Today in Philippine History: Rizal Arrives from Hong Kong

JUNE 26, 1892

Jose Rizal arrived in the Philippines together with his sister Lucia on board the boat Don Juan from Hong Kong and stayed at room no. 22 of the Hotel de Oriente, a two-story building with 83 rooms. He attended a reunion in the house of Doroteo Ongjunco located at Calle Ylaya, Tondo district. Among those he met in the house were Filipinos who were later arrested and executed after the Katipunan was discovered by the Spanish authorities. A week later, Rizal met Filipino masons in the same house and founded the civic organization La Liga Filipina.

Photo credit: http://joserizal.info/

Today in Philippine History: Galicano Apacible

JUNE 25, 1864

Galicano Apacible (June 25, 1864 – March 2, 1949), a patriot and propagandist was born in Balayan, Batangas. He was a cousin of Jose Rizal and headed the La Solidaridad, an organization created in Spain in 1888. He co-founded the Nacionalista Party and formed the Hong Kong Junta. Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo sent him to Tokyo as a special agent to secure arms and ammunitions for the revolutionaries. Apacible was a physician, governor, representative of the 1st district of Batangas and the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources. 

Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Today in Philippine History: Jose P. Rizal

JUNE 19, 1861

José Protacio Rizal (June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896), the national hero of the Philippines and pride of the Malayan race was born in Calamba, Laguna. He was the seventh of the nine children of Francisco Mercado Rizal and Teodora Alonzo y Quintos. Rizal was a novelist, poet, journalist, ophthalmologist and a nationalist. His two books, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo  exposed the injustices of the civil and church officials that led to his arrest, trial and execution.

Today in Philippine History: Francisco Mercado

MAY 11, 1818

Francisco Mercado (May 11, 1818 - January 5, 1898), the father of our national hero Jose Rizal,  was born in Biñan, Laguna. A prosperous farmer, he married Teodora Alonzo on June 28, 1848 and they had eleven children - Saturnina, Paciano, Narcisa, Olympia, Lucia, Maria, Jose, Concepcion, Josefa, Trinidad and Soledad. In 1849, Gov. Gen. Narciso Claveria decreed natives should have a distinct family name, and unsatisfied with his, he adopted “Rizal”, from the Spanish Ricial which means green field for pasture and so he became Francisco Rizal Mercado.