Education in Calamba and Biñan

• Rizal's early education in Calamba and Biñan emphasized the "Four R's": reading, writing, arithmetic, and religion
• Rizal was a physical weakling but an intellectual giant
• Jose Rizal's first teacher was his mother, Doña Teodora, who taught him prayers and the alphabet at the age of 3
• Teodora recognized Rizal's literary talent and encouraged him to write poems
• Rizal's parents employed private tutors for him, including Maestro Celestino, Maestro Lucas Padua, and Leon Monroy who taught him Spanish and Latin
• Rizal was sent to a private school in Biñan due to his gifted nature
• Rizal's first school experiences in Biñan included encounters with a bully named Pedro, whom he challenged and defeated in a fight
• Despite his non-quarrelsome nature, Rizal engaged in several fights during his time in Biñan
• In Biñan, Rizal received free drawing and painting lessons from Old Juancho, who recognized his talent and made him an apprentice
• Rizal led a methodical and simple life in Biñan, focusing on strengthening his body and soul
• Rizal surpassed his Biñan classmates in all Spanish and Latin subjects, leading to jealousy from older classmates who attempted to discredit him
• Rizal left Biñan after receiving a letter from Saturnina about the arrival of the steamer Talim, which would take him back to Calamba
• After the Cavite Mutiny in January 1872, the execution of GOMBURZA on February 17, 1872, impacted Rizal's family, inspiring him to fight Spanish tyranny
• Rizal honored GOMBURZA by dedicating his second novel, El Filibusterismo, to them
• June 1872: Doña Teodora was suddenly arrested on a malicious charge that she and her brother, Jose Alberto, tried to poison his wife
• Jose Alberto's wife secretly cooperated with a Spanish lieutenant of the Guardia Civil and filed a case against Teodora
• Antonio Vivencio del Rosario, the gobernadorcillo of Calamba, helped the lieutenant arrest Teodora
• Teodora was made to walk from Calamba to the provincial prison in Santa Cruz, a 50 km distance
• Don Francisco de Marcaida and Don Manuel Mazano, the most famous lawyers of Manila, defended Teodora in court
• Teodora was acquitted by the Royal Audiencia after 2 ½ years
• In June 1869, Rizal left Calamba for Biñan with Paciano
• Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz:

  • The first official teacher of Rizal.
• December 17, 1871: Jose left Biñan on the steamer and was taken care of by Arturo Camps, a Frenchman and a friend of his father
• CAVITE MUTINY:

  • Date: January 20, 1872
  • Approximately 200 Filipino soldiers & workers of Cavite arsenal, led by Lamadrid (Filipino Sergeant), initiated a violent uprising
• EXECUTION OF GOMBURZA:

  • Date: February 17, 1872
  • The three executed priests were leaders of the secularization movement
• IMPACT OF EXECUTION ON THE RIZALS:

  • Paciano was enraged by the execution and quit his studies, returning to Calamba to tell Jose Rizal the heroic story of Burgos
  • Jose Rizal was inspired to fight the evils of Spanish tyranny because of the martyrdom of the 3 priests