The Blood-stained Pearl: A Philippine Timeline

Kapitan-Heneral

... In the fields of battle, deliriously fighting,
Others give you their lives, without doubt, without regret.
The place matters not; where there's cypress, laurel or lily,
On a plank or open field, in combat or cruel martyrdom,
It's all the same if the home or country asks.


José Rizal​

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This is my very first attempt in making a TL. Updates might be inconsistent (due to RL stuff), but I'll do my best. Comments and opinions are welcome.
 

Kapitan-Heneral

Introduction

The nationalist ideology began to grow in the Philippines in the early 19th century, when the Spanish colony was opened to world market. Among the massive influx of foreign goods that arrived upon Manila's shores were books written during the Age of Enlightenment, containing liberal ideas. As the economy expands, a new middle class was born from the rising number of new businessmen and entrepreneurs who gained enourmous wealth from the global trade. The inevitable result, these same people became financially capable to give their offsprings access to higher degrees of education; first from the most respected educational institutions of the land, and then to Europe's best universities.

Thus, the next generation of this middle class went to Europe, where they learned new ideas that they never knew existed and, the more crucial, realized the difference of European societies compared to their own. These men would later return to their homeland with the mission to change their archaic, feudal and unjust society and banded together to form a group of liberal-minded intellectuals: the ilustrados.

The term "Filipino" was first coined by the Spanish Jesuit missionary, Pedro Chirino, in his book Relación de las Islas Filipinas. It was said to refer to all of the inhabitants of the islands. But as the Spanish government imposed the casta system, the term became synonymous to the insulares (colony-born Spaniards) and the mestizos (persons of mixed European and native descent), while the pure-blooded natives are called indios. The term regained popularity in the mid-1800s, as the ilustrados began to refer themselves as such, but in a similar manner to the Castillians, Aragonese, Catalans and Basque.

The ilustrados began to campaign for reforms, such as equal rights and secularization of the church, among others. During the Peninsular War in Spain, the Philippines gained representation in the Cortes, as stipulated by the 1812 Spanish Constitution, but didn't last last long when Fernando VII abolished it. During the crackdown against the liberalism in the late 1810s, some Spanish liberals found their way into the Philippines, strengthening the liberal movement.

The first blow against the ilustrados came in 1823, when the mestizo Captain Andrés Novales staged a rebellion in Manila, which ended up in failure. Several liberalists were arrested and exiled to the penal colonies of Guam and in Africa.

The ilustrados' cause had a resurgence in 1868, in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution that turned Spain into a republic, when the liberal Carlos María de la Torre became Governor-General. De la Torre enacted several reforms and prepared the Philippines to become a Spanish province. All those plans were aborted when de la Torre was replaced by Rafael de Izquierdo in 1871. Izquierdo was the complete opposite of his predecessor, and abolished all the reforms, suppressed the ilustrados and introduced harsh policies to the detriment of his subjects.

One such policy is the abolition of tax exemption of the military. This earned the ire of the colonial soldiers. Adding fuel to the fire, Izquierdo had extended the mandatory labor policy (polo y servicio) to the soldiers. This culminated into a turning point in Philippine history that shaped the island's political and social landscape in many years.

On January 20, 1872 a mutiny broke out at Fort San Felipe in Cavite Nuevo. Led by a mestizo sergeant Fernando la Madrid, hundreds of soldiers and laborers took over the fort and killed several Spanish officers. This sparked a major uprising in northern Cavite that threatened to become a nationwide revolution. But the Manila acted quickly. Izquierdo send an army under Felipe Ginovés to quell the insurrection. In the ensuing battle the mutineers were quickly defeated and the fort was recaptured. Some of the captured mutineers were executed on the spot while the others were sent to prison.

The colonial government used the incident to silence the ilustrados. Several prominent reformists were implicated in the plot, including the leaders of the secularization movement - Jose Burgos, Mariano Gomez and Jacinto Zamora - and were arrested and tried for rebellion. The priests were convicted (due to the conservative clergy's power and influence) and sentenced to death. However, Izquierdo commuted the sentence to exile and hard labor, not wanting to make martyrs for the dissidents to rally behind. The three priests were excommunicated by the Archbishop of Manila and were exiled to Guam on February 28, 1872.

This incident had planted the first seeds of secessionist sentiments, which would later culminate into the first revolution in Asia: the Philippine Revolution.
 
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Kapitan-Heneral

José Rizal, The Propaganda Movement and the Struggle for Reforms

The Propaganda Movement traced its roots in the aftermath of the 1872 crisis. Many liberals feared for their lives and flee to Europe and other parts of the world. These exiled ilustrados later formed the core of the Philippine Reform Movement. In Europe, they could continue their fight for change without fearing harsh reprisals. But the 1872 Crisis became the main influence to the most respected and revered figure of the Propaganda Movement: José Rizal.

Rizal was considered as one of the greatest minds of his generation. Born from a wealthy family, and a proven prodigy in his childhood, he would later go on to study in one of the most prestigious schools in Manila - Ateneo Municipal and University of Santo Tomas - where he developed his talents further. He was prepared to take a law degree but shifted to medicine upon learning of his mother's detoriating condition.

At a young age, Rizal was already a witness of the injustices suffered not just by his family, but also his friends and fellow Filipinos. When he was 10, his mother was imprisoned for more than two years on false charges and was forced to march several kilometers to her prison cell. In 1872, his brother Paciano (a friend of the exiled José Burgos) was arrested and imprisoned for more than a year. Upon his release, Paciano confessed being tortured, much to the young Rizal's grief. Those events began to mold his ideas of liberty and equality. Rizal had also began to harbor some revolutionary sentiments.

But as he grow older, he had also witnessed the ignorance, indiscipline, and other negative traits of his fellowmen. This strengthen his resolve to help his people achieve a sense of identity and nationhood, so that they become truly worthy of being given independence.

The Propaganda Movement continued their mission of reforming the Philippines, by clamoring the central government to take action. While studying in Europe, Rizal wrote his two masterpiece works: Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. These novels are considered social commentaries on the Philippine society and government, and the church. It also described the possible consequences of the Spanish abuses on their Filipino subjects. The two novels were declared as subversive materials, and was banned in the Philippines. This made Rizal a marked man, as the clergy deemed him as a heretic and a rebel.

The propagandists took another step on their campaign with the founding of their official newspaper La Solidaridad in 1889. Rizal contributed some articles to the periodical, including a prophetic one which gave Spain two choices: enact reforms or face a bloody rebellion.

After a few more years of travel, Rizal received news about the persecution of his family, which prompted his return to the Philippines in 1892, opening a new chapter in the Philippines' struggle for liberty.
 
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Right now, I dont understand ATL Philippine writers with the practice of retaining OTL even after deviating from OTL in PoDs with influential people.

An example of this mistake is El Filibusterismo, three priests dying, the treatment to Rizal's family in OTL are intertwined with one another. In your ATL, these three priests were never killed and yet everything after that wasnt affected by the PoD. The mere existence of these three priests will affect Philippine history.
 

Kapitan-Heneral

La Liga Filipina and the Ilustrados' Last Hurrah


"... I've always compared myself to Crisostomo Ibarra when he slowly transformed into Simoun. These days I always find myself on the brink on perverting my aims when my personal interests are being scrutinized. That's why I am never capable of leading a revolution. I am yet to find Elias; a person with a noble heart and conscience, capable of reasoning under any circumstances, and is not driven by revenge or any other selfish motives. That is the the man truly worthy of leading the struggle for this nation's freedom."

- Taken from Rizal's memoirs​


Despite the efforts of La Solidaridad to fight the cause of the Filipinos, their cries of reforms fell on deaf ears, while back in the Philippines the colonial government tightened its grip upon their subjects, and increased their repressive measures against dissidents.

Despite warnings from his friends, José Rizal returned to the Philippines in 1892. After tending to family matters, he founded the La Liga Filipina, a goodwill society aiming to provide commercial, educational and legal assistance to those in need, and promote the self-improvement of the Filipinos.

During his time in the Liga, Rizal met several people from different walks of life. Among them was a man named Andrés Bonifacio. Bonifacio had been one of Rizal's greatest admirers, and was a very active member of the Liga. During one of Rizal's rare conversations with him, he discovered that Bonifacio espoused radical ideas of armed struggle and independence. At first the ilustrado was hesitant, but later he began to respect Bonifacio and his ideals, as he realized that they shared the same aim of improving their countrymen, and building their nation's identity.

Despite Rizal's peaceful intentions, his detractors grabbed the opportunity to dispose of him once and for all. Days after the Liga's foundation, Rizal was arrested by Spanish authorities. After a short trial, he was sentenced to be exiled in Dapitan, Zamboanga.

In Rizal's absence, the Liga slowly crumbled. Two factions began to form: the conservatives which created the Cuerpo de Compromisarios that continued to support the reformist abroad, and the radicals - led by Bonifacio - that formed a secret society aiming to overthrow the Spanish government and established an independent nation: the Katipunan.
 
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Kapitan-Heneral

Right now, I dont understand ATL Philippine writers with the practice of retaining OTL even after deviating from OTL in PoDs with influential people.

An example of this mistake is El Filibusterismo, three priests dying, the treatment to Rizal's family in OTL are intertwined with one another. In your ATL, these three priests were never killed and yet everything after that wasnt affected by the PoD. The mere existence of these three priests will affect Philippine history.

You have a point, but I believe not all PODs would result to gigantic alternate histories.

The GomBurZa were alive, but in exile, so their effect in this Philippines' history were reduced. And I think Rizal would still write El Fili whether the 3 priests are dead or alive.

If you realized already, this TL's Rizal is already different from OTL, because he now had sympathies with radical/revolutionary ideas, instead of rejecting it. But he would still see it as a last resort, i.e. if all else fails.
 
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Kapitan-Heneral

Fall of Reformism and the Rise of Revolutionary Movement

The Katipunan was founded on July 7, 1892 - a few hours after Rizal's arrest - by a group of former Liga members consisting of Andrés Bonifacio, Deodato Arellano, Valentin Diaz and Ladislao Diwa. The society had one aim: secure the independence of the Philippines by overthrowing the Spanish government through armed conflict.

As the 1890s went on, it became evident that the cause of the Propaganda Movement is a lost one. Coupled with the news of Rizal's arrest and exile, many disillusioned ilustrados withdrew from the reform movement and began to embrace more radical ideas, that of armed revolt and secession. The Filipino intellectuals were now divided into two camps: the Loyalists and Independentists. The Loyalist are those who still remain faithful to the original aim of the Propaganda Movement (autonomy and equal rights), while the Independentists became the advocate of total independence from Spain, as they believed that it is the only viable option for the Philippines and its people to achieve progress. Marcelo H. Del Pilar, de-facto leader of the Independentists, left La Solidaridad on 1893(1) and went to Barcelona, and started rallying more Filipinos to his cause. Graciano Lopez Jaena, a Loyalist, took over the newspaper until its folding in 1895.

Back in the Philippines, the Katipunan began recruiting people for the impending revolution. Most of the people who joined came from the middle and working classes. Bonifacio and his comrades found difficulty in persuading the wealthy upper-class Filipinos to join, owing to the latter's hesitation of putting their personal interests in danger should the uprisings fail. But luck came in early 1894 when Arellano managed to inform his brother-in-law Del Pilar of the secret movement's existence, and secured the latter's support, along with other sympathetic Filipinos abroad, mostly the Independentists. The first shipments of smuggled arms came August 1894, and the training of recruits started a few weeks later.

The Katipunan aimed to expand their membership across Luzon, so they founded their own newspaper Kalayaan. Its first publication came in March 1896, although it'll also be the last after being banned by colonial authorities after its contents were deemed seditious. Kalayaan, however, had done its part. After its release, the Katipunan's membership swelled into thousands coming from several places, and even reaching as far as Tarlac in the north, and Bicol in the extreme end of Luzon.

When a rebellion exploded in Cuba in 1895, the Spanish authorities became more suspicious of any subversive activities. Bonifacio knew that it's just a matter of time before they discover the secret society, and they must be prepared for that eventuality. So on June 1896, Bonifacio sent Valenzuela to Dapitan to consult him about the revolution, and to try getting the ilustrado's support for the cause. The next turn of events would decide the fate of the revolutionary movement.

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(1) In OTL, he stayed until La Solidaridad's demise on 1895.
 
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