Chapter 4
Recuperation and Strengthening
April 17, 1906, and the Republic is having its third elections. President Aguinaldo, on his second term looks back at how far his country has gone in just a few years’ time. He had worked hard and done a lot to improve both the country and his public image. He only hoped that the next president would do the same as he did
For the past eight years Aguinaldo, Prime Minister Mabini, and many other politicians had done as much as they could to improve the country. After the recent war with the Spanish in 1898, he and his government first decided to rebuild the nation as well as help those who had suffered from the war. Aguinaldo (and Mabini) asked the Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Welfare, Srs. Gracio Gonzaga and Felipe Buencamino, to formulate a plan to help those who had suffered the ravages of the war as quickly (and cheaply) as possible. Secretary Gonzaga and Secretary Buencamino presented their final plan in June 22. They stated the necessity of building temporary shelters, reconstruction of houses, as well compensation in either land, or food. The people were to be relocated in temporary shelters if they had nowhere else to move. While they were there, they would, of course, be involved in the reconstruction. Males 16 to 50 years old would be required to work in the reconstruction of government funded houses, buildings, and other such necessary structures. All the tools and equipment needed would be provided by the government. Once an adequate amount of the land was reconstructed, the people would be released from their work, and they would be paid 10 pesos by the government. According to the Secretary of Finance, Hugo Ilagan, to pay for all this, the government would need more than 6.75 million in Luzon alone adding Visayas and a hostile Mindanao which necessitate the usage of more men to guard the workers would push that number to around 17 million.
Secretary Ilagan suggested to the Cabinet lowering the payment of the workers from 10 pesos to 7 pesos which would reduce the cost to around 12.6 million pesos. They decided to put this to a vote on June 25. 58-10 was the result. Almost all the members of Parliament wanted it lowered. The money would be paid completely in 2 months. 3 pesos in the first month, 7 pesos the following month. In hope of mitigating the expected aggravation of the workers, August 20 (the same day as the second payment) was declared as the Worker’s Holiday. Upon hearing the news that their wages would be lowered, many of the workers grumbled but didn’t do much beyond that. They knew that at least that it was their houses, farms, and schools being rebuilt and the government was the one paying for the necessary materials, so it didn’t bother them that much. This was then known as the “Reconstruction Act”.
Following this just two weeks later was the “Redistribution Act” (Thanks to Secretary Leon Maria Guerrero of the Department of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce) and “School Reform Act” were proclaimed. The “Redistribution Act”, as the name suggests, was the redistribution of the lands of the very wealthy land-owning elite (as well as the lands of the friars). Depending on the size of their land, anywhere from 1/2 to 1/5 was redistributed to the peasants and smaller landowners. However, the large landowners would not completely be robbed of their property. Instead, they would be given an equal amount of undeveloped land which they would be given a chance to develop. There was some resistance to this as many of the MP’s themselves were large landowners but after putting it to a vote, the act was approved finally approved on February 8. The results were very close at 36-32. Also approved at the same time was the “School Reform Act” or secularisation of colleges/universities. There was little argument over this matter and the act was approved with the overwhelming support of the majority on the same day as the “Redistribution Act”.
One aspect of the Philippine Republic that was greatly improved during Aguinaldo’s term was the military. The President envisaged a great military which would help transform his nation into a respected power. However, the development of this desired force was merely at its beginning and as such, early improvements and acquisitions were quite modest and meagre as the economy was still developing. Fortunately for the Philippines, there was a lot of stock weapons left over by the Spanish.
In an effort to ascertain the condition of the army, Captain General Artemio Ricarte, who, due to his experience in that position before was selected to lead the military, decided to make an inventory of the number rifles and cannons that the army possessed.
Overall, the Ejercito Filipino had:
A. 47,400 Rifles
1. 19,000 Mausers (1893 Model)
2. 22,000 Remingtons Rolling Blocks
3. 5,000 Krags (Recent arrival)
4. 1,400 Miscellaneous (Early Mausers, Muratas, Winchesters, Gewehrs etc.)
(Image courtesy of armasdefilipinas)
Mauser 1893.
(Image courtesy of armasdefilipinas)
Oviedo Remington Rolling Block Model 1871.
(Image courtesy of armasdefilipinas)
Springfield Krag Jørgensen model 1892-1898.
B. 60 Lighter modern field and mountain guns of various manufacturers
1. 10 “4.1-inch guns”
2. 18 “3.5-inch guns”
3. 24 “2.5 to 3-inch guns”
(Image courtesy of wikiwand)
4-inch gun during exercise in Aparri.
C. 23 Heavier modern guns of various manufacturers
1. 9 “5.9-inch guns”
2. 10 “4.7-inch guns”
3. 4 “8 to 9.4-inch guns”
(Image courtesy of wikipedia)
5.9-inch Ordonez gun.
(Image courtesy of wikipedia)
8-inch coastal gun positioned in Cavite.
D. 45 Machine guns and gatling guns of various manufacturers
1. 25 Nordenfelt machine guns
2. 10 Gatling guns
3. 10. Maxim machine guns
(Image courtesy of Bonhams)
.43 Spanish Nordenfelt machine gun.
(Image courtesy of Daily Echo)
Hiram Maxim posing with his eponymous machine gun.
(Image courtesy of Popular Mechanics)
A Gatling Gun that was converted from 45-70 to .43 Spanish.
A total of 47,400 rifles, 83 modern artillery pieces, and 45 machine guns.
After finding out that they were very deficient in artillery and modern machine guns (being spread throughout the country and having to arm police), General Ricarte requested funding for an acquisition programme for two batteries of surplus German “7.7 cm Feldkanone 96” (12 guns), a battery of British made “QF 2.95-inch mountain guns” (6 guns), and two battery of French made “Matériel de 75mm Mle 1897” (6 guns) as well as ammunition. Finally, he also requested funding to purchase at least 12 more Maxim guns and 10,000 Mausers with ammunition.
To convince the government to support his plan to strengthen the army, he had to remind them of the recalcitrant group of Moros down south as well as the hostile “savages” living in the northern mountains and middle islands of Visayas. Other than these internal threats which needed to be dealt with as soon as possible, he said, there was also a chance that their alliance with the US might not be enough to deter a determined and hungry power. With this prompting, the government immediately agreed to fund his plan of acquiring the military equipment. However, the 12 Maxims and two batteries of French field guns that he requested was cut down to just 8 Maxims and a single battery of field guns to save on costs, much to the General’s chagrin.
As well as purchasing more arms, General Ricarte also requested the assistance of the Americans in Subic. He asked if they would be willing to send over some of their most experienced sergeants to train 6 Filipino companies. Brigadier General Lawton, who had become good friends with some Philippine generals, was kind enough to oblige and sent 6 of the best performing sergeants to train said companies. For this kind act, General Ricarte sent General Lawton two cases of 10-year-old champagne.
The first order of guns would arrive in September of 1899. These were the 12 German “7.7 cm Feldkanone 96” the two batteries would first undergo testing and once they had been approved for usage, were sent to serve in two different regiments. The British mountain guns and French field guns would arrive together on November 29, 1899. Last to arrive were the 8 Maxim guns and 10,000 Mausers. After testing they would be accepted into service on the 3rd of January 1900.
Under the guidance of the six American sergeants as well as the many European mercenaries who had been recruited by the vaunted (Major) General Antonio Luna to serve as either commissioned or non-commissioned officers, the Ejercito Filipino was slowly being moulded into a professional and modern army.
By 1901, the army had a total of:
54,000 rifles (recent acquisitions), 107 modern artillery pieces, and 54 machine guns of varying types. After some discussion, it was decided that an army of 50,000 regulars would be maintained. The rest of the rifles were either kept in inventory or sold to the civilian market.
The army, however, didn’t take up the entire budget of the military. The navy needed improvement as well. First under the overall command of Captain (later Rear Admiral) Pascual Ledesma, the navy would grow from a few converted merchant steamers into the third “largest” navy in Asia, all thanks to the surrender of the remaining Spanish naval units still in the Philippines.
By the end of the Revolution in 1898, the Philippine Navy was initially composed of:
A. 7 (-1) Merchant steamers (fitted with one or two 3-3.5-inch guns)
1. Compañia de Filipinas
2. Purísima Concepción
3. Taal
4. Taaleño
5. Bulusan
6. Balayan
7. Don Francisco
(I sadly have exceeded the number of files I can attach at this point so no more descriptive pictures of the minor ships)
(Courtesy of the Philippine-American War Facebook group)
The Purisima Concepcion
B. 7 Steam launches captured from the Spanish
1. Otálora
2. Oceanía
3. Covadonga
4. Orani
5. El Capitán
6. Suerte
7. Nueva Ecija
These ships and launches would greatly help in expanding the revolution, being instrumental in an amphibious assault against the Spanish in Mindoro, transporting arms and troops, performing bombardments, as well as engaging the remaining Spanish vessels in the southern islands.
Once the Treaty of Paris was signed and the news of the surrender of the Spanish was spread throughout the islands, the remaining Spanish gunboats sailed to Manila to surrender to the Americans. Once the “Manila Agreement” was signed, the Americans turned over all captured Spanish vessels to the Filipinos.
There were 15 in total
A. 2 Two large gunboats/third-class unprotected cruisers.
1. Elcano (4th flagship of the navy, two 4.7-inch guns, another 4.7-inch gun was added later)
(later Rajah Matanda)
2. General Lezo (two 4.7-inch guns, another 4.7-inch gun was added later)
(later Don Juan Macapagal)
B. 12 Smaller coastal/river gunboats
(varied in size and armament from 70.5 ft and one 1 pounder gun to 156.2 ft and four 3 pounders and two 1 pounders/ one 6 pounder and three 3 pounders)
1. Pampanga
2. Paragua
3. Samar
4. Albay
5. Calamianes
6. Panay
7. Manileño
8. Mariveles
9. Mindoro
10. Basco
11. Gardoqui
12. Urdaneta
13. Villalobos
As well as these gunboats, on February 1899, the Philippine Navy would re-float and tow (with the help of the USS Zafiro) the two small Isla de Luzon Class protected cruisers to the Cavite Naval base to be repaired and recommissioned in their own navy. Repairs would proceed at once and the ships would undergo a slight reconstruction. From their original length of 195 feet overall, they were extended by 6 feet to even out the length to beam ratio. The ships were finally commissioned on the 11th of March 1900. Isla de Luzon was renamed as Filipinas while Isla de Cuba was renamed as Patria.
At 201 feet, armed with a main battery of six 4.7 inch guns (two located fore and aft and one each on starboard side and portside), capable of going 15.2 knots, and with deck armour of 2.5 to 1-inches, though small and slow by the standards of the major powers, Filipinas and her sistership were the most potent vessels in the Philippine Navy until the arrival of newer ships.
In August 1899 The Secretary of Defence, Mariano Trias, was approached by Rear Admiral Ledesma with his plan to enlarge and strengthen the navy. Calling it the “Two Fleets Plan”, he pushed for the acquisition of six battleships, six armoured cruisers, six light cruisers, and four torpedo boat destroyers. Each ship type would be split in half. Half would be stationed in the North (Luzon), while the other half would be stationed in the South (Visayas and Mindanao) All of these, he said, were to be acquired in the span of 8 years. Secretary Trias knew that a strong navy was necessary for his maritime nation which had one of the longest coastlines in the world. However, he knew that the number of ships that Admiral Ledesma wanted to acquire was out of the budget of the Philippine Navy, even if they ships were to be paid for gradually in a span of 8 years.
He approved of Admiral Ledesma’s plan to enlarge the navy but he asked him to reduce the number of ships that the navy was to acquire before presenting the plan to the parliament as he was sure that the parliament would never agree to acquire such a large number of battleships, cruisers, and destroyers. After a discussion with some of his advisers and top officers, Admiral Ledesma approached Secretary Trias, once more, but this time, with a revised plan.
The number of ships he planned to acquire for the navy had been greatly reduced. From two battleships, four armoured cruisers, six light cruisers, and four torpedo boat destroyers, he now instead required just two “coastal defence” battleships, two armoured cruisers, four light cruisers, and four torpedo boat destroyers. But this time, to be acquired in a span of six years.
With the approval from the Secretary of Defence, the plan was submitted to the parliament and after some discussion and voting, the “Two Fleet Plan” was approved with a total tally of 55-13. Albeit with some disagreements from a few members of parliament as well as the Secretary of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce, Sr. Leon Maria Guerrero, who argued that the current size of the navy was more than adequate to patrol the coastline and territories of the republic and the funds that were to go to the acquisition of ships should instead be diverted to other projects. His pleas were shot down, however, as there was still a fear of occupation from a foreign country despite their alliance with the US.
The first purpose-built ships to be ordered by the Philippines were the four light cruisers (rather than protected cruisers) that were ordered in April 1900. Looking at the available designs, the first to be ordered were the Independencia class cruisers. Using the Isla de Luzon as the basis of its design, it was 284 feet long and had a beam of 38 feet. It was armed with a main battery of six 5.9-inch QF guns, six 6-pounder guns, and two Maxim 1-pounder guns. Completing the class’s armament were two 14-inch torpedo tubes placed on the sides of the ship (one starboard, one port). The class had a 3-inch belt armour, 1.5-inch deck armour, and 6-inch armour for the conning tower. Krupp steel was used to armour the ships. The first ship Independencia, would arrive in January 1902, while the second ship Libertad, would arrive in February 1902.
Ordered in conjunction with the two Independencia class cruisers were the four Mártir class destroyers. These destroyers were essentially a repeat of the British torpedo boat destroyer HMS Stag. The class was armed with a single QF 12-pounder gun, five QF 6-pounder guns, and two single 18-inch torpedo tubes. Two of the destroyers were built by Thornycroft in England, while the other two were built in the Philippines. The first two destroyers were completed in November 1901 and were named Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora, they would arrive two months later, on the 3rd of January 1902. The other two destroyers were named Mariano Gomez and Fernando LaMadrid. Being the first and largest naval vessels to be built by First Philippine Republic, their commissioning was very celebrated and attended by many officials.
Ordered from Britain right after the two cruisers and destroyers were the two Evangelista class cruisers (one to be built in Britain the other in the Philippines) as well as the last two of the Orlando Class Cruisers HMS Narcissus and HMS Undaunted (to be named Binakayan and Dalahican). The Evangelista class was very similar to the Portuguese unprotected cruiser Adamastor with the biggest changes being the length of the ships, compared to the Adamastor’s length of 242 feet and beam of 35 feet, the Evangelista class cruisers were 296 feet long and had a beam of 41 feet. The class was also quite heavily armed for its size. The class was armed with six QF 6-inch/40 (one fore and aft, four on each side, starboard and portside), four 10.5 cm SK L/40 naval guns (two on each side, starboard and portside), four 6-pounders, and four Maxim 1-pounder guns. The first ship was named Edilberto Evangelista, the second Anacleto Enriquez after two revolutionary Generals.
The last major naval acquisition of the Philippines was the small battleship, Republica. The ship was initially named Abdul Kadir and was being built for the Ottoman Navy. Despite being laid down in 1892, the Ottomans had not yet completed the battleship. Even the recent war with the Hellenic Kingdom in 1897 did little to spur the building process of the ship. On January 6, 1900, the Philippine government entered discussions with the Ottoman Empire to acquire the unbuilt battleship. Initially, there was some resistance in the Ottoman government to the sale of the Abdul Kadir since a few still wanted the battleship to be completed despite the mounting costs it gave the government. Eventually, the Ottoman government agreed to sell the Abdul Kadir to the Philippines for a total of 4.8 million pesos. The deal was finalised in March 1900 after inspectors from the Philippine Navy ascertained that the hull was still in good condition.
After much work, the hull was transported to an actual slipway where work could proceed more smoothly and with less danger (it was originally laid down on open ground with just wooden beams to support it). Work would proceed quickly, under the supervision of German engineers, the ship would be launched and completed in December 1902. The now Republica would sail home to the Philippines on the 16th of February 1903 after finishing her sea-trials and fitting out. Notably, her firepower was increased quite a bit compared to her original configuration.
On the 14th of April 1903, after several stops along the way, the Republica finally arrived at Subic Bay. The American military personnel observed the small battleship with great interest. Brigadier General Jacob H. Smith (commander of the 4,000-man detachment in Subic) and Rear Admiral Robley D. Evans (commander of the Asiatic Fleet) were invited to tour the ship. Three days later, the ship would depart for the Port of Manila, arriving at 2:38 in the afternoon. A large crow awaited its arrival. Military personnel, including now Admiral Pascual Ledesma and Secretary of Defence Mariano Trias, along with a very sickly Prime Minister Mabini were part of the crowd. Also observing the arrival of the Republica were the many foreigners in Manila, who took note of the growing strength of the Philippines. Indeed, with its armament of two twin 11-inch MRK L/40 guns (capable of one shot per minute due to a upgraded loading system), six 15 (6-inches) cm SK L/40 naval guns, eight 8.8 cm (3.5-inches) SK L/30 naval gun, eight 1.5-inch guns, six single 14-inch torpedo tubes, she was now the most powerful vessel in the Philippine Navy’s arsenal as well as being one of the most powerful vessels in the region.
(Await next post for pictures of some of the vessels.)
