Cavite Mutiny

FILIPINO HISTORY

WRITTEN BY: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

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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 quickly crushed, but the Spanish regime under the reactionary governor Rafael de
Izquierdo magnified the incident and used it as an excuse to clamp down on those Filipinos who had
been calling for governmental reform. A number of Filipino intellectuals were seized and accused of
complicity with the mutineers. After a brief trial, three priests—José Burgos, Jacinto Zamora, and
Mariano Gómez—were publicly executed. The three subsequently became martyrs to the cause of
Philippine independence.

Philippine Revolution

In that year the abortive Cavite Mutiny, a brief uprising against the Spanish, served as an excuse for
renewed Spanish repression. The martyrdom of three Filipino priests—José Burgos, Mariano Gómez,
and Jacinto Zamora—for allegedly conspiring with the rebels at Cavite sparked a wave of anti-Spanish
sentiment.…

Spain

Spain, country located in extreme south-western Europe. It occupies about 85 percent of the Iberian
Peninsula, which it shares with its smaller neighbour Portugal. Spain is a storied country of stone castles,
snowcapped mountains, vast monuments, and sophisticated cities, all of which have made it a…

Mutiny

Mutiny, any overt act of defiance or attack upon military (including naval) authority by two or more
persons subject to such authority. The term is occasionally used to describe non-military instances of
defiance or attack—such as mutiny on board a merchant ship or a rising of slaves in a state in…
THE TWO FACES OF THE 1872 CAVITE MUTINY

The 12th of June of every year since 1898 is a very important event for all the Filipinos. In this
particular day, the entire Filipino nation as well as Filipino communities all over the world gathers to
celebrate the Philippines’ Independence Day. 1898 came to be a very significant year for all of us— it is
as equally important as 1896—the year when the Philippine Revolution broke out owing to the Filipinos’
desire to be free from the abuses of the Spanish colonial regime. But we should be reminded that
another year is as historic as the two—1872.

Two major events happened in 1872, first was the 1872 Cavite Mutiny and the other was the
martyrdom of the three martyr priests in the persons of Fathers Mariano Gomes, Jose Burgos and
Jacinto Zamora (GOMBURZA). However, not all of us knew that there were different accounts in
reference to the said event. All Filipinos must know the different sides of the story—since this event led
to another tragic yet meaningful part of our history—the execution of GOMBURZA which in effect a
major factor in the awakening of nationalism among the Filipinos.

1872 Cavite Mutiny: Spanish Perspective

Jose Montero y Vidal, a prolific Spanish historian documented the event and highlighted it as an
attempt of the Indios to overthrow the Spanish government in the Philippines. Meanwhile, Gov. Gen.
Rafael Izquierdo’s official report magnified the event and made use of it to implicate the native clergy,
which was then active in the call for secularization. The two accounts complimented and corroborated
with one other, only that the general’s report was more spiteful. Initially, both Montero and Izquierdo
scored out that the abolition of privileges enjoyed by the workers of Cavite arsenal such as non-payment
of tributes and exemption from force labor were the main reasons of the “revolution” as how they
called it, however, other causes were enumerated by them including the Spanish Revolution which
overthrew the secular throne, dirty propagandas proliferated by unrestrained press, democratic, liberal
and republican books and pamphlets reaching the Philippines, and most importantly, the presence of
the native clergy who out of animosity against the Spanish friars, “conspired and supported” the rebels
and enemies of Spain. In particular, Izquierdo blamed the unruly Spanish Press for “stockpiling”
malicious propagandas grasped by the Filipinos. He reported to the King of Spain that the “rebels”
wanted to overthrow the Spanish government to install a new “hari” or ” King” in the likes of Fathers
Burgos and Zamora. The general even added that the native clergy enticed other participants by giving
them charismatic assurance that their fight will not fail because God is with them coupled with
handsome promises of rewards such as employment, wealth, and ranks in the army. Izquierdo, in his
report lambasted the Indios as gullible and possessed an innate propensity for stealing.

The two Spaniards deemed that the event of 1872 was planned earlier and was thought of it as a big
conspiracy among educated leaders, mestizos, abogadillos or native lawyers, residents of Manila and
Cavite and the native clergy. They insinuated that the conspirators of Manila and Cavite planned to
liquidate high-ranking Spanish officers to be followed by the massacre of the friars. The alleged pre-
concerted signal among the conspirators of Manila and Cavite was the firing of rockets from the walls of
Intramuros.

According to the accounts of the two, on 20 January 1872, the district of Sampaloc celebrated the
feast of the Virgin of Loreto, unfortunately participants to the feast celebrated the occasion with the
usual fireworks displays. Allegedly, those in Cavite mistook the fireworks as the sign for the attack, and
just like what was agreed upon, the 200-men contingent headed by Sergeant Lamadrid launched an
attack targeting Spanish officers at sight and seized the arsenal.

When the news reached the iron-fisted Gov. Izquierdo, he readily ordered the reinforcement of the
Spanish forces in Cavite to quell the revolt. The “revolution” was easily crushed when the expected
reinforcement from Manila did not come ashore. Major instigators including Sergeant Lamadrid were
killed in the skirmish, while the GOMBURZA were tried by a court-martial and were sentenced to die by
strangulation. Patriots like Joaquin Pardo de Tavera, Antonio Ma. Regidor, Jose and Pio Basa and other
abogadillos were suspended by the Audencia (High Court) from the practice of law, arrested and were
sentenced with life imprisonment at the Marianas Island. Furthermore, Gov. Izquierdo dissolved the
native regiments of artillery and ordered the creation of artillery force to be composed exclusively of the
Peninsulares.

On 17 February 1872 in an attempt of the Spanish government and Frailocracia to instill fear among
the Filipinos so that they may never commit such daring act again, the GOMBURZA were executed. This
event was tragic but served as one of the moving forces that shaped Filipino nationalism. 1872 Cavite

Mutiny: Spanish Perspective

Jose Montero y Vidal, a prolific Spanish historian documented the event and highlighted it as an
attempt of the Indios to overthrow the Spanish government in the Philippines. Meanwhile, Gov. Gen.
Rafael Izquierdo’s official report magnified the event and made use of it to implicate the native clergy,
which was then active in the call for secularization. The two accounts complimented and corroborated
with one other, only that the general’s report was more spiteful. Initially, both Montero and Izquierdo
scored out that the abolition of privileges enjoyed by the workers of Cavite arsenal such as non-payment
of tributes and exemption from force labor were the main reasons of the “revolution” as how they
called it, however, other causes were enumerated by them including the Spanish Revolution which
overthrew the secular throne, dirty propagandas proliferated by unrestrained press, democratic, liberal
and republican books and pamphlets reaching the Philippines, and most importantly, the presence of
the native clergy who out of animosity against the Spanish friars, “conspired and supported” the rebels
and enemies of Spain. In particular, Izquierdo blamed the unruly Spanish Press for “stockpiling”
malicious propagandas grasped by the Filipinos. He reported to the King of Spain that the “rebels”
wanted to overthrow the Spanish government to install a new “hari” in the likes of Fathers Burgos and
Zamora. The general even added that the native clergy enticed other participants by giving them
charismatic assurance that their fight will not fail because God is with them coupled with handsome
promises of rewards such as employment, wealth, and ranks in the army. Izquierdo, in his report
lambasted the Indios as gullible and possessed an innate propensity for stealing.

The two Spaniards deemed that the event of 1872 was planned earlier and was thought of it as a big
conspiracy among educated leaders, mestizos, abogadillos or native lawyers, residents of Manila and
Cavite and the native clergy. They insinuated that the conspirators of Manila and Cavite planned to
liquidate high-ranking Spanish officers to be followed by the massacre of the friars. The alleged pre-
concerted signal among the conspirators of Manila and Cavite was the firing of rockets from the walls of
Intramuros.

According to the accounts of the two, on 20 January 1872, the district of Sampaloc celebrated the
feast of the Virgin of Loreto, unfortunately participants to the feast celebrated the occasion with the
usual fireworks displays. Allegedly, those in Cavite mistook the fireworks as the sign for the attack, and
just like what was agreed upon, the 200-men contingent headed by Sergeant Lamadrid launched an
attack targeting Spanish officers at sight and seized the arsenal.

When the news reached the iron-fisted Gov. Izquierdo, he readily ordered the reinforcement of the
Spanish forces in Cavite to quell the revolt. The “revolution” was easily crushed when the expected
reinforcement from Manila did not come ashore. Major instigators including Sergeant Lamadrid were
killed in the skirmish, while the GOMBURZA were tried by a court-martial and were sentenced to die by
strangulation. Patriots like Joaquin Pardo de Tavera, Antonio Ma. Regidor, Jose and Pio Basa and other
abogadillos were suspended by the Audencia (High Court) from the practice of law, arrested and were
sentenced with life imprisonment at the Marianas Island. Furthermore, Gov. Izquierdo dissolved the
native regiments of artillery and ordered the creation of artillery force to be composed exclusively of the
Peninsulares.

On 17 February 1872 in an attempt of the Spanish government and Frailocracia to instill fear among
the Filipinos so that they may never commit such daring act again, the GOMBURZA were executed. This
event was tragic but served as one of the moving forces that shaped Filipino nationalism.
A Response to Injustice: The Filipino Version of the Incident

Dr. Trinidad Hermenigildo Pardo de Tavera, a Filipino scholar and researcher, wrote the Filipino
version of the bloody incident in Cavite. In his point of view, the incident was a mere mutiny by the
native Filipino soldiers and laborers of the Cavite arsenal who turned out to be dissatisfied with the
abolition of their privileges. Indirectly, Tavera blamed Gov. Izquierdo’s cold-blooded policies such as the
abolition of privileges of the workers and native army members of the arsenal and the prohibition of the
founding of school of arts and trades for the Filipinos, which the general believed as a cover-up for the
organization of a political club.

On 20 January 1872, about 200 men comprised of soldiers, laborers of the arsenal, and residents of
Cavite headed by Sergeant Lamadrid rose in arms and assassinated the commanding officer and Spanish
officers in sight. The insurgents were expecting support from the bulk of the army unfortunately, that
didn’t happen. The news about the mutiny reached authorities in Manila and Gen. Izquierdo
immediately ordered the reinforcement of Spanish troops in Cavite. After two days, the mutiny was
officially declared subdued.

Tavera believed that the Spanish friars and Izquierdo used the Cavite Mutiny as a powerful lever by
magnifying it as a full-blown conspiracy involving not only the native army but also included residents of
Cavite and Manila, and more importantly the native clergy to overthrow the Spanish government in the
Philippines. It is noteworthy that during the time, the Central Government in Madrid announced its
intention to deprive the friars of all the powers of intervention in matters of civil government and the
direction and management of educational institutions. This turnout of events was believed by Tavera,
prompted the friars to do something drastic in their dire sedire to maintain power in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, in the intention of installing reforms, the Central Government of Spain welcomed an
educational decree authored by Segismundo Moret promoted the fusion of sectarian schools run by the
friars into a school called Philippine Institute. The decree proposed to improve the standard of
education in the Philippines by requiring teaching positions in such schools to be filled by competitive
examinations. This improvement was warmly received by most Filipinos in spite of the native clergy’s
zest for secularization.
 The friars, fearing that their influence in the Philippines would be a thing of the past, took advantage
of the incident and presented it to the Spanish Government as a vast conspiracy organized throughout
the archipelago with the object of destroying Spanish sovereignty. Tavera sadly confirmed that the
Madrid government came to believe that the scheme was true without any attempt to investigate the
real facts or extent of the alleged “revolution” reported by Izquierdo and the friars.

Convicted educated men who participated in the mutiny were sentenced life imprisonment while
members of the native clergy headed by the GOMBURZA were tried and executed by garrote. This
episode leads to the awakening of nationalism and eventually to the outbreak of Philippine Revolution
of 1896. The French writer Edmund Plauchut’s account complimented Tavera’s account by confirming
that the event happened due to discontentment of the arsenal workers and soldiers in Cavite fort. The
Frenchman, however, dwelt more on the execution of the three martyr priests which he actually
witnessed.

Unravelling the Truth

Considering the four accounts of the 1872 Mutiny, there were some basic facts that remained to be
unvarying: First, there was dissatisfaction among the workers of the arsenal as well as the members of
the native army after their privileges were drawn back by Gen. Izquierdo; Second, Gen. Izquierdo
introduced rigid and strict policies that made the Filipinos move and turn away from Spanish
government out of disgust; Third, the Central Government failed to conduct an investigation on what
truly transpired but relied on reports of Izquierdo and the friars and the opinion of the public; Fourth,
the happy days of the friars were already numbered in 1872 when the Central Government in Spain
decided to deprive them of the power to intervene in government affairs as well as in the direction and
management of schools prompting them to commit frantic moves to extend their stay and power; Fifth,
the Filipino clergy members actively participated in the secularization movement in order to allow
Filipino priests to take hold of the parishes in the country making them prey to the rage of the friars;
Sixth, Filipinos during the time were active participants, and responded to what they deemed as
injustices; and Lastly, the execution of GOMBURZA was a blunder on the part of the Spanish
government, for the action severed the ill-feelings of the Filipinos and the event inspired Filipino patriots
to call for reforms and eventually independence. There may be different versions of the event, but one
thing is certain, the 1872 Cavite Mutiny paved way for a momentous 1898.

The road to independence was rough and tough to toddle, many patriots named and unnamed shed
their bloods to attain reforms and achieve independence. 12 June 1898 may be a glorious event for us,
but we should not forget that before we came across to victory, our forefathers suffered enough. As
weenjoy our freeedom, may we be more historically aware of our past to have a better future ahead of
us. And just like what Elias said in Noli me Tangere, may we “not forget those who fell during the night.”

What was the real reason for the Cavite Mutiny?

Causes. The primary cause of the mutiny is believed to be an order from Governor-General Rafael de
Izquierdo to subject the soldiers of the Engineering and Artillery Corps to personal taxes, from which
they were previously exempt.

On January 20, 1872, two hundred Filipinos employed at the Cavite arsenal staged a revolt against the
Spanish government’s voiding of their exemption from the payment of tributes. The Cavite Mutiny led to
the persecution of prominent Filipinos; secular priests Mariano Gómez, José Burgos, and Jacinto
Zamora—who would then be collectively named GomBurZa—were tagged as the masterminds of the
uprising. The priests were charged with treason and sedition by the Spanish military tribunal—a ruling
believed to be part of a conspiracy to stifle the growing popularity of Filipino secular priests and the
threat they posed to the Spanish clergy. The GomBurZa were publicly executed, by garrote, on the early
morning of February 17, 1872 at Bagumbayan.

The Archbishop of Manila refused to defrock them, and ordered the bells of every church to toll in honor
of their deaths; the Sword, in this instance, denied the moral justification of the Cross. The martyrdom
of the three secular priests would resonate among Filipinos; grief and outrage over their execution
would make way for the first stirrings of the Filipino revolution, thus making the first secular martyrs of a
nascent national identity. Jose Rizal would dedicate his second novel, El Filibusterismo, to the memory
of GomBurZa, to what they stood for, and to the symbolic weight their deaths would henceforth hold:

The Government, by enshrouding your trial in mystery and pardoning your co-accused, has suggested
that some mistake was committed when your fate was decided; and the whole of the Philippines, in
paying homage to your memory and calling you martyrs, totally rejects your guilt. The Church, by
refusing to degrade you, has put in doubt the crime charged against you.

To mark the 142nd anniversary of the martyrdom of the priests Mariano Gómez, José Burgos, and
Jacinto Zamora, we have put together resources that detail the effect of their martyrdom upon the
Philippine revolution. Below you will find an infographic on prominent Filipinos executed in Bagumbayan
from 1843 to 1897 and writings by personalities of the Philippine revolution on GomBurZa, including a
retelling of their execution.

MARTYRDOM AT BAGUMBAYAN: HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ROSTER OF HEROES AND PATRIOTS EXECUTED
IN BAGUMBAYAN, 1843-1897

luneta-infographic

THE REVOLUTIONARY GENERATION ON GOMBURZA

• JOSE RIZAL’S LETTER TO MARIANO PONCE, 18 APRIL 1889—

“Without 1872 there would not now be a Plaridel, a Jaena, a Sanciangco, nor would the brave and
generous Filipino colonies exist in Europe. Without 1872 Rizal would now be a Jesuit and instead of
writing the Noli Me Tangere, would have written the contrary. At the sight of those injustices and
cruelties, though still a child, my imagination awoke, and I swore to dedicate myself to avenge one day
so many victims. With this idea I have gone on studying, and this can be read in all my works and
writings. God will grant me one day to fulfill my promise.” [via]

• JOSE RIZAL’S LETTER TO MARIANO PONCE, 18 APRIL 1889—

“If at his death Burgos had shown the courage of Gomez, the Filipinos of today would be other than they
are. However, nobody knows how he will behave at that culminating moment, and perhaps, I myself,
who preach and boast so much, may show more fear and less resolution than Burgos in that crisis. Life is
so pleasant, and it is so repugnant to die on the scaffold, still young and with ideas in one’s head…” [via]

• “RITUAL FOR THE INITIATION OF A BAYANI,” 1894—

Document, via Jim Richardson, details the ritual to be followed when a Katipunan member with the rank
of Soldier (Kawal) is to be elevated to the rank of Patriot (Bayani): “Presiding over the ritual, the Most
Respected President (presumably Bonifacio himself) reflects on the martyrdom of the priests Burgos,
Gomez and Zamora—a great wrong, he says, that tore aside the veil that had covered the eyes of the
Tagalogs. Tracing the Katipunan’s political lineage a little further back, he also alludes to the movement
for reforms that preceded the Cavite mutiny, mentioning specifically the newspaper El Eco Filipino,
which was founded by Manuel Regidor (the brother of Antonio Ma. Regidor), Federico de Lerena (the
brother-in-law of José Ma. Basa) and other liberal Filipinos in Madrid in 1871. Copies were sent to
Manila but soon began to be intercepted, and people found in possession of the paper were liable to be
arrested.” [via]

• EMILIO JACINTO, “GOMEZ, BURGOS AT ZAMORA!” APRIL 30, 1896—

Jim Richardson: “The day that Gomez, Burgos and Zamora were executed, writes Jacinto, was a day of
degradation and wretchedness. Twenty-four years had since passed, but the excruciating wound
inflicted that day on Tagalog hearts had never healed; the bleeding had never been staunched. Though
the lives of the three priests had been extinguished that day, their legacy would endure forever. Their
compatriots would honor their memory, and would seek to emulate their pursuit of truth and justice. As
yet, Jacinto acknowledges, some were not fully ready to embrace those ideals, either because they
failed to appreciate the need for solidarity and unity or because their minds were still clouded by the
smoke of a mendacious Church. But those who could no longer tolerate oppression were now looking
forward to a different way of life, to a splendid new dawn.” [via]

RECALLING THE GOMBURZA

• EDMOND PLAUCHUT, AS QUOTED BY JAIME VENERACION—

The Execution of GomBurZa [via]

Late in the night of the 15th of February 1872, a Spanish court martial found three secular priests, Jose
Burgos, Mariano Gomez and Jacinto Zamora, guilty of treason as the instigators of a mutiny in the Kabite
navy-yard a month before, and sentenced them to death. The judgement of the court martial was read
to the priests in Fort Santiago early in the next morning and they were told it would be executed the
following day… Upon hearing the sentence, Burgos broke into sobs, Zamora lost his mind and never
recovered it, and only Gomez listened impassively, an old man accustomed to the thought of death.
When dawn broke on the 17th of February there were almost forty thousand of Filipinos (who came
from as far as Bulakan, Pampanga, Kabite and Laguna) surrounding the four platforms where the three
priests and the man whose testimony had convicted them, a former artilleryman called Saldua, would
die.

The three priests followed Saldua: Burgos ‘weeping like a child’, Zamora with vacant eyes, and Gomez
head held high, blessing the Filipinos who knelt at his feet, heads bared and praying. He was next to die.
When his confessor, a Recollect friar , exhorted him loudly to accept his fate, he replied: “Father, I know
that not a leaf falls to the ground but by the will of God. Since He wills that I should die here, His holy
will be done.”

Zamora went up the scaffold without a word and delivered his body to the executioner; his mind had
already left it.

Burgos was the last, a refinement of cruelty that compelled him to watch the death of his companions.
He seated himself on the iron rest and then sprang up crying: “But what crime have I committed? Is it
possible that I should die like this. My God, is there no justice on earth?”

A dozen friars surrounded him and pressed him down again upon the seat of the garrote, pleading with
him to die a Christian death. He obeyed but, feeling his arms tied round the fatal post, protested once
again: “But I am innocent!”

“So was Jesus Christ,’ said one of the friars.” At this Burgos resigned himself. The executioner knelt at his
feet and asked his forgiveness. “I forgive you, my son. Do your duty.” And it was done.

(Veneracion quotes Leon Ma. Guerrero’s The First Filipino: “We are told that the crowd, seeing the
executioner fall to his knees, suddenly did the same, saying the prayers to the dying. Many Spaniards
thought it was the beginning of an attack and fled panic-stricken to the Walled City.”)

• LEON MA. GUERRERO, IN THE FIRST FILIPINO, ASIDE FROM CITING EDMOND PLAUCHUT, REVYE DES
DEUX MONDES, MAY 15, 1877, WROTE:
“Montero deserves a hearing because he had access to the official records. His account, in brief, is that
the condemned men, in civilian clothes, were taken to the headquarters of the corps of engineers
outside the city walls, where a death-cell had been improvised. Members of their families were allowed
to visit them. The night before the execution, Gómez went to confession with an Augustinian Recollect
(leaving a fortune of 200,000 to a natural son whom he had had before taking orders); Burgos to a
Jesuit; Zamora, to a Vicentian. At the execution itself, Burgos is described ax “intensamente pálido;”
Zamora, as “afligidísmo;” and Gómez as “revelando en su faz sombría la ira y la desesperacíon.” The
judgment was once more read to them, on their knees. Burgos and Zamora “lloraban amargamanete,”
while Gòmez listened “con tranquilidad imperturbable. Ni un solo músculo de su cara se contrajó.” The
order of execution, according to Montero, was Gómez, Zamora, Burgos and Saldúa last of all. He
explains the panice saying it was the natives when a horse bolted: Burgos, thinking rescue was on the
way, rose to his feet and had to be held down by the executioner. Monero denies both the anecdotes
concerning Gómez and Burgos. It is fair to add that Montero seems to lose his composure in refuting
Plauchut.” [via]

Unraveling the Truth

Considering the four accounts of the 1872 Mutiny, there were some basic facts that remained to be
unvarying: First, there was dissatisfaction among the workers of the arsenal as well as the members of
the native army after their privileges were drawn back by Gen. Izquierdo; Second, Gen. Izquierdo
introduced rigid and strict policies that made the Filipinos move and turn away from Spanish
government out of disgust; Third, the Central Government failed to conduct an investigation on what
truly transpired but relied on reports of Izquierdo and the friars and the opinion of the public; Fourth,
the happy days of the friars were already numbered in 1872 when the Central Government in Spain
decided to deprive them of the power to intervene in government affairs as well as in the direction and
management of schools prompting them to commit frantic moves to extend their stay and power; Fifth,
the Filipino clergy members actively participated in the secularization movement in order to allow
Filipino priests to take hold of the parishes in the country making them prey to the rage of the friars;
Sixth, Filipinos during the time were active participants, and responded to what they deemed as
injustices; and Lastly, the execution of GOMBURZA was a blunder on the part of the Spanish
government, for the action severed the ill-feelings of the Filipinos and the event inspired Filipino patriots
to call for reforms and eventually independence. There may be different versions of the event, but one
thing is certain, the 1872 Cavite Mutiny paved way for a momentous 1898.

The road to independence was rough and tough to toddle, many patriots named and unnamed shed
their bloods to attain reforms and achieve independence. 12 June 1898 may be a glorious event for us,
but we should not forget that before we came across to victory, our forefathers suffered enough. As
weenjoy our freeedom, may we be more historically aware of our past to have a better future ahead of
us. And just like what Elias said in Noli me Tangere, may we “not forget those who fell during the night.”