01

• After being court-martialed, Rizal returned to

his cell in Fort Santiago to prepare his
rendezvous with destiny.
• During his last 24 hours on earth – from 6:00
A.M. of Dec. 29 to 6:00 A.M. of Dec. 30, 1896
– he was busy meeting visitors which includes
his family and friends.
• He was also able to write his last poem – his
final contribution for the emancipation of the
Filipino people.

INTRODUCTION Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 02

Rizal’s Prison Cell Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 03
December 29, 1896
• 6:00 A.M. – Captain Rafael Rodriguez read
Rizal‟s death sentence – he will be shot at the
back by firing squad at 7:00 A.M. in
Bagumbayan.
• 7:00 A.M. – Rizal was moved to the prison
chapel where he spent his last moments. His
first visitors were Jesuit priests.
• 7:15 A.M. – Rizal reminded Fr. Luis Viza the
statuette of the Sacred Heart of Jesus whom
he carved as a student in Ateneo.
Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 04
December 29, 1896
• 8:00 A.M. – Rizal had a breakfast with Fr.
Antonio Rosell. After breakfast, his
attorney, Lt. Luis Taviel de Andrade came.
• 9:00 A.M. – Fr. Frederico Faura arrived. Rizal
reminded the priest of his earlier „prophecy‟
about Rizal.
• 10:00 A.M. – More Jesuit priests had visited
him. After then, he was interviewed by
Santiago Mataix for the newspaper El Heraldo
de Madrid.
Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 05
December 29, 1896
• 12:00 – 3:30 P.M. – Rizal was left alone in his
cell. He took his lunch and continued writing
his farewell poem which he hid in an alcohol
cooking stove. He also wrote his last letter to
Professor Blumentritt.
• 3:30 P.M. – Father Vicente Balaguer returned
to his cell and discussed with Rizal his
retraction letter.

Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 06

December 29, 1896
• 4:00 P.M. – Teodora Alonzo visited him. They
had a very emotional encounter. Rizal gave
the alcohol cooking stove to Trinidad which
contains his farewell poem. Several priests
have visited him afterwards.
• 6:00 P.M. – Don Silvino Lopez, dean of the
Manila Cathedral visited him.
• 8:00 P.M. – Rizal had his last supper. He told
Captain Dominguez that he forgave his
enemies including the military judges.
Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 07
Mi Ultimo Adios Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 08
December 29, 1896
• 9:30 P.M. – Rizal was visited by Don Gaspar
Cestano, fiscal of the Royal Audience de
Manila.
• 10:00 P.M. – The draft of the retraction letter
sent by the anti-Filipino Archbishop Bernardino
Nozaleda was given by Fr. Balaguer to Rizal
for his signature. He had rejected it.

Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 09

• Upon Rizal‟s death, his supposedly „retraction
letter‟ became of one of the most controversial
documents in our history.
• This „retraction letter‟ allegedly contains his
renunciation of the Masonry and his „anti-Catholic
religious ideas.‟
• Depending on whose side you are on, some
Rizalists claims that it is fake while some believe
it to be genuine.
• There had been some evidences but so far these
had only heated up the debate between the two
factions.
Retraction Letter Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 10
December 30, 1896
• 3:00 A.M. – Rizal heard Mass, confessed his
sins and took Holy Communion.
• 5:30 A.M. – He took his last breakfast. After
which he wrote his last letters for his family
and his brother, Paciano.

Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 11

 “ Now I
die, and
am about to
it is to you I
dedicate my last lines, to
tell you how sad I am to
leave you alone in
life, burdened with the

”
weight of the family and
our old parents.

Letter to Paciano Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 12

December 30, 1896
• 5:30 A.M. – Josephine Bracken arrived
together with Rizal‟s sister, Josefa, with tears
in her eyes, bade him farewell. Rizal
embraced him for the last time, and before she
left, Rizal gave her a last gift – a religious
book, Imitation of Christ by Father Thomas
Kempis.

Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 13

December 30, 1896
• 6:00 A.M. – As the soldiers were
getting ready for the death march to
Bagumbayan, Rizal wrote his last
letter to his beloved parents.

Last Hours of Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 14

 “ My beloved Father, pardon
me for the pain with which
I repay you, for sorrows
and sacrifices for my
education. I did not want it
nor did I prefer it.

”
Goodbye Father, goodbye.

Letter to his Father Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 15

 “ To my very dear
Mother, Sra. Dona Teodora
Alonso 6 o’oclock in the
morning,
30, 1896.
December
”
Letter to his Mother Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 16
• At about 6:30 A.M., a trumpet sounded at Fort
Santiago, a signal to begin the death march to
Bagumbayan.
• Rizal walked calmly with his defense counsel
and two Jesuit priests at his sides.
• He was dressed elegantly in a black suit, black
derby hat, black shoes, white shirt and black
tie. His arms were tied behind from elbow to
elbow.
• There a lot of spectators lining the street from
Fort Santiago to Bagumbayan.
Death March to Bagumbayan Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 17
• As he was going through the narrow Postigo
Gate, Rizal looked at the sky and said to one
of the priests: “How beautiful it is
today, Father. What morning could be more
serene! How clear is Corregidor and the
mountains of Cavite! On mornings like this, I
used to take a walk with my sweetheart.”
• While he was passing in front of the
Ateneo, he saw the college towers above the
walls. He asked: “Is that the Ateneo, Father?”
“Yes”, replied the priest.

Death March to Bagumbayan Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 18

Death March to Bagumbayan Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 19
• Rizal bade farewell to Fathers March and
Vilaclara and to his defender, Lt. Luis Taviel
de Andrade. Although his arms were tied, he
had firmly clasped their hands in parting.
• One of the priests blessed him and offered him
a crucifix to kiss.
• He requested the commander of the firing
squad that he be shot facing them. His request
was denied for the captain had implicit orders
to shoot him at his back.

Martyrdom of a Hero Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 20

• A Spanish military physician, Dr. Felipe Ruiz
Castillo, asked his permission to feel his pulse.
He was amazed to find it normal, showing that
Jose Rizal was not afraid to die.
• The death ruffles of the drums filled the air.
Above the drum beats, the sharp command “Fire”
was heard, and the guns of the firing squad
barked. Rizal, with supreme effort, turned his
bullet-riddled body to the right, and fell on the
ground dead – with face upward facing the
morning sun. It was exactly 7:03 in the morning –
aged 35 years, 5 moths and 11 days.

Martyrdom of a Hero Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 21

Martyrdom of a Hero Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 22
“ I die just when I see the dawn
break, through the gloom of
night, to herald the day; And if
color is lacking my blood thou
shalt take, pour’d out at need
for thy sake, to dye with its

”
crimson the waking ray.

Martyrdom of a Hero Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 23

• It is interesting to not that 14 years before his
execution, Rizal predicted that he would die on
December 30th. He was then a medical
student in Madrid, Spain.

Martyrdom of a Hero Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 24

“ men,To and
live is to be among
to be among men
is to struggle, a struggle not
only with them but with
oneself; with their
passions, but also with one's
own.
”
Letter to his family, Dapitan (c. 1884)

Jose Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 25

“ There can be no
tyrants where
there are no
slaves.
”
Taken from ‘El Filibusterismo’

Jose Rizal Martyrdom at Bagumbayan 26

 My Last Farewell
by Jose Rizal

Farewell, dear Fatherland, clime of the sun caress'd

Pearl of the Orient seas, our Eden lost!,
Gladly now I go to give thee this faded life's best,
And were it brighter, fresher, or more blest
Still would I give it thee, nor count the cost.

On the field of battle, 'mid the frenzy of fight,

Others have given their lives, without doubt or heed;
The place matters not-cypress or laurel or lily white,
Scaffold or open plain, combat or martyrdom's plight,
T is ever the same, to serve our home and country's need.

MI ULTIMO ADIOS TRANSLATED BY CHARLES DERBYSHIRE

 I die just when I see the dawn break,
Through the gloom of night, to herald the day;
And if color is lacking my blood thou shalt take,
Pour'd out at need for thy dear sake
To dye with its crimson the waking ray.

My dreams, when life first opened to me,

My dreams, when the hopes of youth beat high,
Were to see thy lov'd face, O gem of the Orient sea
From gloom and grief, from care and sorrow free;
No blush on thy brow, no tear in thine eye.

MI ULTIMO ADIOS TRANSLATED BY CHARLES DERBYSHIRE

 Dream of my life, my living and burning desire,
All hail ! cries the soul that is now to take flight;
All hail ! And sweet it is for thee to expire ;
To die for thy sake, that thou mayst aspire;
And sleep in thy bosom eternity's long night.

If over my grave some day thou seest grow,

In the grassy sod, a humble flower,
Draw it to thy lips and kiss my soul so,
While I may feel on my brow in the cold tomb below
The touch of thy tenderness, thy breath's warm power.

MI ULTIMO ADIOS TRANSLATED BY CHARLES DERBYSHIRE

 Let the moon beam over me soft and serene,
Let the dawn shed over me its radiant flashes,
Let the wind with sad lament over me keen ;
And if on my cross a bird should be seen,
Let it trill there its hymn of peace to my ashes.
Let the sun draw the vapors up to the sky,
And heavenward in purity bear my tardy protest
Let some kind soul o 'er my untimely fate sigh,
And in the still evening a prayer be lifted on high
From thee, 0 my country, that in God I may rest.

Pray for all those that hapless have died,

For all who have suffered the unmeasur'd pain;
For our mothers that bitterly their woes have cried,
For widows and orphans, for captives by torture tried
And then for thyself that redemption thou mayst gain.

MI ULTIMO ADIOS TRANSLATED BY CHARLES DERBYSHIRE

And when the dark night wraps the graveyard around
With only the dead in their vigil to see
Break not my repose or the mystery profound
And perchance thou mayst hear a sad hymn resound
'T is I, O my country, raising a song unto thee.

And even my grave is remembered no more

Unmark'd by never a cross nor a stone
Let the plow sweep through it, the spade turn it o'er
That my ashes may carpet earthly floor,
Before into nothingness at last they are blown.

Then will oblivion bring to me no care

As over thy vales and plains I sweep;
Throbbing and cleansed in thy space and air
With color and light, with song and lament I fare,
Ever repeating the faith that I keep.
 My Fatherland ador'd, that sadness to my sorrow lends
Beloved Filipinas, hear now my last good-by!
I give thee all: parents and kindred and friends
For I go where no slave before the oppressor bends,
Where faith can never kill, and God reigns e'er on high!

Farewell to you all, from my soul torn away,

Friends of my childhood in the home dispossessed !
Give thanks that I rest from the wearisome day !
Farewell to thee, too, sweet friend that lightened my
way;
Beloved creatures all, farewell! In death there is rest !

MI ULTIMO ADIOS TRANSLATED BY CHARLES DERBYSHIRE

JOSE PROTASIO RIZAL MERCADO Y ALONSO REALONDA
Philippines National Hero