The True Account of the Philippine Revolution According to Emilio Aguinaldo
On this day 123 years ago, the Philippines declared itself as an independent nation from the Spanish Empire after 333 years of being an overseas captaincy general. The revolution against Spain lasted two years from 1896 and resulted in the creation of an independent nation with its own government and identity.
In 1899, when Aguinaldo was in the province of Tarlac, he prepared a Tagalog draft of his work La reseña verídica de la revolución filipina (The True Account of the Philippine Revolution). Felipe Buencamino, secretary of foreign affairs, revised the draft and translated it to Spanish. Aguinaldo wrote the work to “civilized nations and especially to the great American republic”, so that they would be informed of the events in that time.
Aguinaldo narrated firstly of the revolution against Spain in 1896 until the Treaty of Biak na Bato in 1897. The revolution was known as the Tagalog War by the Spanish. The failures of the Reformed Propaganda Movement had led to the creation of the Katipunan, a secret organization that wanted to rebel against Spain so that the Philippines becomes an independent nation. By that time, it had been more than 300 years after establishing the Captaincy General of the Philippines. The start of hostilities in 1896 had signaled the fight of the Filipinos for their country’s independence. The first part of the revolution ended in 1897 after the signing of the Treaty of Biak na Bato, wherein the revolutionaries under Aguinaldo and the Spaniards under Governor General Primo de Rivera discussed the state of the war and the conditions for ceasing hostilities. The treaty did not last owing to the failure of the Spaniards in keeping with the conditions of the treaty, while the revolutionaries did so faithfully.
Secondly, he proceeded to tell of the continuation of hostilities in 1898 upon receiving the news that the United States started to fight the Spanish Empire after the tragedy in which the USS Maine was sunk in Havana. Aguinaldo moved from Hong Kong to Singapore to talk to US consul Spencer Pratt of the possible actions against Spain upon returning to the Philippines. The admiral of the Asiatic Squadron of the US Navy, George Dewey, promised to Aguinaldo that the United States would support the cause of the Filipino revolutionaries. Upon resuming hostilities, a dictatorial government was established and Filipino forces won numerous victories. By that time, the Philippine flag was waved for the first time. The second part of the revolution started with Aguinaldo’s return. It was decided to declare the independence of the country on June 12 with a solemn ceremony. An American representative was present during the proclamation.
Months after the proclamation of independence, the presence of the US military increased, and this alarmed the revolutionary government and it started to doubt the intentions of the Americans. The Battle of Manila of August 13 between the Spaniards and the Americans had shown that the former had surrendered to the latter, not to the Filipinos. The promises of Dewey and the rest seemed to be doubtful. As we know, US President William McKinley wanted to annex the Philippines to the United States. The Schurman Commission came to the Philippines to evaluate the status of the islands, whether it be capable of self governance or not. In 1899, despite the Malolos Republic being inaugurated, the United States expressed its authority of governing the archipelago through a proclamation. The republic was not recognized despite the promises made between Aguinaldo and the other American figures.
The rupture of hostilities between the Filipinos and the Americans in February started the Philippine-American War. Before that, a mixed commission discussed the state of the Philippines and while the government was waiting for a favorable response, the rupture of hostilities destroyed any hope of resolving the situation. The ratification of the Treaty of Paris was justified in the US Congress. For three years the Filipinos fought an unfair war against the Americans until Aguinaldo was captured by the forces under Frederick Funston in Palanan, Isabela, being a victim of trickery.
By the end of the work, Aguinaldo complained that the Americans had lied in their promises of respecting Philippine independence. He had asked if the Cuban revolutionaries were more worthy of independence than the Filipinos, explaining that the Americans were in both countries but they respected the wishes of the Cubans but not of the Filipinos. Aguinaldo asked Filipinos to defend their country against the invading Americans. He had asked the Americans also to return to their country and respect the wishes of the Filipinos to be a free people.
This article is a summary of what Emilio Aguinaldo wrote in his book and also includes other facts about the revolution. Please buy a copy of this work and read it. It is necessary that the Filipino people read about the revolution so that they can understand it clearly. Our heroes fought for their country and for that we have to honor their memory now and forever.
