Mikaalora T.

Alcantara SOCSC005

CS21FA1

The Philippines in the time of Rizal

The Philippines in Rizals Time had unjust, bigoted and deteriorating colonial
power. During this time there were also:
Instability of Colonial Administration: Brought about frequent
periodic shifts in colonial policies and a periodic rigodon of colonial
officials; 1835 to 1897: 50 Governor-Generals each serving an average
term of only one year and three months
Corrupt Colonial Officials - Highly corrupt, incompetent, cruel or
venal : Gen. Rafael de Izquierdo (1871-73): executed the innocent
GOMBURZA ; Gen. Fernando Primo de Rivera (1880-83; 1897-98) ; Gen.
Camilo de Polavieja (1896-97)
Philippine Representation in Spanish Cortes 1810 1813: Ventura de
los Reyes ; 1837: Representation was abolished
Human Rights Denied to Filipinos: Freedom of speech, of the press,
of association and other human rights (except freedom of religion)
No Equality Before the Law: Brown skinned Filipinos as inferior
beings; Spanish Penal Code; Heavier penalties on native Filipinos or
mestizos and lighter personalities on white-complexioned Spaniards
Maladministration of Justice - Notoriously corrupt and courts of
injustice; Costly, partial and slow
Racial Discrimination - Filipinos as inferior beings who were infinitely
undeserving of the rights and privileges that the white Spaniards
enjoyed; Indios: Pigment of his skin, height of his nose, color of his hair
and shape of his skull
Frailocracy - A unique government in Hispanic Philippines
(government by friars); Augustinians, Dominicans and Franciscans
dominated the religious and educational life ; Filibustero or to jail;
Policy of obscurantism, fanaticism and oppression in the country ;
Janus-faced friars
Forced Labor - Compulsory labor imposed by the Spanish colonial
authorities on adult Filipino males in the construction of churches,
schools, hospitals, building and repair of roads and bridges, building of
ships and other public works
Haciendas Owned by the Friars Dominicans : One of the victims
in Calamba
The Guardia Civil- Rizal himself experienced the discrimination of
how the guardia civil (either Filipino or insulares) treated the Filipinos
Evolution of Filipino Nationalism (1810-1912) Romeo V. Cruz
 Presents an unorthodox idea of the evolution of Filipino nationalism as
going through four stages: 1. Hispanism 2. Filipinism (Peninsular
Spanish) 3. Creolism or Assimilationist Filipinism (Propaganda
Movement or Reformism) 4. Katagalugan (Katipunan Indio Filipinism)
Nationalism (sentiment) race culture history territory
HISPANISM (1809-1820) - Central Revolutionary Junta at Aranjuez ;
Detailed in the Constitution of Cadiz of 1812 : United Spanish peoples
all over the world; Sovereignty and powers of government; Election of
representatives in the Spanish Cortes
FILIPINISM (PENINSULARS) (1821 1880) - Creoles (Manila
Spaniards): Opening of Manila to the World Commerce in 1834;
Opening of Suez Canal in 1869; Madrid at that time became convinced,
regardless of the governments anti-church policy, that the friars were
a necessary evil in the Philippines; Campaign for Secularization headed
by Fr. Juan Pelaez inherited to Fr. Jose Burgos; Spanish Revolution in
1868 and coming of Carlos Ma. De la Torre in 1869; Martydom of
GOMBURZA and sent in exile and other penal colonies
ASSIMILATIONIST FILIPINISM (1880 1896) - The Propaganda
Movement/Reformism: Indio-ilustrados and the wealthy businessmen
all belonging to the burgeoning middle class (indulto de comercio);
Revolutionary crisis (hidden and unstated assumptions); Not merely
demanding assimilation but ideas for the restructuring of the empire
into a federal system instead of unitary system / a separate and
independent state would be established and administered by the Indios
KATAGALUGAN (1892 1912): Indio-Filipinism - Foundation of the
KKK in 1892; Envisioned a new nation independent from the Spanish
Empire; Radical nationalism - Organize a new society which was liberal,
democratic and ethically virtuous based on the brotherhood of all
Filipinos / A NATION OF TAGALOGS or KATAGALUGAN - Based on the
code of ethics and moral principles contained in Decalogue and Kartilla
Mikaalora T. Alcantara SOCSC005

CS21FA1

Philippines during the time of Rizal

In the time that Rizal was not yet born, the entire Philippines was still under the
Spanish colonization, all the uprising of Filipinos against the oppression of the
Spaniard did not prosper due to the advantage of Spanish weaponry in that time. The
rebellion of Francisco Dagohoy, the longest uprising against Spain which lasted 8 years
but still defeated is a good example of this circumstances.

The whole of the country was headed by a GovernorGeneral, a deputy of the king
and with the sole authority with regards to economic and political management of the
country. Furthermore, because one of the reason for Spanish colonization is religion,
The clergies were also vested with a certain authority towards the church, but in the
time of Rizal the power of the friars was not only set within the walls of the church,
but also in politics.

The family of Rizal are wealthy landlords of Calamba, Laguna. His parent were of
Malay and Chinese heritage, both of them were wealthy and educated, they socialized
with leaders of the society, the house of Rizal is the biggest private library in the
Philippines in that time and they managed to send their children to best schools.
Nevertheless, Lorenzo Alberto Alonzo, Rizals maternal grandfather, was one of the
delegates in the Manila assembly from were a deputy of the Spanish cortes was to
elected as provided by the new Spanish constitution.

In 1861, when Rizal was born, a great crisis occurred within the church when the
archbishop of Manila, Jose Aranguren died and succeeded by a Spanish mestizo,
Father Pedro Pelaez who risen in the position of vicar capitular a term used by the
canon law to fill the vacant position of the archbishop within the diocese. Pelaez
became the brainchild to the total participation of the natives or Indios, as they were
called, as priests of the new reformed church. He also acted upon the successive
decrees which handed the parishes over the religious orders. Now, the revolution
against Spain was not only situated within the battle fields of the land but also inside
the church itself.

In January 20, 1872, in Cavite, a mutiny of Filipino soldiers and peasantry leaded by a
mestizo sergeant named Fernando la Madrid took place at Fort San Felipe. The cause
of this military uprising is believed to be order of Governor-General Rafael de
Izquierdo to subject soldiers to personal taxes, from which they were previously
exempted. The said tax requires them to pay a monetary sum and also to serve under
forced labor called, polo y sevicio. The mutineers believed that the rebellion they
have started shall escalate into the national level. Within two days the mutiny was
dissolved when the Governor-General immediately sent reinforcement to Cavite and
the manila rebellion wing did not respond on the insurrection. Thus, they were
outnumbered and destabilized by the Spanish armed forces, while sergeant la Madrid
was killed in the skirmish.

According to the report issued by Governor-General Izquierdo, the Cavity mutiny of

1872 was an act of treason and rebellion against the Spanish government, in the sense
that, they wilfully planned to overthrow the government and to establish their own, a
clear violation to constitution. Izquierdo also added that all liable to this threat to the
security of the Spanish colony should be punished by death. Furthermore, he also
declared that the architects of this conspiracy were merely Filipino educated leaders
such as; businessmen, abodadillos or native lawyers and native clergymen. The
Filipino priest namely; Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora were court
marshalled for the grounds of treason, they were, according to the report, preside as
leaders of the new government. For such reasons, to install fear upon the rest of the
natives and to eradicate secularism inside the church, the GUMBORZA were executed
by means of garrotte or by strangulation.

The execution of the friars had a great impact to the Mercado y Alonzos because
their son Paciano, the older brother of Rizal, was a known student of Father Burgos in
Ateneo de Municipal and allegedly a member of the mutiny.

In the midst of the situation, Rizal also witnessed the cruelty and injustice of the
Spanish authority when his mother once became a victim of legal vengeance. His
mother, Doa Teodora Alberto de Alonzo was accused of attempted murder when she
allegedly tried to kill her sister-in-law by poison. A corrupt court led her to
incarceration of almost two and a half years. According to historians, the sister-in-law
of Doa Teodora had a secret affair with the head of the Guardia Sybil.

In Rizals time, Spaniards are not only in the control of politics, the church, but the
education as a whole. The friars were the head masters of schools in the Philippines
at the time, in fact, the schools are owned by them. They controlled the educational
curriculum, making the way to put Christian and religious teaching on the priority of
learning from the elementary until the tertiary education. Teachers do not put great
emphasis on native language, as well as with science and mathematics, but a bigger
part on theology of Christian doctrines and Latin.

At first the schools were only exclusive for Spanish born citizens, not until the start of
the 19th century that it was also opened for Filipinos, provided that you came from a
known and wealthy family of the society. Although the Filipinos are now accepted as
students, the friars still believed that Filipinos cannot match the natural born talents
and skills of a pure Spanish. They strictly imposed total discipline that whoever fails
to observe shall be subjected to corporal punishment. The friars are very concern
about morality and sexes of their students. Thus, the boys and girls were literally
separated by establishing schools exclusive only for the other.

The students of colleges in Rizals time were guaranteed with degree in Bachelor of
Arts or Bachiller en Artes. In 1859, in Manila, the first college for boys was established
by Jesuits as Colegio de san Ignacio. In Cebu, they established Colegio de San
Idelfonso. In 1601, the Colegio de San Jose was built. In addition, in 1589, the Escuela
Pia was entrusted by the government to the Jesuits. Later this was called as Ateneo
de Municipal or today the famous Ateneo de Manila University.

The Spanish government did not expect that educating Filipinos would mean danger
on their part. In fact, to ensure their interest they pattered the education to the
Spanish life style. Their primary belief is that, they are just making politics on some
wealthy Filipino aristocrats, but they were wrong. This openness of the Spanish
government toward the Filipinos to obtain equal rights for education was the birth of
a true freedom and the predecessor of a revolution to gain our independence.

Filipinos who bear the seals of Spanish Coligeos are referred to as Ilustrados. The
Ilustrados are the architects of the movement to, if not totally eradicate, reform the
rotten Spanish government by giving equal rights to the Filipinos on the same level
that of the Spaniards.

Rizal and his fellow Ilustrados established organizations and publications which
criticizes the Spanish way of governing the Philippines. This also led to a nationwide
uprising of the Filipinos to achieve independence leaded by Andres Bonifacio and
Emilio Aguinaldo.