As I asked my family and relatives, “Who is Emilio Aguinaldo?” one answer was consistent and it declared him a “Filipino hero.” Emilio Aguinaldo is best known as the Filipino leader who fought against Spain and later the United States for the independence of the Philippines.
Emilio Aguinaldo was born on March 23, 1869 near Cavite, Luzon, Philippines and died February 6, 1964 in Manila. He was born of Chinese and Tagalog descent. He became mayor of Cavite Viejo and also became leader of the Katipunan. The Katipunan was a Philippine revolutionary society aiming to gain independence from Spain.
In December 1897, he was exiled under the Pact of Biacna-Bato. From this agreement with Spain, the Philippines was promised a financial reward and liberal reforms. He returned on May 19, 1898. On June 12, 1898, Aguinaldo declared Philippine independence from Spain.
He was inaugurated as the first president of the Philippines on January 23, 1899. The U.S. did not acknowledge this decision. Aguinaldo declared war on the U.S. in February, which was the beginning of the Philippine-American War. This war lasted for 3 years until Aguinaldo was captured in his secret headquarters in 1901. He took an oath of allegiance to the United States and retired living off the pension granted by the U.S. government.
Later in 1935, he tried running again for President but lost. He then began to collaborate with the Japanese after they invaded in 1941. He was arrested for a few months until released by presidential amnesty. In 1950, President Quirino appointed him as member of the Council of State in order to defend his honor. He spent the later years of his life promoting nationalism and democracy. He also tried to improve U.S. and Philippine relations.
Emilio Aguinaldo was a strongly influential figure in gaining independence for the Philippines. Through his strength and determination, the Filipino people were finally able to break away from colonization and establish their own