The 19th century

By the late 18th century, political and economic changes in Europe were finally beginning to affect Spain
and, thus, the Philippines. Important as a stimulus to trade was the gradual elimination of the monopoly
enjoyed by the galleon to Acapulco. The last galleon arrived in Manila in 1815, and by the mid-1830s
Manila was open to foreign merchants almost without restriction. The demand for Philippine sugar and
abaca (hemp) grew apace, and the volume of exports to Europe expanded even further after the
completion of the Suez Canal in 1869.

The growth of commercial agriculture resulted in the appearance of a new class. Alongside the
landholdings of the church and the rice estates of the pre-Spanish nobility there arose haciendas of
coffee, hemp, and sugar, often the property of enterprising Chinese-Filipino mestizos. Some of the
families that gained prominence in the 19th century have continued to play an important role in
Philippine economics and politics.

Not until 1863 was there public education in the Philippines, and even then the church controlled the
curriculum. Less than one-fifth of those who went to school could read and write Spanish, and far fewer
could speak it properly. The limited higher education in the colony was entirely under clerical direction,
but by the 1880s many sons of the wealthy were sent to Europe to study. There, nationalism and a
passion for reform blossomed in the liberal atmosphere. Out of this talented group of overseas Filipino
students arose what came to be known as the Propaganda Movement. Magazines, poetry, and
pamphleteering flourished. José Rizal, this movement’s most brilliant figure, produced two political
novels—Noli me tangere (1887; Touch Me Not) and El filibusterismo (1891; The Reign of Greed)—which
had a wide impact in the Philippines. In 1892 Rizal returned home and formed the Liga Filipina, a modest
reform-minded society, loyal to Spain, that breathed no word of independence. But Rizal was quickly
arrested by the overly fearful Spanish, exiled to a remote island in the south, and finally executed in
1896. Meanwhile, within the Philippines there had developed a firm commitment to independence
among a somewhat less privileged class.

Shocked by the arrest of Rizal in 1892, these activists quickly formed the Katipunan under the leadership
of Andres Bonifacio, a self-educated warehouseman. The Katipunan was dedicated to the expulsion of
the Spanish from the islands, and preparations were made for armed revolt. Filipino rebels had been
numerous in the history of Spanish rule, but now for the first time they were inspired by nationalist
ambitions and possessed the education needed to make success a real possibility.

The Philippine Revolution

In August 1896, Spanish friars uncovered evidence of the Katipunan’s plans, and its leaders were forced
into premature action. Revolts broke out in several provinces around Manila. After months of fighting,
severe Spanish retaliation forced the revolutionary armies to retreat to the hills. In December 1897 a
truce was concluded with the Spanish. Emilio Aguinaldo, a municipal mayor and commander of the rebel
forces, was paid a large sum and was allowed to go to Hong Kong with other leaders; the Spanish
promised reforms as well. But reforms were slow in coming, and small bands of rebels, distrustful of
Spanish promises, kept their arms; clashes grew more frequent.

Emilio Aguinaldo