Katipunan

Introduction
The Katipunan (abbreviated to KKK) was a Philippine revolutionary society founded by anti-
Spanish Filipinos in Manila in 1892, whose primary aim was to gain independence from Spain
through revolution. The society was initiated by Filipino patriots Andrés Bonifacio, Teodoro
Plata, Ladislao Diwa, and others on the night of July 7, when Filipino writer José Rizal was to
be banished to Dapitan. Initially, the Katipunan was a secret organization until its discovery in
1896 that led to the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution.
The Tagalog word “katipunan,” literally meaning ‘association’, comes from the root word
“tipon,” a Tagalog word meaning “gather together” or “society.” Its official revolutionary name
was Samahang Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng̃ mg̃a Anak ng̃ Bayan
Founding of Katipunan
Captured Katipunan members (also known as Katipuneros), who were also members of La Liga,
revealed to the Spanish colonial authorities that there was a difference of opinion among
members of La Liga. One group insisted on La Liga’s principle of a peaceful reformation while
the other espoused armed revolution.
On July 7, 1892, writer Jose Rizal was banished and exiled to Dapitan in Mindanao. That night
Bonifacio, a member of the La Liga Filipina; with Plata, Diwa, Diaz, Arellano, and Dizon, founded
the Katipunan in a house on Azcarraga St. (now Recto Avenue) near Elcano Street in San
Nicolas, Manila. They established the Katipunan when anti-Spanish Filipinos had realized that
societies such as the La Liga Filipina would be suppressed by colonial authorities. Despite their
reservations about the peaceable reformation that Rizal espoused, they named Rizal as
honorary president, without his knowledge.
The Katipunan had four aims, namely:

- To develop a strong alliance with each and every Katipunero
- To unite Filipinos into one solid nation;
- To win Philippine independence by means of an armed conflict (or revolution);
- To establish a republic after independence.
The rise of the Katipunan signalled the end of the crusade to secure reforms from Spain by
means of a peaceful campaign. The Propaganda Movement led by Rizal, del Pilar, Jaena and
others had failed its mission; hence, Bonifacio started the militant movement for
independence.
Factions:
Magdiwang
A chapter of the Katipunan, a Philippine revolutionary organization founded by Filipino rebels in
Manila in 1892, with the aim to gain independence from Spain. The Magdiwang Council was
acknowledged “as the supreme organ responsible for the successful campaigns against the
enemy.”
The Magdiwang chapter was started by Mariano Álvarez, related by marriage to Andrés
Bonifacio, the leader of the Katipunan. Both the Magdiwang and the Magdalo (led by
Baldemero Aguinaldo the cousin of Emilio Aguinaldo the famous leader of Magdalo) were the
two major Katipunan factions in Cavite, with the Magdiwang having control over a larger
number of towns and municipalities.
Magdalo
A chapter in Cavite, mostly led by ilustrados of that province.
It was named after Mary Magdalene. It was officially led by Baldomero Aguinaldo, but his
cousin Emilio Aguinaldo (whose own Katipunan codename was “Magdalo”) was its most famous
leader.
The Magdalo had a rivalry with the other Katipunan chapter in Cavite, the Magdiwang. When
the Manila-based Katipunan leader Andres Bonifacio went to Cavite to mediate between them,
the Magdalo argued for the replacement of the Katipunan by a revolutionary government. The
Magdiwang initially backed Bonifacio’s stance that the Katipunan already served as their
government, but at the Tejeros Convention, both factions were combined into to one
government body under Emilio Aguinaldo.
Propaganda Movement, reform and national consciousness movement that arose among
young Filipino expatriates in the late 19th century. Although its adherents expressed loyalty to
the Spanish colonial government, Spanish authorities harshly repressed the movement and
executed its most prominent member, José Rizal.
The Propaganda Movement targeted the Spanish government and public, but as an elite
movement failed to engage with the wider Filipino population. The Spanish government was
little interested in the conditions of the Philippines, particularly with the immense political
foment in the Spanish political environment, and the movement ultimately received scant
support and made little headway in Spain. The propagandists themselves were considered to be
rebels at home in the Philippines, and many were exiled. Despite its overall failure, the
movement generated a political consciousness that fed into the nationalist revolution of 1896
and the struggle for independence that followed.
Public education did not arrive in the Philippines until the 1860s, and even then the Roman
Catholic Church controlled the curriculum. Because the Spanish friars made comparatively little
effort to inculcate a knowledge of Castilian, less than one-fifth of those who went to school
could read and write Spanish, and far fewer could speak it. The Filipino populace was thus kept
apart from the colonial power that had been ruling it for more than three centuries. After the
construction of the Suez Canal in 1869, sons of the wealthy were sent to Spain and other
countries for study. At home and abroad, a growing sense of Filipino identity had begun to
manifest, and in 1872 this burgeoning nationalism spawned an armed insurrection. About 200
Filipino soldiers at the Cavite arsenal revolted, killed their officers, and shouted for
independence. Plans for a similar demonstration in Manila failed. The rebellion was quickly
suppressed and led to wholesale arrests, life imprisonment, and the execution of, among
others, three Filipino priests, whose connection with the uprising was not satisfactorily
explained.
In 1888 Filipino expatriate journalist Graciano López Jaena founded the newspaper La
Solidaridad in Barcelona. Throughout its course, La Solidaridad urged reforms in both religion
and government in the Philippines, and it served as the voice of what became known as the
Propaganda Movement. One of the foremost contributors to La Solidaridad was the precocious
José Rizal y Mercado. Rizal wrote two political novels—Noli me tangere (1887; Touch Me Not)
and El filibusterismo (1891; The Reign of Greed)—which had a wide impact in the Philippines.
López Jaena, Rizal, and journalist Marcelo del Pilar emerged as the three leading figures of the
Propaganda Movement, and magazines, poetry, and pamphleteering flourished.
In conclusion:
Katipunan played a major role in the Philippine’s revolution. And no mention of Katipunan is
complete without Bonifacio’s name attached to it. Katipunan and Bonifacio became
synonymous mainly because of the Supremo’s willingness to give his life for his country’s
freedom.
THE CAMPAIGN OR REFORM
MOVEMENT 1892
ORGANIZATION IN KATIPUNAN
Submitted by Group 3:
Shiena Oabel
Fernand Mark Cadua
Mj Maganda

Katipunan

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Katipunan

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Katipunan

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction

The Katipunan had four aims, namely:

You might also like