THE PHILIPPINE FLAG

BACKGROUND, SECRETS AND CONTROVERSIES

 NATIONAL FLAG
October 2, 2019

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Before 1896, the
Filipinos had no common
flag.

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However, these flags
cannot be classified as a
“national” flag.

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 Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo
aspired to establish a
new nation to be
signified by a flag and
an anthem during the
second phase of the
Philippine Revolution. 

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 Doña Marcela
Mariño Agoncillo
Who was then living at
535 Morrison Hill Road in
Hong Kong.

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  In sewing the flag,
Mrs. Agoncillo was
assisted by her
daughter Lorenza
and by Delfina
Herbosa
Natividad. 

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 After five days of hard
work, the flag was
delivered to Aguinaldo
who went back to the
Philippines on 17 May
1898 through S.S.
McCulloch

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 Fuerzas Expedicionarias del
Norte de Luzon on one side
and Libertad Justicia e
Ygualdad on the other. 

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“made from fine silk with a white triangle at the left
containing a sunburst with eight rays at the center, a five-
pointed star at each angle of the triangle, an upper stripe
of dark blue and a lower stripe of red.  The white triangle
stood for the Filipinos’ hope for equality; the blue color
stood for peace, truth and justice; and the red stood for
patriotism and valor.  The sunburst of eight rays
represented the first eight provinces to take up arms
against Spain, and the three stars symbolized Luzon,
Visayas and Mindanao.”

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 CONTROVERSIES
BEHIND THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL FLAG

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Inclusion of a 9th Ray or Crescent
in the Flag
House bill No. 7725 sponsored by Rep. Sultan Omar
Dianalan of the 1st District of Lanao del Sur petitioned for
the addition of 9th ray in the rays of the sun in the
Philippine flag to symbolize the Moslems and the cultural
minorities who fought the Spaniards and waged war
against them.

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How Blue is Blue?
Emilio Aguinaldo – “Bughaw” it is neither azul oscuro nor azul
marino.
Juan Luna’s painting of the flag on May 21, 1899 in “Monograph”
– China Blue not navy blue
Mariano Ponce’s letter to Ferdinand Blumentritt – “as blue as sky”
Marcela Agoncillo - not sky blue or light blue but dark blue.

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The Original Flag
In his letter to Captain Baja dated 11 June 1925,
Aguinaldo mentioned that in their Northward retreat
during the Filipino-American War, the original flag was
lost somewhere in Tayug, Pangasinan.
Other news reports allege that in 1919, Aguinaldo said
that he lost the flag in the Caraballo mountains of Nueva
Vizcaya.

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Descendants of Emilio
Aguinaldo claim that
Aguinaldo said the original
flag was lost only because he
wanted to protect it.
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However, it was opposed by
Marcela Agoncillo, the fifth
daughter of Doña Marcela
Agoncillo.

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However, there is another flag in the
Baguio museum. The Aguinaldo-Suntay
family calls it Aguinaldo’s battle flag,
which is plausible considering the
bloodstains and dirt that it has. It has a
dark blue, if not almost black, stripe and
its stars have faces.

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Could it be that this was the
original that the younger Marcela
referred to in her handwritten
statement? Or did she base her
replica on this flag, thinking that
the battle flag was the original?
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