LIFE AND WORKS OF JOSE RIZAL

Trial and Martyrdom of Jose Rizal

Welcome to the seventh lesson on thre course on the Life and Works
of Jose Rizal. This lesson provides a discussion on the trial and
martyrdom of Jose Rizal. It discusses the events of Dr. Rizal’s trial and
execution. It also discusses the manifesto of Jose Rizal regarding the
1896 Philippine revolution and his poem ‘Mi Ultimo Adios.’

Objectives:
The following are the learning outcomes we are expected to achieve at
the end of the lesson:

 Describe the trial of Jose Rizal

 Explain the reasons why Rizal was tried and executed
 Infer Rizal’s role or participation in the 1896 Philippine
revolution
 Examine the implications of the death of Jose Rizal to the
Philippine revolution and to the Spanish colonial regime inter-
personal relationship
 Form conclusion/judgment on the trial and verdict on Jose
Rizal and his role in and attitude towards the Philippine
revolution
 Infer Rizal’s ideas and philosophies through his last poem

Activities/Exercises

Accomplish the module execises. Watch movie clip about Rizal’s life and
experiences in Europe. Read some of Jose Rizal’s works.

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I. Timeline of Jose Rizal’s arrest, trial and martyrdom*

August 1, 1896:
Rizal bade farewell to the Dapitan students and neighbors, and sailed for Manila with
his wifeand sister.

August 5, 1896:
Andres Bonifacio prepared to save him. Emilio Jacinto and others, disguised as
sailors, went to the S. S. España on a launch. Jacinto started to swab down the deck
until he had a chance to speak to Rizal alone. Rizal refused to escape.

September 3, 1896:
Bearing letters of introduction from the Governor-General to the Secretaries of War
and Foreign Affairs in Spain, he departed for Barcelona.
An attempt was made to rescue Jose Rizalby Pedro B. Roxas, a fellow
Filipinopassenger, and CaptainCamus, while he was in Singapore bound for Spain

October 6, 1896:
3:00 AM: On his 4th day of being held in his cabin at the MV Isla de Panay docked at
Barcelona, Spain on his way to Cuba, Rizal was awakened to be brought to Montjuic
Prison in Barcelona, Spain.
2:00 PM: Interview with General EulogioDespujol
8:00 PM: Aboard the Colon, Rizal left Barcelona for Manila.
Another attempt was made to rescue Jose Rizal by Dr. Antonio Regidor, Sixto Lopez
when he was in Singapore going back to the Philippines. The attempt was
unsuccessful.

November 3, 1896:
Rizal was brought to Fort Santiago, where other patriots, including his brother
Paciano, were being tortured to implicate him. Paciano refused to sign anything
despite his body beingbroken and his left hand crushed.

November 20, 1896:

Preliminary investigation began with Rizal appearing before Judge Advocate Colonel
Francisco Olive. The investigation lasted five days.

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November 26, 1896:

The records of the case were handed over to Governor-General Ramon Blanco who
then appointed Captain Rafael Dominguez as special Judge Advocate.

December 8, 1896:
From a list submitted to him by the authorities, he chose the brother of his friend, Lt.
Luis Taviel de Andrade to become his trial lawyer. He was only made to choose
among army officers and not a civilian lawyer.

December 11, 1896:

In his prison cell, Rizal was read the charges against him: “principal organizer and
the living soul of the Filipino insurrection, the founder of societies, periodicals
and books dedicated to fomenting and propagating the ideas of rebellion” [for
the crime of having founded illicit associations and for having incited and
promoted rebellion].

December 13, 1896:

Ramon Blanco was replaced by Camilo de Polavieja, a more ruthless character, as
Governor-General of the Philippines. Dominguez submitted the papers of the Rizal
case to Malacañan Palace.

December 15, 1896:

Rizal issued his manifesto to certain Filipinos calling to end the “absurd” rebellion and
to fight for liberties with education as a prerequisite. The authorities suppressed the
manifesto.

Read Jose Rizal’s Manifesto about the revolution:

http://joserizal.nhcp.gov.ph/Writings/Other/manifesto.htm

December 25, 1896

Rizal’s saddest Christmas, away from family and friends

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December 26, 1896:

8:00 AM: Trial of Rizal began at the Cuartel de España. On the same day, the court-
martial secretly and unanimously voted for a guilty verdict with the penalty of death
before a firing squad.

December 28, 1896:

Governor-General Camilo de Polavieja signs the death verdict.

December 29, 1896:

6:00 AM: Rizal was read his verdict by Captain Rafael Dominguez: To be shot the
next day at 7:00 AM at the Luneta de Bagumbayan (Rizal Park).
7:00 AM: Rizal was transferred to the chapel cell adorned by religious images to
convince him to go back to the Catholic fold. His first visitors were Jesuit priests
Fathers Miguel Saderra Mata and Fr. Luis Viza.
7:15 AM: After Fr. Saderra left, Rizal asked Fr. Viza for the Sacred Heart statuette
which he carved when he was an Ateneo student. From his pocket the statuette
appears.
8:00 AM: Fr. Viza was relieved by Fr. Antonio Rosell who joined Rizal for
breakfast. Lt. Luis Taviel de Andrade joins them.
9:00 AM: Fr. Federico Faura, who once said that Rizal would lose his head for
writing the Noli Me Tangere, arrived. Rizal told him, “Father you are indeed a
prophet.”
10:00 AM: Fathers José Vilaclara and Vicente Balaguer visited Rizal, followed by a
Spanish journalist, Santiago Mataix of El Heraldo de Madrid, for an interview.
12:00-3:30 PM: Rizal’s time alone in his cell. He had lunch, wrote letters and
probably wrote his last poem of 14 stanzas which he wrote in his flowing handwriting
in a very small piece of paper. He hid it inside his alcohol stove. The untitled poem
was later known as Mi Ultimo Adios (My Last Farewell). In its second stanza, he
already praised the revolutionaries in the battlefield for giving their lives “without
doubt, without gloom.”
3:30 PM: Fr. Balaguer visits again and, according to him, talks to Rizal about
retracting his anti-Catholic writings and his being a mason.
4:00 PM: Visit of Rizal’s mother, Teodora Alonso. Then Rizal’s sister Trinidad
entered to get her mother and Rizal whispered to her in English referring to the

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alcohol stove, “There is something inside.” They were also accompanied by Narcisa,
Lucia, Josefa, Maria and son Mauricio Cruz. Leoncio Lopez Rizal, Narcisa’s eleven-
year-old son, was not allowed to enter the cell. While leaving for their carriages, an
official handed over the alcohol stove to Narcisa. After their visit, Fathers Vilaclara
and Estanislao March returned to the cell followed by Father Rosell.

6:00 PM: Rizal was visited by the Dean of the Manila Cathedral, Don Silvino Lopez
Tuñon. Fathers Balaguer and March left Father Vilaclara to be with the two.
8:00 PM: Rizal’s last supper where he informed Captain Dominguez that he already
forgave those who condemned him.
9:30 PM: Rizal was visited by the fiscal of the Royal Audiencia of Manila, Don
Gaspar Cestaño with whom Rizal offered the best chair of the cell. According to
accounts, the fiscal left with “a good impression of Rizal’s intelligence and noble
character.”

December 30, 1896:

3:00 AM: According to Father Balaguer’s account, Rizal asked to have confession,
hear mass and be given Holy Communion. Allegedly he also signed the document
retracting his anti-Catholic writings and his membership in masonry. This series of
events is still a contentious issue among Rizal experts.
5:30 AM: Rizal took his last meal. According to stories told to Narcisa by Lt. Luis
Taviel de Andrade, Rizal threw some eggs in the corner of a cell for the “poor rats,”
“Let them have their fiesta too.” Rizal also wrote to his family and to his brother.
5:30 AM: Teary-eyed Josephine Bracken and Josefa Rizal came. Josephine was
gifted by Rizal with the classic Thomas á Kempis book Imitations of Christ in which
he inscribed, “To my dear and unhappy wife, Josephine, December 30th, 1896, Jose
Rizal.” They embraced for the last time.
6:00 AM: Rizal wrote to his father, Francisco Mercado “My beloved Father, Pardon
me for the pain with which I repay you for sorrows and sacrifices for my education. I
did not want nor did I prefer it. Goodbye, Father, goodbye… Jose Rizal.” To his
mother, he had only these words, “To my very dear Mother, Sra. Doña Teodora
Alonso 6 o’clock in the morning, December 30, 1896. Jose Rizal.”
6:30 AM: Death march from Fort Santiago to Bagumbayan begins. Four soldiers
with bayoneted rifles lead the procession followed by Rizal, Taviel de Andrade,

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Fathers Vilaclara and March and other soldiers. They passed by the Intramuros plaza,
then turned right to the Postigo gate then left at Malecon, the bayside road now known
as Bonifacio Drive.
7:00 AM: Rizal, after arriving on the execution site at the Luneta de Bagumbayan,
was checked with his pulse by Dr. Felipe Ruiz Castillo. It was perfectly normal.
Rizal once wrote, “I wish to show those who deny us patriotism that we know how to
die for our duty and our convictions.”
“Preparen.” “Apunten.” Rizal shouted, “Consummatum est.” It is done.
7:03 AM: With the captain shouting “Fuego!” Shouts rang out from the guns of eight
indio soldiers. Rizal, being a convicted criminal was not facing the firing squad. As
he was hit, he resists and turns himself to face his executors. He falls down, and dies
facing the sky. The Spaniards shouted “Viva España! Muerte a los traidores!”
But in two years, the victorious Philippine revolutionaries will seal the fate of the
Spanish Empire in the east. Three hundred thirty three years of Spanish Colonialism
ended in 1898.
December 30, 1896, afternoon: Narcisa, after a long search, discovered where her
brother’s body was secretly buried, at the old unused Paco Cemetery. She asked the
guards to place a marble plaque designed by DoroteoOngjungco containing Rizal’s
initials in reverse—“RPJ”.

*Sources of information:

 Chua, Michael Charleston. THE LAST DAYS OF JOSÉ RIZAL: A Timeline of

His Last Arrest, Incarceration, Execution and the Journey of His Remains.
Accessed from http://xiaochua.net/2012/12/25/the-last-days-of-jose-rizal-a-
timeline-of-his-last-arrest-incarceration-execution-and-the-journey-of-his-
remains/

 Yoder, Robert. The Life and Writings of Dr. Jose Rizal. Accessed from
http://joserizal.nhcp.gov.ph/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter15.htm

II. Reactions to the Passage of Rizal Law

At present, the passage of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive
Health Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10354) or popularly known as the
R.H. Law was probably one of the most controversial laws passed due to the

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opposing reactions of Filipinos to its passage. There were that anti and pro
RH Law who rallied for or against its implementation. Half a century ago,
similar thing happened to the Rizal Law. According to the historian Ambeth
Ocampo (1990), the debate was so intense that it ended in a fist fight between
two hot –headed lawmakers. The strongest opposition came from the
Catholic Church, arguing that the law would violate the freedom of
conscience and religion. They argued that “Rizal violated the Church’s laws
specifically Canon Law 1399, which forbids books that attack or ridicule any
of the catholic dogmas or which defend errors condemned by the Holy See.”
They also argued that only 25 passages of the Noli Me Tangere were patriotic as
compared to the 120 passages that were anti-catholic. Furthermore, they pointed out
that Rizal retracted his ‘attacks’ on the Catholic Church before he was executed.
They maintained that Filipinos could still venerate him as a national hero even
without reading the two novels and that Filipino students could read other works
done by Rizal instead of the two Novels. The Catholic Church’ opposition went up
to the extent of threatening religious sanctions to all the supporters of the law. A
bishop wrote a letter to Rafael Palma a biographer of Rizal, saying that “we prohibit
under the pain of sin and canonical sanctions the reading, keeping or retention of
the same [Noli and El Fili] whether in original or in translation in the Archdiocese
of Manila and Cebu.”

Read the full text of the CBCP’s statement opposing the Rizal Law in the following
website: http://www.cbcponline.net/documents/1950s/1956-novels_of_rizal.html

Among the prominent ‘defenders’ of Rizal Law was Sen. Claro M. Recto who was
the author of the law and fought hard for its passage despite the threat of losing votes
and religious sanctions. He assailed the people who opposed the law by saying that
fighting against the law is like fighting Rizal and attempting to “blot out his
memory”. The supporters of the bill maintained that law would uplift Filipino sense
of identity and nationalism especially during that time when Filipino sense of
identity and nationalism was dwindling and the prevalence of American
neocolonialism in the Philippines.

After long and divisive debates, the Rizal Law was passed with certain provisions
that served as compromise between two opposing sides. One of these compromises
is the exemption given to those who feel that their faith is damaged by reading of
Rizal’s novels provided, that they file a sworn statement stating as such as stated in
Sec. 1o f the Rizal Law.

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III. Jose Rizal and the 1896 Philippine Revolution

One of the most debated topics about Jose Rizal up to this day is his role or
‘participation’ in the 1896 Philippine revolution. Each side of the debate
presents their arguments and evidence to prove what was [if there was] Rizal’s
role or participation in the revolution. Despite not reaching a conclusion yet,
the following facts are recognized as ‘factual and true’ by both sides:
1. Jose Rizal’s name was used as one of the passwords of the Katipunan, his
portrait was hanged in the meeting places of the Katipunan and his name
was shouted in the battlefield.
2. The Katipunan through Pio Valenzuela heeded the advice of Jose Rizal
regarding the planned rebellion.
3. The Katipunan made two attempts to rescue Jose Rizal: while he was in
Dapitan and when Rizal was bound to Spain to go to Cuba.
4. Jose Rizal’s family members - his ‘wife’ Josephine Bracken, his brother
Paciano Rizal and his sister Trining joined the Katipunan.
5. Andres Bonifacio, the founder of Katipunan made a Tagalog translation of
Jose Rizal’s last poem [‘Mi Ultimo Adios] together with his other works
which had inspired the revolutionaries [Ileto, 1979 in Quibuyen, 1997]
Jose Rizal in his last poem [‘Mi Ultimo Adios’] praised the revolutionaries
for giving their lives ‘without doubt’ and without gloom’

Read the following articles for the different views about Jose Rizal’s
‘role’ in the 1896 Philippine revolution
 http://philippinestudies.net/ojs/index.php/ps/article/download/548/55
1.http://nhcp.gov.ph/jose-rizal-and-the-revolution-revisiting-renato-
constatinos-veneration-without-understanding/
 http://www.philreporter.com/Issue06-16-31-
05/Veneration%20without%20Understanding2.doc.
 http://opmanong.ssc.hawaii.edu/pdfdownloads/rizal.pdf

IV. Jose Rizal and the 1896 Philippine Revolution

The last poem written by Jose Rizal was untitled and undated. The title ‘Mi
Ultimo Adios’ was given by Mariano Ponce. It was believed to have written by
Rizal on December 29, 1896 while he was alone in his prison cell. Rizal hid it in an
alcohol stove/burner. It is a 14-stanza poem and is considered as Jose Rizal’s best
poem. It was folded so many times when it was hidden in the lamparilla. Rizal’s
sisters had to unfold it delicately with their hairpins. The original manuscript has
writing on both sides of the paper which measured 9.5 x 15 cm.

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Read Jose Rizal’s last poem [‘Mi Ultimo Adios’]:

 https://bangkanixiao.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/rizal-poems-2-mi-
ultimo-adios.pdf
 http://joserizal.ph/pm01.html
 http://matikaspilipinas.blogspot.com/2011/06/mi-ultimo-adios-by-
dr-jose-p-rizal.html

References
 Agoncillo, Teodoro A. 1990. History of the Filipino People .Lungsod Quezon:
Garotech Publishing.
 Constantino, Renato, 1975.Philippines: A Past Revisited( Vol. 1).
 Craig, A. (1909). The Story of Jose Rizal. Manila, Philippine Education
Publishing Co.
 Craig, Austin. Lineage Life and Labors of Jose Rizal Philippine Patriot
 Guerrero, Leon Ma. 1998. Jose Rizal: The First Filipino. Manila
 Ocampo, Ambeth R. 2000. Rizal Without the Overcoat. Pasig City: Anvil
Publising Inc.,
 Ocampo, Nilo S. 1995. Rizal: Makabayan at Martir. Diliman, Q.C.: University
of the Philippines Press
 Quibuyen, Floro C. 1999. A Nation Aborted: Rizal, American hegemony and
Philippine nationalism. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press

Internet Sources:
 http://joserizal.nhcp.gov.ph/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter14.htm
 http://xiaochua.net/2012/12/25/the-last-days-of-jose-rizal-a-timeline-of-his-
last-arrest-incarceration-execution-and-the-journey-of-his-remains/
 http://joserizal.nhcp.gov.ph/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter15.htm
 http://joserizal.nhcp.gov.ph/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter17.htm
 https://bangkanixiao.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/rizal-poems-2-mi-ultimo-
adios.pdf
 http://joserizal.ph/pm01.html

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