ASSGINMENT: READING IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY

Lauren Carlo Calabines Crim1-3

1. The Hong Kong Junta was an organization formed as a revolutionary government in exile by Filipino

revolutionaries after the signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato on December 15, 1897

2. Wesley Merritt (June 16, 1836 – December 3, 1910) was an American major general who served in the
cavalry of the United States Army during the American Civil War, American Indian Wars, Spanish–
American War, and the Philippine–American War.

3. Olympia is an ancient site on Greece's Peloponnese peninsula that hosted the original Olympic
Games, founded in the 8th century B.C. Its extensive ruins include athletic training areas, a stadium and
temples dedicated to the gods Hera and Zeus. The Archaeological Museum of Olympia exhibits finds
from the site, including a statue of Hermes attributed to the sculptor Praxiteles.

4. A British businessman who spoke Tagalog, Howard W. Bray, agreed to act as interpreter. Aguinaldo
and Bray maintained later that the Philippines had been promised independence in return for helping
the U.S. defeat the Spanish. Some of the Filipino exiles and Spanish officers in charge of their
deportation to Hong Kong.

5. USS Maine was a United States Navy ship that sank in Havana Harbor in February 1898, contributing
to the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April. American newspapers, engaging in yellow
journalism to boost circulation, claimed that the Spanish were responsible for the ship's destruction.

6. Brigadier General Thomas McArthur Anderson commanded the vanguard of the U.S. expeditionary
force (Eighth Army Corps) in the Philippines. His troops left San Francisco on May 25, 1898 and arrived in
Cavite on June 1.

7. The Dictatorial Government of the Philippines (Filipino: Pamahalaang Diktatoryal ng Pilipinas) was an
insurgent government in the Spanish East Indies inaugurated during the Spanish–American War by
Emilio Aguinaldo in a public address on May 24, 1898 on his return to the Philippines from exile in Hong
Kong, and formally holding the title of “Dictator”

8. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (/ˈroʊzəvɛlt/ ROH-zə-velt; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred
to as Teddy Roosevelt or his initials T. R., was an American statesman, politician, conservationist,
naturalist, and writer, who served as the 26th president of the United States from 1901 to 1909.

9. George Dewey (December 26, 1837 – January 16, 1917) was Admiral of the Navy, the only person in
United States history to have attained the rank. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila
Bay during the Spanish–American War, with the loss of only a single crewman on the American side.

10. William McKinley, (born January 29, 1843, Niles, Ohio, U.S.—died September 14, 1901, Buffalo, New
York), 25th president of the United States (1897–1901).

ESSAY:
 1. Do you think General Emilio Aguinaldo was deceived by the consul General Spencer Pratt and
Admiral George Dewey, for their promise to recognize the Philippine Independence after helping
them fight in the Philippine soil the American- Spanish War? Explain your answer.
Yes, General Emilio Aguinaldo was conceived by General Consul Spencer Pratt. When he
arranged to have Aguinaldo return to the Philippines on board a US Commodore George Dewey,
in later investigations, asserted that he had not sought Aguinaldo’s assistance and had actually
sailed for manila without him. Dewey even described Aguinaldo and the Filipinos as “pests”

2. Do you think the Pact of Biak na Bato was a good decision made by General Aguinaldo to save his
group against the Spanish Governor General Primo de Rivera? Why? or Why not?

because it was the first time a truce was attempted between Spain and the Philippines since the
revolution erupted. The truce provided a small window of opportunity that helped the revolutionary
leaders strategise their movements against the colonisers. It was a risky move, yes, because peace
meant Spain was also afforded time to regroup. But decisions like these have to be made to push the
struggle forward.

3. In your own opinion, what do you think the real interest of America in the Philippines? Why did they
focus more on the Philippines than Cuba? Explain your answer.

Americans who advocated annexation evinced a variety of motivations: desire for commercial

opportunities in Asia, concern that the Filipinos were incapable of self-rule, and fear that if the United
States did not take control of the islands, another power (such as Germany or Japan) might do so.

The United States helped Cuba win independence from Spain. ... Through the Platt Amendment,
the United States retained a great deal of control over Cuban affairs and obtained the use of land for a
naval base.