CHAPTER 12THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES THE HONGKONG JUNTA

THE RELIEF OF PRIMO DE RIVERA AGUINALDO RETURNS

THE SPANISH AMERICAN WAR THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES

THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY THE SIEGE OF MANILA

AGUINALDO GOES TO SINGAPORE THE SECRET AGREEMENT

THE INTERVIEW WITH PRATT THE MOCK BATTLE OF MANILA

AGUINALDO AND WILDMAN AMERICAN TERMS

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES

The struggle continues

(1897-1898)

Governor General Primo de

Rivera’s success in the

battlefield of Cavite over

Aguinaldo’s forces could have

ended the Revolution.

Instead a truce agreed upon,

apparently an attempt on both

sides to recover from their

losses and resume fighting

later.

Some Filipinos, in fact,

continued to engaged the

Spanish forces and established

a temporary government like the

Makabulos “Republic” in

Tarlac.

Even before the Filipinos could recover

from the battles of 1896, General Emilio

Aguinaldo, as the recognized leader of

the Filipinos in exile in Hongkong and at

Home, negotiated the situation with the

Americans to delay confrontation with an

obviously more powerful country.

But the united states misled Aguinaldo to

believe that the Americans came as an ally

of the Filipinos in their fight to end

Spanish rule in the country. But in the end,

the Filipinos fears and suspicious proved to

be true. The American came to stay and

eventually took over as the new colonial

master.

THE RELIEF OF PRIMO DE

RIVERA

GOVERNOR-GENERAL

PRIMO de RIVERA’s success in

stopping the bloodshed was highly praised in

spain. The queen of Spain, who was reigning for

her son, rewarded him with the Grand Cross of

San Fernando and a pension of about P10,000.

GENERAL BASILIO

AUGUSTIN sent as governor-general to

succeed Primo de Rivera.

GENERAL BASILIO AUGUSTIN

Primo de Rivera knew the Philippines very

well because he had serve previously as

Governor of the country from 1880 to 1883.

With the possibility of a war between the

united states and Spain, Governor Primo de

Rivera would have been a wise choice to

govern the archipelago since he knew the

Filipinos well.

GOVERNOR-GENERAL PRIMO DE RIVERA

On April 9, 1898, General

Augustine arrived in

Manila and the following day

Primo de Rivera turned over

the reins of government to

him.

THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR

The Cuban revolution had won the sympathy

of the Americans because the latter had big

investments in Cuba which they did not want

to be destroyed. Some in influential

Americans, Theodore Roosevelt, wanted

war with Spain so that the American navy

could expand. In 1897, he became Assistant

Secretary of the Navy.

CUBAN REVOLUTION

THEODORE ROOSEVELT

Roosevelt worked for the appointment

of Commodore George Dewey as

commander of the American Asiatic

Squadron. On February 25, 1898,

Roosevelt told Dewey to make

Hongkong, which was very near in

Manila, as his base of operations.

COMMODORE GEORGE DEWEY

On February 15,1898, the American

battleship, USS MAINE

exploded at Havana Harbor in Cuba.

Spain was blamed for the mishap.

More two hundred American sailors

and officers died. So on April

25,1989, the Congress of the United

States formally declared war on Spain.

THE BATTLE of MANILA BAY

Dewey received a message by cable

from the Secretary of War. It said:

“War has commenced between the

United States and Spain. Proceed

particularly against the Spanish fleet.

You must capture vessels or destroy.

Use utmost endeavor.

Dewey ordered his fleet to sail for

Manila Bay. Quietly, his fleet

entered the bay in the early morning

hours of May 1, 1898. The Spanish

batteries in Corregidor were too late

in detecting passage of the fleet.

Spanish squadron, commanded by

Admiral Patricio Montojo, was

waiting near Sangley Point, Cavite.

ADMIRAL PATRICIO MONTOJO

Montojo was watching

Dewey’s course as he entered

Manila Bay. Dewey spotted

the Spanish ships and ordered

his fleet to turn back and sail

toward Cavite. Standing on the

bridge of the flagship USS

Olympia.

AGUINALDO GOES TO SINGAPORE

It was early on April of 1898 when

rumors has already reached Manila

that war between Spain and the

United States was to be declared any

time. Isabelo Artacho, one of the

plagiarists of the Cuban Constitution,

went to Hongkong and demanded

Aguinaldo to divide the P400,000

indemnity that was given by the

colonial government to the rebels.

To avoid a scandal, Aguinaldo

was advised by Felipe

Agoncillo to leave Hongkong.

Two companions, Gregorio

Del Pilar and Jose Leyba,

Aguinaldo left for Singapore.

THE INTERVIEW WITH PRATT

Aguinaldo and his companions arrived

in Singapore on April 23, 1898. An

Englishman, Howard Bray, who had

lived in the Philippines for a long time,

came to visit Aguinaldo. Aguinaldo

came to Singapore incognito. Pratt

made all the arrangements for

Aguinaldo’s return to Hongkong.

FELIPE AGONCILLO

AGUINALDO AND WILDMAN

On April 26, 1898,

Aguinaldo and his companions

sailed for Hongkong. Dewey

had already left for Manila

when Aguinaldo arrived in the

Brirish colony.

The American consul at

Hongkong, Rounseville Wildman,

told him that Dewey had left

instructions for the return of

Aguinaldo to the Philippines.

Aguinaldo should established a

government like that of the United

States.

THE HONGKONG JUNTA

When Dewey won the Battle

of Manila Bay and News

about it reached all parts of the

world, the Filipino patriots in

Hongkong met to discuss the

steps to be taken to take over the

Philippines.

Aguinaldo told the Junta that the

situation in the Philippines was

very serious and sought their

opinions over the matter. There was

an exchange of points of view and

the Junta unanimously decided that

Aguinaldo should return to the

Philippines.

AGUINALDO RETURNS

Aguinaldo accepted the Junta’s decision,

for he had faith and confidence in its

members. Members of Junta, were Felipe

Agoncillo as President with Doroteo

Lopez as secretary; Teodoro Santico,

Anastacio Francisco, Mariano Llanera,

Miguel Malvar, Andres Garchitorena,

Severo Buenaventura, Maximo Kabigting,

Faustino Lichauco, and Antonio

Montenegro.

On May 17, 1898, Aguinaldo

boarded the American revenue

cutter McCulloch, which was

bound for Manila. The ship

arrived in Manila Bay two

days later.

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES

When Aguinaldo had finished disembarking

the war equipment which were purchased in

Hongkong, Filipino rebels came to pay him a

visit. On May 21, Aguinaldo issued a

proclamtion saying that, “ Everything appears

favorable for attaining independence … I urge

that we strive to unite our efforts, and let us

fire our hearts with the idea of vindicating

our country. Many nations are on our side.”

The end of May, Aguinaldo’s armed

forces had captured about 5,000

prisoners. Town after town, in Cavite and

Morong, fell into the hands of the

Filipino rebels. In Pampanga, Laguna,

Batangas, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija,

Tayabas, Bataan and Camarines, the

people were up in arms against Spain.

June 1898, practically the whole of

Luzon, with the exception of the Port

of Cavite, which was in American

hands, and the City of Manila, which

was under the Spaniards, was in the

hands of the Filipino rebels. On June

12,1898, Aguinaldo signed the

Proclamation of the Philippine

Independence in Kawit, Cavite.

THE SIEGE OF MANILA

The defeat of the Spanish fleet

discouraged the Spanish officials in

the City to prevent the Filipino

population from siding with

Aguinaldo, Governor-General Basilio

Augustin issued a circular saying that

the unity of the Philippines and its

liberties lay with Spain.

The Filipino rebels besieged

Manila, which was then called

Intramuros or the Walled City.

Dewey could not deploy troops in

Manila because he did not have

enough soldiers aboard the battleship.

THE SECRET AGREEMENT

In June and July, however, American

troops arrived in Manila Bay. They

landed in Paranaque and encamped south of

Pasay. General Arthur MacArthur,

believed that they could fight the Spaniards.

Governor was ready to surrender to the

Americans, but the government of Spain

did not like this. He was relieved of his

duty and was succeeded by General Fermin

Jaudenes.

Jaudenes believed that the

Spanish position was very

weak. He entered into a secret

agreement with Dewey and

General Wesley Meritt.

THE MOCK BATTLE OF MANILA

It was August 13, 1898, there

was a downpour because the rainy

season had arrived. The American

soldiers walked quietly towards the

walls of the city in preparation for

the “battle”.

When the firing started, the

Filipino soldiers advanced.

General Meritt ordered

General Francis V. Greene

to stop the Filipinos.

THE AMERICAN TERMS

At five o’clock in the afternoon of

August 13, the Spanish governor-general

agreed to sign the surrender document.

Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., the

protocol of peace was signed by the

representatives of Spain and the United

States. According to this protocol, both

nations would appoint not more than five

commissioners each.

These commissioners were to meet on

October 1, 1898 in Paris, France to discuss

the terms of peace treaty. On August 12,

Washington time, President William

McKinley of the United States issued a

proclamation ordering that “all military

operation was cabled to General Meritt in

Manila. However because Dewey cut the

cable linking in Manila with the outside

world after the battle of Manila Bay.

Meritt received the proclamation

on August 16, three days after the

mock battle of Manila. The

Americans who had promised

friendship and alliance to

Aguinaldo’s forces had taken over

the Philippines.

Submitted By:

JOANA MARIE R. PEREZ & JUDECEL CLAVERIA