Rizal's Life: Exile, Trial, and Death

Chapter 5: Rizal's Life: Exile, Trial and Death

  • This chapter focuses on the events of Rizal's final days, including his exile in Dapitan, his trial, and execution.

Introduction

  • Rizal was summoned to Malacaang and then banished to Dapitan.
  • During his four-year exile in Dapitan, he actively promoted practical nationalism and encouraged the locals to do the same, keeping himself busy to avoid boredom.
  • He worked as a physician, pursued scientific studies, continued his artistic and literary endeavors, expanded his language skills, founded a school for boys, championed community development initiatives, invented a brick-making machine, and engaged in farming and commerce.
  • Governor Blanco, in a letter to Manuel Azcarraga, noted Rizal's exemplary behavior in Dapitan, stating he was worthy of pardon and not involved in conspiracies or secret societies.
  • Rizal's exile concluded on July 31, 1896, when he boarded the ship Espana; his departure was marked by sorrow and the mournful tune of Chopin's Funeral March, which he likely felt foreshadowed his death.
  • Specific objectives:
    • Analyze the factors leading to Rizal’s execution.
    • Analyze the effects of Rizal’s execution on Spanish Colonial rule and the Philippine Revolution.

Lesson 1: Exile in Dapitan

  • Rizal's return to Manila in June 1892 marked his second homecoming; he believed the fight for Filipino liberties should be waged in the Philippines, not in Spain.
  • “The battlefield is in the Philippines,” he told countrymen in Europe, “There is where we should meet. There we will help one another, there together we will suffer or triumph perhaps.”
  • On June 26, 1892, Rizal and his widowed sister Lucia arrived in Manila.
  • The same afternoon, he visited Governor General Eulogio Despujol at Malacañang Palace.
  • On June 27, 1892, Rizal traveled by train from Tutuban Station to visit friends in Malolos, San Fernando (Pampanga), Tarlac, and Bacolor.
  • He returned to Manila by train on June 28.
  • On July 3, 1892, Rizal attended a meeting with patriots at the home of Doroteo Ongjunco where he explained the objectives of the Liga Filipina and its role in socio-economic life.
  • The officers of the new league were elected:
    • Ambrosio Salvador (President)
    • Deodato Arellano (Secretary)
    • Bonifacio Arevalo (Treasurer)
    • Agustin de la Rosa (Fiscal)
  • “Unus Instar Omnium (One Like All) is the motto of the Liga Filipina”.
  • The Liga Filipina's governing body was the Supreme Council, with jurisdiction over the whole country, composed of a president, a secretary, a treasurer, and a fiscal. Provincial and Popular Councils were established in every province and town, respectively.
  • The duties of the Liga members are as follows:
    • Obey the orders of the Supreme Council
    • Help in recruiting new members
    • Keep in strictest secrecy the decisions of the Liga authorities
    • Have symbolic name which he cannot change until he becomes president of his council
    • Report to the fiscal anything that he may hear which affect the Liga
    • Behave well as befits a good Filipino
    • Help fellow members in all ways.

Exile in Dapitan

  • Rizal arrived in Dapitan on the steamer Cebu on July 17, 1892.
  • Dapitan was a remote town in Mindanao, serving as a politico-military outpost headed by Captain Ricardo Carnicero, who became Rizal’s friend during his exile.
  • Carnicero allowed Rizal to explore the area but required him to report to his office weekly.
  • Dapitan became Rizal's home from 1892-1896, where he practiced medicine, pursued scientific studies, and continued artistic pursuits.
  • He established a school for boys, promoted community development projects, and studied various languages.
  • He also managed farming and commerce, and invented a brick-making machine.
  • On September 21, 1892, Rizal won the second prize in a lottery with Ricardo Carnicero and another Spaniard, amounting to 6,2006,200 pesos.
  • He used a portion of his winnings to purchase land in Talisay, where he built his house, a school, and a hospital.
  • In a letter to Blumentritt (December 19, 1893), Rizal described his daily life in Dapitan:
    • Living arrangements: A square house for his family, an octagonal house for his boys (students), and a hexagonal house for his chickens.
    • Daily routine: Waking up at 5:00 AM, tending to his fields and animals, having breakfast at 7:30 AM, treating poor patients, teaching boys until 4:00 PM, farming in the afternoon, and reading/studying in the evening.
  • Rizal improved and beautified Dapitan by creating a relief map of Mindanao in the plaza for teaching geography and constructing a water system with his pupils.
  • He also helped in installing lampposts throughout the town.
  • George Taufer, suffering from an eye ailment, traveled from Hong Kong to Dapitan with his adopted daughter, Josephine Bracken, who fell in love with Rizal.
  • They lived together as husband and wife after being denied marriage by Father Obach due to Rizal's refusal to retract his statements against the Church.

Katipunan and Request to go to Cuba

  • On June 21, 1896, Pio Valenzuela informed Rizal about the founding of Katipunan and the planned revolution, which Rizal opposed, advocating for a well-planned movement with sufficient arms.
  • Rizal sent letters to Governor General Ramon Blanco in 1894 and 1895, requesting a review of his case and volunteering as a surgeon in the Spanish army fighting in the Cuban revolution if his request was not granted.
  • On July 30, 1896, Rizal's request to go to Cuba was approved, and he left for Manila on the steamer Espana.
  • On September 3, 1896, he boarded the steamer Isla de Panay bound for Barcelona.
  • Upon arriving at the fort, Governor-General Despujol ordered him to be shipped back to Manila.
  • On November 3, 1896, Rizal arrived in Manila and was immediately imprisoned in Fort Santiago.

Lesson 2: Trial of Jose Rizal

  • Andres Bonifacio and the Katipuneros initiated the