7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

LESSON 3
Rizal in the 19th-Century Philippines

In this lesson, you are expected to:

• identify the social context within which Rizal was situated;
• analyze various social, political, economic, and cultural changes that occurred in the
19th-century; and
• explain how these changes affected and influenced Jose Rizal.

Instructions: Read, analyze and answer each question below by choosing the letter of the
MOST APPROPRIATE answer.

1. What were the native inhabitants called?

a. Meztiso
b. Insulares
c. Peninsulares
d. Indios

2. What were the people called with Spanish blood?

a. Filipinos
b. Indios
c. Meztiso
d. Insulares

3. Refers to the transition to new manufacturing processes that made use of stream-
powered, special purpose machinery, factories, and mass production.
a. Industrial Revolution
b. Capitalism
c. Communism
d. Utilitarianism

4. First infrastructure that paved the way for importation of books, magazines and
newspapers with liberal ideas from Europe and America.
a. Grand Canyon
b. Suez Canal
c. Barter
d. Capitalism
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

5. His leadership gave Rizal, the reformists, the Filipinos a foretaste of democratic rule.
a. Carlos Ma. Dela Torre
b. Casimiro Camerino
c. Emilio Aguinaldo
d. Rafael Izquierdo

6. He imposed harsh policies and laws, far from the liberal measures Dela Torre
implemented.
a. Casimiro Camerino
b. Carlos Ma. Dela Torre
c. Emilio Aguinaldo
d. Rafael Izquierdo

7. It was a failed uprising against the Spaniards, resulting in disarmed, imprisoned, and dead
Filipino soldiers.
a. Cavite Mutiny
b. 1896 Philippine Revolution
c. Dagohoy Revolt
d. Bonifacio Revolt

8. This was the novel of Jose Rizal that was dedicated to the three priests – GOMBURZA.
a. El Filibusterismo
b. Noli Me Tangere
c. A La Juventud Filipina
d. Remembrance To My Hometown

9. A notorious invisible government existed in Spanish Philippines that was ruled by the
friars.
a. Frailocracy
b. Friars
c. Cavite Mutiny
d. 1896 Philippine Revolution

10. GOMBURZA were publicly executed by the Spaniards using ________.

a. Garrote
b. Lethal Injection
c. Cella Electrica
d. Euthanasia
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

POLITICAL

19TH
SOCIAL Century ECONOMIC
Philippines

CULTURAL

(This map above shows the 19th century Philippine context)

IMPACT ON THE INDIVIDUAL

Instructions:
1. Enumerate the social, political, economic, and cultural changes that occurred in your
community during the last five years.

2. Choose one of the most significant changes and discuss how affected you as a student,
teenager, and citizen of the Philippines.
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

The 19th-Century Philippines

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.
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

RIZAL IN THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

The life of a person is shaped by the society that he or she is a part of. Thus, in studying
and understanding the life of Jose Rizal, it is necessary to look into the social context where he
was situated in – the 19th century Philippines.
Jose Rizal was born in the 19 th century. During this time, Spain’s glory and rule as a
colonial power was already waning. The natives of the Philippines were slowly realizing the need
to awaken their national consciousness. This was sparked by movements against the oppression
of the Spanish colonizers.
It was Jose Rizal who first used the word Filipino to refer to the inhabitants of the country,
whether they are Spanish or Filipino blood. Under the Spanish rule, the native inhabitants were
called indios while inhabitants with Spanish blood (peninsulares. Insulares, mestizo) were
regarded as Filipinos. He realized that the people residing in the Philippines should be called one
name – Filipino.
The events around the world also contributed to the formation of national consciousness
led by Rizal and other noted ilustrados during the 19th century. Different events contributed to how
Rizal’s own national consciousness was shaped. For one, the Industrial Revolution, which refers
to the transition to new manufacturing processes that made use of steam-powered, special-
purpose machinery, factories, and mass production in Europe, had its effects on the Philippine
economy. In rural areas, it paved the way for new agricultural techniques. In the larger cities of
the country such as Manila, modern textile implements were introduced and helped develop the
textile industry, benefitting only a limited number of already rich Filipinos. The industrial Revolution
increased the movement of trade around the world which made Filipinos of Spanish ancestry
wealthier because they had connections to those who handled goods from one country to another.
With newer production methods, Filipino merchants and small-scale industrialists became
prominent in Philippine society, thus forming a new group of influential middle class Filipinos.
Families from this class had the means to provide education for their children. This is why many
prominent figures in the Propaganda Movement, against the colonizers came from the middle
class – those who had the privilege to recognize and condemn the ills of the Spanish colonial
government through their education. Rizal was among them.
By the 19th century, two centuries after the Spaniards first came to the Philippines, the
hold of the Catholic Church in other Spanish colonies were already waning, yet this was not the
case in the Philippines. The Spanish friars, despite the controversies involving them, were crucial
in maintaining the Philippine archipelago as a Spanish colony. The Filipinos turned more and
more to the friars for moral and political guidance as Spanish civil officials in the country became
more corrupt and immoral. The friars then became more influential and powerful because of
frailocracy or the rule of the friars. The dominance of the friars in the country prompted Rizal and
the propagandists to expose their abuses in forwarding their power and influence in the
Philippines. The growing power of the friars in the 19 th century urged the reformists and
nationalists to work harder to let the people know who the real enemies were.
Other significant events in the 19 th century that contributed to the formation and the rest
Propagandists’ consciousness were the opening of Suez Canal, the democratic leadership of
Governor General Dela Torre, Governor General Izquierdos’ replacement of Dela Torre, and the
Cavite Mutiny.
The Suez Canal was the first infrastructure that paved the way for the importation of books,
magazines, and newspapers with liberal ideas from Europe and America. This was instrumental
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

to the political awakening of Rizal because he was able to expand his perspective, therefore
shaping his nationalist sensibilities.
The leadership of Gov. Gen. Carlos Ma. Dela Torre (1869-1871), gave Rizal, the
reformists, and the Filipinos a foretaste of democratic rule. During the leadership of Dela Torre,
media censorship became relaxed and limited secularization of education began. He gave
amnesty to rebels including Casimiro Camerino, the leader of the bandits of Cavite, and
established the Guardia Civil.
Dela Torre’s terms and regulations were easily pushed out of view when he was replaced
by Gov. Gen. Rafael Izquierdo (1871-1873) who was exactly the opposite of Dela Torre’s liberal-
minded rule. For Izquierdo, the indios should not be given the same rights nad freedom enjoyed
by the Spaniards in the Philippines. He imposed harsh policies and laws, far from the liberal
measures that Dela Torre implemented. Izquierdo was also responsible for removing the long-
standing personal benefits of the workers under the encomienda system and forced labor
exemptions among soldiers. This led to the Cavite Mutiny on January 20, 1872 that was staged
by about 200 military personnel of the San Felipe Arsenal in Cavite.
The Cavite Mutiny was a failed uprising against the Spaniards, resulting in disarmed,
imprisoned, and dead Filipino soldiers. Those who were suspected to be involved in the mutiny
were also arrested and executed. The Spanish authorities and the friars used the mutiny to
implicate the three secular priests – Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora,
collectively known as GOMBURZA – and proclaimed that they were the instigators of the said
mutiny. The priests were executed by garrote at Bagumbayan on February 15, 1872. This event
had a personal impact on Rizal and his family since Burgos was a personal friend of his brother,
Paciano. The martyrdom of the three priests awakened the desire for independence among many
Filipinos. In fact, Rizal dedicated his El Filibusterismo to the three priests.
Rizal’s aim to make the Philippines known as a country of writers and intellectuals was a
result of his firsthand experience of racial discrimination when he was in Spain. Considered as an
inferior race, Filipinos were not given access to public goods and experienced rampant prejudice
in government offices, schools, and in society in general.
A number of economic, social, political, and cultural changes in the country and around
the world contributed to the formation of Rizal’s national consciousness and his reformist agenda.
The liberal and progressive ideas of Rizal, together with other reformists, stirred the national
consciousness of natives which eventually led to the Philippine Revolution of 1896. Rizal’s
contribution to the decline of the Spanish rule in the 19 th century is recognized until today.

19TH Century Woes

INSTRUCTIONS: Discuss how the following contributed to the growth of Filipino nationalism
and decline of the Spanish rule. Choose two.

1. Opening of the Suez Canal

2. Cavite Mutiny and the GOMBURZA martyrdom
3. Abuses and immoralities of the friars
4. Racial discrimation
7 Module 1 – THE RIZAL LAW AND THE 19TH CENTURY PHILIPPINES

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In this lesson you have learned that…

✓ A number of economic, social, political and cultural changes in the country and around the
world contributed to the formation of Rizal’s national consciousness and his reformist
agenda. The opening of Suez Canal had paved its way towards trade and industrialization.
Governor General Dela Torre had implemented the liberal-minded system, while Governor
General Izquierdo had done the opposite and did not give the same rights and freedom
towards the indios that was enjoyed by the Spaniards in the Philippines.

Clemente, J., Cruz, G. (2019). The Life and Works of Rizal. C&E Publishing, Inc. Quezon City,
Philippines.

Web: www.britannica.com