25 JULY

Hen. Santiago V. Alvarez

1872 - Santiago Alvarez y Virata, who would become one of the most valiant generals of  the Philippine Revolution against Spain, is born in Imus, Cavite to Gen.  Mariano Alvarez and Nocilasa Virata; he will become captain general and later, commander-in-chief, of the Magdiwang chapter of the Kataastaasang, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan  nang manga Anak nang Bayan (KKK) in Cavite; Alvarez will valiantly fight the Spaniards from the outbreak of the revolution in 1896 until 1897, and will be dubbed the Hero of the  Battle of Dalahican when he will engage the Spanish troops under Gen. Ramon  Blanco in the bloody 36-hour battle, successfully repulsing the enemy  forces;  Alvarez will heroically display excellent fighting skills with his father, Mariano Alvarez, and cousin, General Pascual Alvarez--both co-Magdiwang KKK leaders--liberating Noveleta from the Spaniards on August 31, 1896 and bravely winning various battles within Noveleta, specifically in the towns of Naic, Maragondon, Magallanes, Tanza, Alfonso, Silang, Imus, and Francisco de Malabon; however, during the United States invasion of the Philippines, Alvarez will become an American 'collaborator' of sorts owing to their refusal to join the revolutionary government of Gen. Emilio F. Aguinaldo who seized revolutionary leadership and ordered the execution-cum-assassination of  Katipunan Supreme President Andres Bonifacio y de Castro;  Alvarez would be appointed by  William Howard Taft as presiding officer of the imperialist civil government body, the so-called Great Council of Peace Commision in 1902, three years into the protracted and very bloody  Philippine-American War (1899-1914); Alvarez will author the book "The katipunan and the revolution: memoirs of a general," an invaluable source of information on the Philippine Revolution, the rift between the Magdiwang and Magdalo chapter, and the heroism and killing of Bonifacio under the hands of Aguinaldo's Magdalo faction.

24 JULY

Filipinos captured by American invaders

1898 - After having been led to believe through verbal promises by United States officials [the consuls in Singapore and Hong Kong, Admiral George Dewey and Gen. Thomas Anderson] that America is an ally, President Emilio F. Aguinaldo writes to Gen. Anderson of his people's expectations that while foreign powers have not yet acknowledged  the Philippine Republic, "the great North American nation, which  struggled first for its independence, and afterward for the  abolition of slavery and is now actually struggling for the  independence of Cuba, would look upon [Filipino assertion of  sovereignty] with greater benevolence than any other nation";  some three months back during the second phase of the Philippine Revolution against Spain, intersecting with the Spanish-American War, the Bald Eagle nation, through Admiral Dewey, forged an alliance with the Filipinos, deceptively promising Aguinaldo that the U.S. will honor the independence of the Southeast Asian archipelago; exactly a year later, on July 24, 1899, almost six months into the  bloody and protracted Philippine-American War (1899-1914), Foreign Minister Apolinario Mabini y Maranan will optimistically write about  how "favorable public opinion (on Philippine independence) in America is steadily gaining ground to the detriment of the imperialist party."


Photo credit: Filipiniana.net

23 JULY

1864 - Apolinario Mabini y Maranan, the future "Brains of the Philippine  Revolution", key adviser,  and Foreign Minister of what would be the short-lived  Philippine Republic under Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, is born in Talaga, Tanauan, Batangas to Dionisia Maranan and  Inocencio  Mabini during the Spanish colonial rule;  acquiring paralysis later in adulthood, Mabini will be summoned to become an adviser of Aguinaldo who, by that time, had already seized revolutionary leadership from Generalissimo Andres Bonifacio y de Castro during the time of the Philippine Revolution against Spain; Mabini will be one of the few officials of the fledgling Philippine Republic that will for some time resist the pressure of swearing fealty to the imperialist United States of America during the Filipino-American War (1899-1914) ; it will be the second phase of the Philippine Revolution that Mabini will become a key Filipino figure--his counterpart during the initial phase of the Himagsikan led by Bonifacio,  co-founder and Supremo of the Kataastaasang Kagalanggalangang Katipunan nang manga Anak nang Bayan,  will be Emilio Jacinto y Dizon, who will earn the title "Brains of the Katipunan; a few years before his death, Mabini will author his memoirs of the Philippine Revolution, including his account of Aguinaldo's "insubordination" to, and the tragic "crime" and "assassination" committed against Bonifacio.


1567 - Miguel  Lopez de Legaspi, the Spanish conquistador who forged a blood  compact  with the Filipino natives and deceived them into thinking that his people were friends, subsequently facilitating Spain's colonization of the Southeast Asian islands, reports to King Philip II about how Chinese  and Japanese come yearly to some islands in the archipelago, such  as Luzon and Mindoro, to trade silk, wool bells, iron, tin, porcelains, perfumes, colored cotton cloths and other  small wares in exchange for gold and wax.


Raw image credit: National Historical Institute

22 JULY

Filipino soldiers resisting imperialist United States invasion

1899 - One and one-half years into the Philippine-American War (1899-1914) and 25 months after Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy declared Philippine Independence from colonial Spain, gullibly invoking "the protection of the Powerful and Humanitarian Nation," that was supposedly the United States of America, Aguinaldo will create an Intelligence Office in Manila to collect all available data about the invading enemy US forces for the information use of the Philippine Army and Philippine committees abroad; exactly a year later, on July 22, 1900, Aguinaldo will issue a proclamation declaring all Filipinos who attend the "peace" [translation: accept Bald Eagle rule or else...] festivals organized by the imperialist Americans are traitors to motherland; earlier, Aguinaldo, who became the head of the so-called second phase of the Philippine Revolution against Spain after wresting the leadership from, and thereafter eliminating, Supremo Andres Bonifacio y de Castro, stupidly entered into an "alliance" with the Americans in fighting the Spaniards in mid-1897 after believing  various US military and diplomatic officials who deceptively promised him that their country will honor Philippine Independence.

21 JULY

1898 - Felipe Agoncillo y Encarnacion, future Minister Plenipotentiary of the  fledgling Philippine Republic, writes Apolinario Mabini y Maranan, key adviser  of President Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy, expressing his apprehensions over  the supposed "alliance" with the Americans in apparent reference  to Aguinaldo's (unofficial and gullible) "alliance" arrangement with certain United States officials during the second phase of the Philippine Revolution; Aguinaldo's deal involved Filipinos' cooperation in the U.S. war against Spain and in return, America is supposed to honor the independence of the Filipino nation; as will later be revealed, Admiral George Dewey,  Consul-General in Singapore E. Spencer Pratt; Consul General in  Hong Kong Rounsevelle Wildman, and Gen. Thomas Anderson have  deceived Aguinaldo, what with the the Bald Eagle nation later invading the  Philippines come February 1899 (with the hostilities triggering the bloody and protracted Filipino-American War, 1899-1914), to be secretly instigated by the imperialist US generals upon instructions from their President William McKinley); Mabini will later write in his  memoirs that  "Mr. Aguinaldo had accepted [the verbal promises]  because he ardently desired to return to the islands, fearful that other influential Filipinos should (rob him of glory and) reach an  understanding with the Americans in the name of the people."

20 JULY

William Rufus Day,
Imperialist Asst. State Secretary

1898 - Five weeks after the Filipinos declared Philippine  independence during the Revolution against Spain, United States  Assistant Secretary of State William Rufus Day writes a letter supposedly  rebuking American Consul-General E. Spencer Pratt in Singapore  for "undiplomatically" allowing Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy to believe that the U.S. Government would recognize  the independence of the Southeast Asian archipelago after Spain  is defeated and on condition that the Filipinos help the US  in the Spanish-American War; truth is, days or weeks earlier, a  number of other American officials, including Gen. Thomas Anderson,  Consul General in Hong Kong Rounsevelle Wildman, and particularly Admiral George Dewey took turns deceiving Aguinaldo into thinking the US will honor Filipino independence  (only 16 days  earlier, Gen. Anderson Day wrote Aguinaldo to ask him to cooperate  with the United States in the war against Spain, categorically  stating that Americans are sympathetic  with the people of the  Philippine Islands); the apparent deception would lead Aguinaldo to stupidly order the Filipino forces "not to interfere" and freely allow the American forces to position themselves for the eventual US invasion of the Philippines; by February of the following year,  Bald Eagle President William McKinley will secretly instigate hostilities leading to the the bloody and protracted Filipino-American War (1989-1914).

19 JULY

Bust of Gen. Simon de Anda on the wall of Santa Cruz Church

1770 - General Simon de Anda assumes the position of  governor-general of the Spanish colony,t he Philippine Islands,  replacing Governor Jose Raón; during his administration, he  informs the King of Spain of complaints made against the abuses  of the friars and officials against the natives; successfully opposes the King's November 9, 1774 decree secularizing curacies held by  the regulars; repairs the walls of Manila; shortly embarks on the  building of several war vessels; some eight years earlier, Anda  was responsible for organizing a new Spanish base in Bacolor,  Pampanga during the period of British occupation of Manila; over 200 years earlier, the Spaniards began to colonize the Southeast Asian archipelago following several expeditions sent by the monarch, including the exploration led by Ferdinand Magellan in the 1520s.

18 JULY

1898 - Beleaguered colonial Spanish troops led by Lieutenant Commander  Juan Lalat surrender to the Filipino revolutionary forces under  Commander Vicente Quesada in Aringay, La Union  more than a  month after Gen. Emilio F. Aguinaldo declared the Independence of  the Philippines ("under the protection of  the powerful and Humanitarian Nation,"--unknown to Aguinaldo, the emerging imperialist superpower of the 20th century); the Spaniards have been entrenched in the convent  of this town following a sustained combat between the opposing  forces but as the Filipinos prevailed, they were forced to capitulate to Quesada, the province's revolutionary governor who  treats them with all humanitarian considerations; some three months earlier during the second phase of the Philippine Revolution against Spain, Aguinaldo forged an alliance with Admiral George Dewey of the United States that has been rather concurrently fighting a war against Spain; the "alliance," however, would turn out to be a sinister deceptive ploy of the Bald Eagle nation that would soon renege on its military and diplomatic leaders' promises of honoring Philippine Independence, and even staging the infamous Mock Battle of Manila that would falsely make it appear that the Americans, instead of the Filipino revolutionaries, defeated the Spanish colonial forces in the Southeast Asian archipelago and the capital, Manila, as prelude to the baseless December 1898 Treaty of Paris where by that time,  the virtually expelled Spaniards will supposedly "cede" the Philippines to imperialist America; the freedom-fighting Filipinos would then stage a bloody and protracted, though unsuccessful, struggle to assert their independence and fight the vile invading U.S. forces during the Philippine-American War (1899-1914).


Photo credit: http://jibraelangel2blog.blogspot.com/2010/06/members-of-royal-spanish-army-filipino.html

17 JULY

1755 - Pedro Manuel de Arandia y Santestaban, governor and captain-general of colonial Philippines for the Spanish crown, reports that all non-Christian Chinese have been expelled, to be readmitted in the future only on account of trading purposes; 76 years earlier, Spanish governor for the Southeast Asian colony Juan de Vargas, issued a royal cedula compelling all local unmarried Chinese, in the Philippines, whether they were Catholic Christians or unbaptized, to live at the Parian while the married ones were to remain in Binondo, Manila; the commercial vacuum left by the expelled non-Christianized Chinese would be momentarily filled in by British traders, with the said trading interest serving to contribute to England's future colonization plans on Manila; Spanish colonization of the Philippine archipelago began in the mid-16th century when King Philip II sent sent an expedition to conquer said islands in 1559 following the earlier exploration missions including the important one led by explorer Ferdinand Magellan who was killed by the forces of native chieftain Lapu-Lapu of the island of Mactan.


Photo credit: http://senorenrique.blogspot.com/2007/06/inside-bahay-tsinoy.html

16 JULY

1844 - Narciso Claveria y Zaldua becomes governor-general of the  Philippines during the Spanish colonial rule; his administration will  be responsible for correcting the Philippine calendar; establishing the Sociedad de Recreo (Recreation Association);  the founding of papers such as Diario de Manila and La Esperanza; constructing a military library; the purchase of the first steam  war-vessel  for the Southeast Asian colony; and issuing a decree obligating the  natives to adopt Spanish surnames from a catalogue (Catalogo de Apellidos) for the purpose of easier taxation and identification, exempting  only pre-Spanish royalty and Chinese with pre-existing surnames; Claveria would also be responsible for granting Jose Oranguyen, Spanish lawyer-turned-businessman-then-(Tondo)judge-and-explorer, the permit to colonize Davao--a 'mini-conquista'--eventually leading to the area being constituted as a province (Nueva Guipizcoa) with Nueva Bergara (future Davao City) as capital; the 62nd Spanish colonial governor in the Philippines would also be responsible for the conquest of the Sulu island of Balanguingui some four years into his term, overcoming the Moros for which he would be accorded the titles viscount of claveria and count of Mnaila along with the cross of San Fernando.

15 JULY

Rey Felipe II de Espana
(King Philip II of Spain)

1589 - A royal fiscal in colonial Philippines, Gaspar de Ayala, writes Spain King Felipe II a detailed report on matters concerning colonial administration in the Southeast Asian  archipelago during the early decades of Spanish settlements; as well, de Ayala advises the king to construct ships and  fragata, which should be more profitable than galleys; the report of de Ayala also includes the inadequate Chinese trade; the  encomiendas of Dona Maria de Miranda; the conspiracy against  Spaniards; the rebellion in Cagayan; sequestration of illegal  Japanese ship; the conflict between the royal officials and the  bishop; the conflict between the Dominicans and Augustinians;  the need for more religious instructions; the lack of funds in the city hospital; the need for more soldiers, funds, and ammunitions  to secure the Southeast Asian colony; a scandalous incident involving a bishop and a preacher in a cathedral; and the fierce storm that hit Manila; Spain will hold the Philippine archipelago, originally named as Archipelago of St. Lazarus by the explorer Magellan (who was slain by early freedom fighter, the native chieftain Lapu-Lapu), as a colony for more than three hundred years.


Photo credit: Wikipedia

14 JULY

Maj. Gen. Elwell Otis of the imperialistic U.S.
"fighting, having begun, must go on to the grim end"

1898 - President Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy of the still-in-revolution Philippine Republic writes to gullibly ask George Dewey, admiral of the emerging imperialist United States, to forward  to Washington his June 18 and 23 decrees establishing a  revolutionary dictatorial government to continue the fight for  independence, further stating that "the desires on this government are to remain always in friendship  with the great North American nation, to which we are under many obligations"; on this same day, the 4th U.S. Military  Expedition to the Philippines sails for Manila under Maj. Gen.  Elwell S. Otis, in what would later prove to be  preparation for the imperialistic American invasion of the Philippines: Otis would oversee many of the American atrocities in the bloody and protracted Filipino-American War (1899-1914)  that their forces would surreptitiously instigate come February of the following year, and would be quoted for saying "fighting, having begun, must go on to the grim end" in response to Aguinaldo's plea for an end to the war; around eight months earlier, Dewey forged an alliance with Aguinaldo, deceptively promising to honor Philippine independence, during the (second phase of) the Philippine Revolution intersecting with the Bald Eagle's war against Spain; apparently fooled into thinking it is part of the supposed alliance, Aguinaldo a few weeks stupidly earlier ordered his men "not to interfere" with the North Americans, inadvertently allowing the free entry of the G.I.'s that would lead to the infamous August 1898 Mock Battle of Manila that would falsely make it appear that the Americans--instead of the Filipino revolutionaries--are responsible for defeating the Spaniards in the Southeast Asian archipelago; the baseless Treaty of Paris "ceding" the Philippines to the Bald Eagle nation would be signed, the  U.S. Congress would approve, the enemy Americans will invade with might and cruelty and the Filipinos would unsuccessfully fight a protracted and bloody war to preserve their newfound freedom and dignity.


Photo art: JB

Raw photo: Wikipedia

13 JULY

1901 - Gen. Miguel Malvar y Carpio succeeds as Commander-in-Chief of the  beleaguered Philippine Republic following  President Emilio F. Aguinaldo's treacherous capture by, and hasty swearing of fealty to, the imperialist United States forces nearly 2 1/2 years into the protracted and bloody Filipino-American War (1899-1914); more than three years earlier, Bald Eagle Commodore George Dewey had earlier met with Aguinaldo to strike an alliance, with Filipinos in his nation's separate war with Spain, deceptively making assurances that America is intends to honor Philippine independence;  by August 1898, the US and Spain wickedly staged the infamous Mock Battle of Manila that falsely showed to the world that it was the Americans instead of the Filipinos defeated the Spaniards in the capital, Manila; in five months' time, the Treaty of Paris will be signed, with the virtually ousted-by-Filipinos Spain ridiculously 'ceding' the Philippines to the Bald Eagle nation for $20,000,000 US, and on February 4, 1899, American generals will deliberately instigate the bloody and protracted Philippine-American War (1899-1914) in the nefarious bid of the US President William McKinley to make their Congress approve the Treaty of Paris and the annexation [translation: invasion] of the fledgling Southeast Asian nation; Malvar would reverse Aguinaldo's policy of upholding elite interests,  giving importance to the role of peasantry in the anti-imperialist resistance and resulting to covert support of the townspeople to the Filipino freedom fighters while pretending to cooperate with the North American colonizers; by December 1901, Malvar would shift from defensive to offensive campaigns against a number of towns held by the enemy Americans; it would only be after US Gen. Franklin Bell's horrific reconcentration campaign that would break the back of the resistance movement in Batangas  province that Gen. Malvar will surrender to enemy flag in 1902 ; other Filipino guerrila leaders, such as Macario Sakay  and Simeon Ola, and Muslim compatriots in the South will continue  the valiant war against the heavily armed North American  invaders until about 1913. 


Photo credit: http://fil.wikipilipinas.org/images/0/0d/Miguelmalvar.jpg

12 JULY

1899  - Filipino Gen. Artemio Ricarte y Garcia issues a circular asking for  contributions to continue war operations against enemy American  forces, five months into the imperialistic United States invasion  of the fledgling Philippine Republic; the bloody Filipino-American War (1899-1914) broke out in February 1899 after the Republican administration of Bald Eagle President William McKinley deliberately instigated hostilities between the Filipino and American forces at the San Juan bridge as part of his sinister plan to make the US Senate approve the December 1898 Treaty of Paris to pave the way for the annexation [translation: invasion] of the fledgling Southeast Asian Republic; more than a year earlier, the emerging imperialist power that was the US  forged an alliance with revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy as part of its war against colonial Spain during the second phase of the Philippine Revolution, deceptively promising to honor the independence of the Filipinos; weeks later, amidst the fact that the Filipino revolutionary forces have already wrested control of virtually all of the entire archipelago from the Spaniards, the Americans further conned Aguinaldo by asking him to "not to interfere" and allow the free entry of G.I.s into the islands only to stage the infamous Mock Battle of Manila that falsely showed to the world that the Americans--instead of the Filipinos--were the ones who defeated the Spaniards in Manila; Spain and the US would then sign the Paris Treaty that 'ceded' the Philippines as McKinley justifies his undemocratic, treacherous policy before the American public by ridiculously claiming that God had supposedly spoken to him to colonize the  Southeast Asian land "to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and  Christianize them,"--this, when most of the Philippines have long been Catholic Christians. 



Raw photo credits:

http://www.army.mil.ph/About_the_army/army/history/lineage/01.gif
Wikipedia

11 JULY

Dr. Pio Valenzuela

1896 - Pio Valenzuela y Alejandrino future co-founder and auditor of the  secret--society-turned-revolutionary-body Kataastaasang, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan  nang manga Anak nang Bayan (KKK), is born during the Spanish  colonial period to Lorenza Alejandrino and capitan mayor Francisco Valenzuela; Valenzuela, just about the only ilustrado among the Katipunan founders, will also be the emissary of  future Supreme President Andres Bonifacio y de Castro to reformist patriot and polymath Jose Mercado Rizal just before the outbreak of the Revolution;  elected physician and, later, fiscal general of the Katipunan in 1895, he will turn his back on his compatriots and the revolution,  as he will go into hiding and be one of the first to avail of the amnesty offered by Spanish Governor-General Ramon Blanco  after the KKK's discovery; it will be said that Rizal's arguments against the Revolution (as to "how it was absurd" ) will convince Valenzuela to surrender to the Spaniards some time after his talk with the reformist leader who will later testify that he "counseled against [the revolution], trying to convince him by rational arguments...took his leave persuaded";  during the United States' invasion of the Philippines, Valenzuela will  accept American's offer of serving as municipal president of Polo,  Bulacan.