LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:

1. Appraise the link between the individual and society.
2. Analyze the various social, political, economic, and
cultural changes that occurred in the 19th century.
3. Understand Jose Rizal in the context of his times.

1 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
2 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
You have certainly heard many changes in the 1990s as compared to your
generation at present. Interview a Batang 90s to determine such changes in comparison
with the current situation for Batang 2000s. Record your findings by filling-up the table
below.

Description Batang 90s Batang 2000s

Storage for Files

Method/s used for doing

Research
Way/s of Note-Taking
during Class Discussion
Favorite Past Time

Famous TV Show

Well-loved Snack

Tool/s for Listening to

Music
Prominent Get-Up/Attire

Mode of Communication

Preferred Beverage

Throughout the years, the Philippines has transformed in many ways. A lot of
changes have taken place brought about by the many historical occurrences that have
plagued the country. In this lesson, we will discuss the changes in the 19th century,
categorizing social, political, economic and cultural changes in the Philippines.
The nineteenth century is considered the birth of modern life, more so, the
birth of many nation-states all over the world. For us to understand what Dr. Rizal have
done during the nineteenth century, let us look the different developments and
accomplishments on that period that changed and shaped the landscape of the
Philippines’ economy, society and politics.
The birth of modernity brought up three revolutions to the world: the Industrial
Revolution in England, the French Revolution in France and the American Revolution.
During these periods the Spaniards have already been in so much power to some parts
of the world.

2 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
The Revolutions
When Governor-General Jose de Basco y Vargas arrived in the Philippines,
Galleon Trade was not yet in progress. But trading with China, Japan, Siam (now
Thailand), India, Cambodia, Borneo and the Moluccas (Spice Islands) was already
apparent among our ancestors when the Spaniards came to the Philippines. The Spanish
government continued trade relations with said countries and Manila became the
center of commerce in the East. The Philippines, allegedly a Spanish colony, was then
governed from Mexico and in 1565, the Spaniards closed the ports of Manila to all
countries except Mexico. Hence, the birth of the Manila-Acapulco Trade, more known
as the “Galleon Trade.”
The Galleon Trade was a
government monopoly. It was a ship
(“galleon”) trade going back and
forth between Manila and Acapulco
in Mexico. Only two galleons were
used: one sailed from Acapulco to
Manila with some 500,000 pesos
worth of goods, spending 120 days
at sea and the
other sailed from Manila to Photo taken from: https://ericpgranada.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/the-galleon-trade-ok.jpg

Acapulco with some 250,000 pesos worth of goods spending 90 days at sea. It
started when Andres de Urdaneta, in convoy under Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, discovered
a return route from Cebu (from which the galleon actually landed first) to Mexico in
1565. This trading system served as the economic lifeline for the Spaniards in
Manila, serving most trades between China and Europe. During the heyday of the
galleon trade, Chinese silk was by far the most important cargo. Other goods include
tamarind, rice, carabao, Chinese tea and textiles, fireworks and tuba were shipped via
the galleon including exotic goods such as perfumes, porcelain, cotton fabric (from
India), and precious stones. After unloading at Acapulco, this cargo normally yielded
a profit of 100-300% and on its return voyage, the vessel brought back huge quantities
of Mexican silver and other prized flora and fauna such as guava, avocado, papaya,
pineapple, horses, and cattle.
Governor Basco thought of making an organization, the Royal Philippine
Company, that will finance both the agricultural and the new trade that were being
made between the Philippines and Spain, and other Asian countries. Some groups
like the Catholic Church opposed the new organization as changes brought by the
planned reforms and traders of the Galleon trade were not accepted. There were news
that the Royal Philippine Company had issues of mismanagement and corruption. But
the governor-general still continued to develop reforms that he prohibited the Chinese
merchants from trading internally. He also introduced the development of cash crop
farms (crops cultivated for export) and became very strict to some policies that
allow the continuous opening of Manila to foreign markets; And finally, he also
established monopoly and maximize the production of tobacco.
The tobacco industry was under the government control during General Basco’s
time. In 1871, the first tobacco monopoly was established in Cagayan Valley, Ilocos
Region, La Union, Isabela, Abra, Nueva Ecija and Marinduque. These provinces were
the only ones allowed to plant the tobacco, and this is the only plan that was allowed
to be planted on the farmlands.

3 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
The government exported tobacco to other countries and part of it were given to
the cigarette factories in Manila.
The first among the revolutions was the Industrial Revolution, which was about
the inventions of steam engines and machines that were used in the manufacturing
sector in different cities of Europe. This revolution was considered as one of the most
significant developments in the 19th century — from being a country that relied on
machines and wage labor, Europe’s economic status totally changed. At this time,
traders were fortunate to become the first capitalists. The industrial workers were
former farmers who migrated from rural areas and remote provinces of Europe.
From this, positive effects took place as the industrial revolution contributed
many things to the people:

1. The Philippines was opened for world commerce.

2. Foreigners were engaged in manufacturing and agriculture.
3. The Philippine economy became dynamic and balanced.
4. There was rise of new influential and wealthy Filipino middle class.
5. People were encouraged to participate in the trade.
6. Migration and increase in population were encouraged.

By 1810, the end of Galleon trade transpired because of the loss of Latin American
colonies brought by the Mexican War of Independence from the Spanish empire. The
Royal Philippine Company eventually closed and the policies for trade were adjusted.
In effect, Manila was open for world trade in 1834. Merchants and traders from other
countries migrated in Manila and became leaders in finance, who made agricultural
cash crop export possible. These traders were mestizos consisting of Spanish and
Chinese families and decided to put-up merchant houses (establishments) in Manila.
There were ilustrados, who belonged to the landed upper class, were much-respected
in their own towns or pueblos but were regarded as filibusteros or rebels by the friars.
Because of the fortune that these ilustrados have, they were able to send their children
to Spain and Europe to further their studies. There they gained higher education
degrees that made them equal with the Spaniards. Note that equality and even
secularization were major issues during this time. Hence, quest for equality became
Rizal’s lifelong search.
In this period, railways and steamships were constructed for safer, faster and
comfortable means of transportation and communication. The construction of bridges,
most especially, the opening of the Suez Canal provided a shorter route for trades.
Built by Ferdinand de Lesseps, a French man, the opening of the Suez Canal for world
shipping took place on November 17, 1860. In effect, there had been closer
interactions between Philippines and to other countries of the world.
Through the cash crops, the Philippine economy began to flourish. Majority of the
export income of the Philippines during the nineteenth century came from the cash
crops from tobacco, sugar, cotton, indigo, abaca and coffee, making it the major
source of revenue in the country. This also concludes the importance of having lands
at that time.
Consequently, more provinces shifted to growing cash crops so ownership and
management of lands became major concerns. Farmers were pressured to produce
more harvest while the landowners (hacienderos) take advantage of their position.
Then they would engage in a pacto de retroventa – an agreement of sale guaranteeing
that the landowner could buy the land back at the same price at which it was sold.
However, it was difficult to buy back the land because of the

4 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
continuously rising demand of the economy and payment for renewals, causing farmers
to be in full debt. This further instigated the lost of the farmers’ rights to their land as
they were forced to work as tenant farmers, or kasama. There was also a form of land
grabbing by acquiring the land forcefully. Because of the growth of the economy,
people required better care for lands. As a result, there came the Inquilinos, a laborer
indebted to a landlord who allows him to form a farm in parts of his property and who,
in exchange, works without pay from the landlord.
The rise of Chinese and Chinese mestizos was brought by the increasing
growth of the economy. Even before Spanish colonization, they were already doing
multiple services as traders, artisans and domestic servants in the Philippines. Also,
when the Galleon trade was introduced, the products of the Chinese were the
goods that were most traded. Chinese population have increased, but the Spaniards
saw this as a potential threat to their colony. Spaniards were afraid that the Chinese
could be more loyal to the Indios (Christianized natives) than the Spanish regime.
However, despite this dilemma, the Spaniards find the Chinese as the population who
were essential to the economy. They planned to convert the Chinese and introduce
intermarriages with indios that brought the Chinese mestizos.
The Chinese mestizos play a major part in the Spanish colonial period, buying
land, accumulating wealth and influencing the majority. Feodor Jagor considered
the Chinese mestizo as the richest and most enterprising portion of the entire
population. To increase the population of hardworking Chinese mestizo, the Spaniards
allowed them to marry at the age of sixteen without their parent’s consent, a privilege
not granted to the Indios.
Furthermore, the treatment of the Spanish conqueror to the Filipinos were
likened to slavery - they collected and urged Filipinos to pay all forms of taxes
and demanded the natives to do forced labor or polo y servicio for the government
and the Catholic church. Accordingly, the increasing population of the mestizos
prompted the emergence of the following social status in the society:
1st Peninsulares (pure-blooded Spaniard born in the Iberian Peninsula such
as Spain)
2nd Insulares (pure-blooded Spaniard born in the Philippines)
3rd Spanish Mestizo (one parent is Spanish, the other is a native or Chinese
Mestizo; or one parent is Chinese, the other is a native)
4th Principalia (wealthy pure-blooded native supposedly descended from the
kadatoan class)
5th Indio (pure-bloodedd native of the Philippines or the Filipinos)
6th Chino Infiel (non-Catholic pure blooded Chinese)
In the 19th century, the Spaniards’ economic power started to weaken. True, they
have maintained their superiority because of their status but the issue brought
complications with the growing principalia wherein the mestizos realized their
indispensable position in the society as movers and facilitators of the economy. So,
they have demanded to be recognized in the public. Arguments continued for the whole
duration of the century but the pureblooded Spaniards denied their request. With the
mestizos and principalia’s effort and hardwork to get what they want, their
importance in the society made them known.
An inquilinato system was introduced during the mid-eighteenth century because
of the increasing economy through the export of agricultural crops for trade. The
process for the system was: somebody or someone, known as canon, will be renting
a piece of land for a fixed amount for the year. The inquilino or lessee

5 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
should be working for the landlords. If the inquilino did not meet the requirements, he
will be evicted from the land. In return, the inquilino would rent the land to a kasama
or a sharecropper, who would do the cultivating of the land. A system of three-tired
began where the landlords or landowners stay at the top, the inquilinos in the middle
and the kasama at the bottom.
Through this, the religious hacienderos will be free from the responsibility to do
all the land crop cultivating while direct contact with the sharecroppers was done
by the inquilinos. The sharecroppers were also happy with the arrangement because
they will be exempted from their responsibility to serve the forced labor owing to their
labor obligations to the religious estates as demanded by the Spanish government.
However, there was disadvantage in this arrangement: after paying the rent to the
hacienderos by the inquilinos and got their share, the remaining income will be divided
among all the sharecroppers. Suddenly a change in the social structure and land
services started an argument between the Spanish religious hacienderos, the inquilinos
and the sharecroppers. The abuses of the friar estates started when the Philippine
Revolution broke out in 1896 and became one of the main causes that urged the
rebellion.
Education was under the control of the friars during the 19th to mid-19th century.
Fear of God and obedience to the friars were the main lessons taught to students.
Children in the schools were taught to instill in their minds that they were inferior to
others and were only capable of doing manual work. The students’ learning were
measured based on how well they read without understanding it.
As a result, the Filipino students developed inferiority complex in learning -
having learned the culture of silence. By the end of 19th century, the only school that
offered different courses was the University of Santo Tomas, an existing higher
education in the Philippines that was founded in 1611. Courses offered were related to
medicine, pharmacy, theology, philosophy, canon and civil law.
Expectedly, the only students who enrolled were Spaniards and mestizos at first
but was later on offered to the Filipinos towards the end of half of the 19 th century. At
that same time, public education for the indios were offered. An Educational Decree
of 1863, requiring each town in the Philippines to establish one elementary school for
boys and one elementary for girls, also paved the way for the establishment of a regular
school for the training of teachers to master the Spanish language, under the
supervision of the Jesuits. This was because it was required, at that time, that Spanish
be the main language in all schools.
The teaching of Spanish language to Filipinos were opposed by the friars.
They believed that teaching the Spanish language may lead to the development of
political and social awareness among the natives, which will allow them to work for
freedom and independence. The friars was against all efforts given to the Filipinos to
improve education during the Spanish colonization but there were schools like Ateneo,
Letran and UST that used Spanish as their medium of instruction.
The next revolution was the French Revolution, which allowed for the changing
of political views among the people. It started in Europe and other parts of the world.
Since politics, not only in France but Spain, too, were disturbed during the 19th
century, a revolution arose. The French governmental structure changed from absolute
monarchy, which gave privileges to the nobles and religious officials. It was an era
of political disturbances which included some changes in the ministries, constitutions
and parliaments.
To resolve the country’s political problem, the liberals and conservatives in Spain
shifted the administration of the affairs of the country. As a result of the

6 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
political condition in Spain, the Philippines experienced a number of negative impacts.
There were inefficient and corrupt administration due to the brief service of the
governor-generals in the country. The Philippines was conquered by the Spaniards, the
land property of the Filipinos were lost because of the encomienda system. In addition,
Spanish culture and religion became widespread and the Filipinos were forced to
accept it. The colonization of the Spaniards during the 19 th century had been seen in
the administration, social structure, educational system and economic situation of the
Philippines.
Considered as the third revolution, the American revolution was somehow about
the political disturbance during the mid-18th century. There were thirteen (13) North
American colonies that forcibly removed the British empire from power and ignored
the British government for United States of America to become a sovereign nation. The
American revolution has given the idea that the colonized people will have their
independence from their colonizers in the 19th century.
The overthrowing of the British colonial masters to gain independence and
achieve the status of becoming a sovereign nation had reached the European countries
and other parts of the world. This motivated the people to follow. Filipino reformists
like Rizal also got the same idea from the American revolution to pursue freedom and
independence for the country. During the 19th century, when the Philippines was
opened for world trade, new ideas coming from the Americans and people from other
places arrived in the Philippines and greatly influenced the ilustrados.

BOURBON REFORMS AND CADIZ

CONSTITUTION
The Spanish monarchs
decided on implementing
Bourbon reforms, a set of
economic and political laws that
contributed to the expansion of
the gaps between the
peninsulares and the creoles
(those born in America). This made
the independence of the Spanish
American colonies
photofrom https://prezi.com/p/0wzhfetrrxw4/bourbon-reforms-javier-kim/

possible through a revolution. The Bourbons’ purpose was

to strengthen and support the Spanish empire during the 18th century but
led to its destruction in the nineteenth.
During the reorganization of the colonial military, the bourbons sought to ensure
that all officers were Spanish born, but it was difficult for them to apply the policy
because most of the officers were natives, although the highest ranking officials
belonged to the Peninsulares. Said reforms were aimed at the following: 1) to control
over the American colonies; 2) for the crown to obtain resources through exploitation;
3) to professionalize the army; 4) to subdivide New Spain into mayors;
5) to diminish the viceroy’s political power; and 6) to prohibit the natives from
participating in political or ecclesiastical commands. These reforms emerged
because of the need for free trade and open new ports to improve trading with
other countries; to promote the extraction and processing of silver by putting up a
college of mining and the court of mines, and to evict the Jesuits from the Spanish
territories since they were disobedient before Spanish empire. The reforms achieved

7 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal 19th Century Philippines as Rizal’s Context
in growing the production, trade and income was not that easy.
Meanwhile, around 300 subordinates from Spain, Spanish America, and the Philippines
decided to form a liberal constitution in the Mediterranean port of Cádiz in 1812, in the
middle of the occupation of almost all of the Iberian peninsula by the French army. The
constitutional monarchy that the Constitution of 1812 tried to put in place did not
materialize because King Fernando VII declared it invalid and restored absolutism in May
of 1814. However, Cádiz and the Constitution of 1812 were among the very important
periods in the political and intellectual history of the Spanish-speaking world and represent
a major contribution to the Western political thought and practice during the Age of
Revolutions.
The study of the Cádiz Constitution, of liberalism, and of its manifold relations with
Spanish America during the first quarter of the 19th century has shown such a revival in the
past two decades that it may be a temptation to say that this is a “new” field in the Western
academic world. The problem is, any English-speaking scholar who cannot read Spanish will
not be able to do so because most of the bibliography is in Spanish. Studies of the Cádiz
Constitution and liberalism up to the recent years were almost exclusively confined to the
Peninsula where Spanish America is now a very large field of research regarding these
topics.
The bicentennials of 1) the beginning of the crisis of the Spanish monarchy or
crisis hispánica (2008), 2) of the beginning of the “independence” movements in Spanish
America (2010), and 3) of the promulgation of the Cádiz Constitution (2012) have been
the main motives behind the editorial avalanche on these topics that were witnessed for
the past years.
In any case, the importance of the participation of the Spanish American
deputies in the Cádiz Cortes and of the role that the Spanish liberals thought in
general, not to mention the Cádiz Constitution in particular that was played in
Spanish America during the first quarter of the 19th century are now well-established. The
1812 Constitution was deemed essential if one is to understand the political,
ideological, and intellectual aspects of liberalism. With all its limitations and its very
restricted application in the Peninsula, it was revolutionary vis-à-vis the
political principles that had sustained the Spanish monarchy for centuries.
Cádiz was, more than anything else, a political revolution; however, this fact should
not neglect or minimize the social and cultural implications of a period of the history of the
Spanish-speaking world that evidently transcends a legal document. Because Cádiz,
liberalism, and the 1812 Constitution are the main objectives of this bibliography, it centers
its attention in Peninsular Spain during the six years that cover the crisis hispánica and the
revolución liberal española (i.e., 1808–1814) and in Spanish America during those six
years and the following decade, all through which the presence, weight, and influence
of what was still the metropolis was felt in the entire region (with considerable variations
among the different territories).
Liberals then returned to power in Spain and the Cádiz Constitution was brought back
in 1820. The Trienio Libera period lasted only three years and could not avoid the loss of
the whole continental Spanish American empire.

23 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
24 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:
1. Analyze the family, childhood, and early
education of Rizal.
2. Evaluate the people and events and their
influence on Rizal’s early life.

25 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
3 Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
The Rizal family was known to be well-off family in Calamba, Laguna and they
were considered as one of the biggest families in those times. They lived a life of comfort
and prosperity, then considered that his family belonged to the principalia class or the
ruling elite of their town. Jose Rizal came from a 13-member family, consisted of his father
Don Francisco Mercado II and his mother Teodora Alonso Realonda. Jose Rizal had nine
sisters and one brother. Saturnina Rizal was the eldest child among the siblings, followed
by Paciano, Narcisa, Olympia, Lucia, Maria, Jose, Concepcion, Josefa and the youngest
was Soledad.

Photo from https://tagacalamba.wixsite.com/calamba/single-post/2015/12/13/The-Rizal-Familys-origin

Rizal came from a mixture of races, his paternal ascendant was Domingo Lamco, a
full-blooded Chinese. He married a wealthy Chinese mestiza, Ines de la Rosa. Domingo
Lamco adopted the surname Mercado, which means “market” in keeping the gubernatorial
decree of Narciso Claveria on the use of Spanish surnames. From the Parian in Manila,
the coupled moved to Biñan, Laguna and became tenants in the Dominican hacienda.
Rizal’s father is one of the 14 children of Juan Mercado, paternal grandfather
and his grandmother was Cirila Alejandrino, a Chinese-Filipino mestiza. Juan Mercado
became a gobernadorcillo of Biñan Laguna. Rizal’s maternal great grandfather was Manuel
de Quintos, a Chinese mestizo from Lingayen, Pangasinan. Manuel married Regina Ursua,
with a Japanese ancestry to whom they bore the grandmother of Rizal, Brigida who
married Lorenzo Alberto Alonso, one of their

26 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
DON FRANCISCO RIZAL MERCADO (1818-1898)
Rizal’s father was born on May 11, 1818 and was the youngest of his 13 siblings.
Mercado was a well-respected man in their home town of Calamba in which citizens made
him the their "cabeza de barangay" (head of town.) He was of part Chinese descent, having
been related to a Chinese entrepreneur by the name of Domingo Lamco. Mercado die shortly
after Rizal in the home of his daughter, Narcisa Rizal in Binondo, Manila on January 5, 1898.

TEODORA ALONSO (1827-1913)

Doña Teodora Alonso was born on November 14, 1827 in Santa Cruz Manila. Her
parents were Lorenzo Alonso, a municipal captain and Brijida de Quintos, an educated
housewife and had four other siblings . It is said that her great grandfather, Eugenio Ursua
was of Japanese ancestry making her of Japanese descent. When Teodora was 20 years
old, she married Francisco Mercado, a native from Binan, Laguna. Together they prospered
in Calamba after involving themselves in business and agriculture. She was known to be a
hardworking, intelligent, business minded woman. She died in 1913 in Manila.

SATURNINA RIZAL (1850-1913)

Saturnina Mercado Rizal Hidalgo was born in 1818 and was the eldest sister of
Jose Rizal. She had five children together with husband Manuel T. Hidalgo and died the
same year as her mother in 1913.

PACIANO RIZAL (1851-1930)

General Paciano Mercado Rizal aka "Lolo Ciano" was the only brother of Jose Rizal.
He was born in 1851 and studied in Biñan later attending school at the Colegio de San
Jose in Manila. After the execution of his brother, he joined in the Philippine Revolution
where he rose up to the ranks of a General. He later married Severina Decena of Los Banos
and had two children of which one died at an early age. Paciano passed away in 1930.

NARCISA RIZAL (1852-1939)

Narcisa Rizal Lopez was born in 1852 and was the one who found the unmarked grave
of her brother, Jose in the abandoned Old Paco Cemetery. Narcisa married Antonio Lopez
who was a teacher and musician from Morong, Rizal. She died in 1938.

OLYMPIA RIZAL (1855-1887)

Olympia Rizal Ubaldo was born in 1855. She married Silvestre Ubaldo and together they
had three children. She died in 1887 from childbirth when she was only 32 years old.

LUCIA RIZAL (1857-1919)

Lucia Rizal Herbosa was born in 1857. She married Mariano Herbosa and had 5 children
together. In 1889 Mariano died due to an epidemic but was denied a Christian burial. This
was due to the fact that he was the brother in law of Jose Rizal. This showed the beginning
of the persecution of the Rizal family by Spanish friars. Lucia died in 1919.

27 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
MARIA RIZAL (1859-1945)
Maria Cruz Rizal was born in 1855. She married Daniel Faustino Cruz of Biñan, Laguna and
together they had 5 children. Mauricio Cruz, one of Maria's children became a student of
Jose Rizal in Dapitan and was known to be one of his uncle's favorites. Maria was a known
recipient of many od Jose's letters during his lifetime. Maria died in 1945.

JOSE RIZAL
Jose Protacio Rizal was the second son and the seventh child. He was executed by the
Spaniards on December 30,1896.

CONCEPCION RIZAL (1862-1865)

Concepcion Rizal was born in 1862. Concepcion did not live very long as she died at
the age of 3 in 1865.

JOSEFA RIZAL (1865-1945)

Josefa Rizal was born in 1865. She was unmarried lived together with sister Trinidad until
death. Josefa was said to have suffered from epilepsy. She died in 1945.

TRINIDAD RIZAL (1868-1951)

Trinidad Rizal was born in 1868. She remained unmarried and lived together with her sister
Josefa. Trinidad was the one who received an alcohol lamp from brother Jose, in which he
secretly hid the "Last Farewell" better known as "Mi Ultimo Adios," a poem Rizal wrote on
the eve of his death in 1896. Trinidad died in 1951, outliving all her siblings.

SOLEDAD RIZAL (1870-1929)

Soledad Rizal Quintero was born in 1870 making her the youngest of the Rizal siblings. She
married Pantaleon Quintero and together they had 5 children. Soledad died in 1929.
.

RIZAL’S CHILDHOOD AND EARLY EDUCATION

Jose Rizal (Jose Protacio Mercado Rizal y Alonso
Realonda) was born on June 19, 1861 at Calamba, Laguna.
According to some readings, his mother nearly died during his
delivery because of his big head. Three days after his birth,
Rizal was baptized on June 22 of the said year with the name
Jose Rizal Mercado at the Catholic church of Calamba by the
parish priest Rev. Rufino Collantes. He was the seventh child
of Francisco Mercado Rizal and Teodora Alonso y Quintos.
During 1865-1867, his mother taught him how to read
and write. At the age of three, Rizal mastered and learned
the alphabet taught by his mother. At a very young age,
he has shown great interest in reading. He enjoyed reading
books in their library at home, with his mother who acts as
his reading teacher and a critic. At this time, he also learned Photo from https://www.joserizal.com/childhood-jose-rizal/

how to pray and even read the bible.

28 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
 When Jose Rizal grew older, his parents acquired
private tutors to give him lessons at home in preparation for
his formal education. One of them was Leon Monroy, a
classmate of his father who taught him the rudiments of
Latin. At about this time, his mother’s cousin, Uncle Manuel
Alberto, who frequently visited the family in Calamba, was
worried about his nephew’s physical development. He then
taught Rizal to develop the skills in swimming, fencing,
wrestling and other sports, while Uncle Jose taught him to
love and admire the beauty of nature. On the other hand,
Photo from https://alambaninyo.wordpress.com/tag/rizal/
Uncle Gregorio, a scholar, has
instilled in Rizal’s mind the love for education and its importance, the value of hard work,
to think for himself, and to observe his surroundings carefully.
When he was four years old, his sister Concepcion, the eighth child in the Rizal
family, died at the age of three. This was the first time he cried as a young boy. As sad as
he was, the parish priest of Calamba, Father Leoncio Lopez, helped Rizal understand the
philosophy of life and learned the value of scholarship and intellectual honesty.
Rizal, in his childhood, used to take long rides through all the surrounding country
by riding his pony that his father gave him. Among his pets were doves and a dog.
Owing to the continuous teaching of Doña Teodora, Rizal was persuaded to
express his feelings through verses. He was able to write his first poem when he was eight
years old. The poem was entitled “Sa Aking Mga Kababata” (To My Fellow Children), which
showed that Rizal, even at a young age, already had love for his country. Here, he similarly
incorporates the love for the native language with God’s gift of freedom. He compared his
native language or Tagalog to Latin, English and Spanish. Tagalog, like any other
languages, had its own alphabet and system writing, which according to Rizal,
disappeared because they were neglected or ignored. With this, he encourages his fellow
children to love their native tongue.
Then, after Rizal’s tutor Leon Monroy died, his parents decided to transfer Rizal to
a private school in Biñan, Laguna. He was accompanied by his older brother Paciano,
who acted as his second father during his school days in Biñan. The school was then
supervised by Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz.
Rizal’s first day of class in the school was not easy. The maestro asked him if he
knows how to speak Latin or Spanish, but in response, he only knew a little of the languages.
As a result, one of his classmates named Pedro, the son of the maestro, laughed at him.
Pedro was always bullying him that eventually resulted to a brawl. But knowing Rizal’s
acquired knowledge and skill in the art of wrestling from his Tio Manuel, he defeated
Pedro. After the said incident, Rizal became popular in his class. Here, Rizal was able to
show his intellectual superiority.
He excelled in his class in Latin, Spanish and other subjects in the curriculum for
elementary pupils. Because of this, many of the students became jealous to him and do
everything to destroy Rizal’s name to Maestro Cruz. While Rizal’s interest in painting was
nurtured early on by an old painter named Juancho of Biñan. During this time, knowledge
was taught in the minds of the students by doing tedious memorization method. Despite
some lack of the elementary education in Spanish system, Rizal was able to have the
needed instruction preparatory for college work in Manila.

29 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
 TO MY FELLOW CHILDREN
Whenever people of a country truly love
The language, which by heaven they were taught to use That
country also surely liberty pursue
As does the bird which soars to freer space above.

For language is the final judge and referee Upon

the people in the land where it holds sway;
In truth our human race resembles this way The
other living beings born in liberty.

Whoever knows not how to love his native tongue Is

worse than any beast or evil smelling fish.
To make our language richer ought to be our wish The
same as any mother loves to feed her young.

Tagalog and the Latin language are the same And

English and Castilian and the angel’s tongue; And God,
whose watchful care o’er all is flung, Has given us His
blessing in the speech we claim.

Our mother tongue, like all the highest that we know Had
alphabet and letters of its very own;
But these were lost – by furious waves were overthrown
Like bancas in the stormy sea, long years ago.

30 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education
Name Score

Course and Section Date

WORKSHEET 2

31 The Life and Works of Jose Rizal Rizal’s Life: Family, Childhood and Early Education