Alexa Mei O.

Cuenco BSN-1A
Sir Alfonso Alex Labrague
Readings in Philippine History
1st Semester

What Happened in the Cavite Mutiny?

The Cavite Mutiny was the brief uprising by Filipino’s during the Spanish times in the
Philippines. It is the uprising military personal in Fort San Felipe on January 20, 1872.

Cavite Mutiny, (Jan. 20, 1872), brief uprising of 200 Filipino troops and workers at the Cavite
arsenal, which became the excuse for Spanish repression of the embryonic Philippine
nationalist movement. Ironically, the harsh reaction of the Spanish authorities served
ultimately to promote the nationalist cause.

The mutiny was merely put down, but the Spaniards under the control of Rafael de Izquierdo.
The incident was used to clamp down Filipino’s who wanted governmental reform. They said
that the cause of the mutiny was because Governor General Rafael de Izquierdo ordered the
soldiers to personal taxes. The taxes required people to pay as they were also do forced. This
was in January 20, and when the labourers received the payment taxes was deducted from
their salaries.

A battle also happened during the Cavite Mutiny wherein Fernando La Madrid was the leader.
He was a mestizo sergeant. They attacked Fort San Felipe and approximately they murdered
eleven Spaniard officers. Mutineers also had thought that some indigenous soldiers would join
the uprising with them. The signal they thought was firing of rockets was actually a celebration
of the feast of Our Lady of Loreto, the patron saint of Sampaloc. They planned to set a huge
fire in Tondo to distract the authorities in that area so that Artillery Regiment and Infantry in
Manila would finally take manage of Fort Santiago. They used cannon shots as signals and
Spaniards were killed that very moment except for women.

It was said that the Spanish Authorities feared the massive Filipino uprising by the help of the
Spanish Sergeant lover. It was the one who informed the superiors all about it. The regiment
was led by General Felipe Ginoves take control of the fight until the mutineers had given up.
The rebels formed in a line, and the Colonel Sabas would ask who would not cry out “Viva
España” then would shot someone dead who will step forward and the rest of the rebels was
sent to prison.
Other Filipino were disarmed and was sent to exile somewhere in the islands of Mindanao.
Those who were guessed of supporting mutineers secretly were arrested and thrown out. The
state which is Mutiny was used by the Colonial Government to compromise the three secular
priests: Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora (also called GOMBURZA). They
were executed by strangulation in Luneta. Jose Rizal on the other hand, whose brother
Paciano was a close acquaintance to Burgos, who devoted his masterpiece “El Filibusterismo”
to the three priests who were murdered.

General Izquierdo approved the death sentence to the forty-one of the mutineers. And eleven
more were sentenced to death. But was later consider to life imprisonment. Some were thrown
out on the Spanish East Island (Guam and Mariana Islands). This includes Maximo Paterno
and Maximo Paterno, Antonio Regidor and Jose Basa.

Then a decree was made to order that there will be no longer appointments of Filipino’s as
Roman Catholic priests. Instead, they continued to make a huge number of native Filipino
group for their colonial force through the years until the Spanish and American War happened
in 1898.

There was a researcher saying that General Izquierdo only believes in his own policies which
is wrong. As a leader, we should think for the sake of the people and not for our own greed.