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Emilio Aguinaldo
Emilio Aguinaldo
In office
March 22, 1897 – April 1, 1901
Personal details
Born []
March 23, 1869
Cavite El Viejo, Spanish East Indies (now Kawit, Cavite, Philippines)
Signature
Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy[1][2] (March 22, 1869[3] – February 6, 1964) was a Filipino general, politician, and
independence leader. He played an instrumental role during the Philippines' revolution against Spain, and the
subsequent Philippine-American War or War of Philippine Independence[4] that resisted American occupation.
Aguinaldo became the Philippines' first President. He was also the youngest (at age 29) to have become the country's
president, the longest-lived president (having survived to age 94) and the president to have outlived the most number
of successors.
First marriage
On January 1, 1896, he married Hilaria Del Rosario (1877–1921), and the couple had five children: Carmen
Aguinaldo-Melencio, Emilio Aguinaldo, Jr, Maria Aguinaldo-Poblete, Cristina Aguinaldo-Suntay, and Miguel
Aguinaldo. Hilaria died of leprosy on March 6, 1921 at the age of 45.
His great-grandchildren are elusive to the public eye and continue to support Aguinaldo's traditions, such as
awarding the Philippine Military Academy Aguinaldo Saber Award. The youngest, Emiliana, currently continues to
confer the award.
Emilio Aguinaldo 3
Philippine revolution
In 1894, Aguinaldo joined the Katipunan or
the K.K.K., a secret organization led by
Andrés Bonifacio, dedicated to the
expulsion of the Spanish and independence
of the Philippines through armed force.[5]
Aguinaldo used the nom de guerre Magdalo,
in honor of Mary Magdalene.[6] His local
chapter of the Katipunan, headed by his
cousin Baldomero Aguinaldo, was also
called Magdalo.[7]
On February 17, 1897, Aguinaldo and a group of katipuneros defeated Spanish forces led by General Camilo de
Polavieja at the Battle of Zapote Bridge in Cavite. General Edilberto Evangelista, civil engineer, revolutionary and
trench builder, was killed in the battle. The province of Cavite gradually emerged as the Revolution's hotbed, and the
Aguinaldo-led katipuneros had a string of victories there.
However, conflict between the Magdalo and another Cavite Katipunan faction, the Magdiwang, led to Bonifacio's
intervention in the province.[9] The Cavite rebels then made overtures about establishing a revolutionary government
in place of the Katipunan.[10] Though Bonifacio already considered the Katipunan to be a government, he acquiesced
and presided over elections held during the Tejeros Convention in Tejeros, Cavite on March 22, 1897. Bonifacio lost
the leadership to Aguinaldo, and was elected instead to the office of Secretary of the Interior.[11] Even this was
questioned by Daniel Tirona, claiming Bonifacio had not the necessary schooling for the job. Insulted, Bonifacio
(drew out his gun and would have killed Tirona on the spot had he not been stopped) declared the Convention null
and void, and sought to return to his power base in Morong (present-day Rizal).[12]
Bonifacio refused to recognize the revolutionary government headed by Aguinaldo and attempted to reassert his
authority, accusing the Aguinaldo faction of treason and by issuing orders contravening orders issued by the
Aguinaldo faction.[13] At Aguinaldo's orders, Bonifacio and his brothers were arrested and, in a mock trial lasting
one day, convicted of treason, and sentenced to death.[14] After some vacillation, Aguinaldo commuted the death
sentence, but canceled his commutation order after being convinced by Generial Manuel Noriel, President of the
Council of War the death sentence, and others prominent in his government that the sentence must stand. Andrés and
Procopio were executed by firing squad on May 10, 1897 at Mount Hulog, about four kilometers west of
Maragondon, Cavite.[15]
Emilio Aguinaldo 4
Biak-na-Bato
Spanish pressure intensified, eventually forcing Aguinaldo's forces to
retreat to the mountains. Emilio Aguinaldo signed the Pact of
Biak-na-Bato. Under the pact, Aguinaldo effectively agreed to end
hostilities and dissolve his government in exchange for amnesty and
"$800,000 (Mexican)" (Aguinaldo's description of the amount) as an
indemnity.[16][17] The documents were signed on December 14 and 15,
1897. On December 23, Aguinaldo and other Katipunan officials
departed for Hong Kong to enter voluntary exile. $400,000,
representing the first installment of the indemnity, was deposited into
Hong Kong banks. While in exile, Aguinaldo reorganized his
revolutionary government into the "Supreme Council of the
Nation".[18]
In April 1898, war broke out between Spain and the United States. In
the Battle of Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, the American Asiatic
Squadron under Commodore George Dewey engaged and destroyed
the Spanish Pacific Squadron, and blockaded Manila.[20] Dewey
provided transport to return Aguinaldo to the Philippines. Aguinaldo
promptly resumed command of revolutionary forces and besieged
Manila.[21] Emilio Aguinaldo with the exiled revolutionaries
in Hong Kong.
Presidency
The insurgent First Philippine Republic was formally established with the proclamation of the Malolos Constitution
on January 21, 1899 in Malolos, Bulacan and endured until the capture of Emilio Aguinaldo by the American forces
on March 23, 1901 in Palanan, Isabela, which effectively dissolved the First Republic.
Aguinaldo appointed two premiers in his tenure. These were
Apolinario Mabini and Pedro Paterno.
Minister of Public Instruction Brnard Moses March 1899 - December 31, 1902
Aguedo Velarde
Minister of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce León María Guerrero May 7 – November 13, 1899
Domestic policies
Fiscal reform
Education initiative
Opening of the Malolos Congress at the
Aguinaldo ordered schools open. Elementary education was made Barasoain Church, Malolos, Bulacan on
September 15, 1898.
compulsory and free. The Filipino educator, Enrique Mendiola,
founded the "Instituto de Burgos" and were appointed by the Director
of Public Instruction. It offered courses in agriculture, surveying, and commerce, as well as a comof the
"Universidad Literia".[28] Courses offered were Medicine, Surgery, Pharmacy, and Notary Public. The President of
the Philippines appointed the professors thereof. They, in turn, chose the University rector. The first to occupy this
position was Joaquín Gonzales. Later, he was succeeded by Marecil Mercado.[29]
Visayan federation
Emphasizing the solid unity of the new Republic, Raymundo Melliza was appointed as President of the Visayan
Federation for two years, after having sworn allegiance to the Philippine Republic and recognizing Aguinaldo as the
nation's President.[30]
Foreign policies
Spanish prisoners
Upon the inauguration of the First Philippine Republic, President Emilio Aguinaldo granted executive clemency to
all Spanish civilians being held prisoners. He also granted permission for all foreigners, including Spaniards, to
freely engage in business in the Philippines.[30]
Philippine—American war
Members of the Cabinet, whom General Antonio Luna had arrested for
Personifying the United States, Uncle Sam chases
negotiating with the Americans, warned Aguinaldo that Luna had plans
a bee representing Emilio Aguinaldo, the
to start a coup against the Republic on June 13.[32] They also referred president of the Philippine Islands from March
to Mabini having approved of the coup. Luna was a disciplinarian and 22, 1897 to April 1, 1901. In 1901, two years
brilliant general and looming rival to Aguinaldo in the military after this cartoon's publication, at the end of the
Philippine-American War, Aguinaldo would be
hierarchy.
captured by U.S. forces.
On June 2, 1899, a telegram from Aguinaldo was received by Luna,
asking him to proceed to Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija for a meeting at the
Cabanatuan Church Convent. However, treachery was afoot. Three
days later (June 5), when Luna arrived, he learned Aguinaldo was not
at the appointed place. As Luna was about to depart, he was shot, then
stabbed to death by Aguinaldo's men. Luna was later buried in the
churchyard; no investigation was made, and Luna's assassins were
never punished.[33]
Less than two years later, on March 23, 1901, Aguinaldo was captured at his headquarters in Palanan by U.S.
General Frederick Funston, with the help of Macabebe trackers. The American task force gained access to
Aguinaldo's camp by pretending to be captured prisoners. Aguinaldo never received the weapons he ordered
scheduled for delivery on July 2, 1901 at Digoyo in Palanan also. Aguinaldo was confined at the Malacañan Palace
in what is today's State Dining Room. On April 19, 1901, Aguinaldo took an oath of allegiance to the United States,
formally ending the First Republic and recognizing the sovereignty of the United States over the Philippines.[36]
After Aguinaldo's surrender, some Filipino commanders continued the revolution. On July 30, 1901, General Miguel
Malvar issued a manifesto saying, "Forward, without ever turning back. ... All wars of independence have been
obliged to suffer terrible tests![37]" General Malvar surrendered to U.S forces in Lipa, Batangas on April 16, 1902.
The war was formally ended by a unilateral proclamation of general amnesty by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt
on July 4, 1902.[38]
Post-presidency
Aguinaldo retired from public life for many years. In 1935, when the Commonwealth of the Philippines was
established in preparation for Philippine independence, he ran for president in the Philippine presidential election,
1935, but lost by a landslide to fiery Spanish mestizo Manuel L. Quezon. The two men formally reconciled in 1941,
when President Quezon moved Flag Day to June 12, to commemorate the proclamation of Philippine
independence.[39] During the Japanese occupation, he cooperated with the Japanese, making speeches, issuing
articles and infamous radio addresses in support of the Japanese—including a radio appeal to Gen. Douglas
MacArthur on Corregidor to surrender in order to "spare the innocence of the Filipino youth."[40][41]
After the Americans retook the Philippines, Aguinaldo was arrested along with several others accused of
collaboration with the Japanese, and briefly jailed. He was released by presidential amnesty.[42]
Aguinaldo was 77 when the United States Government fully recognized Philippine independence in the Treaty of
Manila, in accordance with the Tydings-McDuffie Act of 1934.[43]
Emilio Aguinaldo 9
Post-American era
In 1950, President Elpidio Quirino appointed Aguinaldo as a member of the Council of State, where he served a full
term. He returned to retirement soon after, dedicating his time and attention to veteran soldiers' "interests and
welfare."
He was made an honorary Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa, by the University of the Philippines in 1953.
In 1962, President Diosdado Macapagal changed the celebration of Independence Day from July 4 to June 12.[44]
Aguinaldo rose from his sickbed to attend the celebration of independence 64 years after he declared it.
Death
Aguinaldo died of coronary thrombosis at age 94 on February 6, 1964, at the Veterans Memorial Hospital in Quezon
City. A year before his death, he had donated his lot and his mansion to the government. This property now serves as
a shrine to "perpetuate the spirit of the Revolution of 1896."[45]
In 1985, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas made a new 5-peso bill depicting a portrait of Aguinaldo on the front of the
bill. The back of the bill features the declaration of the Philippine independence on June 12, 1898.
Notes
[1] "Emilio Aguinaldo". The New Book of Knowledge, Grolier Incorporated. 1977.
[2] Karnow, Stanley. "Emilio Aguinaldo". In Our Image: America's Empire in the Philippines. Random House (1989). ISBN 978-0-394-54975-0.
[3] Most sources, including the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, support a 22 March birthdate.Donald H. Dyal; Brian B.
Carpenter; Mark A. Thomas (1996), Historical dictionary of the Spanish American War (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=CWaCEfeuQXkC), Greenwood Publishing Group, p. 6 (http:/ / books. google. com. ph/ books?id=CWaCEfeuQXkC& pg=PA6),
ISBN 978-0-313-28852-4, Keat Gin Ooi (2004), Southeast Asia: a historical encyclopedia, from Angkor Wat to East Timor (http:/ / books.
google. com/ books?id=QKgraWbb7yoC), ABC-CLIO, p. 129 (http:/ / books. google. com. ph/ books?id=QKgraWbb7yoC& pg=PA129),
ISBN 978-1-57607-770-2, Some sources give other dates. "Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo (1869–1964)" (http:/ / aboutph. com/ 2010/ 05/
gen-emilio-aguinaldo-1869-1964/ ). aboutph.com (http:/ / aboutph. com/ ). .Henri Turot (1981), Emilio Aguinaldo, first Filipino president,
1898–1901 (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=GDFxAAAAMAAJ), Foreign Service Institute, p. 3 (http:/ / books. google. com. ph/
books?ei=NlHXTNbsOc_Xcf35nKIM& ct=result& hl=en& id=GDFxAAAAMAAJ& dq=emilio+ aguinaldo+ "29+ march"+ 1869& q="29+
march"+ 1869#search_anchor),
[4] Weir, Frasier. "Spanish-American War / War of Philippine Independence 1898 - 1901" (http:/ / www. ualberta. ca/ ~vmitchel/ fw4. html). The
hostilities in the Philippine War of Independence began on February 4, 1899 and continued for two years. The United States needed 126,000
soldiers to subdue the Philippines. The war took the lives of 4,234 Americans and 16,000 Filipinos.. University of Alberta. .
[5] Kalaw 1927, p. 77 (http:/ / quod. lib. umich. edu/ cgi/ t/ text/ pageviewer-idx?c=philamer& cc=philamer& idno=afj2233. 0001. 001&
q1=aguinaldo& view=image& seq=97& size=100).
[6] Agoncillo 1990, p. 179.
[7] Guererro, Milagros; Schumacher, S.J., John (1998), Reform and Revolution, Kasaysayan: The History of the Filipino People, 5, Asia
Publishing Company Limited, ISBN 962-258-228-1
[8] Agoncillo 1990, p. 176.
[9] Agoncillo 1990, pp. 178–182.
[10] Agoncillo 1990, p. 182.
[11] Agoncillo 1990, p. 184.
[12] Agoncillo 1990, pp. 184–185.
[13] Agoncillo 1990, p. 188.
[14] Agoncillo 1990, pp. 189–190.
[15] Zaide 1999, p. 249.
[16] Don Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy, Chapter II. The Treaty of Biak-na-bató (http:/ / www. authorama. com/
true-version-of-the-philippine-revolution-3. html), "True Version of the Philippine Revolution" (http:/ / www. authorama. com/
true-version-of-the-philippine-revolution-1. html), Authorama Public Domain Books, , retrieved 2007-11-16
[17] The Mexican dollar at the time was worth about 50 U.S. cents, according to Halstead, Murat (1898), "XII. The American Army in Manila.
General Emilio Aguinaldo, a traitor of the Philippine Republic, during Spanish-American Regime." (http:/ / www. gutenberg. org/ catalog/
world/ readfile?fk_files=58428& pageno=122), The Story of the Philippines and Our New Possessions, Including the Ladrones, Hawaii, Cuba
and Porto Rico (http:/ / books. google. com/ ?id=lIQcwt7g2wkC), p. 126 (http:/ / www. gutenberg. org/ catalog/ world/
readfile?fk_files=58428& pageno=126),
[18] Zaide 1999, p. 253.
Emilio Aguinaldo 10
References
• Agoncillo, Teodoro A. (1990), History of the Filipino people (http://books.google.com/
books?id=KjxFOQAACAAJ), R.P. Garcia, ISBN 978-971-8711-06-4
• Fredriksen, John C. (2001), America's military adversaries: from colonial times to the present (http://books.
google.com/books?id=ZJlm7AQK-T4C), ABC-CLIO, ISBN 978-1-57607-603-3
• Guevara, Sulpico, ed. (2005), The laws of the first Philippine Republic (the laws of Malolos) 1898–1899 (http://
quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=philamer;iel=1;view=toc;idno=aab1246.0001.001), Ann Arbor,
Michigan: University of Michigan Library (published 1972), retrieved 2008-03-26. (English translation by
Sulpicio Guevara)
• Kalaw, Maximo Manguiat (1927), The Development of Philippine Politics (http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/
text/pageviewer-idx?c=philamer&cc=philamer&idno=afj2233.0001.001&frm=frameset&view=image&
seq=17&size=100), Oriental commercial
• Schroder, William (2004), Cousins of Color (http://books.google.com/books?id=BmpVY97KBJEC), Twenty
First Century Publishers Ltd, ISBN 978-1-904433-13-2
• Titherington, Richard Handfield (1900), A history of the Spanish-American war of 1898 (http://www.archive.
org/details/spanishamwar00tithrich), D. Appleton and Company (republished by openlibrary.org (http://
openlibrary.org/))
• Zaide, Sonia M. (1999), The Philippines: a unique nation (http://books.google.com/
books?id=6YMsNgAACAAJ), All-Nations Publishing, ISBN 978-971-642-071-5
Further reading
• Aguinaldo, Emilio (1964), Mga Gunita ng Himagsikan
• Zaide, Gregorio F. (1984), Philippine History and Government, National Bookstore Printing Press
External links
• The Philippine Presidency Project (http://www.pangulo.ph)
• Emilio Aguinaldo on the Presidential Museum and Library (http://malacanang.gov.ph/presidents/
first-republic/emilio-aguinaldo/)
• CAUTUSAN: Gobierno Revolucionario nang Filipinas (http://web.archive.org/web/20071211045257/http://
www.filipiniana.net/read_content.jsp?filename=BOOK00000022&page=82&epage=83) A decree dated
January 2, 1899 signed by Emilio Aguinaldo establishing a council of government. An online document published
by Filipiniana.net (http://filipiniana.net) (archived from the original (http://www.filipiniana.net/read_content.
jsp?filename=BOOK00000022&page=82&epage=83) on 2007-12-11)
• Aguinaldo: A Narrative of Filipino Ambitions (http://web.archive.org/web/20080213184428/http://www.
filipiniana.net/readbook_content.jsp?filename=BOOK00000027&page=5&epage=26) Book written by
American Consul Wildman of Hong Kong regarding Emilio Aguinaldo and the Filipino-American War during the
early 1900s. An online publication made by Filipiniana.net (http://filipiniana.net) (archived from the original
(http://www.filipiniana.net/readbook_content.jsp?filename=BOOK00000027&page=5&epage=26) on
2008-02-12)
• General Emilio Aguinaldo’s “Confession” (http://web.archive.org/web/20080527163125/http://www.
filipiniana.net/read_content.jsp?filename=PRR004000011). Published in Filipiniana.net (http://www.
filipiniana.net/index.jsp). (archived from the original (http://www.filipiniana.net/read_content.
jsp?filename=PRR004000011) on 2008-05-27)
• Works by Emilio Aguinaldo (http://www.gutenberg.org/author/Emilio_Aguinaldo) at Project Gutenberg
• Emilio Aguinaldo (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9004099/Emilio-Aguinaldo), Encyclopædia
BritannicaOnline, retrieved 2008-04-25
Article Sources and Contributors 12
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