Figure 1.--This is an obviosly staged photograph meant to depict the brtality of Spanish rule in the Philippines. It was captioned, "Spanish Soldiers Shooting Spies". We ae not sure why the term 'spies' was used. Probably 'revolutionaries' is more apprppriate. This is not to say that such actionsdid not occur, but they were not photographed.

The Spanish encountered resistance from the very beginning of their arrival in the Philippines. As in Latin America, indigenous people resisted along three lines: There were three major areas: 1) personal and religious, 2) economic and religious institutions, and 3) land ownership. Unlike Latin America there were no major empires in the Philippines and there was no concept of Filipino nationality among the people of the many islands. Spanish institutions was seen as oppressive imposing heavy taxes and forced labor. Opposition included the Sumuroy and Maniango revolts. Religious revolts included the Tamblot and Hermano Pule revolts. Religious issues declined over time as the Spanish successfully Christianized much of the population. This combined to be a problem mostly in the Islamicized southern islands. A major issue was land ownership. Under Spanish rule, native Filipinos lost their ancestral lands. There were land in Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna (1745-46). Revolts against Spain occurred through out Spanish rule, but were localized. Spain never faced a mass national revolt against a people with modern weaponry. . There is a long list of Filipino revolts.

The 16th Century

Miguel López de Legazpi, the Basque Spanish conquistador who played a major role in conquring (1565). Sulayman, the tribal chief of Manila, and Tondo, the tribal chief of Lakandula were forced to recognize the authority of the Spanish monarchy. This was important because it gave the Spanish control of much of Luzon, the most important island in the Philippines archipelago. Legazpi promised to treat their people justly. We are unsure just how well he kept his promise, but after his death (1572), his successor, Guido Lavezares, did not. This led to the Sulaman and Lakandula Revolt (1574). This led to major fighting, only stopped when Cpt. Salcedo, Legazpi's grandson, persuaded the chiefs to end he revolt

The 17th Century

The next major uprising was Tamblot's Revolt (1621-22). Tamblot was a native priest who convinced people on Bohol to reject Christianity and embrace their traditional religion. Bohol is an island in Vizcaya. Agustín (Juan) Sumuroy was a Waray leader in the Viscayas who led the Palapag Revolt (1649). They opposed the Polo forced labor system. Viscay men were being transported to Cavite on Luzon to build galleons. The rebels killed the parish priest. It took a year of fighting to suppress the rebels. Sumroy was captured and executd. Francisco Maniago was another Filipino revolutionary leader, in this case a mestizo.. He led a revolt in Pampanga (1660). Maniago opposed the bandala system which require the sale of agricultural products at artificially low prices He also opposed polo y servicio, a form of forced labor. Locals, primarily lumber men, had to work on government projects without any pay. In this case Maniago succeeded and the Spanish Government made concessions.

The 18th Century

The Dagohoy Revolt showcased the power of the Church in the Spanish Phillipines and proved to be the longest of the many revolts. It helps explain why the Church was such an issue in Latin America during the 19th century. Jesuit priest Fr Gaspar Morales ordered Sagarino Dagohoy, a policeman, to arrest an apostate (1744). The man resisted and in a duel, Sagarino was killed. Fr. Morales denied Sagarino a Christian burial. Sagarino's brother Franciso was banned from the Church. Dagahoy launched a revolt. It sounds like a religious revolt, but forced labor was probably more important. Fr. Morales and other priests were killed. Dagohoy set up an independent government in the interior mountains. The rebellion continued for decades and was finally ended (1829). The remaining rebels were pardoned. The Silang Revolt occurred during a war with Britain (1762-63). Diego Silang a mail carrier, after the British captured Manila, saw that Spanish power was declining an decided to challenge Spanish authorities. He joined the British forces. Spanish authorities bribed friends to assassinate him (1763). His wife Gabriela took over leadership of the revolt--the first Filipina to emerge in a leadership role. The Spanish then captured and hanged her.

The 19th Century

Another revolt was organized by Apolinario de la Cruz, Hermano Pule. Because the existing Catholic orders refused to accept native Filipinos, he founded the Cofradia de San José. He attracted widespread support. Spanish authorities attempted to suppress the movement (1840). This was not achieved until a year of fighting (1841). Pule was arrested and executed. His group was disbanded. While the Spanish encountered considerable resistance in the (16th and 17th century). There was not any concept of Filipino nationality. A Filipino independence movement unlike the movements in Latin America did not rise to question Spanish rule again until the late-19th century. The was one area in which there was continuing resistance to Spanish colonial rule. That was in the Muslim south, especially Mindanao (Zambonaga and Sulu). The Muslim south was never completely conquered, only the coastal towns were controlled by the Spanish. The Spanish launched many different military expeditious. None many to destroy Muslim resistance. 【Canete-Trinidad】. We see continued resistance to Spanish colonial rule (19th century). We note a building desire for freedom and independence. There were complaints about civil liberty abuses, high taxation, forced labor, and lack of religious freedom. The major revolt was the Cavite Mutiny (1872). This was a brief uprising of 200 Filipino troops and workers at the Cavite naval arsenal. Spanish authorities cracked down harshly on the embryonic Philippine nationalist movement. The Philippines was still deeply divided, divided culturally, geographically, linguistically, and religiously. For the first time in history we begin to see a nationalist movement, and not just a reaction to Spanish abuses. The harsh Spanish response to the Cavite Mutiny seems to have fueled nationalist sentiment. There was growing opposition. José Rizal was a popular Filipino writer and reformer who wrote about the corruption of Spanish rule promoted the independence movement. Andrés Bonifacio founded the Katipunan, a secret revolutionary society that sought to prepare the Filipino people for revolution and independence (1892). Spanish authorities discovered the organization (1896). Soon after, the Katipunan, led by Bonifacio, openly declared war on the the Spanish government, beginning a 3-year revolution, which organized some attacks on the Spanish regimes. Like similar evolutionary movements in Cuba was unable to over throw Spanish authorities. A major problem was the inability to obtain modern arms. 【Hirama】 Emilio Aguinaldo was a Katipunan commander, Spanish authorities decided to buy him off. He agree to the Pact of Biac-na-Bató with the Spanish governor general (1897). Aguinaldo agreed to go into exile in exchange for money payments and the promise of liberal reforms. He went to Hong Kong and then in Singapore. Where he made contact with the U.S,. Consulate which included representatives of Commodore George Dewey to return to the Philippines and assist the United States which was about to go to war with Spain.

Sources

Canete-Trinidad, Marcy. "Filipino revolts" Slideshare.

Hirama, Yoichi (1994). "The Philippine Independence War (1896–98) and Japan" XX International Colloquium of Military History Warsaw Poland, (October 22, 2021), pp. 197–9

Created: 9:38 PM 10/12/2025
Last updated: 9:38 PM 10/12/2025