JOSE RIZAL, the national hero of the Philippines and pride of the Malayan
race, was born on June 19, 1861, in the town of Calamba, Laguna. He was the
seventh child in a family of 11 children (2 boys and 9 girls). Both his parents
were educated and belonged to distinguished families. His father, Francisco
Mercado Rizal, an industrious farmer whom Rizal called "a model of fathers,"
came from Bi�an, Laguna; while his mother, Teodora Alonzo y Quintos, a highly
cultured and accomplished woman whom Rizal called "loving and prudent mother,"
was born in Meisic, Sta. Cruz, Manila.
At the age of 3, he learned the alphabet from his mother; at 5, while learning
to read and write, he already showed inclinations to be an artist. He astounded
his family and relatives by his pencil drawings and sketches and by his moldings
of clay. At the age 8, he wrote a Tagalog poem, "Sa Aking Mga Kabata," the theme
of which revolves on the love of one�s language. In 1877, at the age of 16, he
obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree with an average of "excellent" from the
Ateneo Municipal de Manila. In the same year, he enrolled in Philosophy and
Letters at the University of Santo Tomas, while at the same time took courses
leading to the degree of surveyor and expert assessor at the Ateneo. He finished
the latter course on March 21, 1877 and passed the Surveyor�s examination on May
21, 1878; but because of his age, 17, he was not granted license to practice the
profession until December 30, 1881. In 1878, he enrolled in medicine at the
University of Santo Tomas but had to stop in his studies when he felt that the
Filipino students were being discriminated upon by their Dominican tutors.
On
May 3, 1882, he sailed for Spain where he continued his studies at the
Universidad Central de Madrid. On June 21, 1884, at the
age of 23, he was conferred the degree of Licentiate in Medicine and on June
19,1885, at the age of 24, he finished his course in Philosophy and Letters with
a grade of "excellent." Having traveled extensively in Europe, America and Asia,
he mastered 22 languages. These include Arabic, Catalan, Chinese, English,
French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Malayan, Portuguese,
Russian, Sanskrit, Spanish, Tagalog, and other native dialects. A versatile
genius, he was an architect, artists, businessman, cartoonists, educator,
economist, ethnologist, scientific farmer, historian, inventor, journalist,
linguist, musician, mythologist, nationalist, naturalist, novelist, ophthalmic
surgeon, poet, propagandist, psychologist, scientist, sculptor, sociologist, and
theologian. He was an expert swordsman and a good shot.
In the hope of securing political and social reforms for his country and at the
same time educate his countrymen, Rizal, the greatest apostle of Filipino
nationalism, published, while in Europe, several works with highly nationalistic
and revolutionary tendencies. In March 1887, his daring book, NOLI ME TANGERE, a
satirical novel exposing the arrogance and despotism of the Spanish clergy, was
published in Berlin; in 1890 he reprinted in Paris, Morga�s SUCCESSOS DE LAS
ISLAS FILIPINAS with his annotations to prove that the Filipinos had a
civilization worthy to be proud of even long before the Spaniards set
foot on Philippine soil; on September 18, 1991, EL FILIBUSTERISMO, his second
novel and a sequel to the NOLI and more revolutionary and tragic than the
latter, was printed in Ghent.
Because of his fearless exposures of the injustices committed by the civil and
clerical officials, Rizal provoked the animosity of those in power. This led
himself, his relatives and countrymen into trouble with the Spanish officials of
the country. As a consequence, he and those who had contacts with him, were
shadowed; the authorities were not only finding faults but even fabricating
charges to pin him down. Thus, he was imprisoned in Fort Santiago from July 6,
1892 to July 15, 1892 on a charge that anti-friar pamphlets were found in the
luggage of his sister Lucia who arrive with him from Hong Kong. While a
political exile in Dapitan, he engaged in agriculture, fishing and business; he
maintained and operated a hospital; he conducted classes- taught his pupils the
English and Spanish languages, the arts. The sciences, vocational courses
including agriculture, surveying, sculpturing, and painting, as well as the art
of self defense; he did some researches and collected specimens; he entered into
correspondence with renowned men of letters and sciences abroad; and with the
help of his pupils, he contracted water dam and a relief map of Mindanao- both
considered remarkable engineering feats.
His sincerity and friendliness won for him the trust and confidence of even
those assigned to guard him; his good manners and warm personality were found
irresistible by women of all races with whom he had personal contacts; his
intelligence and humility gained for him the respect and admiration of prominent
men of other nations; while his undaunted courage and determination to uplift
the welfare of his people were feared by his enemies. When the Philippine
Revolution started on August 26, 1896, his enemies lost no time in pressing him
down. They were able to enlist witnesses that linked him with the revolt and
these were never allowed to be confronted by him. Thus, from November 3, 1986,
to the date of his execution, he was again committed to Fort Santiago. In his
prison cell, he wrote an untitled poem, now known as "Ultimo Adios" which is
considered a masterpiece and a living document expressing not only the hero�s
great love of country but also that of all Filipinos. After a mock trial, he was
convicted of rebellion, sedition and of forming illegal association. In the cold
morning of December 30, 1896, Rizal, a man whose 35 years of life had been
packed with varied activities which proved that the Filipino has capacity to
equal if not excel even those who treat him as a slave, was shot at Bagumbayan
Field.
Source:
http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~fasawwu/resources/rizal/biography.htm
