GE 9: LIFE AND WORK OF RIZAL

Topic

Chapter 8: Jose Rizal’s Annotations on

Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos
de las Islas Filipinas

 Overview of Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas

 Jose Rizal’s Annotations on
Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas
 Conclusion

Prepared by:
PONCE, CRISTIAN JAY
CAÑOTAL, ANGELICA
SERANO, JAYR

Submitted to:

Ms. Ma. Rizza B. Moraca

College of Computing and Information Sciences

Bachelor of Science in Information Technology

2025
Overview of Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas

Author: Antonio de Morga, a Spanish lawyer and lieutenant governor of the Philippines in the
late 16th century.

Published: 1609 in Mexico.

Content:

• Firsthand historical account of early Spanish colonial ventures in the Philippines.

• The book also presents Morga’s view about the Filipino customs, manner and religion in early
years of Spanish conquest.

• Major events like Spanish conquests, introduction of Christianity, and interactions with
Chinese traders.

Significance:

• Written by a layman, making it less religiously biased compared to other historical accounts
of the time.

Jose Rizal’s Annotations on Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas

Filipinas

• Austin Craig - An early biographer of Rizal who translated into English some of the important
details of Rizal’s translation to the Book Sucesos De Las Islas Pilipinas.

• Dr. Jose Rizal comments that the Philippines of his time was no better than the pre-Hispanic
Philippines. He says that it could have develop on its own into something great. According to
Rizal, Filipinos has a system of writing, an advanced knowledge of metallurgy and a ship-build
industry. He also knew that the Spanish wouldn't like his work with it being banned in the
Philippines.

• However, the works first critic is his friend Ferdinand Blumentritt. In his introduction for the
book, he cited hindsight and anti clericalism as fatal defects in a purely scholarly work.

• Rizal used history as a propaganda weapon. It was deemed too much propaganda for
historians and too historical for propagandists. By recreating the proud pre-Hispanic
civilization, Rizal's Morga had set the tone for Philippine historiography and Filipino identity.
Jose (1861-1896) He was considered as the "lucky seven" in the family. He lived with
Josephine Bracken, an Irish girl from Hongkong. Rizal had a son by her by the name of
"Francisco' who was named after his father but died a few hours after birth and was buried in
Dapitan. Rizal's nickname is "Pepe".

To the Filipinos: In Noli Mi Tangere (“The Social Cancer”) I started to sketch the present
state of our native land. But the effect which my efforts produced made, me realize that, before
attempting to unroll before your eyes the other pictures which were to follow. it was necessary
first to post you on the past. So only you can fairly judge the present and estimate how much
progress has been made during the three centuries (of Spanish rule).
 Like almost all of you, I was born and brought up ignorance of our century's past and so,
without knowledge and authority to speak of what I neither saw nor have studied, I deem it
necessary to quote the testimony of an illustrious Spaniards who in the beginning of the new
era controlled the destinies of the Philippines and had personal knowledge of our ancient
nationality in the last days.

It is then shade of our ancestor's civilization which the author will call before you... if the
works serves to awaken in you a consciousness of our past and to blot from your memory or to
rectify what has been falsified or is calumny, then i shall not have labored in vain. With this
preparation, slight though it be we can all pass to the study of the future.

JOSE RIZAL, Europe, 1889

• Rizal’s annotation of Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos De Las Islas Pilipinas means “Events in
the Philippine Islands”. He started the replication of the first edition of the book in the year
1888 of August.

• He chooses Morga's due to following reasons:

1) The original book was rare.

2) Morga was a layman not a religious chronicler.

3) Morga is more “objective” that the religious writers.

4) Compared to religious chronicler, Morga’s work was more sympathetic towards the Indios.

5) Morga is not only the eyewitness but a major actor in the events he narrates.

• He is confident in annotating Morga’s book because a dependable wealthy countryman in the

name of Antonio Regidor is willing to support him financially for the publication.

• The annotation is considered as secondary source which is why scholars in the field of
history did not give importance to it. They only give value to those Primary sources like the one
written by Morga.

• The book of Morga is consist of eight chapters. This includes:

1. Discovery of Eastern Islands and the Government.

2. Dr. Francisco De Sande.

3. Don Gonzalo Ronquillo de Peiialosa.

4. Dr. Santiago de Vera.

5. Gomes Perez Dasmarinas.

6. Don Francisco Tello.

7. Don Pedro de Acuiia.

8. An account of the Philippine Islands.

• The first seven chapters are mainly concerned with the political events during the terms of the
first eleven Governor-generals in the Philippines., Beginning with Miguel Lopez de Legaspi in
1565 to Pedro de Acuiia who died in June 1606. Essentially, the Chapter eight is interesting
because it describes the Pre-Hispanic Filipinos which for Jose Rizal has ethnographic value
and indispensability.

• Ironically, Morga was disseminated 259 years after its original publication in a widely read
English translation by H.E.J Stanley, published in London by the Hakluyt Society in 1868.

• The original has never been reprinted in full until the annotated Rizal edition came off the
press of Gamier Hermanos in Paris in 1889. After Rizal’s edition comes a magnificent edition
by Wenceslao Emilio Retana printed in 1909 probably the most accurate edition. But it is only
accessible to those who can read Spanish.

• In the Philippines, Rizal's Morga was reissued in photo-offset production only in 1958, by
which that time more Filipinos knew or cared for books in Spanish. The English translation was
commissioned and published by Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission in 1961 but still
proven unsatisfactory compared to Hakluyt.

• Rizal's second consideration for the choice of Morga was that it was the only civil, as
opposed to religious or ecclesiastical, history of the Philippines written during the colonial
period were rare, making Morga for over two centuries the only general history of the
Philippines. in print. It dealt more with church history than the history of the Philippines
creating complaints against religious historians.

• In 1925, the American historian Austin Craig pointed out that as the Philippines had been the
colony of Spain, the histories of the Philippines were nothing but the chapters in the larger
history of Spain. In short, what was available was not a history of the Philippines but the history
of Spain in the Philippines.

• That idea was acted by Teodoro A. Agoncilio in the 1960's, who, like Rizal, espoused the
writing of Philippine history from a Filipino point-of-view as opposed to that of the foreigner.
The only differences are that the Indios in 19th century had yet consider themselves a Nation
and could not have considered themselves as Filipino.

• Rizal’s Third consideration of Morga’s work was Rizal’s opinion that this secular account was
more objective, more trustworthy than those written by religious missionaries which liberally
uses tales of miracles and apparitions.

• Rizal’s annotation falls into two categories. First, are straightforward historical annotation.
Second are annotations based in history, reflects his strong anticlerical bias, which later
branded religious interpretations of events as “Pious Lies.” Rizal emphasized that Morga’s
work was devoid of characteristic Deus ex Machina interpretation of historical events which
was popular for the friar chroniclers of the 16th - 18th centuries.

• The aim was not to record history, but to document the achievements of their religious orders
and more importantly to edify the readers. Friar chronicles describe as a narrative with moral
lesson and not as history in the modern sense.

• Rizal critiqued the exaggerated claims made by friars about the Chinese uprising of 1603. He
was particularly harsh on the accounts of Antonio Flores, an Augustinian friar, who was said to
have destroyed 200 vessels, killed over 600 Chinese in one day, and later killed more than
3,000 alone.
• The Franciscans attributed the Spanish victory to a miracle involving St. Francis of Assisi,
who was allegedly seen protecting Intramuros with a flaming sword. This led to St. Francis
being proclaimed the "Seraphic Protector of Manila," with his feast day becoming a
government-subsidized annual holiday.

• Rizal challenged these accounts by referencing contemporary layman's writings that did not
mention the miracle of St. Francis. He suggested that the story of the miracle was likely added
years after the event.

• Rizal also highlighted that sworn statements about the apparition were made by Chinese
prisoners only after they converted to Catholicism and were pardoned, casting doubt on the
authenticity of these testimonies. Additionally, Rizal noted that other chroniclers like Morga and
Argensola did not mention the miracle, further questioning the validity of the friars' claims.

• Rizal critiqued the work of Dominican friar Diego de Aduarte, using Morga's writings to
highlight the flaws in Aduarte's history of the Order of Preachers in the Philippines, which was
widely regarded as authoritative.

• Rizal compared Aduarte's work with Morga's, acknowledging that while Aduarte's writing was
engaging and picturesque, it suffered from gaps, contradictions, and distortions. In contrast,
Morga was seen as a more reliable chronicler, even if he omitted certain details for political
reasons.

•Aduarte, who later became a bishop, was described by a biographer as exceptionally holy and
ascetic, with claims that he wore patched shoes and miraculously grew a beard in his coffin
after death.

• Rizal responded to these claims with sarcasm, remarking, "we have other saints with less
beard and better shoes," expressing his skepticism towards the exaggerated narratives
surrounding Aduarte's sainthood.

• Rizal criticized the friar chroniclers for violating their vows of poverty, pointing out the
substantial wealth and property held by religious corporations like the Franciscans and
Dominicans in the Philippines. He even noted that the Dominicans owned properties in Hong
Kong, emphasizing their accumulation of wealth.

• Rizal's anticlerical stance was influenced by his education in politically turbulent, liberal
Madrid, where Republicans often blamed social problems on the clergy. His personal
experiences of oppression in the colonial Philippines, particularly the agrarian disputes his
family faced in Calamba, a Dominican hacienda, further fueled his sharp criticism of the
Dominicans.

• Despite his harsh views on other religious orders, Rizal held a favorable opinion of the
Jesuits, who had educated him in his early years. He appreciated that the Jesuits focused on
educating and enlightening the indigenous people without claiming to be their eternal
protectors or defenders.

• Rizal argued that the friars, after securing their position, spread falsehoods and demeaned
the indigenous population to make themselves indispensable and justify their own
shortcomings. However, he made an exception for the Jesuits, whom he believed genuinely
contributed to the education and enlightenment of the indigenous people without exploiting
their position.

• The Jesuits were notably spared from arrest and abuse by Filipino forces during the second
phase of the Philippine Revolution in 1898. This was partly due to the fact that many
revolutionary leaders were former students of the Jesuit-run Ateneo Municipal, which was
known for its progressive educational system emphasizing philosophy, humanities, and natural
sciences.

• Despite Rizal's generally favorable view of the Jesuits, he included a critique in his later
annotations, stating that the Society of Jesus was fifty years behind enlightened secular
opinion and scientific advancements in Europe.

• The Jesuits maintained a strong reputation for adhering to their vows of poverty and chastity,
largely because the Order had been suppressed by the Pope in the 18th century. The Spanish
King had expelled the Jesuits and confiscated their properties across Spanish dominions,
leading to their absence from the Philippines from 1768 until their return in 1859.

•When the Jesuits returned, other religious orders that had taken over their properties refused
to relinquish control. As a result, the Jesuits were sent to establish missions in the
predominantly Muslim southern island of Mindanao. This historical twist prevented them from
becoming a wealthy landowning religious corporation and spared them from the resentment
directed at other orders.

Conclusion
•Rizal’s annotations on Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas were a groundbreaking effort to
reclaim Philippine history from a Filipino perspective. By exposing the advanced civilization of
pre-colonial Filipinos, correcting historical distortions, and challenging the Spanish colonial
narrative, Rizal’s work became a powerful tool for national awakening.

•His annotations not only inspired future Filipino historians but also laid the intellectual
foundation for the growing nationalist movement. Though his edition of Morga’s book was
banned and suppressed by Spanish authorities, its impact endured, contributing to the
eventual struggle for Philippine independence. Rizal’s work remains an essential reference for
those seeking to understand the true history of the Philippines beyond colonial propaganda.

References

 Ariola, M. M. (2018). The Life and Works of Jose Rizal. Unlimited Books Library Services &
Publishing Inc.

 Porras, C. S. T. (2022). The Life and Works of Jose Rizal.

 Zaide, G. F. (1990). Jose Rizal: Life, works and writings of a genius, writer, physician, and
national hero. Manila: National Book Store.

 Constantino, R. (1975). The Philippines: A past revisited. Quezon City: Tala Publishing.
 Schumacher, J. N. (1991). The making of a nation: Essays on nineteenth-century
Philippine nationalism. Ateneo de Manila University Press.