THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL

Principalia- wealthy pure-blooded

natives said to have descended from the
Rizal in the Context of the 19th kadatoan class.
Century Philippines
Sangley - a term that proliferated in the
VOCABULARY
Spanish Philippines to refer to people of
Cash crop - crops cultivated for export. pure Chinese descent; came from the
Hokkien word "seng-li" meaning
Decree - an order issued by a legal business.
authority; a policy pronouncement
Galleon Trade From 1565-1815, this Social stratification - a way by which
was the form of trade between the people in a society are categorized
Philippines and Mexico. The galleons based on socioeconomic as well as
would sail to Mexico loaded with goods political standards.
and return to the Philippines carrying the
payment in silver.

Insulares - pure-blooded Spanish born The Changing Landscape of the

in the Philippines. Philippine Economy and Society

Mestizo - a person with mixed ancestry- Late 18thcentury, the monarchy in Spain
one parent is Chinese or Spanish and experienced a dynastic shift from the
the other is a native; an important sector Hamburgs to the Bourbons. Under the
of the population in nineteenth century new leadership, Spain re-calibrated
Philippines. colonial policies that would have an
effect on the Philippines. 
Merchant houses - firms established in
Manila and other cities by foreign With the goal of invigorating the
traders. profitability of the colonies, Bourbon
policies and reforms were carried out. 
Pacto de retroventa - an agreement
that allowed a landowner to sell his/her Jose de Basco Y Vargas -first
land with the guarantee that he/she governor-general to the Philippines
could buy the land back at the same under the Bourbon mandate arrived in
price. the Philippines in 1778. The Galleon
Trade, the main economic institution
Parlan - Chinese enclave established in existing in the Philippines, was already a
1581 outside the walls of Intramuros. losing enterprise.
The Chinese were forced to live in the
Parian. As Spain sought ways to salvage the
dwindling economy of the empire, the
Peninsulares- pure-blooded Spanish global wave of industrialization became
born in Spain. a silver lining. 

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
Many imperial powers in Europe and the Basco pushed for the following
West were undergoing industrialization, reforms:
an increased demand for raw materials
presented an opportunity to look into the  lifted a ban on Chinese
agricultural potential of the Philippines. merchants that reinvigorated
internal trade
  initialized the development of
cash crop farms
Thus, it was viewed that the  relaxed certain policies that
transformation of the economy towards allowed the gradual opening of
being export-oriented, harnessing the Manila to foreign markets
agricultural products that could be  established the Tobacco
yielded from the archipelago, was the
Monopoly to maximize the
way to go.
production of this export good
To better facilitate the envisioned

reorientation of the economy In 1785,
Gov. Basco established the Royal Global events continued to affect the
Philippine Company to finance Philippines at the beginning of the
agricultural projects and manage the 19thcentury. By 1810, the Mexican War
new trade being established between of Independence rattled the Spanish
the Philippines and Spain (and Europe) empire and eventually lead to the loss of
as well as other Asian markets. These the precious Latin American colonies.
changes were met with lukewarm
reception.   Galleon Trade ended
 Royal Philippine Economy closed
Resistance also came from various  Manila was opened to world trade
sectors like the Catholic Church that by 1834
was not receptive of the labor  Foreign merchants and traders
realignments entailed by the planes came and eventually resided in
reforms, and traders that were still Manila and took over the role of
holding on to the Galleon Trade and the financing and facilitating the
Royal Philippine Company was burgeoning agricultural cash
fraught with issues of mismanagement crop, export- oriented company.
and corruption.
Some of the major investments came
from British and American traders that
set up merchant houses in Manila. The
rapid development of the economy
began to flow in the Philippines through
cash crop.

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
In the first half of the 19th century, in the Philippines was under his total
majority of the exports of the Philippines control. The provinces of Cagayan
came from cash crops like tobacco, Valley, Only the government was
sugar, cotton, indigo, abaca, and coffee. allowed to buy the tobaccos. These
The importance of land became more tobaccos were then brought to Manila to
evident as cash crops became major be made into cigar or cigarettes.
source of revenue in the colony.
Provinces shifted to cultivating cash
crops, land ownership and management Why did Basco created the Tobacco
began to be a concern. Monopoly?

The farmers felt the pressure of the Expenses incurred in running the colony
economy while the hacienderos grabbed were usually paid for by a yearly subsidy
the opportunity. called real situado sent from the
Philippines' sister colony, Mexico. This
For example: When a small landowner was, however, insufficient. The Royal
needed capital and money, he would fiscal, Francisco Leandro de Vianna,
engage in pacto de retroventa. It was prompted to devise a plan to be
became difficult to buy back land given able to raise revenues on its own.
the continuously increasing demand of
the economy and the renewals of the However, both King Carlos III of
sale, which further buried the farmers to Spain and the colonial officials did not
indebtedness. prioritize it. When Basco became
governor-general, he had plans to
Eventually, they would forfeit the land develop and to promote agriculture in
and would be forced to become tenant the Philippines. And when he learned of
farmers, or kasamá. Aside from this de Vianna's proposal, he liked it.
mode, land acquisition also came in the Basco explained to the Spanish king
form of land-grabbing. As the growing that the tobacco monopoly would be
economy required better management able to help the Philippines be
of lands, inquilinos emerged, renting financially sufficient.
land to sublet it to smaller farmers. The King of Spain issued a royal
These factors would bring change to the decree on 9 February 1780 setting in
social stratification in the countryside. motion Basco's plan.

Advantages of the Tobacco

The Rise of the Monopolies Monopoly
On March 1, 1782, Spanish governor
general Jose V. Basco established the  For the first time ever, the
tobacco monopoly as his economic Philippines ceased to be an
program. Thus, the tobacco production economic drag to the royal

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
treasury. The government still
had 1,320,656 pesos even after Social and Cultural Development
the overdue accounts had been
paid. The Philippines became The Education System
known globally as the largest A key factor in the emergence of
Tobacco-producing country in nationalism in the late nineteenth
Asia. Filipinos were offered jobs century was the cultural development
in cigar and cigarette factories. consequent on the rapid spread of
Thus, more Filipinos became education from about 1861.
employed.
 It triggered internal trade.
 Regions where tobacco was One of the major influences on the
best produced became educational development of the
markets for other products nineteenth century was the return of the
such as rice. Jesuits. Expelled from the Philippines
and the rest of the Spanish empire in
Disadvantages of the Tobacco 1768, they finally returned in 1859 to
Monopoly take charge of the evangelization of
 Tobacco growers were paid Mindanao. Having escaped, because of
their expulsion, from the general decline
through promissory notes and at
that in the early part of the nineteenth
very low rates. Abusive
century affected the Philippine church
inspectors, in search for hidden
and the system of education that
tobacco leaves, sometimes
depended on it, they returned with ideas
entered the house of farmers and
and methods new to the Philippine
took anything of value.
educational system. Asked by the
 To recover their losses, farmers
Ayuntamiento to take over the
entered into smuggling and
municipal primary school in 1859 that
contraband selling of tobaccos.
became Escuela Municipal, later
 Since cigarettes and cigars
renamed Ateneo Municipal de Manila
became known nationally, more
in 1865, now Ateneo de Manila
people smoked, endangering not
University and opened it to the Filipino
only their health but the health of
students as well as the Spaniards for
other people as well.
whom it had been founded. By 1865,
 The abuses and corrupt practices
Ateneo Municipal had been
committed by the officials led to
transformed into a secondary school
the abolition of the Tobacco
that offered a level of instruction beyond
Monopoly in 1882 by Governor-
the official requirements and more
General Primo de Rivera.
approximated today's college than high
school. Aside from Latin and Spanish,

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
Greek, French, and English were 3. Antonio Pereira in 1595.
studied. Rizal studied at Ateneo
 However, this claim is opposed by
Municipal when this school was located
the Pontificial and Royal University
at Intramuros, Manila.
of Santo Tomas, which argues that
Other Schools Opened in the 19th
USC only took over the facility of the
Century.
former Colegio de San Ildefonso
 On April 28, 1811, the Universidad and that there is no 'visible' and
de Santo Tomas was founded in 'clear' link between San Carlos and
Manila initially as the Colegio de San Ildefonso.
Nuestra Señora del Santisimo
 Notable scholars including
Rosario and later renamed as
Colegio de Santo Tomas. UST was 1. Dr. Jose Victor Torres,
first located in Intramuros, Manila professor of history at the De La
where Rizal took his course in Salle,
Medicine.
2. Fr. Aloysius Cartagenas STD,
 On November 20, 1645, Pope professor at the Seminario
Innocent X elevated it to University. Mayor de San Carlos of Cebu,
King Charles III of Spain bestowed and
the title "Royal Patronage" on 1785,
and Pope Leo XIII "Pontifical" on 3. Fr. Fidel Villarroel, OP,
1902. Pope Pius XII designated it respected historian and former
as La Real y Pontificial archivist of Santo Tomas, have
Universidad de Santo Tomás de also questioned San Carlos'
Aquino Universidad Católica de claim of tracing its roots to the
Filipinas (The Catholic University 16th Century Colegio de San
of the Philippines), on 1947. Ildefonso.

 San Carlos and Santo Tomás  In 1640, the Universidad de San

maintain a friendly rivalry over the Felipe de Austria was established
claim to be the oldest university in in Manila. It was the first public
Asia. university created by the Spanish
government in the Philippines. It
 The University of San Carlos makes closed down in 1643.
the claim of tracing its roots to the
Colegio de San Ildefonso founded by  The Jesuits founded the Colegio
the Spanish Jesuits fathers: de San José in 1601, which later
became the Escuela Municipal,
1. Antonio Sedeno
later renamed Ateneo Municipal de
2. Pedro Chirino Manila in 1865.

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
 The Dominicans had the Colegio navigation and pilotage. A School of
de San Juan de Letrán in Manila, Commercial Accounting and a School
which provided courses leading to of French and English Languages
prestigious degrees such as the were established in 1839.
Bachiller en Artes,that by 19th
century included science subjects
The Don Honorio Ventura College of
such as physics,chemistry,natural
Arts and Trades (DHVCAT) in Bacolor,
history and mathematics.
Pampanga is said to be the the oldest
 During the 18th century,the official vocational school in Asia.
Faculty of Jurisprudence and Established in 1861 by Augustinian
Cononical Law was established. Friar Juan Zita and civic leader Don
Felino Gil. Other important vocational
 In 1871, several schools of medicine schools include the Escuela de
and pharmacy were opened. From Contaduría, Academia de Pintura y
1871 to 1883 Santo Tomás alone Dibujo, and the seminaries in Manila,
had 829 registrations of medical Nueva Segovia, Cebú, Jaro, and Nueva
students, and from 1883 until 1898, Cáceres.
7965 medical students. By the end
of the Spanish colonial rule in 1898. The Manila School of Agriculture was
the university had granted the established in 1887 to provide
degree of Licenciado en Medicina theoretical and practical education by
to 359 graduates and 108 medical agricultural engineers to skilled farmers
doctors. For the doctorate degree and overseers. It included subjects such
in medicine its provision was as mathematics, physics, chemistry,
inspired in the same set of natural history, agriculture, topography,
oppositions than those of linear and topography drawing.
universities in the metropolis, and at Agricultural schools and monitoring
least an additional year of study was stations were also established in
required at the Universidad Central Isabela, Ilocos, Albay, Cebú, Iloilo,
de Madrid in Spain. Leyte, and parts of Mindanao.

The Real Sociedad Economica de los

Secondary Schools Amigos del Pais de Filipinas ( Royal
A Nautical School was created on Economic Society of Friends of the
January 1, 1820 which offered a four- Philippines) was first introduced in the
year course of study (for the island in 1780 and offered local and
profession of pilot of merchant foreign scholarships to Filipinos,
marine) that includes arithmetic, professorships, and financed trips of
algebra, geometry, trigonometry, scientists from Spain to the Philippines.
physics, hydrography, meteorology, The Society established an academy of

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
design, financed scientific and technical officially available to Filipinos valuable
literature, and awarded awards for training for leadership after three
successful experiments and inventions centuries of colonization.
that improved agriculture and industry.

The Observatorio Meteorologico del The Education Decree of 1863

Ateneo Municipal de Manila (Manila established
Observatory) was founded in 1865 by
the Jesuits after an article about 1. at least two free primary
typhoon observations in the newspaper schools for boys and girls,
Diario de Manila attracted public 2. as well as a free public normal
attention. The Spanish government school for men schools to train
made the observatory the official as teachers.One of these school
institution for weather forecasting in the was Escuela Normal
Philippines in 1884, and in 1885 it Elemental which, in 1896
started its time service. Its seismology became the Escuela Normal
section was set up in 1887,while Superior de Maestros de
astronomical studies began in 1889. Manila (Manila Ordinary School
for Schoolmistresses).
The Public School System in the 19th 3. The Spanish government also
Century established schools for
Free access to modern public midwives and female teachers
education by all Filipinos was made in 1892.
possible through the enactment of the
Education Decree of December 20, 4. By the 1890s, free public
1863 by Queen Isabella II. Primary secondary schools were
instruction was made free and the opening outside Manila,
teaching of Spanish was compulsory. including 10 normal schools for
This was ten years before Japan had a women.
compulsory form of free modern public
In 1866,the total population of the
education and forty years before the
Philippines was 4,411,261, with 841
American government started an
boys and 833 girls in 1866. In 1892,
English-based public school system in
the number of schools increased to
the Philippines.
2,137, with 1,087 for boys and 1,050
for girls.
The Royal decree provided for a
complete educational system which
would consist of primary, secondary The Chinese and Chinese Mestizos 
and tertiary levels, finally making

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
The Chinese and Chinese mestizos
were the sectors that greatly benefited
from the changing economy. Since pre-
colonial times, the natives of the The Rise of the Inquilinos
Philippines had trade relations with the (Hacienderos)
Chinese. During the height of the
Galleon Trade, it was also Chinese The rapidly growing population in the
products that comprised most the goods nineteenth century needed increased
being traded.  amounts of rice. Thus, those who
controlled large rice, sugar, and
The influx of Chinese settlements in the abaca-growing lands in the Central
Philippines made the Spaniards Luzon, Batangas, parts of Bikol region,
suspicious of the Chinese. These Negros, and Panay profited the mst.
feelings led to stringent state policies These included not only the Filipino
towards the sangley ranging from higher hacienderos of Pampanga, Batangas,
taxes, the restriction of movement with and Western Visayas, and the friar
the establishment of the Chinese orders owning the large haciendas of
enclave (the Parian), to actual policies Bulacan, Laguna, and Cavite, but also
of expulsion. inquilinos of the friar haciendas.
The Chinese proved to be "necessary By this time, many of these inquilinos
outsiders" in Philippine colonial were equivalently hacienderos in their
economy and society. Although the own right, pass on from one generation
Spaniards were wary of the Chinese, to the next the lands they rented from
they realized the importance that they the flier hacienda and farming them by
played in sustaining the economy. From means of their share-tenants or kasama.
the good loaded on the galleons to the To the latter, they stood in a semi feudal
development of retail trade, the Chinese relationship little different from that
enlivened the economy. which existed during Rizal's time in the
Eventually and gradually, they became Nineteenth-Century Context between
integrated into colonial society, giving owner- hacienderos and their tenants.
rise to intermarriages with Indios that The prosperity which the new export
gave birth to Chinese mestizos. The economy had brought to some may be
Chinese mestizos assumed an illustrated by the case of Rizal's Chinese
important role in the economy all ancestor Domingo Lam-co. When he
throughout the Spanish colonial period. had come to the Biñan hacienda in mid
They influenced the changing economy eighteenth century, the average holding
in the 19th century by purchasing land, of an inquilino was 2.9 hectares; after
accumulating wealth and influence. Rizal's father had moved to the
hacienda, the Rizal family in the 1890's
rented the hacienda over 390 hectares.

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
But on the friar haciendas, rising
prosperity had also brought friction
between inquilinos and haciendas as
lands grew in value and rents were
raised. A combination of traditional
methods and modernizing efficiency
led to disputes, ultimately over who
should reap the larger part of the fruits
of the economic boom.

Eventually, this would lead to a

questioning of the friar's rights to the
haciendas. But it is a gross misnomer to
speak of the Revolution as an "agrarian
revolt" in the modern sense.

For it would not be the kasama who

Pure-blooded
would challenge friar ownership, but the
Spaniards born in the
prosperous inquilinos. And their motive Peninsulare Iberian Peninsula (i.e.
would be as much political as economic s Spain)
- to weaken the friars' influence in the
Philippine political life. Insulares Pure-blooded Spaniard
Renegotiating Social Stratification born in the Philippines

Born of mixed
parentage, a mestizo
Mestizo can be:
The Philippine society felt the impact of
the developing economy. Social a. Spanish mestizo
relations underwent re definitions and -one parent is
the changing dynamics brought about a Spanish, the
renegotiation of social stratification. With other is a native;
the growing relevance of the mestizo or
population, new lines were drawn with b. Chinese mestizo
thefollowing social strata: -one parent is
Chinese, the
other is a native

Wealthy pure-blooded
native supposedly
Principalia descended from the
or kadatoan class

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
Illustrados claimed their taxes and Filipinos worked
under the power of the Spaniards.
Indio Pure-blooded native of
the Philippines There was an appointment of officials
with inferior qualifications, without
Chino Infiel Non-Catholic pure dedication of duty and moral strength to
blooded Chinese resist corruption for material
advancement. Through this power and
authority the Spaniards possessed,
As the Spaniards lost economic power they collected and wasted the money of
in the nineteenth century, they asserted the Filipinos.
dominance by virtue of their race. This
issue brought complications with the Through the power that the Spaniards
rising principalia and mestizo possessed, they had the right to appoint
populations who realized their the different positions. The appointment
indispensable position in society as of positions is obtained by the highest
movers and facilitators of the economy. bidder which is the Governor-general
The renegotiation continued throughout of the country. The term of office which
the century as the mestizos and is the length of time a person (usually a
principalia elite eventually demanded politician) serves in a particular office
social recognition that the pure-blooded which is dependent on the desire of the
Spaniards had consistently denied King of Spain.
them. The Spanish officials traveled to various
These wealthy mestizos and members places and the needs of the Philippines
of the principalia continued to amass were ignored. They did not put too much
economic and cultural capital. They also attention to the needs of the other
availed themselves of the opportunity to people. There were inadequate
obtain higher degrees of education not administrative supervisions, they were
only in the Philippines but also in unable to face and solve the problems
Europe. These activities augmented regarding the Philippines. There were
their relevance in society as it was from also overlapping of powers and
these ranks that articulations of privileges of officials which made them
nationalism would emerge. competitive.
Political Development
They were corrupt during the 19th
century and the Alcaldias/Alcalde is
considered as the most corrupt over the
other corrupts. The Alcaldias/Alcalde
The Spaniards ruled the Filipinos in the
includes the administrators, judges and
19th century. The Filipinos became the
military commandants. They usually
Spaniard's slave. The Spaniards
have P25/mo liberal allowances and

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
privileges to take a certain percentage  adoption of manhood suffrage;
of money from the total amount of taxes. and
There were also monopoly trades or  granting of political, economic
business practices known as indulto and social rights to the people.
para comerciar.

Impact of the Bourbon Reforms

Rise and Gradual Spread of
The Bourbon Reforms (Castilian:
Liberalism and Democracy
Reformas Borbónicas) were a set of
The principal ideas of liberalism-
economic and political legislation
liberty and equality- were first realized
promulgated by the Spanish Crown
successfully in the American Revolution
under various kings of the House of
and then achieved in part in the French
Bourbon, mainly in the 18th century.
Revolution. This political and social
The strengthening of the crown's power
philosophy challenged conservatism in
with clear lines of authority to officials
the European continent.
contrasted to the complex system of
Liberalism demanded representative government that evolved under the
government as opposed to autocratic Habsburg monarchs. In particular, the
monarchy, equality before the law as crown pursued state supremacy over
opposed to legally separate classes. the Catholic Church, resulting in the
The idea of liberty also meant to specific suppression of the Society of Jesus in
individual freedoms: 1767 as well as an attempt to abolish
ecclesiastical privilege (fuero
1. freedom of the press;
eclesiástico).
2. freedom of speech,
 The reforms in Spain led to
3. freedom of assembly;
significant restructuring of the
4. freedom from arbitrary arrest. administrative structure and
personnel, aimed at modernizing
Democracy became a way of life in
Spain through manufacturing and
many European countries, like Britain,
technology.
Belgium, and Switzerland. Democracy
was gradually established thru the  In Spanish America, the reforms
following means: aimed to make the administration
more efficient and promote
 promulgation of laws that
economic, commercial, and fiscal
advance democracy;
development.
 undertaking of reforms thru
legislation; abolition of slavery;  The Bourbon Reforms aimed to
 adoption of a liberal constitution; limit the power of Creoles and re-
providing the citizens the establish Spanish supremacy over
 opportunity to propose laws; colonies like the Philippines.

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
The reforms achieved mixed results mother country and those of the
administratively but succeeded in Spanish colonies (art. 18) and
alienating the local elites of the established a national military in
Americas (who called themselves the provinces (art. 362).
Criollos) and eventually led to the
demise of all overseas dominions of the 5. On his return to Spain, King
Spanish crown. Ferdinand VII revoked the
constitution on May 4, 1814.
Restored at the outbreak of the
Spanish Revolution of 1820-
Cadiz Constitution of 1812 1823 (it was proclaimed by
A Spanish constitution, adopted by Riego y Núñez on Jan. 1, 1820,
the constituent Cortes in Cádiz on Mar. and Ferdinand VII swore to
18, 1812, and made public on Mar. 19, uphold it on Mar. 9, 1820), it
1812, during the Spanish Revolution of was again abolished on Oct. 1,
1808-14. 1823, by Ferdinand VII. On
The constitution declared that Aug. 12, 1836, the constitution
went into effect for a third time in
1. "sovereignty resides in the response to the demands of the
nation, which retains the masses and remained in force
exclusive right to establish its until the adoption of a new
own fundamental laws" (art. 3). constitution on June 18, 1837.

2. Spain was proclaimed a

hereditary monarchy (art. 14), Related Events Concerning the Cadiz
with legislative power vested in Constitution
the Cortes and the monarch (art.
15) and executive power Ferdinand VII sometimes called
represented by the monarch "Ferdinand the Desired" or in Spanish
(art. 16). name Fernando el Deseado was born
on October 14, 1784 in El Escorial,
3. The constitution proclaimed Spain but died on September 29, 1833
individual freedom and the at the young age of 49. He became the
inviolability of domicile (arts. 286 King of Spain in 1808 and from 1814 to
and 307) but declared 1833 at the time of his death. Between
Catholicism the official religion 1808 and 1813, during the Napoleonic
of Spain and prohibited the Wars, Ferdinand was imprisoned in
practice of any other religion France by Napoleon.He was the son of
(art. 12). Charles IV and Maria Luisa of Parma,
who placed their whole confidence in
4. The constitution proclaimed
Manuel de Godoy.
the equality of Spaniards of the

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
From 1795 Godoy had flaunted the title revolution restored the Constitution of
of prince of the Peace for his 1812, which Ferdinand accepted, but in
capitulation to France in the Peace of 1823 Louis XVIII of France sent the
Basel. Ferdinand's tutor stirred up his duc d'Angoulême at the head of a
jealousy and encouraged him to seek large army to release Ferdinand from
the protection of Napoleon. Charles IV his radical ministers. Ferdinand's new
was sufficiently alarmed to arrest government arrested the radicals or
Ferdinand but forgave him. When drove them into exile. By 1826 the
Godoy allowed French troops to enter Spanish possessions in America were
Spain, Charles was overthrown by the all independent. Ferdinand's
Revolt of Aranjuez (March 17, 1808), government now depended on a militia,
and he abdicated in favour of Ferdinand. the Royalist Volunteers, and the French
forces of occupation.
However, French troops occupied
Madrid, and Napoleon summoned Ferdinand had no children from his
Ferdinand to the frontier and obliged three marriages, and his absolutist
him to return the crown to his father, supporters looked to his even more
who granted it to Napoleon. Napoleon absolutist younger brother, Don Carlos
made his brother Joseph Bonaparte (Carlos María Isidro de Borbón), to
king of Spain and held Ferdinand in succeed him. In 1830 his fourth wife,
France for the duration of the war. María Cristina, gave birth to a
daughter, the future Isabella II.
It was left to the Spanish populace to Isabella's birth prompted Ferdinand to
rise against the French invaders in the revoke the Salic Law of Succession,
name of the absent Ferdinand, known which prevented women from acceding
as "the Desired." In 1812 independent to the throne.
Spaniards adopted the Constitution of During Ferdinand's illness, Don Carlos
Cádiz, but in December 1813 Napoleon tried to persuade the queen to recognize
released Ferdinand expressly to his rights, but Ferdinand recovered,
overthrow it. When Ferdinand returned banished Don Carlos, and looked for
to Spain in 1814 he was urged by moderate liberal support for his young
reactionaries to abolish the Cortes of daughter. When Ferdinand died in
Cádiz and all its works, which he did September 1833, Isabella was
almost immediately. He resumed his recognized as the sovereign, but his
obsolete powers and attempted to widow was obliged to lean on the
recover control of Spanish America, now liberals as Don Carlos asserted his
partly independent. But his ministers claims from Portugal and thus began the
could neither reinforce his armies in First Carlist War.
America nor persuade the British
government to collaborate or connive at
reconquest. In 1820 a liberal

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL
happening. As he was exposed to
SUMMARY higher education, he would realize that
as much as economic development
was a reality, so was the rising
inequality and worsening conditions
This chapter aimed to situate Rizal's life for the majority of the population.
within the larger context of the
nineteenth century. It focused on the
economic and social developments in
the century that shaped the world in
which Rizal lived. The Philippines,
being part of the wider Spanish empire,
underwent changes when the Spanish
Crown also had a dynastic shift in the
eighteen century. With this came the
Bourbon reforms that brought new
policies of economic reorientation for the
colonies. With the development of the
cash crop economy and the opening of
Manila and other cities to world trade,
the economy boomed in the nineteenth
century.

This development in the economy also

had a profound impact on the social and
political landscapes. The new economy
resulted in changes in policies about
education and heightened the
surveillance and regulatory mechanisms
of the state. Furthermore, the
nineteenth century saw the
ascendance of the mestizo and
principalia classes that would assert
their relevance in society.

Thus, it is not wholly surprising that men

like José Rizal flourished in the
nineteenth century. Born in the 1860s,
Rizal grew up in a society in transitions.
By the time he matured, he could reap
the benefits of the changes that were

THE LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL |