19th Century Philippines as Rizal's context

PHILIPPINE CONDITION DURING THE 19TH CENTURY

 Spain and the Philippines in Rizal’s Time 
 Spanish rule was imposed in the Philippines by conquest.

 Miguel Lopez de Legaspi – he established the first Spanish settlement in 1565

in Cebu.

 Beforethe conquest, the Filipinos had their own indigenous culture and their
own government, the barangay – headed by a native chieftain called “datu”

 The Philippines become a colony of Spain and she belonged to the King of Spain
ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANIZATION
 The Spanish colonial government in the Philippines ran indirectly through the
viceroy of the Spain in Mexico. 

 The Governor General, appointed by the Spanish monarch, was the head of the
Spanish colonial government

 He was the Vice Royal Patron – he could nominate priests for administration of
the parishes

 President of the Royal Audiencia (the Supreme Court in the Philippines during
those times), he had legislative powers
 Laws enacted by the Governor-General were called actos
acordados

 The Governor-General had the power of cumplase – the power to

decide which law or royal decree should be implemented or
disregarded
 The Governor-General and other government officials had so much
power that it was commonly abused. To investigate the abuses,
there were bodies created:

1. Residencia
2. Visitador
3. Royal Audiencia
 PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

 Alcalde Mayor
 The head in the  provincial level
 He had the power and responsibilities like the Governor General but its
power was limited in the province

MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT

 Gobernadorcillo 
 His power and responsibilities was the same as the Governor General,
however, his power was limited only in the town or pueblo
 He also had the power of Indulto de Comercio or the power of the
Gobernadorcillo to engage into trading
 BARRIO GOVERNMENT

 Cabeza de Barangay
 He is the head of barangay
 Assume the position of Gobernadorcillo and Cabeza de Barangay and only
given to a Filipino male, 23 years old, educated and had a property of 500
pesos.
The supremacy of the friars over the colonial
government

 The different religious orders had the great contribution in the establishment of
Spanish Colonial government in the country.

 The regular priests (Spanish priests) were able to dominate the control in
different parishes and had the power to get the parishes from the secular
(Filipino priests).
 Abuses of the Spanish government officials 

 The excessive powers and privileges of the governor general made him weak
and undisciplined.

 The provincial government where the alcalde mayor was the administrator,
judge, military commander was the most corrupt branch of the government.
Corrupt Spanish officials
 The colonial were highly corrupt, incompetent and cruel.

 General Rafael de Izquierdo (1871-1873) - a boastful and ruthless governor

general, aroused the anger of the Filipinos by executing the Fathers Mariano
Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora, the "Martyrs of 1872".

 Admiral Jose Malcampo (1874-1877) - a good Moro fighter, but was inept
and weak administrator. 

 General Fernando Primo de Rivera – a governor general for two terms

(1880-1898), enriched himself by accepting bribes from gambling casinos in
Manila which he scandalously permitted to operate.
General Valeriano Weyler (1888-1891) - a cruel and corrupt
governor general of Hispanic-German ancestry, arrived in Manila a
poor man returned to Spain a millionaire.
 The Filipinos scornfully called him "tyrant".
 The Cubans cursed him as "The butcher".

 General Camilo de Polavieja (1896-1897) - an able militarist but

heartless governor general, was widely detested by the Filipino
people for executing Dr. Jose Rizall.
Philippines representation in the Spanish Cortes
 The first period of the Philippine representation in the Spanish Cortes (1810-
1813) was fruitful with the beneficent results for the welfare of the colony.
However, the second period or representation (1820-1823) and the third period
(1834-1837) were less fruitful in parliamentary work.

 The representation of the overseas colonies including the Philippines in the

Spanish Cortes was abolished in 1827. Since then, Philippine conditions
worsened. 
Socio-cultural condition
 The Spaniards imposed new social stratification which
discriminate the natives in their own land.

 Peninsulares – the highest class, Spanish born in Spain and live in

the Philippines
 Insulares – Spanish born in the Philippines
PENINSULARES  Creoles – the third class, they are the mix blood or combination of
Spanish and Filipino
INSULARES  Illustrados – the well educated Filipino
 Principalia – the land owners

CREOLES  Indios – the last class, the unfortunate and discriminated class in the
society

INDIOS
Frailocracy/secularization of Filipino priests
 "Frailocacy'" (frailocracia) - the Spanish political philosophy of union of
Church and state

 The friars (Augustinians, Dominicans and Franciscans) controlled the

religious and educational life of the Phlippines, and later in the 19th century,
they came to acquire tremendous political power, influences and riches.
Educational system during the spanish regime
 The religion is still the center of the educational system imposed by the
Spaniards.
 Girls and boys have separate schools and they also have different
curriculums.
 For male in secondary education: 

1. Calegio Maximo de San Ignacio – 1589

2. College of San Idelfonso – 1599
3. Ateneo de Municipa – 1817
 The curriculum for male includes: Spanish History, Latin, Philosophy, Canon, Civil Law, Rhetoric

 For female in secondary education: 

1. Calegios of Santa Potenciana – 1591
2. Sta. Isabel – 1632
3. Santa Catalina de Sana - 1696
4. Sta. Rita College – 1719
5. Colegio de la Inmaculda Concepcion Concordia – 1868

 The curriculum for females includes: Rules of courtesy, Vocal Music. Language and Sewing

 Theeducational system is also used to pacify the Filipinos and train them in Catholicism and to follow
laws imposed by the Spaniards

 The Department of Education during the Spanish could not also provide enough books and other
instructional materials needed for the quality education. 

 The parochial schools missionaries as the teachers

 The student were taught in the native dialects although there was a law requiring the
children to be taught in Spanish.

 Religion was the most important subject

 At the end of the Spanish period, the University of Santo Tomas was the only institution of
university level in Manila. It was established in 1611 solely for the Spaniards and meztizos.

 Educational Decree of 1863

 (December 20, 1863)
 Each major town in the Philippines should establish at least one primary school for boys
and another girls, and the medium od instruction is Spanish

 Moret Decree of 1870

 Intended to secularize higher education I the colony but the friars opposed the idea of
the government's control over education
Economic Condition
 To solve the issue of governance, Legazpi converted the land of the indios into
the encomienda

 The world encomienda comes from the Spanish encomendar which means "to
entrust".

 The encomienda is a grant of inhabitants living in a particular conqueres

territory which Spain gave to Spanish colonizer as a reward for his services.
3 types of encomienda

 Royal – the taxes will go to the King of Spain

 Ecclesiastical -  the taxez will go to the church

 Privado - the encomienda given to the friend of the king who had

contribution for the colonization

 They abolished the encomienda and convert the land into haciendas

Haciendas owned by the friars and spanish officials

 The Spanish friars belonging to different religious orders were the riches
landlords, for they owned the best haciendas (agricultural lands) in the
Philippines 

 The rural folks, who had been living in these haciendas and cultivating them
after generation became tenants
The abuses of guardia civil, church officials and political leaders

 Guardia Civil (Constanbulary) - the last hated symbol of Spanish tyranny which
was created by the Royal Decree of February 12, 1852

 It was amended by another Royal Decree on March 24, 1888 for the purpose of
maintaining internal peace and order in the Philippines

 It was patterned after the famous and well-disciplined Guardia Civil in Spain 
The different socio-economic policies
imposed by the Spaniards
1. Reduccion

 Thispolicy was implemented so that the government and parish priest could easily
monitor the natives and for the easy conversion to Catholicism

2. Bandala

 The natives are obliged to sell their products to the Spaniards

3. Polo y Servicios

 The forced labor of all Filipino males from 16 to 60 years old for 40-day periods.
 The word polo refers to community work, and the labarer was called polista.
 The only way to avoid being forced to do polo y servicio was to pay the falla.
 In 1884, the forty days of forced labor was reduced to 15 days.
4. Taxation 

 Cedula – male and female 18 years and above will pay every year for the cedula
 Sanctorum – tax for the church
 Donativo de Zamboanga – a tax specifically used for the conquest fo Jolo
 Tribute – it may be paid in cahs or in kind

5. The Tribute (buwis) or Tributo

 Miguel Lopez de Legazpi was first to order the payment of tribute. His successors
followed this practice.
 The tribute or buwis was collected from the natives both in cash (gold or money)
and in kind (e.g. rice, cloth, chicken, coconut oil, etc.)
 The King of Spain preferred the payment of gold, but the natives paid largely in
kind.
6. Galleon Trade

 This trading policy changed the system of free trading in the Philippines where in
the other nationalities like the Chinese are free to exchange their goods with the
Filipinos who had extra goods. 

 Boletas – the ticket for the Galleon trade