NAME OF COMMUNITY ICON: MARÍA JOSEFA GABRIELA CARIÑO

DE SILANG 
19 March 1731 – 20 September 1763) was a Filipino military leader best known for her role as the female

leader of the Ilocano independence movement from Spain. She took over from her second

husband Diego Silang after his assassination in 1763, leading her people for four months before she was

captured and executed by the colonial government of the Captaincy General of the Philippines.

Born María Josefa Gabriela Cariño

19 March 1731

Santa, Ilocos Sur, Captaincy General of the

Philippines, Spanish Empire

Died 20 September 1763 (aged 32)

Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Captaincy General of the Philippines,

Spanish Empire

Other names Gabriela Silang

La Generala

Joan of Arc of Ilocandia

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 Tomás Millan
Spouse(s)

(m. 1751; died 1754)

Diego Silang

(m. 1757; died 1763)

 Anselmo Cariño (father)

Parent

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After being widowed by her first husband, Gabriela met future insurgent leader Diego Silang and
married him in 1757.

In 1762, as part of what would later be known as the Seven Years' War, the Kingdom of Great
Britain declared war on Spain, and captured Manila, resulting in the British occupying the
city and nearby Cavite. After the capture of Manila, an emboldened Diego sought to initiate an
armed struggle to overthrow Spanish functionaries in Ilocos and replace them with native-born
officials. He joined forces with the British, who appointed him governor of Ilocos on their behalf.
During this revolt, Gabriela became one of Diego's closest advisors and his unofficial aide-de-
camp during skirmishes with Spanish troops. She was also a major figure in her husband's co-
operation with the British.

Spanish authorities retaliated by offering a reward for Diego’s assassination. Consequently, his
two former allies, Miguel Vicos and Pedro Becbec, killed him in Vigan on May 28, 1763.

After Diego's assassination, Gabriela fled to Tayum, Abra to seek refuge in the house of her paternal

uncle, Nicolás Cariño. There, she appointed her first two generals, Miguel Flores and Tagabuen

Infiel. She later assumed her husband's role as commander of the rebel troops and achieved a

"priestess" status amongst her community and followers. Her popular image as the bolo-wielding La

Generala on horseback stems from this period.

On September 10, 1763, Silang attempted to besiege Vigan but the Spanish retaliated, forcing her

into hiding. She retreated once more to Abra, where the Spanish later captured her. On September

20, 1763, Silang and her troops were executed by hanging in Vigan's central plaza.

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She is remembered as the “Joan of Arc of Ilocandia” The Order of Gabriela Silang is the sole

third class national decoration awarded by the Philippines whose membership is restricted to

women. The organisation and party list Gabriela Women's Party ("General Assembly Binding

Women for Reforms, Integrity, Equality, Leadership, and Action"), which advocates for women's

rights and issues, was founded in April 1984 in her honour. The BRP Gabriela Silang (OPV-

8301) is named after her. Asteroid 7026 Gabrielasilang, discovered by Eleanor

Helin at Palomar in 1993, is named in her honor. The official naming citation was published by

the Minor Planet Center on 8 November 2019 (M.P.C. 118218).

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CHILDREN’S BOOK

OF COMMUNITY
ICON
DATE: DECEMBER 08, 2022