The Philippine Revolution awakened a proud sense of nationalism among the Filipinos. The revolution aimed to resist colonialism and this aim brought together people from different backgrounds. The revolution started in 1896 and was majorly against Spanish authorities. The revolution ended when Spain conceded the Philippines to the United States.
Beginning of the Revolution
The beginning of the revolution is attributed to a secret organization, called the Katipunan. Andres Bonifacio was the head of the organization and the head as well as his followers were influenced by the literary works that exposed the cruelties of Spanish colonizers. The organization was able to attract people from the lower as well as middle classes to revolt against Spain. The organization continued to carry out its activities in a secret manner, but the Spanish authorities were able to find them in August 1896. This is what started the revolution.
Progression of Revolution
After the discovery of the Katipunan, the Spanish authorities conducted several searches to identify and arrest the members of the organization. At this time, Bonifacio and his followers were planning a nationwide revolt and this led to the “Cry of Pugad Lawin” wherein several revolutionaries took part. In this movement, the tax certificates were torn apart by the revolutionaries to symbolize their fight against Spain.
The head of the Katipunan also planned an attack on Milan, but he and his followers were defeated because of the large number of Spanish authorities as well as the arms they possessed. However, Bonifacio continued with his revolt and the revolt also flared up in neighboring provinces.
Problems During the Revolution
One of the major problems of the revolution was that the members of the Katipunan also fought amongst themselves. The organization got divided into two councils; Magdiwang and Magdalo and this gave rise to leadership disputes. To settle the leadership disputes, the Tejeros Convention was established. In the makeshift election, Bonifacio lost to Aguinaldo.
In Naic, Cavite, Bonifacio established a rival government and planned a coup. He was arrested and later executed. Aguinaldo proposed an end to revolution by surrendering the weapons to revolutionaries, an exile for leaders, and payment to the revolutionaries. While the movement came to an end, the Philippines was still not independent.
Declaration of Independence
The year 1898 marked the second phase of the Philippine Revolution. The Americans declared war against Spain after a U.S. Navy warship exploded and sunk in Havana harbor. U.S. Navy was able to defeat Spain in Manila and the United States gained control of the capital of the Philippines.
Aguinaldo became friendly with the Americans and on June 12, 1898, the Philippines was declared independent. In December of the same year, Spain conceded the Philippines to the Americans and the Philippines again had not exactly become independent.
Important Notes
- The Philippine Revolution was started to gain independence for the Philippines.
- The Spanish authorities controlled the Philippines and their defeat by the United States led to the concession of the Philippines to the United States, thereby not making the Philippines independent.
- The revolution started when a secret organization of revolutionaries, called Katipunan was discovered by the Spanish authorities.
The revolution was weak majorly because the leaders of the organization did not think on the same lines and there were disputes associated with the leadership of the organization