While we’re all celebrating the long weekend, let’s not forget the meaning behind Bonifacio Day and why today plays an important role in Philippine history.
The Malacañan Palace Facebook page made sure that we remember this crucial day by posting an online tribute to the Supremo, or the Father of the Revolution:
On November 30, 1863, Andres Bonifacio, founder of the Kataastaasan Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (Katipunan), was born in Tondo, Manila. The eldest of six children in the family, his parents died of illness when he was 14 years of age. He took upon himself the burden of the family by making use of his craftsmanship in making paper fans and canes and sustaining the family financially. Bonifacio never finished schooling but was self-learned, having read Les Miserables, Les Juif Errant and the two Rizalian novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
Inspired by Dr. Jose Rizal’s ideas, Bonifacio planned of creating a secret organization for revolution against Spain as early as January 1892. When Rizal was exiled to Dapitan after he founded the reformist organization La Liga Filipina, Bonifacio inaugurated the Katipunan in a secret council at the house in No. 72 Azcarraga Street, in Manila. The Katipunan would be the first nationalist revolutionary movement in Asia, drawing members from all classes of society. It was the catalyst for the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution on August 1896.
In another entry, Malacañan Palace also said:
Today is the 152nd birth anniversary of Andres Bonifacio, the emblematic father of the Philippine Revolution and once the President of the Supreme Council of the Katipunan.
We likewise commemorate the anniversary of the unveiling of one of the country’s most enduring landmarks, the Bonifacio Monument, designed and wrought by National Artist for Sculpture Guillermo Tolentino.
How are you celebrating Bonifacio Day? Share below!
