Andrés Bonifacio

The commoner leader who founded the secret revolutionary society Katipunan and led the Philippine Revolution.

Life

Self-taught commoner

Bonifacio came from a poor family in Manila, was self-taught, and worked as a warehouse clerk. He was deeply influenced by Rizal's writings.

Katipunan

After Rizal was exiled in 1892, he founded the secret society "Katipunan," which advocated overthrowing Spanish rule through armed struggle. When the society was exposed in 1896, he gathered its members, who tore up their residence certificates and declared an uprising, and the Philippine Revolution broke out.

Tragic end

The revolutionary camp split, and in 1897 Aguinaldo's faction displaced him from the leadership at the Tejeros Convention and then executed him for treason.

Legacy

Bonifacio is revered as the "Father of the Philippine Revolution," and his birthday, November 30, is the Philippines' "Bonifacio Day."

Did you know? He died at the hands of his fellow revolutionaries, an episode that remains controversial in the Philippines to this day.

Key dates

• 1892Founds the Katipunan
• 1896Launches an uprising
• 1897Executed by his own revolutionary camp