GEC Rizal: Life and Works of Riza

• A biography narrates how a person has lived during a certain period of time. It presents not only the life of an individual and how he/she has influenced the society but also how an individual and his/her ideas have been shaped by historical events.
• José Rizal lived in the nineteenth century, a period in Philippine history when changes in public consciousness were already being felt and progressive ideas were being realized.
• José Rizal was born on June 19, 1861.
• José Rizal was born on June 19, 1861 in the town of Calamba, province of Laguna.
• Calamba, then a town with around three to four thousand inhabitants,

  is located 54 kilometers south of Manila.
• On the southern part of the Calamba lies the majestic Mount Makiling, and on the other side is the lake called Laguna de Bay.
• Rizal's father, Francisco Mercado, was a wealthy farmer who leased lands from the Dominican friars.
• Francisco's earliest ancestors were Siang-co and Zun-nio, who later gave birth to Lam-co.
• Lam-co is said to have come from the district of Fujian in southern China and migrated to the Philippines in the late 1600s.
• In 1697, Lam-co was baptized in Binondo, adopting “Domingo” as his first name.
• Lam-co or Domingo married Ines de la Rosa of a known entrepreneurial family in Binondo.
• Domingo and Ines later settled in the estate of San Isidro Labrador, owned by the Dominicans.
• In 1731, Domingo and Ines had a son whom they named Francisco Mercado.
• The surname “Mercado,” which means "market," was a common surname adopted by many Chinese merchants at that time.
• Francisco Mercado became one of the richest in Biñan and owned the largest herd of carabaos.
• Francisco was also active in local politics and was elected as capitan del pueblo in 1783.
• Francisco had a son named Juan Mercado who was also elected as capitan del pueblo in 1808, 1813, and 1823
• Juan Mercado married Cirila Alejandra, a native of Biñan.
• Juan and Cirila had 13 children, including Francisco Engracio, the father of José Rizal.
• Following Governor Narciso Claveria's decree in 1849 which ordered the Filipinos to adopt Spanish surnames Francisco Engracio Mercado added the surname "Rizal,” from the word “ricial” meaning “green field,” as he later settled in the town of Calamba as a farmer growing sugar cane, rice, and indigo.
• Being in a privileged family, Francisco Engracio (1818–1898) had a good education that started in a Latin school in Biñan.
• Afterwards, he attended the College of San Jose in Manila.
• In 1848, Francisco married Teodora Alonso (1826-1911) who belonged to one of the wealthiest families in Manila.
• Teodora, whose father was a member of the Spanish Cortes, was educated at the College of Sta. Rosa.
• Rizal described Teodora Alonzo as “a woman of more than ordinary culture” and that she is "a mathematician and has read many books" (Letter to Blumentritt, November 8, 1888).
• Because of Francisco and Teodora's industry and hardwork, their family became a prominent member of the principalia class in the town of Calamba.
• Rafael Palma, one of the first biographers of Jose Rizal.
• José Rizal (1861-1896) is the seventh among the eleven children of Francisco Mercado and Teodora Alonso.
• Francisco and Teodora's children were:

  1. Saturnina (1850–1913);
  2. Paciano (1851-1930);
  3. Narcisa (1852-1939);
  4. Olimpia (1855–1887);
  5. Lucia (1857-1919);
  6. Maria (1859–1945);
  7. Jose (1961-1896);
  8. Concepcion (1862-1865);
  9. Josefa (1865–1945);
  10. Trinidad (1868-1951);
  11. Soledad (1870–1929).
• Due to his poor health, Rizal had a personal servant who, after the daily Angelus, would tell him legends and fairy tales. These stories made him become interested in myths and folklores.
• As a young boy, Rizal demonstrated intelligence and learned easily. His first teacher was Doña Teodora who taught him how to pray.
• He was only three years old when he learned the alphabet.
• His first private tutor was Maestro Celestino followed by Maestro Lucas Padua.
• But it was Leon Monroy, his third tutor, who honed his skills in basic Latin, reading, and writing.
• At the age of nine, Rizal left Calamba with his brother to study in Biñan.
• After one-and-a-half hour of travel, they reached the town on board a carromata.
• They went to the house of their aunt where Rizal stayed for more than a year. Before leaving his brother, Paciano introduced Rizal to the teacher, Justiniano Aquino Cruz, who was also Paciano's former teacher.
• The class, as described by Rizal (P. Jacinto, 1879), was in a nipa house, about thirty meters away from his aunt's house.
• In Biñan, Rizal excelled in Latin and Spanish.
• He also had painting lessons under Maestro Cruz' father-in-law, Juancho, an old painter.