LaWoR

• Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso


  Rizal's full name
• Rizal's birth date


  June 19, 1861
• Rizal's death date (35 years old)


  December 30, 1896
• Baptized by Father Rufino Collantes


  On June 22, 1861
• Father Collantes told Rizal's family that he would become someone important someday
• Under the supervision of Father Leoncio Lopez and the help of eyewitnesses, Rizal's baptismal certificate was restored
• Rizal's family


  • They belonged to the group of principalias and illustrados
  • They were able to raise their children well
  • They were firm believers in "spare the rod, spoil the child"
  • They were courteous especially to the elderly and loved God
  • They built a stone house near the church, owned a stagecoach, a library, and could send their children to college in Manila
  • They led social and religious activities in their house and served as host to all their visitors
• Don Francisco Mercado


  Rizal's father
• Don Francisco Mercado


  • Born on May 11, 1818 in Binan, Laguna
  • Youngest of 13 children of Cirila Alejandro and Juan Mercado
  • From the 4th generation of a Chinese immigrant named Domingo Lamco
  • Studied Latin, Philosophy and Latin at Collegio de San Jose in Manila
  • Elected as Cabeza de Barangay
  • Dominican state tenant and landowner
  • Described as a "Model of fathers", strong-willed, educated and independent-minded
  • Evicted from his house in September 1899 due to failure in agrarian case with friars
  • Died in Manila on January 5, 1898 (80 years old)
• Dona Teodora Alonso Realonda

  Rizal's mother
• Dona Teodora Alonso Realonda


  • Born on November 9, 1827 in Manila
  • From Meisik, Tondo
  • 2nd child of Lorenzo Alonso and Brigida de Quintos
  • Attended the College of Santa Rosa
  • Described as a remarkable woman, with refined culture, literary talent, business acumen and the tenacity of a Spartan woman
  • Politely declined the offer of life pension from the Philippine Government
  • Died in Manila on August 16, 1911 (85 years old)
• Rizal's siblings


  • Saturnina (Neneng)
  • Paciano (Ciano)
  • Narcisa (Sisa)
  • Olimpia (Ypia)
  • Lucia
  • Maria
  • Concepcion (Concha)
  • Josefa
  • Trinidad
  • Soledad
• Rizal's siblings


  • Paciano was Rizal's only brother and took the role of second father
  • Rizal's sisters provided him with moral and spiritual support that made him accomplish his heroic mission
  • Despite persecutions, there was not a single suggestion that Rizal should abandon his mission
  • Narcisa's unwavering determination to find Rizal's tomb after his execution
• Rizal's ancestors


  • Domingo Lamco (Chinese immigrant)
  • Francisco Mercado (Rizal's great-grandfather)
  • Juan Mercado (Rizal's grandfather)
  • Eugenio Ursua (Rizal's great-grandfather, of Japanese ancestry)
• There were reasons why Rizal's parents' descendants didn't use the surnames Lamco and Mercado
• When studying in Manila, Rizal changed his name to "Jose Rizal" because his brother Paciano was wanted by the colonial authorities
• Rizal's childhood


  • He lived on the shore of Laguna Lake and at the foot of Mt. Makiling
  • He was an amiable, thoughtful, and loving son, brother, and sibling
  • His mother was his first teacher, teaching him the alphabet and how to pray at age 3
  • He could write poems at a young age, encouraged by his mother
  • He was attended by an Aya (nurse maid)
  • His uncle Jose taught him regularly, his uncle Manuel worked on his physique, and his uncle Gregorio instilled in him the desire to learn
• Jose Rizal


  Rizal changed his name from his real name because his brother Paciano Mercado was wanted by the colonial authorities for being an associate of the martyred priest, Fr. Jose Burgos, and Paciano feared that Rizal would not be accepted under his real name
• Rizal's childhood


  • Lived on Laguna Lake's shore and at the foot of Mt. Makiling
  • Eager to learn
• Rizal as a child

  • Amiable, thoughtful, and loving son, brother, and sibling
  • Despite his physique, he can do things like any other young man
• Rizal's early education


  • His mother Teodora was his first teacher
  • Taught him the alphabet, prayers, and to read the Bible
  • Wrote poems at a young age
• Rizal's childhood activities


  • Owned a pony
  • Drew
  • Molded animals out of clay and wax
  • Went on nocturnal walks with his dog Usman
  • Played with his neighbor's dove and performed magic tricks
• Rizal's sisters giggled at him once while he was playing with his friends, but he didn't say anything; instead, he silently told them that when he died, people would monuments and images of him
• Rizal's happiest childhood memory


  A trip with his father to Antipolo to fulfill his mother's vow to perform the pilgrimage to the Virgin of Antipolo
• Rizal experienced his first grief at the age of 4 when his younger sister Concepcion (concha) died
• Rizal's first teacher


  His mother Teodora, who was a remarkable and educated woman in her own right
• The story of the moth touched Rizal so deeply that he recorded it in his diary
• Rizal's early private tutors

  • Maestro Celestino was his first tutor
  • Maestro Lucas Padua was the second
  • Leon Monroy taught him Spanish and Latin
• Rizal's first formal schooling in Binan


  • His teacher was a strict disciplinarian, Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz
  • Rizal stood out in class and outperformed all Binan boys in academics
• Some of Rizal's classmates were envious of his intelligence and made lies to discredit him
• During his early education, two disheartening events drew Rizal's attention and disturbed him: the execution of GOMBUZA and the imprisonment of his mother
• The imprisonment of Dona Teodora


  • Dona Teodora was falsely accused of attempting to poison her sister-in-law
  • The Guardia Civil made her walk 50 kilometers around Laguna to humiliate her and prolong her sentence
  • Rizal was only 11 years old when he witnessed his mother's extraordinary bravery
• The death of GOMBURZA


  • The three secular priests were accused, tried and sentenced to death by garrote for allegedly instigating the Cavite Mutiny, despite the lack of evidence
  • The unjust fate of the three priests awoke in Filipinos a new realization: liberal notions of equality, meritocracy and human dignity could no longer thrive under a colonial regime
  • Rizal dedicated his second novel El Filibusterimo to these three tragic figures