DANIEL
TRIA TIRONA (1864-1939)
DANIEL
Tria Tirona, scion of a well-to-do family in Kawit, had already finished a
teacher’s course in the Jesuit-run Escuela Normal in Manila, obtained a
Bachelor of Arts degree from the San Juan de Letran College, and was in his
fourth year in law at the University of Sto. Tomas, when the Revolution broke
out in August 1896. Returning to Kawit, he immediately joined the Revolution.
Four days
after his elder brother, General Candido Tria Tirona, died in the Battle of
Binakayan on November 10, 1896, Daniel was appointed secretary of war, succeeding
his brother. It is said that Daniel, with tears in his eyes, offered to take
his late brother’s place; and because of lack of officers in the army, the
offer was accepted. Of course, Daniel was intellectually qualified for the job,
aside from the fact that he was mature enough, being 32 years old and had
previously been a teacher like General Ricarte, 30, and General Mascardo, 25.
Students
of Philippine history blame Daniel Tria Tirona for the breakup of Tejeros
Convention on March 22, 1897, which was president over by Andres Bonifacio. Had
he not stood up after the election of Bonifacio as secretary or director of the
interior and voiced the opinion that the job required a man with a high
education, the Katipunan Supremo would not have been rattled, causing
him to nullify the result of the convention.
But
Bonifacio himself, in his letter to Emilio Jacinto dated April 24, one month
after the ill fated Tejeros Convention, said that he (Tirona) “did not mean to
belittle or depreciate” him (Bonifacio), but merely wanted to call the
attention of the chairman of the convention to the mga ungol (complaints)
of the people or delegates sitting behind him, which in effect expressed
dissatisfaction with the result of the election of the director of the
interior.
Tirona’s
remark or observation was clearly out of order, hence Bonifacio could have
ignored it and proceeded with the election of other cabinet members. What
happened was that Bonifacio, after suffering two successive defeats earlier in
the convention, was peeved and ready to blow his top when Tirona made his
rather impertinent remark. The rest is history.
Tirona
headed the expedition sent by General Aguinaldo to the Cagayan Valley in August
1898, and was subsequently appointed politico-military governor of Cagayan and
Isabela. He was given the rank of brigadier-general. He surrendered to the
Americans in January 1900. Tirona represented the province of Batanes in the
Malolos Congress.
Born on
July 22, 1864, in Kawit, Tirona became a widower three times, and married four
times. His first wife was Agapita Escobar; second, Maria T. Tirona; third,
Felisa Osorio, sister of Leonardo Osorio, former provincial governor of Cavite;
and fourth, Dionisia Flores. He had three children in all four wedlocks.
Under the
American regime Tirona held the position of provincial secretary of Cavite,
1901; and provincial assessor and provincial treasurer of Tarlac.
Tirona
died on September 3, 1939, two days after the invasion of Poland, which started
World War II in Europe.
[Source: Prominent
Caviteños in the Philippine History. Copyright by Esteban A. de Ocampo,
1941.]