On October 15, 1866, Manuel Artigas, a biographer, bibliographer, historian and journalist, was born in Barrio Panalaron Tacloban, Leyte to Miguel Artigas y Rodriguez, a Spaniard from Cadiz, Spain, and Soledad Cuerva y Molina, a Bulakeña.

When his father died in 1874, Artigas moved to Manila, pursued his studies and worked in several colonial government agencies.

Artigas worked for Administracion Central de Impuestos Directos, Almacenes de la Aduana de Manila, Administracion Central de Loterias, Intervencion General de la Administracion del Estado, and the Administracion Provisional de Manila.

While working in the government, Artigas pursued his interest in journalism. He wrote for the Diario de Manila and later for El Amigo del Pueblo.

In 1891, his first book, Manual del Empleados, was published. In 1892, he was publisher and editor of the bi-monthly local government review, El Faro Administrativo.

In 1894, he published El Municipio Filipino 2 Volumes and Diccionario Tecnico-historico de la Administracion de Filipinas.

Artigas setup his own printing press on Calle San Jose in Intramuros. He bought the press that used to print the Periodical El Eco del Sur in Camarines.

At the height of the revolution in early 1897, Artigas sold the press and evacuated his family to Spain. There he continued writing for some periodicals. He founded the periodical La Voz de Ultramar, through which he exposed the abuses of Spanish authorities in the Philippines.

He became acquainted with prominent Spaniards who sympathized with the Filipino cause like Señores Moret and Quiroga Ballasteros, who employed him in the Junta de Publicidad del Ministerio del Ultramar, which he served from January to June 1898. In Barcelona, he became adviser and chronicler of Sub-comite Revolucionario headed by Tito Acuña. Artigas later became its director.

In 1899, he founded the El Filipino.

Artigas returned to the country in 1902, resumed his works in journalism, and joined political groups. He was editor-in-chief of El Grito del Pueblo published by Pascual Poblete. In 1905, he joined La Democracia for a short while.

Artigas served as general secretary of the Nacionalista Party (1902 to 1905) and the Asociacion de Maquinistas Navales y Terrestres de Filipinas (1903-1909). He also published the latter’s periodical El Maquinista (1903-1904).

Before the elections in the First Philippine Assembly, Artigas switched party from the Nacionalista to Federalista and ran for the seat of the third district of Leyte but lost to Florentino Peñaranda.

In 1907, he was appointed assistant librarian in the Philippine Section of the American Circulating Library. Through his initiative, Act No. 1849 creating the Philippine Public Library, was passed by the Philippine Assembly.

As acting chief and later director of the Philippine Library, he was able to increase the Filipiniana collection that became one of the most complete collections in Philippine studies.

Artigas died of heart ailment in Manila on April 2, 1925. He was survived by his wife Luisa Losada y Mijares by whom he had 12 children.

Source:

Philippine News Agency archives

Web Archive (archive.org)

Pambansang Komisyong Pangkasaysayan

(Filed by JR AMIGO/ai/mnm)

On September 27, 1865, General Miguel Malvar, a revolutionary general, was born in Santo Tomas (now a city), Batangas to Maximo Malvar locally known as Capitan Imoy and Tiburcia Carpio.

Malvar, a former gobernadorcillo of his hometown, played an instrumental role during the Philippine revolution against Spain, and the subsequent Philippine-American War.

Malvar joined the Katipunan before the Philippine Revolution of 1896. When the revolution broke out, he emerged from a leader of a small army to being the military commander of Batangas. He coordinated offensives with General Emilio Aguinaldo of the Cavite revolutionaries and with General Paciano Rizal, leader of the revolutionaries in Laguna.

On February 1899, when the hostilities between Americans and Filipinos began, Malvar was appointed second-in-command to General Mariano Trias, who was the overall commander of the Filipino forces in Southern Luzon.

With General Emilio Aguinaldo’s capture by the Americans in 1901, and the earlier surrender of his (Aguinaldo’s) successor, General Mariano Trias, Malvar took the task of running the resistance movement against the Americans.

In early 1902, the American campaign inflected heavy casualty on both guerrilla fighters and civilians. As early as August of 1901, the Americans released exact description of Malvar’s physical features aimed at capturing the General. Malvar would escape American patrols by putting on disguise.

General Malvar surrendered to American General J Franklin Bell in April 1902 followed by his troops, ending the battle in Batangas.

In 1891, Malvar married Paula Maloles, daughter of Don Ambrocio Maloles. Don Ambrocio was his successor as gobernadorcillo of Santo Tomas. Ulay, as she was known locally, bore Malvar’s thirteen children, only eleven of them would survive.

Malvar retired to a quiet farming life and passed away on October 13, 1911 at the age of 46 due to liver failure.

Source:
Pambansang Komisyon Pangkasaysayan

(Filed by Jr Amigo/ai/mnm)

Image Courtesy of philippinesgraphic.com.ph

Today in Filipino history, September 25, 1879, Lope K. Santos was born in Pasig to Ladislao Santos, a native of Pasig and Victorina Canseco, a native of San Mateo (Rizal).

Santos was a Tagalog language writer and former senator of the Philippines. He is best known for his 1906 socialist novel, Banaag at Sikat and his contributions for the development of Filipino grammar and Tagalog orthography

Banaag at Sikat is considered as the first socialist-oriented book in the Philippines which expounded principles of socialism and seek labor reforms from the government.

The book was later made an inspiration for the assembly of the 1932 Socialist Party of the Philippines and then the 1946 group Hukbalahap.

In early 1910s, he started his campaign on promoting a “national language for the Philippines” through organized lectures, cultural societies which he founded all over the country, and headed the department of national language in various leading universities.

Mang Openg, as he was fondly called by his friends, was elected governor of Rizal province in 1910, served until 1913. In 1918, he was appointed as the first Filipino governor of the newly-resurveyed Nueva Vizcaya until 1920.

Consequently, he was elected to the 5th Philippine Legislature as senator of the twelfth senatorial district representing provinces having a majority of non-Christian population.

He was the primary author of Philippine Legislature Act No. 2946 which enacted November 30 of every year as Bonifacio Day, honoring Andres Bonifacio. He championed the cause of labor with his introduction of several measures designed to better the workers’ working conditions.

In 1940, Santos published the first grammar book of the Filipino language, Balarila ng Wikang Pambansa (Grammar of the National Language) which was commissioned by the Surian ng Wikang Pambansa.

The next year, he was appointed by President Manuel L. Quezon as director of Surian until 1946. When the Philippines became a member of the United Nations he was selected to translate the 1935 Constitution for UNESCO. He was also appointed to assist for the translation of inaugural addresses of presidents Jose P. Laurel and Manuel A. Roxas.

He was married to Simeona Salazar on February 10, 1900. They were blessed with five children.

He died on May 1, 1963 at the age of 86.

References: Philippines News Agency archives
Wikipedia

(Filed by Jr Amigo/AI/MNM)