Mabini’s La Revolucion

Filipina
Background
• Written by Apolinario Mabini
• Nicknames: The Brain of the Revolution,
• The Sublime Paralytic, Ang Dakilang Lumpo
• From Tanauan, Batangas
• Studied Law in Manila before the Revolution
• At the start of the Revolution, he was imprisoned for his involvement
in the Katipunan
• Released from prison, as part of the Pact of Biac na Bato.
Background
• Became Aguinaldo’s adviser and head of the cabinet.
• Had many “enemies” among Aguinaldo’s cabinet, thus he resigned
from it.
• During the Fil-Am War, he was captured and imprisoned by the
Americans.
• He was sent in exile to Guam. This is where and when he wrote the La
Revolucion Filipina (The Philippine Revolution)
• After a few years in Guam, he returned to the Philippines. He died of
cholera a few months later. He was 38 years old.
Read the primary document
• Read the material.
• Do the Learning task.
According to Mabini, the Revolution fell
because it was badly led.
• Aguinaldo is responsible (directly or indirectly) for the assassination
of Luna.
• What a loss! We could have won the Revolution had Luna been
around.
• This happened because of (1) Aguinaldo’s great appetite for power,
and (2) his advisers feeding him negative reports about Luna.
• With Luna’s death, comes also Aguinaldo’s moral death, which is a
thousand times more painful than physical death.
• With this comes the death of the Revolution too.
According to Mabini, the Revolution fell
because it was badly led.
• Aguinaldo judged the worth of men NOT by their ability, character,
and patriotism.
• He judged the worth of men according to their degree of friendship
and kinship with him.
• He practiced favoritism, he neglected the transgressions of his
favorites.
• Because of this, the people neglected him.
• POSTLUDE: Aguinaldo ran for President in 1935 versus Manuel
Quezon, and he lost badly.
Mabini’s Challenge
• He closed his memoirs by challenging us, the people in the future, to
NOT FORGET this painful historical lesson, to avoid putting in power a
leader whose character is like Aguinaldo’s.