History as the Site of Controversial and Conflicting Views
Side A:First mass: Limasawa Side B: First mass: Butuan
A: Background Antonio Pigafetta was a famous Italian
of the traveller who studied navigation and
Authors/Writer known by the name of Antonio
s Lambardo or Francisco Antonio
Pigafetta. He joined the Portuguese,
Captain Ferdinand Magellan and his
Spanish crew on their trip to Maluku
Island.[7] Pigafetta has the most
complete account of Magellan
expedition entitled Primo viaggio intorno
al mondo (First Voyage around the
world). He was one of the eighteen
survivors who returned to Spain aboard
the "Victoria" and therefore considered
as an eyewitness of the significant
events happened on the first mass of
which Magellan names it the Islands of
Saint Lazarus that is later called the
Philippine Archipelago.
B: Summary of It was Easter Sunday, March 31, 1521,
the when the first Mass in the Philippines
Document/Re was celebrated by Pedro Valderama, a
ading priest with the Magellan expedition in
Limasawa, an islet at the southern tip of
Leyte del Sur.
Two days earlier, on March 29, 1521,
Ferdinand Magellan asked Rajah
Colambu, for a "casicasi" (a phrase
culled by Magellan for brotherhood
relation. This was the genesis of Fil-
Spanish relation).
The brotherhood relation was realized
on board the Victoria, the flagship of
Magellan, and sealed with artillery fired
from the Spanish fleet anchored on the
southern end of Limasawa, now
barangay Magallanes.
When Magellan's fleet arrived, a baroto
(an outrigger), approached the Spanish
ships. The hospitality of the people of
Limasawa was in contrast to the
unfriendly treatment by the natives of
The author, formerly Contramaestre
(Boatswain) on the Trinidad,
became the Victoria's pilot as it
approached Brazil. He is referred to
as Alvo or Alvaro in the Hakluyt
edition's Table of Contents, but as
Albo on the first page of his account
in that edition. The latter spelling is
used here, and this extract provides
Albo's account of the voyage until
they reached the entrance to the
Pacific Ocean.
On March 16, 1521 as they sailed in
a westerly course from Ladrones or
known as Mariana Island at the
present, they saw land towards the
northwest but they didn't landed
there due to shallow places and
later found its name as Yunagan.
On that same day, they went in a
small island called Suluan which is
a part of Samar and there they
anchored. Leaving from those two
islands, they sailed westward to an
island of Gada where they took in a
supply of wood and water from that
island, they sailed towards west to a
large island called Seilani (now
Leyte). Along the coast of Seilani,
they sailed southwards and turned
southwest until they reached the
island of Mazava. From there, they
sailed northwards again towards the
Island of Seilani and followed the
coast of Seilani towards northwest
and saw three small islands. They
sailed westwards and saw three
islets where they anchored for the
 South America. In Limasawa, the
Spaniards met a cultured people.
Colambu showed the ritual for drinking
by raising his clasped hands towards the
sky then towards his guest and pointing
his fist towards a guest.
The First Mass was the mega-event with
artillery fired announcing the coming of
Christianity in the Philippines to the
world.
night. In the morning, they sailed
southwest. There, they entered
canal between two island, one of
which was called Subu (now called
Cebu) and the other was Matan
(now called Mactan). They sailed
towards southwest on that canal
then turned westward and anchored
at the town of Subu wherein they
stayed there for many days

Magellan took Colambu and his

constituents to a hilltop which they
obliged unknowing that the erection of a
cross was the ritualistic subjugation of
the Filipinos by Spain through Capitan
Fernando de Magallanes formerly
Fernao de Magalhaes, Admiral of
Portugal.

The people of Limasawa welcomed the

foreigners with a true spirit of love and
with a tangible feeling of pride and
dignity. But this was dented by the
suicidal self-delusion of Magellan that he
and 49 soldiers were enough to subdue
the enemy of Humabon -- Lapulapu who
challenged Magellan's forces with 1,500
armed men with bolos and sharpened
bamboo spears.

The battle of Mactan drove the Spanish

soldiers back and their leader Magellan
was slain. With Magellan's death,
Europe was not fed the truth about the
events that unfolded in Limasawa.
C: Content  Francisco Albo ( pilot of
Analysis: Magellan’s flagship does not
dates, people, mention the first mass but he
places, writes that they erected a cross
sequence/chro on a mountain which overlooked
nology of three islands the west and the
events, southwest.
differences  James Robertson agreed with
Pastells in a footnote that
“Mazua” was actually Limasawa.
 in the authentic account of
Pigafetta, the port was not in
Butuan but an island named
Mazua ( Masawa)
 Father Bernard studied all the
Pigafetta’s maps, which place in
Mazau off the southern tip of the
larger island of Leyte., a check
 1872 : A monument to
commemorate the site of
first mass on the Philippines
was erected in Butuan.
 1953: The people in Butuan
asked the Philippine
Historical Committee to
rehabilitate the monument or
place a marker on the site.
 On the basis of this objection
the monument was re
erected but the marble slab
stating it was the site of first
mass was removed.
 Zaide identified Masao in
Butuan as the location of the
first mass. The basis Zaide’s
claim is the diary of Antonio
 with the modern maps will show Pigafetta, chronicle of
that this jibes with Limasawa and Magellan’s voyage.
not Masao or Butuan

D: Overall 1. The evidence of Albo’s Log-Book 1. The name of the place

contention/ 2. The Evidence of Pigafetta 2. the route from Homonhon
claim of each a) Pigafetta’s testimony 3. the latitude position
side regarding the route 4. The geographical features
b) The evidence of a) the bonfire
Pigafetta’s map b) the balanghai
c) The two native kings c) house
d) The seven days at d) abundance of
“Mazaua” gold
e) An argument from e) a developed
omission settlement
3. Summary of the evidence of Albo
and Pigafetta.
4. Confirmatory evidence from the
Legazpi expedition.

Side A: Cavity Mutiny: Spanish Side B: Cavite Mutiny:

 Version
A: Background Jose Montero y Vidal is a Spanish
of the Historian, who interpreted that the
Authors/Writer Mutiny was an attempt to remove and
s overthrow the Spanish Colonizers in the
Philippines. His account, corroborated
with the account of Governor - General
Rafael Izquidero y Gutierrez, the
governor-general of the Philippine
Islands during the Mutiny. They
mentioned that the mutiny was powered
by a group of native clergy. The Cavite
Mutiny is an aim of natives to get rid of
the Spanish government in the
Philippines, due to the removal of
privileges enjoyed by the laborers of the
Cavite arsenal such as exemption from
the tribute and forced labor. The
democratic and republican books and
pamphlets, the speeches and preaching
of the apostles of these new ideas in
Spain and the outburst of the American
publicists and the cruel policies of the
insensitive governor whom the reigning
government sent to govern the country.
Filipinos put into action these ideas
where the occurring conditions which
gave rise to the idea of achieving their
independence.
Filipino Version
Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera was
born on 13 April 1857 to Spanish
lawyer and government official Félix
Pardo de Tavera and Juliana
Gorricho from a wealthy, illustrious
Filipino family. The Pardos de
Tavera had a long history. His
father, Félix, descended from the
Portuguese aristocratic family of
Pardo from Tavira, Portugal. In late
1640s, the Pardos added the name
de Tavera to affix their place of
origin similar to Spanish noble
customs.
Trinidad Hermenegildo Pardo de
Tavera y Gorricho (1857-1925).
Filipino physician and historian. An
outstanding Filipinologist who wrote
notable scholarly works in various
fields of Oriental and Philippine
studies; language, anthropology,
folklore, etc. His training and
qualification as a doctor are
immense. T
T. H Pardo de Tavera received his
licentiate in medicine at the Faculté
de Médecine de Paris and his
bachelor in medicine also in the
same institution. In the mid-1880s,
he enrolled in École nationale des
langues orientales vivantes (now
Institut national des langues et
civilisations orientales) and took
courses under Pierre Étienne
Lazare Favre. In December 1885,
he received his diploma in the
Malay language.
One of Pardo de Tavera's book
'Plantas Medicinales de Filipinas' is
an outstanding study on the
different medicinal plants of the
country. But as a politician, history
seems to be unkind to T.H Pardo de
Tavera. Perhaps he always went to
the wrong side, feeling safe on his
stance, he never took chances. He
never tried the difficult and bold path
like what Rizal did. Always
mistrustful of Aguinaldo, he jumped
to the American bandwagon when
things started to look dim for the

B: Summary of Jose Montero y Vidal, a prolific Spanish
the historian documented the event and
Document/Re highlighted it as an attempt of the Indios
ading to overthrow the Spanish government in
the Philippines. Meanwhile, Gov. Gen.
Rafael Izquierdo’s official report
magnified the event and made use of it
to implicate the native clergy, which was
then active in the call for secularization.
The two accounts complimented and
corroborated with one other, only that
the general’s report was more spiteful.
Initially, both Montero and Izquierdo
scored out that the abolition of privileges
enjoyed by the workers of Cavite
arsenal such as non-payment of tributes
and exemption from force labor were the
main reasons of the “revolution” as how
they called it, however, other causes
were enumerated by them including the
Spanish Revolution which overthrew the
secular throne, dirty propagandas
proliferated by unrestrained press,
democratic, liberal and republican books
and pamphlets reaching the Philippines,
and most importantly, the presence of
the native clergy who out of animosity
against the Spanish friars, “conspired
and supported” the rebels and enemies
of Spain. In particular, Izquierdo blamed
the unruly Spanish Press for
“stockpiling” malicious propagandas
grasped by the Filipinos. He reported to
the King of Spain that the “rebels”
wanted to overthrow the Spanish
government to install a new “hari” in the
likes of Fathers Burgos and Zamora.
The general even added that the native
clergy enticed other participants by
giving them charismatic assurance that
their fight will not fail because God is
with them coupled with handsome
promises of rewards such as
employment, wealth, and ranks in the
army. Izquierdo, in his report lambasted
the Indios as gullible and possessed an
revolutionary. He, together with
some notable "Balimbings" founded
the "Partido Federal" with the aim of
total assimilation to the US and
making the Philippines a legitimate
state in the American Union.
Historian Teodoro Agoncillo once
wrote: "Pardo de Tavera should
have been shot for his betrayal of
the Revolution"
On March 16, 1521 as they sailed in
a westerly course from Ladrones or
known as Mariana Island at the
present, they saw land towards the
northwest but they didn't landed
there due to shallow places and
later found its name as Yunagan.
On that same day, they went in a
small island called Suluan which is
a part of Samar and there they
anchored. Leaving from those two
islands, they sailed westward to an
island of Gada where they took in a
supply of wood and water from that
island, they sailed towards west to a
large island called Seilani (now
Leyte). Along the coast of Seilani,
they sailed southwards and turned
southwest until they reached the
island of Mazava. From there, they
sailed northwards again towards the
Island of Seilani and followed the
coast of Seilani towards northwest
and saw three small islands. They
sailed westwards and saw three
islets where they anchored for the
night. In the morning, they sailed
southwest. There, they entered
canal between two island, one of
which was called Subu (now called
Cebu) and the other was Matan
(now called Mactan). They sailed
towards southwest on that canal
then turned westward and anchored
at the town of Subu wherein they
stayed there for many days
innate propensity for stealing.

The two Spaniards deemed that the

event of 1872 was planned earlier and
was thought of it as a big conspiracy
among educated leaders, mestizos,
abogadillos or native lawyers, residents
of Manila and Cavite and the native
clergy. They insinuated that the
conspirators of Manila and Cavite
planned to liquidate high-ranking
Spanish officers to be followed by the
massacre of the friars. The alleged pre-
concerted signal among the conspirators
of Manila and Cavite was the firing of
rockets from the walls of Intramuros.

According to the accounts of the two,

on 20 January 1872, the district of
Sampaloc celebrated the feast of the
Virgin of Loreto, unfortunately
participants to the feast celebrated the
occasion with the usual fireworks
displays. Allegedly, those in Cavite
mistook the fireworks as the sign for the
attack, and just like what was agreed
upon, the 200-men contingent headed
by Sergeant Lamadrid launched an
attack targeting Spanish officers at sight
and seized the arsenal.

When the news reached the iron-

fisted Gov. Izquierdo, he readily ordered
the reinforcement of the Spanish forces
in Cavite to quell the revolt. The
“revolution” was easily crushed when
the expected reinforcement from Manila
did not come ashore. Major instigators
including Sergeant Lamadrid were killed
in the skirmish, while the GOMBURZA
were tried by a court-martial and were
sentenced to die by strangulation.
Patriots like Joaquin Pardo de Tavera,
Antonio Ma. Regidor, Jose and Pio Basa
and other abogadillos were suspended
by the Audencia (High Court) from the
practice of law, arrested and were
sentenced with life imprisonment at the
Marianas Island. Furthermore, Gov.
Izquierdo dissolved the native regiments
of artillery and ordered the creation of
artillery force to be composed
exclusively of the Peninsulares.

On 17 February 1872 in an attempt

of the Spanish government and
 Frailocracia to instill fear among the
Filipinos so that they may never commit
such daring act again, the GOMBURZA
were executed. This event was tragic
but served as one of the moving forces
that shaped Filipino nationalism..
C: Content  Date happened
Analysis:
dates, people,
places,
20 January 
a) In the night of 20
January 1872
People involved
sequence/chro
nology of
events,
1872 at 9:30 a) Sergeant La Madrid
b) (clergy) Jose
Burgos
differences
in the c) Jacinto Zamora
d) Mariano Gomez
e) P. Mendoza

evening
f) Guevarra
g) Mariano Sevilla
h) Feliciano Gomez
i) Ballesteros

20 January j) Jose Basa,

k) (lawyers) Carillo,
Basa, Enriquez,

1872 at 9:30 Crisanto Reyes,

Maximo Paterno,
Antonio M. Regidor,

in the Joaquin, Pardo de

Tavera and others

evening
 Reason/s of mutiny
a) Harsh policy of the
despotic governor
 Date happened and captain general
a) 20 January 1872 at Rafael de Izquierdo
9:30 in the evening abolishing their
 People involved privilege of
a) Jose Burgos exemption from
b) Jacinto Zamora paying annual
c) Mariano Gomez tribute and
d) Francisco Saldua and rendering forced
several other Filipino labor or polo.
priests
e) Antonio Maria Regidor
f) Joaquin Pardo de
Tavera
g) Pedro Carillo
h) Gervacio Sanchez
i) Jose Mauricio de
j) Leon
k) Enrique Paraiso
l) Jose Basa
m) Pio Basa
n) Crisanto Reyes
o) Maximo Paterno and
several other Filipinos
p) Sergeant La Madrid
  Reason/s of mutiny
a) Liberal ideas from
Europe disseminated by
the illustrados studying
in Spain.
b) Revolt to overthrow the
Spanish rule to gain
independence from
monarchial control.
c) Abolition of the
privileges enjoyed by
the native soldiers and
laborers of the Cavite
arsenal such as
exemption from paying
annual tribute and
forced labor (polo)
D: Overall Jose Montero y Vidal is a
contention/ Spanish Historian, who
claim of each interpreted that the Mutiny was
side an attempt to remove and
overthrow the Spanish
Colonizers in the Philippines. His
account, corroborated with the
account of Governor - General
Rafael Izquidero y Gutierrez, the
governor-general of the
Philippine Islands during the
Mutiny. They mentioned that the
mutiny was powered by a group
of native clergy. The Cavite
Mutiny is an aim of natives to get
rid of the Spanish government in
the Philippines, due to the
removal of privileges enjoyed by
the laborers of the Cavite arsenal
such as exemption from the
tribute and forced labor. The
democratic and republican books
and pamphlets, the speeches
and preaching of the apostles of
these new ideas in Spain and the
outburst of the American
publicists and the cruel policies
of the insensitive governor whom
the reigning government sent to
govern the country. Filipinos put
into action these ideas where the
occurring conditions which gave
rise to the idea of achieving their
independence.
The event is just a simple
mutiny since up to that time
the Filipinos have no
intention of separation from
Spain but only secure
materials and education
advancements in the
country. However, the mutiny
was used at a powerful level.
Also, in this time, the central
government deprived friars
of the powers of involvement
in civil government and in
governing and handling
universities. This resulted in
the friars afraid that their
leverage in the Philippines
would be a thing in the past,
took advantage of the mutiny
and reported it to the
Spanish government as a
broad conspiracy organized
throughout the archipelago
with the object of abolishing
Spanish sovereignty. The
Madrid government without
any attempt to investigate
the real facts or extent of the
alleged revolution reported
by Izquierdo and the friars
believed the scheme was
true.[
 Side A: Cry of Pugadlawin
A: Background On July 11, 1869, Pio Valenzuela, a
of the Filipino physician and a major figure
Authors/Writer during the Philippine Revolution against
s Spanish colonizers, was born in Polo,
Bulacan (present day Valenzuela City).
Valenzuela was a medical student at the
University of Santos Tomas when he
joined the barely week-old Katipunan, a
secret society founded by Andres
Bonifacio on July 7, 1892 in Tondo,
Manila.
He secretly established Katipunan
branches in many areas in Morong (now
Rizal province) and Bulacan.
It was Dr. Valenzuela who was
commissioned by Bonifacio to talk to Dr.
Jose Rizal, who was deported to
Dapitan in Zamboanga, about the
founding of the Katipunan and its plan to
rise against the Spanish authorities. He
left for Dapitan on June 15, 1896.
Rizal however insisted that the country
came first and warned against
embarking on a change of government
for which the people were not prepared.
Rizal declared that education was first
necessary, and in his opinion general
enlightenment was the only road to
progress.
Side B: Cry of Balintawak
Guillermo R. Masangkay
(1867-1963)
One of the most prominent streets
of Manila’s Santa Cruz-Binondo
area is a street called Masangkay,
named after a prominent figure in
the Kataastaasang, Kagalang-
galang na Katipunan ng mga Anak
ng Bayan or the KKK/Katipunan
movement. But more than that, he
was also a good friend and
confidant of Andres Bonifacio, the
movement’s founder and Supremo.
Guillermo Masangkay was one of
them, a friend and adviser of Andres
Bonifacio, a bosom friend who
joined that underground society
when he was only 17.
He was born on June 25, 1867 in
Meisic, Tondo, Manila. His parents
were Domingo Masangkay of
Batangas and Victoria Rafael of
Tanza, Cavite. He was the youngest
of four children. Masangkay had no
formal education. However, he had
a strong intellectual drive.
Thus, although he was only a
bangkero, or boatman, he became
fluent in Spanish and deeply aware

Notably, Valenzuela helped Emilio
Jacinto establish the Katipunan paper,
Kalayaan, using stolen types from the
Diario de Manila.
Valenzuela later availed of the amnesty
that the Spanish colonial government
offered. He surrendered on September
1, 1896 and was then deported to Spain
where he was tried and imprisoned in
Madrid. Later, he was transferred to
Malaga, Barcelona and then to a
Spanish outpost in Africa. He was
incarcerated for about two years.
Under American occupation, he was
imprisoned again as he was denounced
to the American military authorities as a
"radical propagandist".
In later years, he served as the first
mayor (during the American regime) of
the municipality of Polo (now Valenzuela
City) from 1899 to 1900 before he
became the governor of Bulacan
province (1921-1925).
After he retired from politics, he wrote
his memoirs on the revolutionary days
but historians have since been wary of
his autobiography because of some
inconsistencies in his version of events,
particularly about his meeting with Dr.
Rizal in Dapitan in 1896.
He died on April 6, 1956 at the age of
86.
In 1963, the town of Polo was renamed
Valenzuela in his honor. The municipality
became a city in 1998.
B: Summary of The news of the discovery of the
the Katipunan spread throughout Manila
Document/Re and the suburbs. Bonifacio, informed of
ading the discovery, secretly instructed his
runners to summon all the leaders of the
society to a general assembly to be held
on August 24. They were to meet at
Balintawak to discuss the steps to be
taken to meet the crisis. That same night
of August 19, Bonifacio, accompanied
by his brother Procopio, Emilio Jacinto,
Teodoro Plata, and Aguedo del Rosario,
slipped through the cordon of Spanish
sentries and reached Balintawak before
of the political and social conditions
of his time.
He was plying his trade when he
heard about a prominent young man
in his neighborhood that he became
friends with – Bonifacio. As they got
to know each other well, they found
that they had the same patriotic
aspirations.
Masangkay was with Bonifacio in
April 1896 at the Bernardo Carpio
Cave on Mt. Tapusi, San Mateo,
Rizal. It was the site originally
chosen for the start of the uprising,
not Balintawak.
Masangkay, also known as
guillermo was born on June 25,
1867 and native of Meisic, Tondo,
Manila and one of the first members
of the Katipunan.
He died on May 30, 1963
In the midst of this dramatic scene,
some Katipuneros who had just
arrived from Manila and Kalookan
shouted "Dong Andres! The civil
guards are almost behind us, and
will reconnoiter the mountains."
Bonifacio at once ordered his men
to get ready for the expected attack
of the Spaniards. Since they had
inferior arms the rebels decided,
instead, to retreat. Under cover of
darkness, the rebels marched
towards Pasong Tamo, and the next
day, August 24, they arrived at the
midnight. Pio Valenzuela followed them
the next day. On the 21st, Bonifacio
changed the Katipunan code because
the Spanish authorities had already
deciphered it. In the afternoon of the
same day, the rebels, numbering about
500, left Balintawak for Kangkong,
where Apolonio Samson, a Katipunero,
gave them food and shelter. In the
afternoon of August 22, they proceeded
to Pugadlawin. The following day, in the
yard of Juan A. Ramos, the son of
Melchora Aquino who was later called
the "Mother of the Katipunan", Bonifacio
asked his men whether they were
prepared to fight to the bitter end.
Despite the objection of his brother-in-
law, Teodoro Plata, all assembled
agreed to fight to the last. "That being
the case, " Bonifacio said, "bring out
your cedulas and tear them to pieces to
symbolize our determination to take up
arms!" The men obediently tore up their
cedulas, shouting "Long live the
Philippines!" This event marked the so-
called "Cry of Balintawak," which
actually happened in Pugadlawin.
yard of Melchora Aquino, known as
Tandang Sora. It was decided that
all the rebels in the surrounding
towns be notified of the general
attack on Manila on the night of
August 29, 1896.
At ten in the morning of August 25,
some women came rushing in and
notified Bonifacio that the civil
guards and some infantrymen were
coming. Soon after, a burst of fire
came from the approaching
Spaniards. The rebels deployed and
prepared for the enemy. In the
skirmish that followed, the rebels
lost two men and the enemy one.
Because of their inferior weapons,
which consisted mostly of bolos and
a few guns, the rebels decided to
retreat. On the other hand, the
Spaniards, finding themselves
greatly outnumbered, also decided
to retreat. So both camps retreated
and thus prevented a bloody
encounter. This was the first
skirmish fought in the struggle for
national emancipation.
On August 26, Spanish
reinforcements were dispatched to
Pasong Tamo to drive away the
rebels. But the latter, who were
going to or were already in Balara,
could not be found. The Spaniards,
frustrated in their attempt to contact
the Filipino contingent, shot,
instead, two innocent farmers who
were leisurely going on their way
home. Returning to Manila, the
Spanish soldiers boasted that a
great fight has taken place at
Pasong Tamo, and that they had
driven the rebels to the interior. This
was the origin of the so-called "Cry
of Balintawak", which neither
happened on August 26 nor in
Balintawak.
Meanwhile, the rebels, skirting the
mountain trails day and night, finally
arrived in Mariquina. Later in the
day, however, they abandoned it
and proceeded to Hagdang Bato on
August 27. The following day,
Bonifacio issued a manifesto inciting
 the people to take up the Filipino
cause and to get set for a concerted
attack on the Spaniards on August
29.
C: Content
Analysis:
dates, people,
places,
20 January
sequence/chro
nology of
events,
1872 at 9:30
differences
in the
evening
20 January
1872 at 9:30
in the
evening
On August 26th, a big meeting was
held in Balintawak, at the house of
Apolonio Samson, then cabeza of
that barrio of Caloocan. Among
those who attended, I remember,
were Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto,
Aguedo del Rosario, Tomas
Remigio, Briccio Pantas, Teodoro
Plata, Pio Valenzuela, Enrique
Pacheco, and Francisco Carreon.
They were all leaders of the
Katipunan and composed the board
of directors of the organization.
Delegates from Bulacan,
Cabanatuan, Cavite, and Morong
were also present.
At about nine o'clock in the morning
of August 26, the meeting was
opened with Andres Bonifacio
presiding and Emilio Jacinto acting
as secretary. The purpose was to
discuss when the uprising was to
take place. Teodoro Plata, Briccio
Pantas, and Pio Valenzuela were all
opposed to starting the revolution
In 1935, Pio Valenzuela, along
with Briccio Pantas and Enrique
Pacheco said (in English
translation) "The first Cry of the
revolution did not happen in
Balintawak where the monument
is, but in a place called Pugad
Lawin." In 1940, a research
team of a forerunner of the
National Historical Institute (NHI)
which included Valenzuela,
identified the location as part of
sitio Gulod, Banlat, Kalookan
City. IN 1964, the NHI described
this location as the house of
Tandang Sora.[8]
The first place of refuge of
Andres Bonifacio, Emilio
Jacinto, Procopio, Bonifacio,
Teodoro Plata, Aguedo del
Rosario, and myself was
Balintawak, the first five arriving
there on August 19, and I on
August 20, 1896. The first place
where some 500 members of
the Katipunan met on August 22,
1896, was the house and yard of
Apolonio Samson at Kangkong.
Aside from the persons
mentioned above, among those
who were there were Briccio
Pantas, Alejandro Santiago,
Ramon Bernardo, Apolonio
Samson, and others. Here,
views were only exchanged, and
no resolution was debated or
adopted. It was at Pugad Lawin,
the house, store-house, and
yard of Juan Ramos, son of
Melchora Aquino, where over
1,000 members of the Katipunan
met and carried out
considerable debate and
discussion on August 23, 1896.
The discussion was on whether
or not the revolution against the
Spanish government should be
started on August 29, 1896...
After the tumultuous meeting,
many of those present tore their
cedula certificates and shouted
too early...Andres Bonifacio, sensing "Long live the Philippines! Long
that he would lose the discussion live the Philippines!
then, left the session hall and talked
to the people, who were waiting
outside for the result of the meeting  Persons involved
of the leaders. He told the people › Teodoro Kalaw
that the leaders were arguing › L.T. Olegario Diaz
against starting the revolution early, › Santiago Alvarez
and appealed to them in a fiery › Pio Valenzuela
speech in which he said:"You › Gregorio Zaide
remember the fate of our  Dates mentioned
countrymen who were shot in › August 25, 1896
Bagumbayan. Should we return now › Last week of August
to the towns, the Spaniards will only › August 24, 1896
shoot us. Our organization has been › August 23, 1896
discovered and we are all marked › August 26, 1896
men. If we don't start the uprising, › August 24, 1896
the Spaniards will get us anyway.  Places mentioned
What then, do you say?" › Balintawak
› Kangkong,
"Revolt!" the people shouted as one. Balintawak
› Bahay Toro, Quezon
Bonifacio then asked the people to City
give a pledge that they were to › Pugad Lawin
revolt. He told them that the sign of
slavery of the Filipinos were (sic) the
cedula tax charged each citizen. "If it
is true that you are ready to revolt... I
want to see you destroy your
cedulas. It will be a sign that all of us
have declared our severance from
the Spaniards.[5]

The Cry of Balintawak occurred on

August 26, 1896. The Cry, defined
as that turning point when the
Filipinos finally refused Spanish
colonial dominion over the Philippine
Islands. With tears in their eyes, the
people as one man, pulled out their
cedulas and tore them into pieces. It
was the beginning of the formal
declaration of the separation from
Spanish rule."Long Live the
Philippine Republic!", the cry of the
people. An article from The Sunday
Tribune Magazine on August 21,
1932 featured the statements of the
eyewitness account by Katipunan
General Guillermo Masangkay, "A
Katipunero Speaks". Masangkay
recounts the "Cry of Balintawak",
stating that on August 26,1896, a big
meeting was held in Balintawak at
the house of Apolonio Samson, then
the cabeza of that barrio of
 Caloocan. At about nine o'clock in
the morning of August 26, the
meeting was opened with Andres
Bonifacio presiding and Emilio
Jacinto acting as Secretary. In
August 1896, after the Katipunan
was discovered, Masangkay joined
Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, and others
in a clandestine meeting held on the
26th of that month at Apolonio
Samson’s house in Caloocan.

Initially, the leaders of the movement

quarreled over strategy and tactics,
and many of its members
questioned the wisdom of an open
rebellion due to the lack of arms and
logistical support. However, after
Bonifacio’s intense and convincing
speech, everyone destroyed their
cedulas to symbolize their defiance
towards Spain and, together, raised
the cry of “Revolt".

 Persons involved
› Teodoro Kalaw
› L.T. Olegario Diaz
› Santiago Alvarez
› Pio Valenzuela
› Gregorio Zaide
› Teodoro Agoncillo
 Dates mentioned
› August 25, 1896
› Last week of August
› August 24, 1896
› August 23, 1896
› August 26, 1896
› August 23, 1896
› August 24, 1896
 Places mentioned
› Balintawak
› Kangkong, Balintawak
› Bahay Toro, Quezon City
› Pugad Lawin
D: Overall Pio Valenzuela had several What occurred during those
contention/ versions of the Cry. Only after last days of August 1896?
claim of each they are compared and Eyewitness accounts
side reconciled with the other mention captures, escapes,
accounts will it be possible to recaptures, killings of
determined what really Katipunan members; the
happened. interrogation of Chinese
spies; the arrival of arms in
Was there a meeting at Pugad Meycauyan, Bulacan; the
Lawin on 23 August 1896, after debate with Teodoro Plata
the meeting at Apolonio and others; the decision to
Samson’s residence in Hong go war; the shouting of
Kong? Where were the cedulas
torn, at Kangkong or Pugad
Lawin?
In September 1896, Valenzuela
stated before the Olive Court,
which was charged with
investigating persons involved in
the rebellion, only that Katipunan
meetings took place from
Sunday to Tuesday or 23 to 25
August at Balintawak.
In 1911, Valenzuela averred that
the Katipunan began meeting on
22 August while the Cry took
place on 23 August at Apolonio
Samson’s house in Balintawak.
From 1928 to 1940, Valenzuela
maintained that the Cry
happened on 24 August at the
house of Tandang Sora
(Melchora Aquino) in Pugad
Lawin, which he now situated
near Pasong Tamo Road. A
photograph of Bonifacio’s widow
Gregoria de Jesus and
Katipunan members Valenzuela,
Briccio Brigido Pantas, Alfonso
and Cipriano Pacheco, published
in La Opinion in 1928 and 1930,
was captioned both times as
having been taken at the site of
the Cry on 24 August 1896 at the
house of Tandang Sora at
Pasong Tamo Road.
In 1935 Valenzuela, Pantas and
Pacheco proclaimed “na hindi sa
Balintawak nangyari ang unang
sigaw ng paghihimagsik na
kinalalagian ngayon ng
bantayog, kung di sa pook na
kilala sa tawag na Pugad Lawin.”
(The first Cry of the revolution
did not happen in Balintawak
where the monument is, but in a
place called Pugad Lawin.)
In 1940, a research team of the
Philippines Historical Committee
(a forerunner of the National
Historical Institute or NHI), which
included Pio Valenzuela,
identified the precise spot of
slogan; tearing of cedulas;
the sending of letters
presidents of Sanggunian
and balangay councils; the
arrival of civil guard; the loss
of Katipunan funds during
the skirmish. All these
events, and many others,
constitute the beginning of
nationwide revolution.
The Cry, however, must be
defined as that turning point
when the Filipinos finally
rejected Spanish colonial
dominion over the Philippine
Islands, by formally
constituting their own
national government, and by
investing a set of leaders
with authority to initiate and
guide the revolution towards
the establishment of
sovereign nation.
Where did this take place?
The introduction to the
original Tagalog text of the
Biyak na Bato Constitution
states:
Ang paghiwalay ng Filipinas
sa kahariang España sa
patatag ng isang bayang
may sariling pamamahala’t
kapangyarihan na
pangangalang “Republika ng
Filipinas” ay siyang layong
inadhika niyaring
Paghihimagsik na
kasalukuyan, simula pa ng
ika- 24 ng Agosto ng taong
1896…
The Spanish text also states:
La separacion de Filipinas
de la Monarquia Española,
constituyendose en Estado
Independiente y soberano
con Gobierno propuio, con el
nombre de Repulica de
Filipinas, es en su Guerra
actual, iniciada en 24 de
Agosto de 1896…
Pugad Lawin as part of sitio
Gulod, Banlat, Kalookan City. In
1964, the NHI’s Minutes of the
Katipunan referred to the place
of the Cry as Tandang Sora’s
and not as Juan Ramos’ house,
and the date as 23 August.
Valenzuela memoirs (1964,
1978) averred that the Cry took
place on 23 August at the house
of Juan Ramos at Pugad Lawin.
The NHI was obviously
influenced by Valenzuela’s
memoirs. In 1963, upon the NHI
endorsement, President
Diosdado Macapagal ordered
that the Cry be celebrated on 23
August and that Pugad Lawin be
recognized as its site.
John N. Schrumacher, S.J, of the
Ateneo de Manila University was
to comment on Pio Valenzuela’s
credibility:
I would certainly give much less
credence to all accounts coming
from Pio Valezuela, and to the
interpretations Agoncillo got from
him verbally, since Valenzuela
gave so many versions from the
time he surrendered to the
Spanish authorities and made
various statements not always
compatible with one another up
to the time when as an old man
he was interviewed by Agoncillo.
Pio Valenzuela backtracked on
yet another point. In 1896,
Valenzuela testified that when
the Katipunan consulted Jose
Rizal on whether the time had
come to revolt, Rizal was
vehemently against the
revolution. Later, in Agoncillo’s
Revolt of the masses,
Valenzuela retracted and
claimed that Rizal was actually
for the uprising, if certain
prerequisites were met. Agoncillo
reasoned that Valenzuela had
lied to save Rizal.
(The separation of the
Philippines from the Spanish
Monarchu, constituting an
independent state and with a
proper sovereign
government, named the
Republic of the Philippines,
was the end pursued by the
revolution through the
present hostilities, initiated
on 24 August 1896…)
These lines- in a legal
document at that – are
persuasive proof that in so
far as the leaders of the
revolution are concerned,
revolution began on 24
August 1896. The document
was written only one and a
half years after the event
and signed by over 50
Katipunan members, among
them Emilio Aguinaldo ,
Artemio Ricarte and Valentin
Diaz.
Emilio Aguinaldo’s memoirs,
Mga Gunita ng Himagsikan
(1964), refer to two letters
from Andres Bonifacio dated
22 and 24 August. They
pinpoint the date and place
of the crucial Cry meeting
when the decision to attack
Manila was made:
Noong ika-22 ng Agosto,
1896, ang Sangguniang
Magdalo ay tumanggap ng
isang lihim na sulat mula sa
Supremo Andres Bonifacio,
sa Balintawak , na
nagsasaad na isamng
mahalagang pulong ang
kanilang idinaos sa ika-24
ng nasabing buwan, at
lubhang kailangan na kame
ay mapadala roon ng
dalawang kinatawan o
delegado sa ngalan ng
Sanggunian. Ang pulong
aniya’y itataon sa kaarawan
ng kapistahan ng San
Bartolome sa Malabon,
Tambobong. kapagkarakang
matanggap ang nasabing
paanyaya, an gaming
Pangulo na si G. Baldomero
Aguinaldo, ay tumawag ng
pulong sa tribunal ng Cavite
el Viejo… Nagkaroon kami
ng pag-aalinlangan sa
pagpapadala roon ng aming
kinatawan dahil sa
kaselanang pagdararanang
mga pook at totoong
mahigpit at abot-abot ang
panghuli ng mag Guardia
Civil at Veterana sa mga
naglalakad lalung-lalo na sa
mag pinaghihinalaang mga
mason at Katipunan. Gayon
pa man ay aming hinirang at
pinagkaisahang ipadalang
tanging Sugo ang matapang
na kapatid naming si G.
Domingo Orcullo… Ang
aming Sugo ay nakarating
ng maluwalhati sa kanyang
paroonan at nagbalik din na
wala naming sakuna, na
taglay ang sulat ng Supremo
na may petsang 24 ng
Agosto. Doon ay wala
naming sinasabing
kautusan, maliban sa
patalastas na kagugulat-
gulat na kanilang lulusubin
ang Maynila, sa Sabado ng
gabi, ika-29 ng Agosto, at
ang hudyat ay ang pagpatay
ng ilaw sa Luneta. Saka
idinugtong pa na marami
diumano ang nahuli at
napatay ng Guardia Civil at
Veterana sa kanyang mga
kasamahan sa lugar ng
Gulod …

(On 22 August 1896, the

Magdalo Council received a
secret letter from Supremo
Andres Bonifacio, in
Balintawak, which stated
that the Katipunan will hold
an important meeting on the
24th of the said month, and
that it was extremely
necessary to send two
representatives or delegates
in the name of the said
Council. The meeting would
be timed to coincide with the
feast day of Saint
Bartolomew in Malabon,
Tambobong. Upon receiving
the said invitation, our
President, Mr. Baldomero
Aguinaldo, called a meeting
at Tribunal of Cavite el
Viejo…We were
apprehensive about sending
representatives because the
areas they would have pass
through were dangerous and
was a fact that the Civil
Guard and Veterans were
arresting travelers,
especially those suspected
of being freemasons and
members of Katipunan.
Nevertheless, we agreed
and nominated to send a
single representative in the
person of our brave brother,
Mr. Domingo Orcullo… Our
representative arrived safely
at his destination and also
returned unharmed, bearing
a letter from the Supremo
dated 24 August. It
contained no orders but the
shocking announcement that
the Katipunan would attack
Manila at night on Saturday,
29 August, the signal for
which would be the putting
out of the lamps in Luneta.
He added that many of his
comrade had been captured
and killed by the Civil Guard
and Veterans in Gulod…)

The first monument to mark

the Cry was erected in 1903
on Ylaya Street in Tondo, in
front of the house were Liga
Filipina was founded. The
tablet cites Andre Bonifacio
as a founding member, and
as “ Supreme Head of the
Katipunan, which gave the
first battle Cry against
tyranny on August 24, 1896.”

The above facts render

unacceptable the official
stand that the turning point
of the revolution was the
tearing of cedulas in the “Cry
of Pugad Lawin” on 23
August 1896, in the Juan
Ramos’s house in “Pugad
Lawin” Bahay Toro,
Kalookan.

The events of 17-26 August

1896 occurred closer to
Balintawak than to
Kalookan. Traditionally,
people referred to the “Cry of
Balintawak” since that barrio
was a better known
reference point than Banlat.

In any case, “Pugad Lawin”

is not historiographically
verifiable outside of the
statements of Pio Valenzuela
in the 1930s and after. In
Philippine Historical
Association round-table
discussion in February this
year, a great granddaughter
of Tandang Sora protested
the use of toponym “Pugad
Lawin” which, she said,
referred to a hawks nest on
top of a tall sampaloc tree at
Gulod, the highest elevated
area near Balintawak. This
certainly negates the NHI’s
premise that “Pugad Lawin”
is on Seminary Road in
Project 8.

What we should celebrate is

the establishment of a
revolutionary or the facto
government that was
republican in aspiration, the
designation of Bonifacio as
the Kataastaasang Pangulo
(Supreme Presiddent), the
election of the members of
his cabinet ministers and
Sanggunian and Balangay
heads which authorized
these moves met in Tandang
Sora’s barn near Pasong
Tamo Road, in sitio Gulod,
barrio Banlat then under the
jurisdiction of the
municipality of Kalookan.
This took place at around
noon of Monday, 24 August
1896.

It is clear that the so-called

Cry of Pugad Lawin of 23
August is an imposition and
erroneous interpretation,
contrary to indisputable and
numerous historical facts.

The centennial of the Cry of

Balintawak should be
celebrated on 24 August
1996 at the site of the barn
and house of Tandang Sora
in Gulod, now barangay
Banlat, Quezon City.

That was when and where

the Filipino nation state was
born.