Shaika Kryzza S. Mojica Mr.

Robert Nova
BSIT 2-1 SOCSCI4

Emilio Aguinaldo(Biography):

Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy (March 22, 1869 – February 6, 1964) was a Filipino
general, politician, and independence leader. He played an instrumental role in
Philippine independence during the Philippine Revolution against Spain and the
Philippine-American War that resisted American occupation. He eventually pledged
his allegiance to the US government. In the Philippines, Aguinaldo is considered to
be the country's first and the youngest Philippine President, though his
government failed to obtain any foreign recognition.
Early life and career
The seventh of eight children of Crispulo Aguinaldo and Trinidad Famy, he was born
into a Filipino family on March 22, 1869 in Cavite El Viejo (now Kawit), Cavite
province. His father was gobernadorcillo (town head), and, as members of the
Chinese-mestizo minority, they enjoyed relative wealth and power. As a young boy,
Aguinaldo received basic education from his great-aunt and later attended the
town's elementary school. In 1880, he took up his secondary course education at
the Colegio de San Juan de Letran, which he quit on his third year to return home
instead to help his widowed mother manage their farm. At the age of 17, Emilio was
elected cabeza de barangay of Binakayan, the most progressive barrio of Cavite El
Viejo. He held this position serving for his town-mates for eight years. He also
engaged in inter-island shipping, travelling as far south as the Sulu Archipelago. In
1893, the Maura Law was passed to reorganize town governments with the aim of
making them more effective and autonomous, changing the designation of town
head from gobernadorcillo to capitan municipal effective 1895. On January 1, 1895,
Aguinaldo was elected town head, becoming the first person to hold the title of
capitan municipal of Cavite El Viejo.
Family
His first marriage was in 1896 with Hilaria Del Rosario(1877-1921), and they had
five children (Miguel, Carmen, Emilio Jr., Maria and Cristina). His second wife was
Maria Agoncillo Several of Aguinaldo's descendants became prominent political
figures in their own right. A grandnephew, Cesar Virata, served as Prime Minister
of the Philippines from 1981 to 1986. Aguinaldo's granddaughter, Ameurfina
Melencio Herrera, served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1979
until 1992. His great-grandson, Joseph Emilio Abaya, was elected House of
Representatives to the 13th and 14th Congress, representing the 1st District of
Cavite. The present mayor of Kawit, Cavite, Reynaldo Aguinaldo, is a grandson of
the former president, while the vice-mayor, Emilio "Orange" Aguinaldo IV, is a
great-grandson.
Philippine Revolution
Emilio Aguinaldo c. 1898
In 1895, Aguinaldo joined the Katipunan rebellion, a secret organization then led by
Andrés Bonifacio, dedicated to the expulsion of the Spanish and independence of
the Philippines through armed force. He joined as a lieutenant under Gen.
Baldomero Aguinaldo and rose to the rank of general in a few months. 30,000
members of the Katipunan launched an attack against the Spanish colonizers in the
same week. Only one general, Emilio Aguinaldo, successfully launched an attack with
his troops. With the Katipunan, he helped the Philippines erupt in revolt against the
Spaniards in 1896. He won major victories in Cavite Province, temporarily driving
the Spanish out of the area. However, renewed Spanish military pressure
compelled the rebels to restructure their forces in a more cohesive manner. The
insulated fragmentation that had aided the Katipunan's secrecy had outlived its
usefulness. In open war, unified leadership was required. Bonifacio presided over
the Tejeros Convention in Tejeros, Cavite (deep in Aguinaldo territory) to elect a
revolutionary government in place of the Katipunan on March 22, 1897. Away from
his power base, Bonifacio unexpectedly lost the leadership to Aguinaldo, and was
elected instead to the office of Secretary of the Interior. Even this was
questioned by an Aguinaldo supporter, claiming Bonifacio had not the necessary
schooling for the job. Insulted, Bonifacio declared the Convention null and void, and
sought to return to his power base in Rizal. Bonifacio was charged, tried and found
guilty of treason (in absentia) by a Cavite military tribunal. Bonifacio was sentenced
to death. He and his party were intercepted by Aguinaldo's men, with violence that
left Bonifacio mortally wounded. Aguinaldo confirmed the death sentence, and the
dying Bonifacio was hauled to the mountains of Maragondon in Cavite, and executed
on May 10, 1897, even as Aguinaldo and his forces were retreating in the face of
Spanish assault.