José Rizal
The national hero whose novels awakened Filipino national consciousness and who was executed by the Spanish colonial authorities.
Life
Physician of Chinese descent
Rizal came from a wealthy Filipino family of Chinese descent. He studied medicine in Manila and Madrid, spoke many languages, and was an ophthalmologist, writer and scholar.
Noli Me Tángere
In 1887 he published the novel Noli Me Tángere in Berlin, exposing the corruption of Spanish colonial rule and the Church and causing a sensation; in 1891 he published its sequel, El filibusterismo. In 1892 he returned home and founded La Liga Filipina, advocating peaceful reform, and was promptly exiled to Mindanao.
Martyrdom
When the Philippine Revolution broke out in 1896, although he had taken no part in it, the colonial authorities executed him for inciting rebellion; he was only thirty-five.
Legacy
Rizal is revered as the father and national hero of the Philippines, and December 30, the day of his martyrdom, is the Philippines' "Rizal Day."
Major works & achievements
- Noli Me Tángere
- El filibusterismo
Did you know? He was a fifth-generation descendant of Chinese immigrants, whose ancestors came from Jinjiang in Fujian.
Key dates
- 1882Goes to study in Madrid
- 1887Publishes Noli Me Tángere
- 1891Publishes El filibusterismo
- 1892Founds La Liga Filipina; exiled
- 1896Executed