MODULE 11 THE FIRST PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC

Introduction
The Spanish forces were almost wiped out except in Manila particularly in Intramuros. Then
the American came into the picture. This event complicated the situation of the leadership of
Aguinaldo who had to maneuver himself in dealing with the double-faced U.S. military
officials. Suffice to say that the Americans did the double talk to make it easier for them to
colonize the Philippines.

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. Analyze the decisions made by Aguinaldo while he was still in Hongkong and talking to the
Americans
2. Discuss why Aguinaldo established as dictatorial government instead of a democratic one
3. Decribe the results of Aguinaldo’s military campaigns immediately after his return from
Hongkong
4. Explain the reasons why there was a need for the declaration of independence as soon as
possible

Activities
The Proclamation of Independence
The Dictatorial Government decided that the proclamation of Independence should take place on
the 12th June, the ceremony in connection therewith to be held in the town of Kawit. With this
object in view I sent a Commission to inform the Admiral of the arrangement and invite which
was solemnly and impressively conducted. The Admiral sent his Secretary to excuse him from
taking part in the proceedings, stating the day fixed for the ceremony was mail day.
About the end of that month (June) the Spanish gunboat Leytee scaped from the Macabebe river
and reached Manila Bay, where she was seized by General Torres’ troops. She had on board part
of the troops and volunteers which were under the command of the Filipino Colonel Sr. Eugenio
Blanco, but on being sighted by an American gunboat she voluntarily surrendered. Admiral
Dewey delivered to me all the prisoners and arms on board the vessel, which latter, however, he
took possession of; but after the fall of Manila he demanded that I should give back the prisoners
to him.
On the 4th July the first United States military expedition arrived, under command of General
Anderson, and it was quartered in Cavite Arsenal. This distinguished General called on me in the
Filipino Government House at Cavite, an honour and courtesy which I promptly returned, as was
right and proper, seeing that we were friends, of equal rank, and allies. In the course of official
intercourse General Anderson solemnly and completely endorsed the promises made by Admiral
Dewey to me, asserting on his word of honour that America had not come to the Philippines to
wage war against the natives nor to conquer and retain territory, but only to liberate the people
from the oppression of the Spanish Government.
A few days before the arrival of this military expedition, and others that followed under
command of General Merritt, Admiral Dewey sent his Secretary to my Government to ask me to
grant permission for the stationing of American troops in Tambo and Maytubig, Paranaque and
Pasay. In view of the important promises of Admiral Dewey, above mentioned, the Dictatorial
Government consented to the movement of troops as proposed.

READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY 1

During that month (July) Admiral Dewey accompanied by General Anderson visited Cavite, and
after the usual exchange of courtesies he said–"You have had ocular demonstration and
confirmation of all I have told you and promised you. How pretty your flag is! It has a triangle,
and is something like the Cubans’. Will you give me one as a memento when I go back home?”
I replied that I was fully satisfied with his word of honour and of the needlessness of having our
agreement in documentary form. As to the flag he wanted, he could have one whenever he
wished.
The Admiral continued: Documents are useless when there is no sense of honour on one side, as
was the case in respect of the compact with the Spaniards, who failed to act up to what had been
written and signed. Have faith in my word, and I assure you that the United States will recognize
the independence of the country. But I recommend you to keep a good deal of what we have said
and agreed secret at present. I further request you to have patience if any of our soldiers insult
any Filipinos, for being Volunteers they are as yet undisciplined.
I replied that I would bear in mind all his advice regarding cautiousness, and that with respect to
the misconduct of the soldiers orders had already been issued enjoining forbearance, and I passed
the same remarks to the Admiral about unpleasantness possibly arising through lack of discipline
of our own forces.
http://www.authorama.com/true-version-of-the-philippine-revolution-11.html Retrieved Sept.2,
2020

Philippine independence declared

During the Spanish-American War, Filipino rebels led by Emilio Aguinaldo proclaim the
independence of the Philippines after 300 years of Spanish rule. By mid-August, Filipino rebels
and U.S. troops had ousted the Spanish, but Aguinaldo’s hopes for independence were dashed
when the United States formally annexed the Philippines as part of its peace treaty with Spain.
The Philippines, a large island archipelago situated off Southeast Asia, was colonized by the
Spanish in the latter part of the 16th century. Opposition to Spanish rule began among Filipino
priests, who resented Spanish domination of the Roman Catholic churches in the islands. In the
late 19th century, Filipino intellectuals and the middle class began calling for independence. In
1892, the Katipunan, a secret revolutionary society, was formed in Manila, the Philippine capital
on the island of Luzon. Membership grew dramatically, and in August 1896 the Spanish
uncovered the Katipunan’s plans for rebellion, forcing premature action from the rebels. Revolts
broke out across Luzon, and in March 1897, 28-year-old Emilio Aguinaldo became leader of the
rebellion.
By late 1897, the revolutionaries had been driven into the hills southeast of Manila, and
Aguinaldo negotiated an agreement with the Spanish. In exchange for financial compensation
and a promise of reform in the Philippines, Aguinaldo and his generals would accept exile in
Hong Kong. The rebel leaders departed, and the Philippine Revolution temporarily was at an
end.
In April 1898, the Spanish-American War broke out over Spain’s brutal suppression of a
rebellion in Cuba. The first in a series of decisive U.S. victories occurred on May 1, 1898, when
the U.S. Asiatic Squadron under Commodore George Dewey annihilated the Spanish Pacific
fleet at the Battle of Manila Bay in the Philippines. From his exile, Aguinaldo made
arrangements with U.S. authorities to return to the Philippines and assist the United States in the
war against Spain. He landed on May 19, rallied his revolutionaries, and began liberating towns

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south of Manila. On June 12, he proclaimed Philippine independence and established a
provincial government, of which he subsequently became head.
His rebels, meanwhile, had encircled the Spanish in Manila and, with the support of Dewey’s
squadron in Manila Bay, would surely have conquered the Spanish. Dewey, however, was
waiting for U.S. ground troops, which began landing in July and took over the Filipino positions
surrounding Manila. On August 8, the Spanish commander informed the United States that he
would surrender the city under two conditions: The United States was to make the advance into
the capital look like a battle, and under no conditions were the Filipino rebels to be allowed into
the city. On August 13, the mock Battle of Manila was staged, and the Americans kept their
promise to keep the Filipinos out after the city passed into their hands.
While the Americans occupied Manila and planned peace negotiations with Spain, Aguinaldo
convened a revolutionary assembly, the Malolos, in September. They drew up a democratic
constitution, the first ever in Asia, and a government was formed with Aguinaldo as president in
January 1899. On February 4, what became known as the Philippine Insurrection began when
Filipino rebels and U.S. troops skirmished inside American lines in Manila. Two days later,
the U.S. Senate voted by one vote to ratify the Treaty of Paris with Spain. The Philippines were
now a U.S. territory, acquired in exchange for $20 million in compensation to the Spanish.
In response, Aguinaldo formally launched a new revolt–this time against the United States. The
rebels, consistently defeated in the open field, turned to guerrilla warfare, and the U.S. Congress
authorized the deployment of 60,000 troops to subdue them. By the end of 1899, there were
65,000 U.S. troops in the Philippines, but the war dragged on. Many anti-imperialists in the
United States, such as Democratic presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan, opposed U.S.
annexation of the Philippines, but in November 1900 Republican incumbent William
McKinley was reelected, and the war continued.
On March 23, 1901, in a daring operation, U.S. General Frederick Funston and a group of
officers, pretending to be prisoners, surprised Aguinaldo in his stronghold in the Luzon village of
Palanan and captured the rebel leader. Aguinaldo took an oath of allegiance to the United States
and called for an end to the rebellion, but many of his followers fought on. During the next year,
U.S. forces gradually pacified the Philippines. In an infamous episode, U.S. forces on the island
of Samar retaliated against the massacre of a U.S. garrison by killing all men on the island above
the age of 10. Many women and young children were also butchered. General Jacob Smith, who
directed the atrocities, was court-martialed and forced to retire for turning Samar, in his words, into
a “howling wilderness.”
In 1902, an American civil government took over administration of the Philippines, and the
three-year Philippine insurrection was declared to be at an end. Scattered resistance, however,
persisted for several years.
More than 4,000 Americans perished suppressing the Philippines–more than 10 times the
number killed in the Spanish-American War. More than 20,000 Filipino insurgents were killed,
and an unknown number of civilians perished.
In 1935, the Commonwealth of the Philippines was established with U.S. approval, and Manuel
Quezon was elected the country’s first president. On July 4, 1946, full independence was granted
to the Republic of the Philippines by the United States.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/philippine-independence-declared Retrieved 9/2/20

DECLARATION OF PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE

(Actual transcript of the declaration)

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 Translation by Sulpicio Guevara

In the town of Cavite-Viejo, Province of Cavite, this 12th day of June 1898:

BEFORE ME, Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista, War Counsellor and Special Delegate designated to
proclaim and solemnize this Declaration of Independence by the Dictatorial Government of the
Philippines, pursuant to, and by virtue of, a Decree issued by the Engregious Dictator Don
Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy,

The undersigned assemblage of military chiefs and others of the army who could not attend, as
well as the representatives of the various towns, taking into account the fact that the people of
this country are already tired of bearing the ominous joke of Spanish domination, because of
arbitrary arrests and abuses of the Civil Guards who cause deaths in connivance with and even
under the express orders of their superior officers who at times would order the shooting of those
placed under arrest under the pretext that they attempted to escape in violation of known Rules
and Regulations, which abuses were left unpunished, and because of unjust deportations of
illustrious Filipinos, especially those decreed by General Blanco at the instigation of the
Archbishop and friars interested in keeping them in ignorance for egoistic and selfish ends,
which deportations were carried out through processes more execrable than those of the
Inquisition which every civilized nation repudiates as a trial without hearing,

Had resulted to start a revolution in August 1896 in order to regain the independence and
sovereignty of which the people had been deprived by Spain through Governor Miguel Lopez de
Legazpi who, continuing the course followed by his predecessor Ferdinand Magellan who landed
on the shores of Cebu and occupied said Island by means of a Pact of Friendship with Chief
Tupas, although he was killed in the battle that took place in said shores to which battle he was
provoked by Chief Kalipulako ** of Mactan who suspected his evil designs, landed on the Island
of Bohol by entering also into a Blood Compact with its Chief Sikatuna, with the purpose of later
taking by force the Island of Cebu, and because his successor Tupas did not allow him to occupy
it, he went to Manila, the capital, winning likewise the friendship of its Chiefs Soliman and
Lakandula, later taking possession of the city and the whole Archipelago in the name of Spain by
virtue of an order of King Philip II, and with these historical precedents and because in
international law the prescription established by law to legalize the vicious acquisition of private
property is not recognized, the legitimacy of such revolution cannot be put in doubt which was
calmed but not complete stifled by the pacification proposed by Don Pedro A. Paterno with Don
Emilio Aguinaldo as President of the Republic established in Biak-na-Bato and accepted by
Governor-General Don Fernando Primo De Rivera under terms, both written and oral, among
them being a general amnesty for all deported and convicted persons; that by reason of the non-
fulfilment of some of the terms, after the destruction of the plaza of Cavite, Don Emilio
Aguinaldo returned in order to initiate a new revolution and no sooner had he given the order to
rise on the 31st of last month when several towns anticipating the revolution, rose in revolt on
the 28th , such that a Spanish contingent of 178 men, between Imus Cavite-Viejo, under the
command of major of the Marine Infantry capitulated , the revolutionary movement spreading
like wild fire to other towns of Cavite and the other provinces of Bataan, Pampanga, Batangas,
Bulacan, Laguna, and Morong, some of them with seaports and such was the success of the
victory of our arms, truly marvelous and without equal in the history of colonial revolutions that

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in the first mentioned province only the Detachments in Naic and Indang remained to surrender;
in the second all Detachments had been wiped out; in the third the resistance of the Spanish
forces was localized in the town of San Fernando where the greater part of them are
concentrated, the remainder in Macabebe, Sexmoan, and Guagua; in the fourth, in the town of
Lipa; in the fifth, in the capital and in Calumpit; and in last two remaining provinces, only in
there respective capitals, and the city of Manila will soon be besieged by our forces as well as the
provinces of Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Pangasinan, La Union, Zambales, and some others in the
Visayas where the revolution at the time of the pacification and others even before, so that the
independence of our country and the revindication of our sovereignty is assured. And having as
witness to the rectitude of our intentions the Supreme Judge of the Universe, and under the
protection of our Powerful and Humanitarian Nation, The United States of America, we do
hereby proclaim and declare solemnly in the name by authority of the people of these Philippine
Islands,

That they are and have the right to be free and independent; that they have ceased to have
allegiance to the Crown of Spain; that all political ties between them are should be completely
severed and annulled; and that, like other free and independent States, they enjoy the full power
to make War and Peace, conclude commercial treaties, enter into alliances, regulate commerce,
and do all other acts and things which and Independent State Has right to do,and imbued with
firm confidence in Divine Providence, we hereby mutually bind ourselves to support this
Declaration with our lives, our fortunes, and with our sacred possession, our Honor,

We recognize, approve, and ratify, with all the orders emanating from the same, the Dictatorship
established by Don Emilio Aguinaldo whom we revere as the Supreme Head of this Nation,
which today begins to have a life of its own, in the conviction that he has been the instrument
chosen by God, inspite of his humble origin, to effectuate the redemption of this unfortunate
country as foretold by Dr. Don Jose Rizal in his magnificent verses which he composed in his
prison cell prior to his execution, liberating it from the Yoke of Spanish domination, and in
punishment for the impunity with which the Government sanctioned the commission of abuses
by its officials, and for the unjust execution of Rizal and others who were sacrificed in order to
please the insatiable friars in their hydropical thirst for vengeance against and extermination of
all those who oppose their Machiavellian ends, trampling upon the Penal Code of these Islands,
and of those suspected persons arrested by the Chiefs of Detachments at the instigation of the
friars, without any form nor semblance of trial and without any spiritual aid of our sacred
Religion; and likewise, and for the same ends, eminent Filipino priest, Doctor Don Jose Burgos,
Don Mariano Gomez, and Don Jacinto Zamora were hanged whose innocent blood was shed due
to the intrigues of these so-called Religious corporations which made the authorities to believe
that the military uprising at the fort of San Felipe in Cavite on the night of January 21, 1872 was
instigated by those Filipino martyrs, thereby impeding the execution of the decree- sentence
issued by the Council of State in the appeal in the administrative case interposed by the secular
clergy against the Royal Orders that directed that the parishes under them within the jurisdiction
of this Bishopric be turned over to the Recollects in exchange for those controlled by them in
Mindanao which were to be transferred to the Jesuits, thus revoking them completely and
ordering the return of those parishes, all of which proceedings are on file with the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs to which they are sent last month of the year of the issuance of the proper Royal
Degree which, in turn, caused the grow of the tree of the liberty in our dear land that grow more

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and more through the iniquitous measures of oppressions, until the last drop of our chalice of
suffering having been drained, the first spark of revolution broke out in Caloocan, spread out to
Santa Mesa and continued its course to the adjoining regions of the province were the unequalled
heroism of its inhabitants fought a one sided battle against superior forces of General Blanco and
General Polavieja for a period of 3 months, without proper arms nor ammunitions, except bolos,
pointed bamboos, and arrows. Moreover, we confer upon our famous Dictator Don Emilio
Aguinaldo all the powers necessary to enable him to discharge the duties of Government,
including the prerogatives of granting pardon and amnesty.

And lastly, it was resolved unanimously that this Nation, already free and independent as of this
day, must use the same flag which up to now is being used, whose designed and colors are found
described in the attached drawing, the white triangle signifying the distinctive emblem of the
famous Society of the "Katipunan" which by means of its blood compact inspired the masses to
rise in revolution; the tree stars, signifying the three principal Islands of these Archipelago -
Luzon, Mindanao, and Panay where the revolutionary movement started; the sun representing the
gigantic step made by the son of the country along the path of Progress and Civilization; the
eight rays, signifying the eight provinces - Manila, Cavite, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija,
Bataan, Laguna, and Batangas - which declares themselves in a state of war as soon as the first
revolt was initiated; and the colors of Blue, Red, and White, commemorating the flag of the
United States of America, as a manifestation of our profound gratitude towards this Great Nation
for its disinterested protection which it lent us and continues lending us.
And holding up this flag of ours, I present it to the gentlemen here assembled:

Don Segundo Arellano

Don Tiburcio del Rosario
Sergio Matias
Don Agapito Zialcita
Don Flaviano Alonzo
Don Mariano Legazpi
Don Jose Turiano Santiago y Acosta
Don Aurelio Tolentino
Don Felix Ferrer
Don Felipe Buencamino
Don Fernando Canon Faustino
Don Anastacio Pinzun
Don Timoteo Bernabe
Don Flaviano Rodriguez
Don Gavino (?) Masancay
Don Narciso Mayuga
Don Gregorio Villa
Don Luis Perez Tagle
Don Canuto Celestino
Don Marcos Jocson
Don Martin de los Reyes
Don Ciriaco Bausa
Don Manuel Santos

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Don Mariano Toribio
Don Gabriel de los Reyes
Don Hugo Lim
Don Emiliano Lim
Don Faustino Tinorio(?)
Don Rosendo Simon
Don Leon Tanjanque(?)
Don Gregorio Bonifacio
Don Manuel Salafranca
Don Simon Villareal
Don Calixto Lara
Don Buenaventura Toribio
Don Gabriel Reyes
Don Hugo Lim
Don Emiliano Lim
Don Fausto Tinorio(?)
Don Rosendo Simon
Don Leon Tanjanque(?)
Don Gregorio Bonifacio
Don Manuel Salafranca
Don Simon Villareal
Don Calixto Lara
Don Buenaventura Toribio
Don Zacarias Fajardo
Don Florencio Manalo
Don Ramon Gana
Don Marcelino Gomez
Don Valentin Politan
Don Felix Politan
Don Evaristo Dimalanta
Don Gregorio Alvarez
Don Sabas de Guzman
Don Esteban Francisco
Don Guido Yaptinchay
Don Mariano Rianzares Bautista
Don Francisco Arambulo
Don Antonio Gonzales
Don Juan Antonio Gonzales
Don Juan Arevalo
Don Ramon Delfino
Don Honorio Tiongco
Don Francisco del Rosario
Don Epifanio Saguil
Don Ladislao Afable Jose
Don Sixto Roldan
Don Luis de Lara

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Don Marcelo Basa
Don Jose Medina
Don Efipanio Crisia(?)
Don Pastor Lopez de Leon
Don Mariano de los Santos
Don Santiago Garcia
Don Andres Tria Tirona
Don Estanislao Tria Tirona
Don Daniel Tria Tirona
Don Andres Tria Tirona
Don Carlos Tria Tirona
Don Sulpicio P. Antony
Don Epitacio Asuncion
Don Catalino Ramon
Don Juan Bordador
Don Jose del Rosario
Don Proceso Pulido
Don Jose Maria del Rosario
Don Ramon Magcamco(?)
Don Antonio Calingo
Don Pedro Mendiola
Don Estanislao Galinco
Don Numeriano Castillo
Don Federico Tomacruz
Don Teodoro Yatco
Don Ladislao Diwa(?).
Who solemnly swear to recognize and defend it unto the last drop of their blood.
In witness thereof, I certify that this Act of Declaration of Independence was signed by me and
by all those here assembled including the only stranger who attended those proceedings, a citizen
of the U.S.A., Mr. L.M. Johnson, a Colonel of Artillery.

Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista

War Counsellor and Special Delegate-Designate

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Philippine_Declaration_of_Independence Retrieved 9/2/2020

Exercises/Questions to Ponder
1. How were the American officials able to convince Aguinaldo to go back to the Philippines
and continue the war against the Spaniards?
2. Why was there an air of optimism among the people when Aguinaldo arrived?
3. Describe the results of Aguinaldo’s military campaigns immediately after his return from
Hongkong

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