Binalo

nan, Pangasinan
1st Semester, A.Y 2020-2021
Modular Learning
Life, Works, and Writings of Jose P. Rizal
Final Period

Module 13
Last Trip Abroad and Rizal and the Martyrdom
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Lesson Objectives:
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
• Discuss how Rizal’s death became the crowning glory of his leadership.
• Expound how Rizal awakened national consciousness among Filipinos.
• Evaluate how Rizal’s efforts in nation building influenced Philippine Revolution.
• Examine Rizal’s advocacy on peaceful revolution.
• Discuss Rizal’s execution in Bagumbayan.

Discussion

Last Trip Abroad

Rizal left Dapitan on July 31, 1896 on board the steamer España. From the steamer that ferried him from
Dapitan, he was transferred to the cruiser Castilla, where he stayed for almost a month, pending the availability of a
vessel bound for Spain. On September 3, 1896, Rizal sailed to Spain for Cuba. While on travel, the captain of the
ship notified him that he was under arrest for being the guiding force of the Philippine Revolution that broke out in
August 1896. By October 3, 1896, Rizal reached Barcelona heavily guarded and was detained as a prisoner at the
steamer Isla de Panay; he was transferred to the SS Colon bound for Manila. On November 3, 1896, Rizal arrived
in Manila under heavy guard. He was brought to Fort Santiago pending the prosecution of his case and was held
uncommunicated in his detention cell.

Trial of Rizal
Rizal was accused of the complex crime of rebellion as he was the principal organizer and the living soul of
the insurrection, the founder of societies, periodicals, and books dedicated to the fermenting and propagating the
ideas of rebellion (Palma, 1949). He pleaded not guilty to the crime charged against him and his case was tried in
the jurisdiction of a military tribunal.
The evidences of his guilt had been gathered by Captain Francisco de Olive. On November 20, 1896,
Colonel Rafael Dominguez, a special judge, conducted the preliminary investigation. Rizal was interrogated without
the presence of a counsel. He was not allowed to meet the witnesses face to face. He was questioned, among
other things, on his participation in various political activities, about his membership in Masonic lodges, concerning
his appointment as honorary president of the Katipunan, about Pio Valenzuela’s meeting with him at Dapitan, and
concerning the testimonies of arrested Katipunero’s implicating him.
At the trial, Lieutenant Enrique de Alcocer presented a detailed presentation of Rizal’s case, which
culminated in his call on the members of the military tribunal to render a decision by imposing death penalty on the
accused. Alcocer’s argument rested on Rizal’s admission of the founding of La Liga, which to his mind had
something to do with Bonifacio’s revolution. He showed that Rizal’s writings were designed to incite anti-friar, anti-
Spanish, and separatist sentiments. Alcocer exposed Rizal as the “soul of the rebellion”.
Luis Taviel de Andrade cited the technicality of the law for Rizal’s defense that his clients guilt had not been
proven through any of the following means: Ocular inspection, confession of the accused, credible witnesses, expert
opinion, official documents or conclusive evidences (Guerrero, 1998).
As none of these existed, Rizal was not guilty of the crime charged against him. As to the charge of
founding illegal associations, Andrade argued that the Constitution of the La Liga Filipina did not specify any illegal
objectives. Furthermore, Andrade said, the Liga was short-lived because Rizal was deported to Dapitan before it
could be fully organized and if it was revived, it was done without Rizal’s knowledge.
After Andrade’s brilliant defense, Rizal was asked by the judge advocate whether he had something to add
to what his cpunsel and presented. Rizal stood up and presented his own brief (Zulueta, 2004; Guerrero, 1998). 1. I
am not guilty of rebellion as I even advised Dr. Pio Valenzuela in Dapitan not to rise in revolution. 2. The
revolutionists used any name without my knowledge. If I were guilty, I could have escaped from Singapore.
3. If I had a hand in the Katipunan revolution, I could have escaped Dapitan and should have not built a house
there.
4. If I were the chief of the revolution, why did they not consult me on their plans?
5. I was not the founder of La Solidaridad and the Association Hispano-Filipino.
6. I had nothing to do with the introduction of massory in the Philippines.
7. The La Liga did not live long. It died a natural death after my banishment to Dapitan.
8. If the La Liga was re-organized nine months later, I totally very unaware of it.
9. It was true that I wrote the statutes if La Liga. The La Liga, however, is a civic association whose pruposes
are unity and development of commerce and industry.
10. While it was true that there were bitter statements in my letters, it was because they were written when my
family was being persecuted, being dispossessed of their houses and lands; and my brother and brother-in
law were rusticated without due process of law.
11. It was not true that the revolution was inspired in one of my speeches. My friends knew very well about my
vehement opposition to an armed rebellion.
12. Why did the Katipunan send an emissary to me in Dapitan, who was a total stranger to me? Because those
who knew me were cognizant that I would never sanction any violent movement.
13. My life in Dapitan had been exemplary, as evidenced by my productive activities for the welfare of the
people. Even the politico-military commanders and missionary priests could attest to this.

On the same day, the verdict of the military court, signed by Jose Togores, was submitted to Governor
general Polaveja. Rizal was found guilty beyond reasonable doubt and therefore should be condemned to death by
firing squad at the place and time to be chosen by the Governor-general Polaveja approved Judge Advocate
general Nicolas dela Pena’s recommendations on December 30 at 7:00 in the morning at Bagumbayan Field.

Execution at Bagumbayan
Rizal was convicted of rebellion and was sentenced to death through musketry. The verdict of
death sentence was read to Rizal on December 29, 1896 (Romero, et al., 1978). At the outset, Rizal
refused to sign it owing to his innocence and objective to his being labeled as a Chinese mestizo. Later,
realizing that the law required it, he affixed his signature on the notification of the court’s decision.
On December 30, 1896, Josephine Bracken arrived at 5:30 in the morning accompanied by Josefa.
Rizal embraced her and gave his last gift; the book of Thomas kemphis entitled Imitation of Christ. The
death march began at exactly 6:30 in the morning. Rizal sported a black suit and vest with a black hat as
he came out of his cell. Rizal walked to the place of execution between father Villaclara and Father March.
At the execution square, the military physician, Dr. Felipe Ruiz y Castillo, felt his pulse and found it
normal. Rizal requested the commander of the cavalry that he be shot facing his executioners considering
that he was not a traitor. The request, however, was denied as the Spanish officer had a standing order
from higher authorities that Rizal should be shot at the back.
Rizal’s execution became the vehicle to awaken the national consciousness of the Filipinos. It
sparked the fire of the Philippine revolution against the Spanish colonizers, which elevated him as the
 national hero of the country.

Rizal’s Retraction Issue

Did Rizal really retract? Did he show weakness in the face of death? What really happened at the last days
of Rizal’s Life?
One of the most controversial points on Rizal’s was his alleged retraction where he renounced masonry and
his religious beliefs that were anti-catholic. Some are arguing that Rizal retracted his Masonic views and embraced
his Catholic faith before he died.
The Roman Catholic is the greatest exponent of the view that Rizal died a Catholic and retracted his
Masonic views. Father Cavanna (1956) presented the following evidences to prove the veracity of its claim: 1. Rizal
recited and signed the prayer book entitled Acts of Faith, Hope and Charity. This book was offered to Rizal after his
signing of the retraction document according to father Balaguer.
2. The testimony of the press at the time of the event, of eyewitnesses, like the head of the Jesuit order,
attested that Rizal’s retracted and signed a retraction document.
3. Rizal performed acts of piety during his last hours, as testified by the witnesses.
4. The Church through the Jesuits, solemnized Rizal’s marriage to Josephine Bracjen, as attested by witnesses.
The Catholic Church will not officiate a marriage ceremony without Rizal’s retraction of his religious errors.

While Cavanna and other pro-retraction scholars presented to the following evidences to support their claim
the Rizal did not retract (Hessel, 1965)
1. The retraction document is a forgery. As pointed out by Pascual (1950), the handwriting in the document is
questionable, as only one man prepared it. The point stressed by Pascual was corroborated by the
confession made by the forger to Antonio Abad on August 13, 1901, employed by the friars earlier that
same year to make several copies of the retractions document (Runes and Buenafe, 1962).
2. The other acts and facts do not fit well with the story of retraction. Some of these are the following. a. The
retraction document was not made public until 1935. Even members of Rizal’s family did not see it. b. No
effort was made to save Rizal from death penalty after saying his retraction.
c. Rizal’s buried was kept secret. He was buried outside the inner wall of Paco cemetery. d. The record of
his burial was not placed on the page of entries of December 30 th but on a special page, where at least one
other admitted non-penitent is recorded.
e. There is no marriage certificate or public record of Rizal’s marriage with Josephine Bracken. f. Rizal’s
behavior did not point to a conversation during his last 24 hours. His Ultimo Adios and the letters he wrote
during his remaining hours do not indicate conversion.
3. The retraction is out of character. It is not in keeping with Rizal’s character and faith. It is incongruent with his
previous assertions and declarations of religious thoughts.

While historians, biographers and students of Rizal’s life, works and writings are divided on the issue of his
retraction, it cannot be denied that this issue neither adds nor diminishes his greatness as a Filipino. His contribution
to nation-building makes the people revere him. In the words of Hessel (1995): “Catholic or mason, Rizal is still
Rizal; the hero who courted death to prove those who deny our patriotism that we know how to die for our duty and
our beliefs.
Rizal Remains
What happened to his remains after he was shot in Bagumbayan field on December 30, 1896? Hereunder
is what happened according to Rizal’s biographer Jose Baron Fernandez:
The body of Rizal was buried in the old and unused Paco cemetery. In his grave, they placed a plaque with
the initials of his brother in reverse, R.P.J., which means Rizal, Protacio Jose. There were no funeral ceremonies for
Rizal.
A few days after the Americans took Manila in August 1898, Rizal’s sister, Narcisa,asked permission of the
new authorities to exhume the remains of Rizal. Permission was granted. When the body was exhumed, it was
discovered that Rizal’s body had not even been palced in a coffin. The remains were placed in appropriate condition
and reinterred in the proper manner at the Paco cemetery. Then the sepulcher was well-tended.
In 1911, the remains of Rizal were transferred from the Paco cemetery to the base of the monument which
had earlier been erected at the Luneta (now Rizal Park).
Mi Ultimo Adios
Jose Rizal, before his execution by firing squad at Rizal or Luneta Park (formerly Bagumbayan), wrote his
last poem Mi Ultimo Adios (My Last farewell). Interestingly enough, his original writing was said to have no title; the
title Mi Ultimo Adios was given by Mariano Ponce.
The poem was Rizal’s farewell to his native land. It is an epic poem expressive of idealism, morality and
spirituality. In this poem, Rizal presented a character of a dutiful son, an understanding brother, an ardent lover, and
a faithful friend. He also demonstrated his willingness, as a patriot, to offer his life for the love of a country.

Activity
Journal Writing
Write a journal entry summarizing what you learned from the lesson. Include in your journal your answer on
the following questions. (20 points)
a. How did Rizal defend himself when he was given the opportunity by the military tribunal to do so?
b. What values did Rizal manifest during the trial?
The journal entry should be nearly encoded and should have a cover. Take a picture of your journal and send to
our google classroom.

Assessment
Essay Type
Make a persuasive essay to prove that Rizal’s trial is a clear case of mistrial. Include convincing arguments to
support your claim.
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Collage Making
Each of you is tasked to prepare a collage on the impact of Rizal’s execution in awakening Filipino national
consciousness. Use materials from old magazines or any internet based. The use of scissors is NOT ALLOWED in
this activity. Explain in not more than 100 words the message of your collage. Your output should be presented via a
video and send to our Group chat. Your output shall be evaluated based on the following criteria: quality of
information, layout, knowledge gained, graphics originality, and use of class time.