Today is Francisco Dagohoy Day by virtue of Republic Act No. 11444 (the Act originated from the House of Representatives (by: Representative Rene L. Relampagos, now Vice Governor of Bohol) and passed by the House on December 4, 2017 and by the Senate on June 3, 2019 and concurred by the House of Representatives on June 4, 2019).
President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed the law on August 28, 2019 with the title: “An act declaring July 4 of every year a special working holiday in the entire Province of Bohol, to be known as “Francisco Dagohoy Day” in honor of Francisco Dagohoy, a native of Bohol and leader of the longest Philippine revolt on record that lasted for eighty-five (85) years during the Spanish era.”
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The Dagohoy Rebellion in Bohol lasted for 85 years, from 1744 to 1829. In an inaccessible region in the mountains between Inabanga and Talibon, Francisco Dagohoy established his headquarters and proclaimed the independence of Bohol against the Spanish colonial rule. Under his direction and supervision, the Bohol patriots fortified their stronghold with trenches of big rocks. They built numerous dwellings for the families who joined their cause and cleared the surrounding forest for planting of food crops.
During the 85-year period of Bohol’s independence, the patriotic Boholanos lived as a free and sovereign people. They did not render enforced labor nor pay tribute to the Spanish master. They did not suffer any racial discrimination or social humiliation from the hands of the Spaniards. They did not experience abuses and cruelties from the Spanish regime.
The Spaniards expected that Dagohoy’s government would eventually deteriorate. However, Dagohoy was able to harness the old civilization and culture of the Boholanos which existed before the coming of the Spaniards. Contrary to expectations, the Boholanos under Dagohoy became prosperous and self-reliant.
Although the rebellion was initially by anti-religious feelings because of the abuses of the parish priest, Fray Garpar Morales, by that time the Catholic religion had been part of Philippine life for close to two centuries and therefore could not be abandoned. The Dagohoy community adopted and adapted the Catholic religion. They solemnized weddings, baptized the new-born, and practiced other Catholic rites, using some of their people to perform the duties of the Spanish priest.
Not known was the date and cause of Dagohoy’s death. The two sons of Dagohoy, both possessing the qualities of leadership and fearlessness, picked the gauntlet left by their father. Tugpa, the third skillful fighter was believed to be a first cousin of the Dagohoy’s sons.
The passing away of Dagohoy did not deter the spirit of the Boholanos to hold fort. The brave leaders and their skilled warriors were however aging and weary. Their replacements were far below the desired combat strength, particularly so because fresh Spanish militiamen with their armed Filipino lackeys from Luzon and Cebu launched attacks against the Bohol patriots in many fronts of the island.
Governor-General Mariano Ricafort Palacín y Abarca, ordered that the conquest of Bohol should be pursued with greater vigor until the last man would no longer live. The Governor-General sent a massive reinforcement under the disposal and command of Major (later Lt. Colonel) Manuel Sanz.
By August 31, 1829, the rebellion was over. It had taken a year of repeated assaults to crush the Boholanos. Major Sanz, leader of the Spanish expedition wrote in his official report that 3,000 Boholanos escaped to other islands, 19,420 surrendered, 395 died in battle, and 98 were exiled. He also reported the capture of a large number of arms such as battle-axes, lances, bolos, campilans, muskets and even artillery pieces. With Dagohoy’s achieved independence, Bohol was spared from the Spanish yoke for 85 years from their 333 (1565-1898) years of ruling in the Philippines.
Francisco Dagohoy will forever live in the pages of Philippine history, Dagohoy features in the Bohol provincial flag as one of the two bolos or native swords with handle and hand-guards on top. These two bolos, which are reclining respectively towards the left and right, depict the Dagohoy and Tamblot revolts, the two revolts in the history of Bohol.
Photo: A Portrait of Francisco Dagohoy in 1964.
References:
1. Republic Act No. 11444, Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines
2. Simplicio M. Apalisok, Bohol Without Tears, Surigao BB Press, Jagna, Quezon City, Surigao, 1999, pp. 175–177, 181
3. Photo: via Bohol Provincial Library Archives
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