperity to the colony
Filipino middle class –> Spanish and Chinese half-breeds or mestizos shared in the prosperity either as owners of lands
which produced an export crop or as import-export merchants and middlemen
- The growth of commerce and industry fostered the alteration of native social hierarchy.
- Progress in agriculture and commerce brought greater hardship to the people. Usurious money lending, arbitrary land
rental increases, etc remained unchanged despite the expansion of the foreign commerce in the colony.
- The improvement in transportation and communication facilities required by increased foreign trade brought the Filipinos
closer to one another.
- The opening of the Suez Canal and the consequent shortening of the route between the Philippines and Europe enabled
many Europeans of liberal orientation to come to the Philippines and come into contact with some Filipinos who had been
educated in Europe.
B. Rise of the Middle Class
- Filipino middle class sent their children to educational institutions.
- Spaniards labeled the Filipino middle class “bestias cargadas de oro” or “beasts loaded with gold”
- The middle class became increasingly critical of the superciliousness of the friar-curate, the importunities and excesses
of the bureaucrats, both high and low, but they particularly resented the government’s deliberate policy of awarding
colonial appointments only to full-blooded Spaniards, more particularly to those born in Spain.
- Nationalist feeling grew rapidly among the educated Filipinos and the repressive policy of the Spanish authorities served
only to popularize the sentiment.
C. Impact of European liberalism
- Liberal bureaucrats and refugees along with the European and American liberals influenced Filipinos from the ranks of
the middle class with their thought and orientation.
- The appeal of the Enlightenment philosophers, notably John Locke (Two Treatises of Government) and Jean Jacques
Rouseau (Le Contrat Social / The Social Contract), proved particularly strong to the educated Filipinos.
- No government is legitimate unless it represents and enforces the absolute and inalienable will of the people. The
people therefore have the right to revolution and are entitled to the right to overthrow the existing political order and
construct a new government. (Both reformists and theoreticians of the 1896 Revolution imbibed these thoughts.)
- The ideas of masonry also influenced members of the middle class and enabled them to meet on common grounds for
propaganda purposes.
- The French Revolution provided one of the intellectual bases of Filipino nationalism.
*The situation in France in 1789 closely paralleled the conditions prevailing in the Philippines in 1896.
♦upper classes held a monopoly of political and administrative powers and refused to acknowledge the existence of a
growing bourgeoisie
♦the church owned vast tracts of land, controlled education and commerce, and exercised excessive power throughout
Europe
Ilustrados – formed the vanguard of the Propaganda movement
- exposed the great spiritual crisis that engulfed the Filipinos and attempted to convince the Spanish authorities of the
imperative need for far-reaching reforms to avert the outbreak of revolution
D. Racial Prejudice
- Spaniards regarded the Filipinos as belonging to the “inferior races”
Indios – a name that carried the most unflattering and disparaging connotations to the native segment of Philippine society
- The term Filipino, which referred to Spaniards born in the Philippines, was applied to the native only very much later.
- Spaniards waged a campaign of open vilification against the Filipinos because of the increasing number of ilustrados in
19th century.
Filipinos – described as “a machine that walks, eats, sleeps and exists”; “an incomplete whole, a confusion of sentiments,
instincts, desires, energies, passions, colors that crowd each other without forming a single particular one”;”impossible to
expose to curiosity and philosophical studies”
- The constant insinuation at the racial and cultural inferiority of the Filipinos constrained Jose Rizal to prepare a new
edition of Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas which, with his copious annotations and criticisms, debunked
the allegations of the Spaniards that the Filipinos were savages and had no culture before the advent of the conquerors.
Filipinos – began to regard Western culture as a unifying factor
- they realized that they were a race apart from the Spanish colonizers
E. Secularization Controversy
Council of Trent (1545-1563) – the secular priests would be appointed to administer the new parishes
Pope Pius V – issued in 1567, upon the request of King Philip II, the Exponi Nobis, an apostolic brief that allowed regulars
to serve as parish priests without diocesan authorization and exempted them from the bishop’s authority and jurisdiction
- The appointment of regular priests to Philippine parishes brought them into conflict with the archbishop and bishops.
Bishops – maintained that they were responsible for the proper administration of parishes
- they should be given the power and authority over the friar curate or cura parroco
Cura parroco – invoked the papal brief as exempting them from diocesan visitation and argued that they were subject only
to the rules and regulations and the superiors of their respective religious communities
Archbishop Basiliio Santa Justa – accepted the resignation of the regular priests and appointed secular priests to the
vacated parishes
- his campaign was sanctioned by the royal decree promulgated on November 9, 1774 ordering the secularization of the
parishes (or the turnover of parishes administered by friar curates to the seculars)
- The unpreparedness of the native secular clergy and the organized opposition of the friars to secularization prompted
the passage of another royal decree in 1776 which virtually suspended the secularization of parishes.tye decree restored
the parishes to the friar curates but required visitation which could be made either by the bishop or by the superior of the
religious order to which the friar curates belonged. The decree, moreover, enjoined the church authorities to prepare for
eventual secularization by training a competent native clergy in the Philippines.
*Policy of despoliation or desecularization
-A decree enacted in 1826 deprived many secular priests of parishes which they had held for nearly fifty years. Another
decree in 1849 gave seven curacies in Cavite, which were administered by the secular clergy, to the friars.
-The return of the Jesuits in 1859 was also made to justify the policy of despoliation.
The Curacy of Antipolo – “pearl of the Philippine curacies”
(When the parish priest of Antipolo died in 1862, Father Pedro Pelaez, as ecclesiastical governor of the archdiocese of
Manila, appointed Francisco Campmass, a Filipino secular priest, to succeed him. The Recollects protested the
appointment on the ground that they had a right to the parish, which was in the archbishopric of Manila, by virtue of the
decree in 1861. In the dispute, the Filipino secular clergy lost and the Recollects gained the curacy.)
The Parish of San Rafael, Bulakan – became vacant in 1869
-the government cancelled the competitive examination for which seventeen Filipino priests had qualified because the
Recollects claimed that this curacy should be given to them
Father Pelaez - wrote a memorial to the Queen of Spain protesting the decree of 1861 as illegal because it violated the
provisions of the Council of Trent and was extremely prejudicial to the native clergy
- he launched a spirited campaign for the secularization of Philippine parishes and worked with others in the newspaper El
Eco Filipino
Gregorio Meliton Martinez – Archbishop of Manila
-sent a memorial to the Queen Regent in December 1871 which he advocated the repeal of the 1861 decree and the
establishment of a definite program of training seminarians for Philippine parishes
-Many native priests had proved their capabilities by passing rigid competitive examinations and at the turn of the 19 th
century, many qualified Filipino priests were running parishes.
- Father Pedro Pelaez, a Spanish mestizo, became vicario capitular of the Manila Cathedral and for three years was
virtually Archbishop of Manila, wielding ecclesiastical prerogatives until the arrival of Archbishop Meliton Martinez.
**In the struggle to secularize the parishes, therefore, the native clergy heightened racial consciousness and helped bring
about the emergence of nationalism.**
F. Liberal Regime of Carlos Maria de la Torre (1869-1871)
Carlos Maria de la Torre – most liberal and most loved governor-general of the Philippines
-he dismissed his bodyguards and walked about the city in mufti, mingling with the natives and mestizos
-he entertained the Filipinos in receptions in his official residence
-encouraged freedom of speech and abolished censorship of the press, abolished flogging and substituted imprisonment
as punishment for desertion among native soldiers and proved his benevolence by subduing an agrarian uprisisng and
pardoning the rebels
-he implemented the educational decrees of 1870 which provided for limited secularization of education and government
control of certain educational institutions in the Philippines
*one decree provided for the conversion of the Dominican-owned University of Santo Tomas into a government-controlled
University of the Philippines
*the Moret Decree provided for the fusion of certain sectarian schools run by the Jesuits and Dominicans, among them
the Ateneo de Manila, San Juan de Letran and San Jose into one school called the Philippine Institute
♦The Spaniard knew too well that the sweeping forms of de la Torre was encouraging the formation of national
consciousness among the Filipinos and therefore would undermine their well entrenched positions in the colony.
Rafael de Izquierdo (1871-1873)
-he announced upon his arrival that he would rule “with a crucifix in one hand and a sword in the other”
-ruled with an iron hand and adopted terroristic measures
-reversed the liberal policies of de la Torre
-he repealed the exemption from the tribute and forced labor that the Filipinos had been enjoying (disgruntled Filipino
workers at the Cavite arsenal mutinied in protest against this unreasonable decree)
**This produced far-reaching consequences that eventually led to the emergence of Filipino nationalism.**
G. Cavite Mutiny and the Execution of GomBurZa
January 20, 1872 – a group of native artillery men, marines, soldiers and workers in the arsenal of Cavite led by a
Sergeant La Madrid seized the nearby Fort of San Felipe
(Izquierdo’s unwarranted abolition of their privileges caused the mutiny.)
♦The friars saw the Cavite mutiny as a conspiracy existed to overthrow Spanish sovereignty and establish a Filipino
independent republic. In their view, the real perpetrators of the conspiracy were the Filipino priests who were actively
supported by Filipino ilustrados and businessmen.
♦On January 21, Izquierdo ordered the arrest of Fathers Jose Burgos, Mariano Gomez, Jacinto Zamora and other
prominent native clerics, lawyers and merchants like Joaquin Pardo de Tavers, Antonio Regidor, Jose and Pio BAsa,
Pedro Dandan, Galicano Apacible, Mariano Sevilla and Vicente del Rosario. At the instigation of the friars, the GomBurZa
were accused as leaders of the conspiracy, tried in a mock trial which did not give them any chance to defend themselves
and publicly garroted on February 17, 1872.
♦Archbishop Meliton Martinez did not believe that the three priests were guilty. He refused to unfrock them as requested
by Governor Izquierdo. Instead, as one last salute to the martyred clerics. He ordered the tolling of bells when the three
were executed.
♦Jose Rizal dedicated his second novel, El Filibusterismo, to the memory of the three clerics.
♦Edmiund Planchut (French writer) summed up the impact of the execution of the three priests on the future development
of nationalism among the Filipino people:
These means that the convictions of Creoles, mestizos and natives were a very greet mistake. Up to then,
different Philippine races had lived in distrust of one another; but in their common fate they learned the solidarity of their
interests. Future generations will be able to say that the old differences must completely disappear so that they can be
one in accord and someday ably fight the common enemy ---- that is, the colonial masters.