Today in History : March 8th

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1565: Felipe Salcedo takes possession of the island of Leyte. Felipe de Salcedo was a Spanish explorer who was a member of the López de Legazpi expedition to the Philippines in the 16th century. He accompanied his brother Juan de Salcedo and grandfather Miguel López de Legazpi in 1564 for their colonization of the East Indies and the Pacific. He commanded 1 ship, out of 5 fleets that sailed from Mexico to the Philippines.

1860: Birth of Antonio San Agustin, businessman, one of the “Thirteen Martyrs of Cavite,” in San Roque, Cavite. Antonio was a scion of a wealthy family. He studied at Letran College and University of Santo Tomas. He was married to Juliana Reyes. He owned the only bookstore, La Aurora, in the town which was used as a meetingplace by the Katipunan. Died on September 12, 1896.

1897: The Bishop of Vigan designates Fray J. Florentino Fernandez, a Dominican, the first Parish priest of Peñablanca, Cagayan.

1899: A citizenship certificate is made obligatory for all those holding official posts, entering into public or private contracts, registering and collecting remittances, salaries and pensions.

1901: From Palanan, President Emilio Aguinaldo instructs Apolinario Mabini to thank General Arthur MacArthur on his (Aguinaldo’s) behalf for the invitation extended to him to live in Malacañang Palace and to say that the Filipinos who have taken up arms have no other desire except Philippine independence.

1904: Artemio Ricarte y Garcia and an old friend, Aurelio Tolentino, write a long letter to Governor Wright setting forth their aspirations: the founding of a Filipino Republic.

1947: President Manuel Roxas, foremost leader of the Liberal Party, leaves for the southern provinces to campaign for the acceptance of the Parity Rights Bill.

Today in History : March 7th

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1793: The Conciliar Seminary of Naga, Diocese of Nueva Caceres, founded by Dominican Bishop Msgr. Domingo Collantes is inaugurated. In time, the Spanish city and the native village merged into one community and became popularly known as Nueva Cáceres, to distinguish it from its namesake in Spain. It had a city government as prescribed by Spanish law, with an ayuntamiento and cabildo of its own. At the beginning of the 17th century, there were only five other ciudades in the Philippines. Nueva Cáceres remained the capital of the Ambos Camarines provinces and later of the Camarines Sur province until the formal creation of the independent chartered city of Naga under the Philippine Republic.

1820: Spanish ports are opened to Philippine trade and commerce and Philippine goods are granted preferential entry for a period of ten years.

1852: Birth of Gregorio Sanciangco y Gozon, lawyer, writer, economist. Gregorio Gozon Sanciangco wrote “El Progreso De Filipinas” which advocated reforms in the political, administrative, agrarian, revenues, property, natural resources and urban development and taxation. Died on November 27, 1897.

1867: Birth of Tomas Remigio, Katipunan leader and revolutionary hero. Tomas Remigio a secretary of "Mayon" which was a branch of La Liga Filipina and used the pseudonym "Malingap". Died on August 1, 1916.

1898: The revolutionalists of Zambales besiege the cable station at Bolinao and seize the telegraphic line between that town and Manila. Filipino rebels attack Balincaguin, Pangasinan, and dislodge the Spanish defenders from their positions. The town of Anda, Pangasinan, also takes up arms and imprisons the Spanish curate.

1899: Apolinario Mabini writes Emilio Aguinaldo that Antonio Luna has submitted his irrevocable resignation as Chief of Operations. The Philippine Republic approves a “Provisional Law on the Judiciary” and a “Pension Law for War Widows, Orphans, and Disabled Officers.” The Twentieth regular Infantry takes part in an attack led by General Hale’s brigade, on several thousand Filipinos near the Pasig River. General Hale withdraws to the positions he occupied in the morning and the Filipinos follow in force, reoccupying lost ground.

1901: In Palanan, President Emilio Aguinaldo receives a letter from Mabini in Manila dated November 22, 1900, transmitting messages from US General Arthur MacArthur and J.F. Bell to the effect that independence cannot be granted, and that Aguinaldo should return to Manila and live in Malacañang Palace with MacArthur. Mabini asks Aguinaldo whether he should plead for independence or for autonomy, now that McKinley has been re-elected.

1947: Leaders of the Nacionalista Party, such as Camilo Osias, Jose P. Laurel, Tomas Confessor, Felicisimo Serrano, Salvador Araneta, campaign for the rejection of the Parity Amendment.

Today in History : March 6th

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1521: Ferdinand Magellan sights the Islas de Velas or Ladrones, later renamed Marianas in honor of Maria Ana of Austria, Queen Regent of Spain. The Marianas and specifically the island of Guam were a stopover for Spanish galleons en route from Acapulco, Mexico to Manila, Philippines in a convoy known as the Galeon de Manila. The Marianas remained a Spanish colony under the general government of the Philippines until 1898, when, as a result of the Spanish-American War, Spain ceded Guam to the United States.

1608: Philip III tries to put a stop to the abuses of the Spanish authorities in the Islands by means of a strongly-worded cedula. He especially objects to the drafting of workers during the planting and harvesting seasons and to unjust levies.

1872: Birth of Victorino Carrion, musician, in Quiapo, Manila. Victorino Carrion was an operatic singer best known for his role as Teñong, in the Severino Reyes zarzuela, Walang Sugat. He and fellow actor Maria Carpena were among the first Filipino recording artists. His father was Balbino Carrion, a tenor and the lead singer of the Quiapo Church choir during the 1800s. Died on May 9, 1935.

1899: A force of Filipinos, said to be the largest body yet encountered east of Manila, resists the advance by General Hale’s brigade on Santolan and Mariquina. Apolinario Mabini sends President Aguinaldo a complaint against the arbitrary acts committed by General Antonio Luna. Mabini writes that to be shot to death without summary trial is a punishment that cannot be enforced except among savages.

1901: Apolinario Mabini writes a letter informing the President of his conference with William H. Taft regarding the Philippine question. The latter replied that the U.S. could not recognize Philippine independence.

1921: Hilaria del Rosario de Aguinaldo dies. Hilaria was the first wife of General Emilio Aguinaldo, the first President of the Philippines (1898-1901). Emilio Aguinaldo married her on New Year's Day, 1896, the very same day he joined the Katipunan, the secret societ y that would initiate the Philippine Revolution .

1924: Act 3131 authorizes the separation of the Municipality of Conception on the Island of Maestro de Campo (Sebali) from Romblon and its annexation to Mindoro.

1947: President Roxas declares the Hukbalahap illegal, as it is alleged to have been organized and maintained to commit sedition and to overthrow the government by force. In the following months, the Huks lay low and occupy themselves with the organization of urban workers and the activation of labor unions. Labor unions are integrated into the Congress of Labor organization, headed by Jose and Jesus Lava.

1966: The Santo Tomas University Hospital is formally inaugurated. The University of Santo Tomas Hospital (simply UST Hospital or USTH) is located inside the España, Manila Campus of University of Santo Tomas. It was founded in 1577 as San Juan de Dios Hospital that became the clinical training institution of medical students of University of Santo Tomas.

2001: Exiled communist leader Jose Ma. Sison expresses his group’s willingness to reopen peace talks with the government through a letter sent to President Arroyo from Utretch, Netherlands, where the founding chair of the Communist NDF takes refuge. Exiled communist leader Jose Ma. Sison expresses his group’s willingness to reopen peace talks with the government through a letter sent to President Arroyo from Utretch, Netherlands, where the founding chair of the Communist NDF takes refuge. The Communist NDF withdrew from talks in 1999 in protest over the senate ratification of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA).

Today in History : March 5th

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1872: Thirteen Spanish vessels attack Jolo, killing three men and one woman and losing two officers and 100 soldiers. Jolo is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Mindanao and Borneo, and has a population of approximately 300,000 people. Jolo is also the name of the town on the island which serves as the capital of the province of Sulu, within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

1899: A band of Filipino fire on some crew members of the U.S.S. Bennington, giving the impression to washington that the Americans are getting nervous and restless under the harassment of the Filipinos.

1901: The American Circulating Library is established in Manila. As the Philippine-American War died down and peace gradually returned to the Philippines, Americans who had come to settle in the islands saw the need for a wholesome recreational outlet. Recognizing this need, Charles Greenleaf and several other American women organized the American Circulating Library (ACL), dedicated in memory of American soldiers who died in the Philippine-American War.

1952: Because the Philippine colony is generally prosperous, trade is flourishing, the religious orders are at peace, the cathedral is completed, a seminary for girls established, Pope Clement VIII sends a letter of congratulations to the bishop, clergy and people of the Philippines.

1986: Jose Maria Sison is released from his 8 years and three months detention in Fort Bonifacio. Also released are Bernabe Buscayno, Ruben Alegre, the identified head of the NPA Sparrow Unit, and Alex Buendo, the head of the armed citizen's partisans in Metro Manila.

Today in History : March 4th

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1663: Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, founder of the first Filipino congregation, Beaterio de la Compañia de Jesus, now known as the Religious of the Virgin Mary, is baptized at the “Iglesia de los Santos Reyes del Parian,” in Binondo, Manila.

1890: The original San Miguel Brewery was founded in Manila. Later renamed as San Miguel Corporation (SMC) in 1963, it has grown into one of the Philippines' largest business conglomerates with interests in alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, food, packaging, power, oil and telecommunications. San Miguel Brewery was spun off from SMC on October 1, 2007 and was subsequently listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange on May 12, 2008. In 2009, Kirin Holdings Co. Ltd. of Japan bought 48.3% of the company from SMC for PHP 8.841 per share.

1897: Birth of Rosa Sevilla de Alvero, journalist, suffraguette and founder and first President of the Instituto de Mujeres, in Tondo, Manila. Rosa Sevilla Alvero is an educator, journalist, and social worker who is one of the notable Filipina suffragists in Asia as she fought for women's right to vote. She also became the first Dean of Women at the University of Santo Tomas. Died on May 11, 1954.

1899: The gunboat Bennington, replying to a challenge of the shore battery at Malabon, silences the enemy’s guns and sets a part of the town on fire. --The cruiser Baltimore arrives at Manila from Hongkong bringing two members of the United States Philippine Commission, Dr. Jacob Gould Schurman, President of Cornell University, and Professor Dean C. Worcester, of the University of Michigan. --General James F. Smith, at the head of an American expedition, occupies Bacolod, Negros Occidental.

1977: President Marcos issues a decree creating the autonomous Bangsa Moro Islamic Government which gives autonomy to the 13 provinces and calls for the withdrawal of all armed forces of the government. Regions 9 and 12 become autonomous but remain separated from each other.

1990: During heavy fighting between government troops and armed men loyal to Cagayan Governor Rodolfo Aguinaldo, Brig. Gen. Oscar Florendo is fatally shot. Florendo was a member of a government party which went to the capital of Cagayan province, Tuguegarao, to arrest Aguinaldo. Like Enrile, Aguinaldo was accused of having aided the rebels in the failed December coup.

Today in History : March 3rd

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1938: The Philippine National Assembly by a vote of 54 to 1 passed a bill approving the Luzon conference sugar pact. Assemblyman Fellipe Buencamino Philippine delegate to the conference told the legislators that the Philippines was the last interested country to ratify the pact. He said it was expected sugar prices would be stabilized, probably with a movement upward.

1948: Diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the Republic of Korea were established. Many South Koreans still harbor a deep sense of gratitude to the Philippines for being one of the first countries to send troops to defend South Korea from invasion in the 1950s. Last year, the Philippine Embassy in Korea commemorated the 56th anniversary of the participation of the Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea (PEFTOK) at a wreath-laying ceremony at the Philippine Memorial in Goyang City.

1949: Pres. Elpidio Quirino sold, transferred and conveyed eight parcels of land registered under the Commonwealth of the Philippines (TCT No. 36048) in favor of U.P.. Later on, this title was cancelled and after a sub-division survey (PSD 174313), TCT No. 192690 was issued which now included lots 40 and 41, covering some 43 hectares of the present Krus Na Ligas.

1986: NPA rebels kill 14 policemen and 1 trooper in an ambush in Banugsakan, Guinobatan, Albay. The incident indicates that the NPA will not give up armed struggle after the fall of Marcos.

Today in History : March 2nd

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1919: After the United States took control of the Philippines in 1898, Melchora Aquino or Tandang Sora, like other exiles, returned to Philippines until her death at the age of 107. Her remains lie in her own backyard (now as Himlayang Pilipino Memorial Park, Quezon City).

1950: At the Nicanor Reyes Hall, Room 214, Far Eastern University, Manila, Philippines; the first organization of Alpha Phi Omega outside of the United States of America was established. It is now known as the Alpha Chapter.