A BOOK REVIEW ON TEODORO AGONCILLO'S THE HISTORY OF THE FILIPINO PEOPLE (PART 1)

Who better writes about the Philippine history than the Filipinos?

This is what Teodoro Agoncillo who is considered the country's foremost historian is talking about one of his contributions to Filipino historiography - writing Filipino history from the Filipino point of view. There is no rule stating that other historians of different nationality are banned from writing about our history; however, a primary source is still the best source.

I. Who is Teodoro Agoncillo?

A. Life and Works
Teodoro Agoncillo was born on November 9, 1912 in Lemery, Batangas. At an early age of three, he was already studying caton, their alphabet at that time, and cartilla then a year later he was enrolled in a public school. At eight years old he was reading "awits" and "corridos" even though nobody taught him. He studied in UP where he took up History not because he wanted to but because Leandro Fernandez, the Head of Department of History and his adviser when he enrolled, encouraged him. If not for Leandro he would have taken up a writing course because he wanted to be a writer from the start. He obtained a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the said university in 1934 and a master's degree in the arts from the same university the following year. He earned his living as a linguistic assistant at the Institute of National Language and as an instructor of Tagalog Literature at the Far Eastern University and the Manuel L. Quezon University. However, these were not the only jobs he had for he also had been a writer, researcher, historian, editor, columnist, professor and director.

He was already writing when he was in high school but it was in 1940 that he made his first history work, Kasaysayan ng Pilipinas, w/ Gregorio Zaide who became his instructor. In 1956, he published his seminal work, The Revolt of the Masses: The Story of Bonifacio and the Katipunan, a history of the 1896 Katipunan-led revolt against Spanish rule and its leader, Andres Bonifacio. He garnered acclaim for this book, as well as criticisms from more conservative historians discomforted by the work's nationalist, perhaps even Marxist bent. This was followed by Malolos:The Crisis of the Republic in 1960 which featured the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, treachery of USA in the Filipino-American War, to the ilustrados and the defection of some Filipinos themselves in the establishment of the Republic of the Philippines. He authored about 20 books and numerous articles on history and some of this are, aside from already given, The Fateful Years:Japan's Adventure in the Philippines, 1942-1945 (1965); Filipino Nationalism 1871-1972 (1974); The Burden of Proof: The Vargas-Laurel Collaboration (1984) and The History of the Filipino People which is what this paper is to review.

In 1958, Agoncillo was invited to join the faculty of the Department of History of his alma mater, UP. He remained w/ the university until his retirement in 1977, chairing the Department of History from 1963 to 1969 replacing Nicolas Zafra. Philippine Pres. Diosdado Macapagal named Agoncillo as a member of the National Historical Institute in 1963. He served in this capacity until his death in 1985.

In recognition of his contribution to Philippine Letters and Philippine History, Agoncillo was given a citation by the KALIPI, a national association of Filipino writers, during its founding congress last April 1975. He was also a Republic Cultural Heritage Awardee in 1967 but, he says, he refuses to accept the award. He was the first ever to hold the Rafael Palma Professional Chair in the history of the Philippines and the 1st faculty member to be given the rank of professor of a university, the highest academic appointment in any university. Agoncillo was also a member of the National Academy of science and technology in 1980 and for his outstanding work as a historian; he was conferred as a National Scientist in 1985.

B. Teodoro Agoncillo as a Historian
It was not Agoncillo's dream to become a historian but he certainly became well known as one. Why did he become famous as a historian? Agoncillo is distinguished for his Filipino point of view but what exactly is this Filipino point of view? As he said so himself, history is never objective; the very fact that the student of history chooses what to include and what not to include in his work is proof that history is never objective and so it is the historian's job to interpret and since there are different manners of interpretation, Agoncillo batted for the Filipino point of view which reflects the perspective of the colonized and not the colonizer which most history books before him have shown. It is not just the Filipino point of view that he is known for; it is also the way he writes history. If history in the hands of ordinary historians is dry, no life and simply stated as boring; history in the hands of Agoncillo had life and different emotions - love, anger, amazement, sadness - just like in his book, History of the Filipino People which may be the reason why Carmen Guerrero-Nakpil called him "the passionate historian. " Also, his style is elastic; he can be humorous, sweet, fighting and satirical as said by Nic Tiongson, one of his colleagues.

II. What is the History of the Filipino People?
A. Reasons Why History of the Filipino People Was Made
History of the Filipino People, first published in 1960, was written at the suggestion of then Pres. Vicente Sinco of UP to meet the needs of the freshman students of the University who will, beginning June 1960, come under the General Education Program as conceived by the educationists of the University. It was at this time when church leaders were seeking to influence the public school curriculum. It was later on adopted by several universities as textbook.

B. Contents
When the 1st edition of History of the Filipino People was published in 1960, it set out to correct interpretations of Philippine history in other textbooks that were more concerned w/ the history of Spain and the Catholic Church in the Philippines, than w/ the history of the Filipino people.

Chapters 1-4
The four chapters give an introduction of a brief and in detailed geographical description of the Philippines, natural resources found in it, the people and their traits, beliefs, attitudes, personalities, etc. and everything that characterizes the early Filipinos, a brief history of the early Filipino immigrations that helped to shape added characteristics of the Filipinos, a chapter on customs, beliefs, social structure of pre-colonial Philippines and of course their religious beliefs, and a last chapter on language, writing, literature, arts, etc.
These chapters give us a clear and vivid picture of the beauty and richness not only of the country itself but also the people living in it. From the time this was written up to now, it is still valid for it explains the country's location, features, resources and most especially the people living in it - their culture, traditions, beliefs, ways of living, physical features that up to now, some of us still practice this customs and can't let go of this origins.

Chapters 5-7
These chapters talk about the 300 years of the Spanish colonization in the Philippines from the time Magellan arrived in 1521 up to the time the GOMBURZA were executed in 1872. These chapters talk about the diff. crusades, trades, events and a lot more, before the Spaniards came to the Philippines. It discusses the reasons for the explorations, the purposes of their navigation, the events that happened before, between and after the exploration, the people that they encountered and the struggles and obstacles that came their way as they are exploring until they have settled to the islands of the Philippines. As soon as they settled to the islands, the main aspect that they did was the conversion of the natives to Christianity.

Christianity made a lot of changes in the country especially in the ways of life of the people. It gave the Filipinos a new set of moral and religious values that made them to turn away from their old customs and practices, which had been w/ them for a long time. It also strengthened many of their traits and virtues; moreover, they were impressed w/ the reality of the birth and dignity of the individual as a child of God that helped in the development of the concept of country or nation as well as the basis of sensible and sound democracy. Christianity opened the Philippine w/ the concept of nationalism and democracy.

New forms of gov't were also introduced to the Filipinos as they settled in the Philippines. These new ideas about gov'ts made a lot of changes in their lives that may be good or bad. The governmental agencies that Spain established w/ all their defects produced helpful results. They brought together the scattered, independent, and separate communities in the Philippines and made them into a nation. Moreover, under the Spanish colonial administration, the Filipino obtained valuable experience and knowledge of the governmental ways and practices of Spain that they will use in the future as they lead the country by themselves. As part of the new forms of gov't that were introduced to them, the Encomienda System - one of the most typical issues in Philippine history which has been subject to many exaggerations regarding abuses of the encomenderos - was also brought about. Another aspect was the taxation system wherein the author enumerated a series of taxation practices covering a wide period from 1571 to 1584 that led to the introduction of concepts that are popularly used nowadays like the issuance of promissory notes in exchange for debts and most especially the concept of corruption among gov't officials that are one of the biggest problems of that time and even up to now.

Education was also introduced to the natives and formal schooling was established. The educational system that Spain established in the Philippines, w/ all its shortcomings and imperfections, contributed much to the political and cultural make-up of the Filipino people. These schools developed among the Filipinos their Western attributes that made them different from the Malays, which was their original descents. The Filipinos learned a new alphabet and a new language. With these valuable achievements, the Filipinos found new tools w/ which they could strengthen the bonds of union among themselves.

The Filipinos developed into a nation in a short time w/ a culture basically Christian in character and in spirit; however, it took them many years to acquire that sense of solidarity and that keen sensitiveness to events in their country and awareness to the significance of these events to their lives. Spain's policy of restricting and isolating the Philippines from commercial events prevented the Filipinos from having further historical changes and developments taking place in other parts of the world. Because of this policy, the spirit of resistance against alien domination remained alive as shown form the frequent revolts and conspiracies occurred in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries

This development didn't pursue until the latter part of the 19th century, which included the opening of the Philippines to foreign trade and consequent material and social progress, representation of the Philippines in the Spanish Cortes, improvement of means of travel and communication, administrative and educational reforms, the Spanish Revolution of 1868, and the tragic execution of the GOMBURZA in 1872.

The mentioned concepts, ideas and changes that happened in the past during the Spanish era are still evidently seen in our present lives today. The gov't system we inherited, the values, faith and religion and qualities that are both good and bad are still being used and benefited w/. The information found in these chapters are still relevant up to now because they are still being used as teachings to the new generations who need to know the important events that happened before that are connected and affected the events that are happening now.

Chapters 8-9
Chapter eight describes the attempts of the Filipino Propagandists to establish reforms without resorting to an armed uprising. The author views this phase of Philippine History as both "a failure in that it did not achieve its goals. In another sense, however, it was a success, for its failure led to the founding of the revolutionary Katipunan w/ separatist aims."

These reforms were mostly led by the middle-class and played an important part in these movements. It also cites the reasons and objectives behind these movements most especially the people behind these. The book also gave a brief biography of the said people involved in these movements and their objectives for establishing them.
Chapter nine is a detailed description and narrative of how the Katipunan was founded. The author highlights the personalities of its two top leaders: Andrés Bonifacio and Emilio Jacinto.

Here, the author talked about how Bonifacio was a great leader and how his qualities and achievements could, or maybe should, qualify him as our national hero. This is not saying that Rizal should be discarded as our national hero for he has also done a lot of great things, but suggesting that Bonifacio may be regarded as co-national hero for he is a national hero as far as the national estimation is concerned. Think of how this idea could dismiss the argument who should be the national hero. Why pick only one when they both deserve it?

Katipunan was formed when La Liga Filipina was collapsing due to Rizal's arrest and in many ways it is the same as La Liga Filipina, and even Masonry. However, unlike La Liga Filipina where most members are middle class and reason for fighting, in a peaceful way, is freedom, Katipunan is fighting for sovereignty meaning complete separation of the Philippines from Spain.

The movement's objectives and the sincerity of the people involved in this movement attracted more and more Filipinos to join them and fight for a common goal which was to regain its freedom. Even women were enticed to be part of the movement. Christianity, the educational system, and the governmental agencies that Spain established in the Philippines contributed a lot in the lives of the Filipinos and played an important role in the formation of the people into a nation and these factors contributed in no small degree to the development of Philippine Nationalism.

The revolutionary movement was truly national in scope and in character. The persons who were behind this movement and who participated in it were encouraged and inspired by their love for freedom and independence for the Philippines from any foreign colonization. It was their long for dream and aspiration to have a regime of liberty, justice, and democracy in their country and it was enough for the Filipino nationalists to give generously their blood, possessions and most especially their lives.

These two chapters give us a clear understanding of the events and the reasons behind the many famous revolts and movements against the Spanish regime that led to the development of our awareness to the real situation that was happening during those time and to open our eyes to the things that the Spaniards did to us before and to let us know the events that changed not only the lives of the people before but also affected our lives right now. These information and knowledge that was presented to us by Agoncillo should be used right now as inspirations to overcome the challenges that we are experiencing right now as a nation and this will be a big help to correct the mistakes that we have done before and a "push" to correct those mistakes and to act now.

Chapters 10-11
"Revolution is the most interesting part of our history and to me it is the most significant. It was the Revolution that made us Filipinos. Before that, we were Indios," said by Agoncillo. This is what these chapters are all about.
The two chapters tackled about the two phase of the Revolution. Chapter 10 is all about the phase one which is from the popularity of Katipunan to its discovery to the execution of Bonifacio to the Biak-na-Bato Republic. In the 1st years of the Revolution, a lot of struggles were felt especially by the Katipunan for their main problem is their absence of preparation of arms and even if they had found the way to somehow solve this problem the weapons they had got is still inferior to the rival's. Also, Katipunan's popularity became a disadvantage because this just made the suspicion of Spaniards aroused and even though the governor-general did not really do anything about this, the friars didn't stop until they got what they want and that is to expose Katipunan through the betrayal of a Katipunero and this where the battles really were at high. Meanwhile, the rivalry between the two factions in Katipunan still doesn't end so Bonifacio was invited to mediate between them but Bonifacio failed and was later on executed. The real story behind Bonifacio's execution is still a puzzle unsolved to some but the author somehow - if not completely - solves this puzzle. Still the revolution continues while Aguinaldo established a republican gov't known as the Biak-na-bato republic, but later on the Truce of Biak-na-bato was made but this was failure on many ways. This chapter is the lengthier one because this phase is when the struggles and battles are really at high.
Chapter 11 primarily tackles the last days of the Spanish Occupation in the Philippines. The Spanish-American relations have heated up and Spain w/ her colonies lies in wait for the inevitable American attack. Meanwhile, Filipino resistance has won battle after battle w/ the continuous support of America - victory and independence seem just over the horizon. But as later revealed in the chapter, the alliance of US and the Philippines was but a mask of the true intentions of Uncle Sam for Juan dela Cruz. As it turns out, the American Invasion of the Philippine was not an unwanted accident brought about by the Spanish-American War, but a planned and premeditated conspiracy to acquire the Pearl of the Orient.

The War inevitably broke out, and in the battle of Manila Bay, the Spanish were routed in a massacre from the advanced American Navy. The city of Manila was then conceded and the surviving Spaniards surrendered. A temporary agreement was established between the two opposing forces until the official surrender of power was given to US. Curiously though, the Filipinos who have fought for centuries against the Spanish were deliberately ignored in the provisions of the agreement; as if they didn't even exist and it was not their lands that were the battlefield.

Chapter 12
In the months before and following the Victory of the Americans (and the Filipinos, though they were disregarded), Aguinaldo set into motion the foundations of the rising Philippine Republic. Due to the chaotic times brought by the sudden yet anticipated end of the war, Aguinaldo needed a way to administer the necessary steps in creating an efficient and sufficient gov't. Although the original plan was to establish a Revolutionary Gov't, Aguinaldo was advised to establish first a dictatorial gov't since it would provide as the catalyst in passing the establishment of the gov't. He reassured that the dictatorship was only temporary; that it would stand only until enough preparation was completed for the Filipinos to establish a revolutionary gov't.

Aguinaldo's gov't was proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence in June 12, 1898. The Philippine Flag was raised for the first time and the Philippine Declaration of independence was signed by 98 witnesses, among them an American Navy Officer who was present during the proclamation. It was in the days that followed that Apolinario Mabini, known as the "Brains of the Revolution," prepared the decree that provided for reorganization in the local gov't giving way to the elections of a popular assembly in every province freed from Spanish control. From the town chiefs who were part of the popular assembly were elected the members of the Revolutionary Congress, who in turn proposed measures to preserve the internal order and external security of their lands in scope. All these bodies were established in order to provide the executive w/ the much needed information in catering for the people. They also had other functions involving the administration of justice.

A month after the creation of the dictatorial gov't, on June 23, 1898, the long-since conceived revolutionary gov't was established. Its aim was to prepare the country so that the true republic may be established. Four departments were established to help the president in his duties, w/ the department secretaries appointed by the president. It also allowed the creation of a congress, whose primary power is to watch over the general interest of the Philippine people, and the carrying out of the revolutionary laws, ratifying and approving them. A cabinet was also created as the number of departments were increased, bearing w/ the changes brought by time.
Soon after, the congress began to draft the constitution which would provide for all the basic laws and duties of the state to its people; which in turn would seal the progressing establishment of the gov't and cause for the recognition of other nations of the Republic of the Philippines. All efforts became tantamount to the creation of the Philippine Republic in January 23, 1899. Upgrades in the educational system and the use of periodicals further sold the idea of the Republic; of it being the father of the Filipino people. Later, diplomatic activities were also done to persuade other nations to recognize the Republic.

All these efforts however, were in vain as seen in American eyes when the Treaty of Paris was signed official ceding the Philippine Islands to the Americans for a meager $20,000 in payment of the development done in the country. There was no consultation or representation whatsoever of the Filipinos in the said treaty signing.

Chapter 13
"For me, the Filipino-American War is the most glorious epoch in our history," said by the author himself.
With the Americans' true intentions slowly becoming apparent to Aguinaldo and his gov't; Philippine-American tensions begin to rise. McKinley's Benevolent Assimilation Proclamation later proved fatal in the attempts to alleviate the tension since it revealed to the Filipino people the true colors of the Star - Spangled Banner - that it had no intention of leaving the Philippines.

The peace attempts met the coup de grace in the San Juan Bridge incident, when Pvt.Willie W. Grayson of US fired the first shot that launched the Philippine American War. MacArthur made no attempt whatsoever to investigate the incident; conversely, he issued his order to advance against the Filipino forces. Aguinaldo, on his end, created a fact-finding committee that later discovered evidences such as the dismissal of Filipino workers in US ships and the eerie movements of the US Army that gave reason to believe that the San Juan Bridge Incident was not an accident but a planned attack.

America, w/ her superior weapons easily swept through the country from Manila to the north and south. Mabini, the most powerful man behind Aguinaldo believed in the continuing of the bitter struggle for independence. When the Americans offered autonomy, he fought for independence under American Protection. But the other members of the congress did not side w/ him. Instead they collaborated w/ the idea of autonomy. For Aguinaldo and Mabini, this was a crushing blow. He wrote to Mabini that the executive arm of the gov't had to be reorganized. Mabini then resigned, and a new cabinet was created.

It was not just the Americans that would cause the defeat of the Filipinos, but the Filipinos themselves that collaborated w/ the invaders. From Gen. Luna's Assassination, to the collaboration of the Negrenses w/ the fall of the Iloilo and even the Bates Treaty that pacted the Muslims and the Americans in a loose alliance.
The hunt for Aguinaldo would lead him to seek shelter in the mountains - unbecoming treatment for the great general who led his people against the Spanish. He surrendered the members of his family w/ the other women in their group as to not endanger them. The hot pursuit later would cause Gen. del Pilar to hold the line against the Americans in Tirad Pass. But thanks to an Igorot collaborator, an alternate route was found and used by the Americans to rout the defenders. Del Pilar's martyrdom would both increase the hatred for the Americans and decrease the Filipino's morale to fight against the giant from the west.

Aguinaldo's elusive escapes frustrated the Americans who followed him to the farthest reaches of the mountains. But it was not the howitzers nor the thousands of soldiers who would cause Aguinaldo's capture, but a betrayal - one from the very people that Aguinaldo bled to protect - the Macabebes. Betrayal seems to be all over the place but could we really blame them? Maybe, maybe not.

Aguinaldo's capture would not end the resistance. Still several pockets fought for their independence and battle still raged on. There was brutality from both sides: the desperate and weary Americans and the angry Filipinos. Torture was practiced by both sides, and vengeance was becoming more of a motive than the fight for freedom.
Eventually the resistance was all routed, w/ the blood of thousands spilt. The American rule fell iron on the Philippines and they proved that they would resort to any measure or brutality to achieve their goals.
This chapter shows what the author means by Filipino point of view for some of the facts have two interpretations, those of the American and those of the Filipino, w/out distorting the facts.

Chapter 14
This chapter is about the Aglipayan Movement, on how and why it came to be as well as its significances. This chapter is one of the reasons stated by the authors themselves why the textbook is a radical departure from any textbook on Philippine history mainly because he gave the Aglipayan Movement the importance it deserves. He believes that this movement is just like Reformation is to Europe and therefore has capital significance in Philippine history. It is the only living and tangible result of the Revolution and ignoring or toning it down, like other textbooks has done, is to falsify the facts of Philippine history. But some critics say that to place it on the same level as the Reformation in Europe is to magnify it beyond true perspective and though it cannot be denied that w/ the death of the two founders, Gregorio Aglipay and Isabelo de los Reyes, much of the initial momentum have been lost and today that church has a lesser impact than the other religious minorities in this country, say, the Iglesia ni Kristo, whose political potential seems to be greater than the Aglipayans ever enjoyed at the eight of their popularity. It might be good to also check Molina:The Aglipayan Schism, Vol. II, pp. 255-258, where a short and objective account of this can also be read.