Today in History : February 18th

On this date in...

1903: Tiburcio T. Hilario, patriot during the Philippine Revolution and the Filipino-American War, dies from scarlet fever, a rare disease in the Southeast Asian country; elected revolutionary governor of his province and known as the "Brains of the Revolution in Pampanga," Hilario is a cousin of the "Great Propagandist," Marcelo H. del Pilar.

1912: Concepcion Cuenco Manguerra was born on February 18, 1912 in Cebu City, Philippines, the fourth child of Mariano Jesus Cuenco and Filomena Alesna Cuenco. The Cuenco family is a well-known political family in Cebu, Philippines. Since the 1800s, the Cuenco name has been part the colorful history and lore of this island in Southern Philippines. Members of the Cuenco family have been involved in Philippine politics, literature, journalism, as well as the Catholic religion.

1962: Pedro Adigue, Jr became a professional boxer. Adigue was a world champion boxer from the small town of Bontod in Palanas, Masbate, the Philippines. After 14 bouts (11 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws), he fought Carl Peñalosa for the Philippine lightweight title but lost on points.

1981: Pope John Paul II beatified Lorenzo Ruiz on February 18, 1981, in the first beatification to occur outside of the Vatican. Lorenzo Ruiz was canonized on October 18, 1987, and was the first Filipino saint. St. Lorenzo Ruiz was the son of a Chinese father and Filipina mother; both were Catholic.

Today in History : January 18th

On this date in...

1899: The first issue of the Philippine revolutionary newspaper "Kalayaan" (Freedom) issue comes out; authored by Katipunan founder Andres Bonifacio & Emilio Jacinto, et al., the second issue will never reach circulation because the printing press will be discovered by the Spanish colonial authorities.

1995: Pope John Paul II offered mass to an estimated 4 to 5 million people at Luneta Park, Manila, Philippines, making it to the Guiness Book of World Records for the Biggest Papal Crowd.

Today in History : January 15th

On this date in...

1913: The Department of Instruction authorized the reopening of the Primary Course after the Philippine Revolution ended Spanish sovereignty in the Philippines suspending the authorization to operate the Normal School. This was a trying time for the College. The intermediate and college levels soon followed. With the new organization enrollment grew and better times came.

1995: A suicide bomber would dress up as a priest while John Paul II was in his motorcade on his way to visiting the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conference at the San Carlos Seminary, which is located along Edsa, Guadalupe, Makati City. The assassin would stick a bomb inside one of his sleeves of the robe. He would then use the disguise to get closer to the Pope, and detonate the bomb when Pope John Paul II would approach to kiss him. The planned assassination of the Pope was intended to divert attention from the next part of the phase. About 20 men had been trained by Yousef to carry out this act prior to January 1995.

2006: At least 16 people, most of them children, drowned when a packed wooden motorboat capsized during a religious parade on the central Philippine island of Leyte yesterday, a senior coast guard official said. Several people are missing and about 30 were rushed to hospitals in San Ricardo town after the accident during the Feast of Saint Nino, one of the most revered religious festivals in the mainly Roman Catholic country. “We’ve dispatched more search-and-rescue ships to the area,” coastguard commander Arthur Gosingan said. “We’re getting very sketchy reports. We have no idea how many people were on the boat when it capsized and sank near the wharf this morning.” He said officials feared the number of dead could rise. The Feast of Saint Nino, usually celebrated on the third Sunday of January, is one of the most colourful religious festivals in a country where Roman Catholicism blends with pre-colonial pagan ceremonies.