Andres Bonifacio

His Excellency

Andrés Bonifacio
President of the Sovereign Tagalog Nation
President of the Philippines (unofficial)
In office
August 24, 1896 – March 22 or May 10, 1897
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byOffice abolished
Emilio Aguinaldo (as President of Tejeros Revolutionary Government)
Personal details
Born
Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro

(1863-11-30)November 30, 1863[1]
Tondo, Manila,[1] Captaincy General of the Philippines, Spanish Empire
DiedMay 10, 1897(1897-05-10) (aged 33)
Maragondon, Cavite, Captaincy General of the Philippines, Spanish Empire
Cause of deathExecution
NationalityFilipino
Political partyLa Liga Filipina
Katipunan
Spouse(s)Monica (c. 1880–1890, her death)
Gregoria de Jesús (1893–1897, his death)
ChildrenAndrés Bonifacio y de Jesús (born in early 1896, died in infancy)
EducationSelf-educated
Signature
Military service
Nickname(s)Maypagasa
Allegiance Katipunan
Years of service1896–1897
Battles/warsPhilippine Revolution

General Andres Bonifacio Bonifacio y de Castro and Andres Bonifacio (30 November 1863 – 09 May 1897) was a Filipino resistance movement member, revolutionary, and soldier. He founded the independence group Katipunan. He was the first President of the Philippines Provisional Revolutionary government, serving between 1895 and 1896.

Early life

Andres Bonifacio was born on November 30, 1863, in Tondo, Manila. His parents were Santiago Bonifacio and Catalina de Castro, and he had six siblings.[2] Andres’ mother passed away when he was just a little boy, and his father died as well. Andres was left to care for his younger siblings.

Because of his family’s poor financial situation, Andres could not attend a formal school for very long. He taught himself by reading books and learning about history, literature, and languages. He was interested in the stories of independence from other countries, which would later help him fight for his own nation’s freedom.[3]

Political activism

As Bonifacio grew older, he became more aware of the problems the Philippines faced under Spain at the time. People were forced to pay high taxes, and many natives were treated like second-class citizens in their own land. Andres began to feel strongly about this and decided to do something about it.

In 1892, Bonifacio joined La Liga Filipina, a group founded by Jose Rizal to get reforms from the Spanish government, such as better treatment of Filipinos and fair laws. Bonifacio believed that the only way for the Philippines to be truly be free was through a revolution. Because La Liga Filipina was a peaceful organization, its leaders advocated for reforms legally. On the day after Rizal was arrested and sent to Dapitan, Bonifacio co-founded the Katipunan, a secret society that aimed to overthrow the Spanish rulers and fight for Philippine independence. Bonifacio rose to a leader within the Katipunan, where organized and spread the movement throughout the country.[4]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Keat Gin Ooi (2004). Southeast Asia: A Historical Encyclopedia, from Angkor Wat to East Timor. ABC-CLIO. p. 240. ISBN 978-1-57607-770-2. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  2. ↑ Tucker, Spencer (2009). The Encyclopedia of the Spanish-American and Philippine-American Wars: A Political, Social, and Military History. ABC-CLIO. p. 65. ISBN 9781851099511. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  3. ↑ Bonoan, Christopher (June 12, 2014). "Of books, bolo, and Bonifacio". Rappler.
  4. ↑ Agoncillo, Teodoro (1990) [1960], History of the Filipino People (8th ed.), Quezon City: Garotech Publishing Inc., ISBN 971-10-2415-2, archived from the original on October 24, 2020, retrieved October 1, 2020

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