Lesson 10 (Part 1)

Rizal in Europe:
The Beginning of the Propaganda Movement
Prepared by Sir MJ GELILIO, J.D.
Learning Objectives
• Discuss the rationale behind forming the Propaganda
Movement;
• Evaluate the role of Rizal in the Movement.
 H I G H ,
SO A R
The Decision to go to Europe
• Around 1881, when Rizal decided to continue his studies in
Europe. This decision was only known between him and his
brother Paciano. Rizal parents was unaware of his decision. At
that time the family was at its most prosperous. It was in good
terms with the Spanish administrators of the Calamba estate.
• Under the agreement with the Dominican administrators, no rent
was to be paid for the next five years. From the time the lands
were placed under the supervision of the Rizals in 1881 up to
1887, the farms yielded very good harvests. It provided the
income to send the young Jose Rizal abroad to pursue his
students.
• Jose Rizal left for Europe because his family had the means
and since Europe was the center of the world in scientific
research and education, the educational institutions in that
continent attracted the scions of elite all over the world.
• Europe was also the perfect place for intellectual development
of science and scientific research. The universities, museums
and libraries contain knowledge compiled through the ages.
• There is a great democratic space in Europe where one’s
political views can be respected without fear of retaliation.
• There would be no friars to challenge those advocating change
in society as well as the deputies of the reactionary Spaniards-
the native Guardia Civil and the local officials who would do the
bidding of their Spanish masters.
• Since Europe has a great democratic space, it would give Rizal
and his companions an opportunity to compare the Philippine
situation with that of Spain. They can make public what was
happening in the Philippines and work for reforms. Certainly, in
Spain there would be Spaniards who would sympathize with
their cause.
Rizal the Propagandist
• As soon as Rizal set his foot in a foreign land, he began to note
the difference in the conditions of the Philippines and of other
countries. He even noted the condition of the vessels he was
sailing: on the Djemnah, the vessel was larger and cleaner. Its
interiors were carpeted and its toilets were excellent.
• When he arrived in Spain he compared it with France where he
landed at the port of Marseilles.
• At Barcelona, he lodged in the poor part of the city, probably to
conserve his meager funds. Comparing it to the other European
cities, his first impression Barcelona was dark, dingy and ugly.
• Rizal’s exposure to the heady European atmosphere widened with
this trip to Madrid where he enrolled at the Universidad Central de
Madrid. The University was very much like the University of Santo
Tomas. The students and faculty members were a people of
various beliefs. There were liberals, conservatives, monarchists and
republicans as well as revolutionists.
Reformist or Propagandist?
• Rizal was drawn to the side of the liberals who consisted of
Spaniards and Filipinos.
• The group started as a social gathering and they gathered at
the house of Don Pablo Ortiga y Rey who was a former alcalde
of Manila.
• The social group joined in by Rizal eventually had a name at it
became known as Circulo Hispano Filipino. And later on Rizal
compose a poem entitled Me Piden Versos.
• Seeing the big differences between the conditions in Europe
and the Philippines, Rizal advocated changes for the
Philippines. This were the reforms he and his companions
would work to attain.
• These reforms were human rights; freedom of speech of
religion and of association.
• They would also clamor for equality before the law and the
expulsion of the friars who have dominated the Philippines for
so long.
Propaganda, Defined.
• Propaganda is a term derived from the latin “propagare”, which means
to spread or to propagate.
• Propaganda spreads information that is not objectives and this
information is used to influence the opinion of an intended audience.
• This is done to fulfill the objectives of the one creating the propaganda.
It may use truths, lies, fiction and opinions to achieve its items.
• To achieve his aims Rizal used essays, poetry and novels as forms of
propaganda. Propaganda material was dished out by writers but
magnified with the use of the printing press to reach a greater
readership.
• The pen and the printing press were therefore the weapons of the
propagandists.
Role of the Freemasonry and Protestantism
• Rizal was attracted to the ideals of freemasonry.
• Freemasonry is a brotherhood that espoused equality among
men.
• The masons attacked established religious who hid the truth
behind the veil of religion. For this reason, the Catholic Church
declared freemasonry an evil organization.
• Rizal entered the Freemasonry in 1883 through the Lodge
Acacia in Madrid and later moved up to become a master
mason at the Lodge Solidaridad on November 15, 1890.
• Freemasonry changed the life of Rizal as well as his fellow
Filipinos.
• He began to challenge Church teachings such as forgiveness
of sins, the resurrection and even the sinlessness of the Virgin
Mary.
• He began to manifest deist beliefs- that God is not the
monopoly of any religion. He also a rationalist preferring to
accept revelation only by light of reason.
Exposure to Liberal Ideas
• Rizal’s sojourn in Europe also allowed him to collect books
many of which appealed to his romantic mind. While Rizal
saved food, clothes and lived in the most Spartan
accommodations, he spared no amount in buying books even
from second hand book stores.
Propaganda and Reformist Groups
• The first group was the Circulo-Hispano Filipino which existed
around 1883.
• Filipinos also organized other groups. Rizal himself formed two
groups;
The first was the “Kidlat Club” was formed out of impulse in 1887 and
just like a lightning it was named after, the group immediately flashed
out of existence. Kidlat Club members were Juan Luna, Julio Llorente,
Gregorio Pautu, Baldomero Roxas, Gregorio Aguilera.
The second group was Indios Bravos “I.B” was formed in 1887 in
Paris. Rizal intended the Indios Bravos to inspire not only the brown
natives of the Philippines but the entire Malay Race.
• For this reason he had subgroup within the Indios called the RDLM- Redencion
de los Malayos (Redemption of the Malays).
Start of Propaganda
• On June 14, 1884- Rizal was invited to attend a banquet
honoring Juan Luna and Felix Resurrection Hidalgo who won
top prizes in the National Exposition of Fine Arts. Luna won
with his Spoliarium which depicted the corpses of slain Roman
gladiators being dragged into the bowels of the Coliseum while
Hidalgo won the second prize with his Virgenes Cristianas
Expuestas al Populacho (Christian Virgins Exposed to the
Populace).
• In congratulating Luna, Rizal said that genius is not the
monopoly of any race or any nation.
• The two painters who are titans of their art, are both products
of Spain and the Philippines. Their works united the peoples of
both countries.
• Towards the end of his speech Rizal mentioned with refined
sarcasm that the Filipinos were emerging as an intellectual
force. He also said that he hoped that Spain will someday grant
reforms needed by the Philippines.
• While in Europe Rizal and his comapanions were thinking to
write a book about the Philippines Rizal wrote Noli Me Tangere
and published it in the year 1887.
• Rizal continued his propaganda work with the writing of his
second novel El Filibusterismo and various essays appeared in
the SOL- La Solidaridad, the newspaper of the Filipino
Propagandists based in Spain.
• As a writer of La Solidaridad, Rizal wrote under a pseudonym
Dimasalang and Laon- Laan.
• Symbolic Dimasalang- ungraspable or untouchable and Laon-
Laan- long committed to the redemption of the motherland.
The Quality of Rizal’s Propaganda
• When Rizal endeavored to write the Noli Me Tangere, he
promised to write the truth about the Philippines. He wrote
things that other people would not write about, comparing his
work to the biblical practice of exposing a sick person on the
steps of a temple waiting for someone to suggest a cure.
• The friar order held political power and they owned lands that
were required by donation, purchase or outright land grabbing.
• As a propagandist, Rizal only showed the bad side of the Spanish
Rule. In his time there was unprecedented peace in the Philippines.
The Moros who used to raid Manila as late as 1825 were no more.
Their threat was neutralized with the capture of Jolo in 1876 and the
deportation of the most notorious Moro pirate group to Isabela
province in Northern Luzon. The monopolies Rizal mentioned in his
essays such as the About the Indolence of the Filipinos were all
gone by 1882. The galleon trade which prevented Filipinos from
trading with other countries was abolished as early as 1815. Rizal’s
family was actually one of the beneficiaries of free trade and the
abolition of monopolies.
 H I G H ,
SO A R
Source
• De Viana, Agusto (2019). Laon- Laan, A guide for study and
understanding of the life and contributions of Jose Rizal to
Philippine nationhood and society. Books Atbp. Publishing
Corp.
 Lesson 10 (Part 2)

First Sojourn
Going to Europe
Prepared by Sir MJ GELILIO J.D.
 H I G H ,
SO A R
Topics
I. Jose Rizal First Sojourn Going to Europe; (France and
Germany); (1882-1887);
II. Jose Rizal First Homecoming in the Philippines);
(1887-1888); (Lesson 7; Topic 2);
III. Jose Rizal Second Sojourn Going to Europe;
(Brussels and Madrid); (1888-1892);
IV. Jose Rizal Second Homecoming in the Philippines.
(1892-1896).
 The Decision to Study in Europe
• Jose Rizal’s dissatisfaction in his studies at the University of Santo
Tomas and bad experience under a repressive Spanish regime in
the Philippines.
• This made him decide to leave the country and proceed to Europe,
where he continued his course in the field of Ophthalmology.
• Jose Rizal’s Tio Antonio and brother in-law Manuel T. Hidalgo,
gave the information to Paciano, regarding the ship Salvadora
that Rizal would board.
• On May 1, 1882 Paciano gave Jose Rizal 356 pesos, afterwards the
servant called a carromata, a local transportation that would take Rizal
to BiÑan.
• Rizal narrated his parting ways with his parents:
I dressed and while I was waiting for breakfast,
the carromata arrived. My parents had already
Awakened but not yet my sisters.
I took a cup of coffee. My brother looked
At me with sorrow; my parents knew nothing.
Finally, I kissed their hands. I was on the verge of crying!
I went down hurriedly, bidding a mute goodbye to everything dear
to me.
xxxxxxxXXXxxxxxxxx………
Jose Rizal Final Activities Before
Leaving for Europe
• On May 2, 1882. Rizal’s friend, Mateo Evangelista helped
Rizal to acquire his passport going to Europe and introduced
him to the ship Captain named Donato Lecha who would look
after him while at sea.
• Pedro Paterno gave him a letter of recommendation to his
friend in Europe.
• In the afternoon, Jose Rizal went to Ateneo de Manila and
visited his Jesuit mentors who gave him strong letters of
recommendation to the Jesuit Fathers in Barcelona.
• May 3, 1882, Rizal Departed for Europe;
• At 5:00 a.m, Rizal heard mass at the Sto. Domingo Church. It
was his last Mass before leaving the country, this was the first
time in his life to go abroad. The same morning, the steam ship
Salvadora left the Philippines with the student Rizal who
embarked on a mission for his motherland in Europe.
• Jose Rizal letter to his parents was delivered to them while he
was at sea.
Rizal in Singapore
• The British Colony of Singapore was the first stop of Salvadora
on May 9, 1882.
• This was also the first Asian country that Rizal reached in his
life. He stayed there for two days where he visited a Botanical
Garden, historic places, and shopping areas.
• Later on May 11, 1882, the passenger of Salvadora including
Rizal transferred and boarded the large French steamer ship
named Djemnah.
Rizal in Sri Lanka
• On May 17, 1882, the Djemnah arrived at Point Galle, an
English Colony which Rizal described “A tropical vegetation
formed by elegant palm”.
• Jose Rizal visited the Oriental Hotel, Temple of Buddha, and for
the first time, he saw how Indians prayed.
• From point Galle, the ship headed north and on May 18, 1882
at 1:00 pm, the Djemnah docked at Colombo the Capital of
Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).
• Rizal described the place: “Colombo, is more beautiful, smart,
and elegant than Singapore”.
Rizal in Africa
• On May 26, 1882, Jose Rizal saw for the first time, the African
continent, while entering the Cape of Guardafui; Rizal
described the place “The Cape Guardafui is an arid, dry rock,
without a single leaf-its base of varied colors is beautiful”.
• The next stop in Africa was in Aden; this was the first time Rizal
stepped in the African soil.
• Rizal notes, “Upon stepping on African soil for the first time”, I
felt a shuddering whose cause I ignore. The soil is hard and
sandy, heated by that very brilliant and ardent sun, emits
burning steam”.
Rizal in Europe; (ITALY);
• On June 11, 1882, Sunday morning half past six, the ship Djemnah arrived
at Napoli (now, Naples, Italy).
• The ship captain allowed the passengers to move around the place for
one hour and a half.
• With this opportunity, Rizal never wasted time to explore the first
European territory in his sight.
• He was amazed of what he saw that he noted in his diary:
An extensive territory totally covered with buildings.
Now the Castle of St. Telmo on the top,
now the prison on the water,
the tower of Massaniello, the Royal place.
Rizal in France
• After the brief stop at Napoli, the ship proceeded to the French
Harbor of Marseille and arrived in the place on June 12, 1882.
• In Rizal’s sight for the first time, the land of another powerful empire
in Europe, whose constant ally was Spain.
• Rizal disembarked and parted with the ship Djemnah and bade
goodbye to his friends whom he met, while sailing for Europe.
• He visited Chateau d’If where Dantes, the hero of “The Count of
Monte Cristo” was imprisoned.
• The novel was one of the favorite readings of Rizal while in Ateneo.
He stayed in Marseille, France for two and a half days. In the
afternoon of June 15, 1882, Rizal left Marseille by train bound for
Barcelona Spain.
Rizal in Barcelona Spain
• Rizal arrived in Barcelona on June 16, 1882, his first days in Barcelona were
unfavorable.
• His money amounted to only 12 Duros, and by the time he boarded the
Christian house, he had only seven Duros.
• He lived in a damp, dark and poorly ventilated room, which had only straw
chairs, dirty bed, broken washbasin and no mirror. This place in Barcelona
was situated in an old dirty street called San Severino.
• Jose Rizal met his fellow citizens named Cuesta and other Filipino friends.
With the strong letter of recommendation of Jesuits from Ateneo de Manila,
which Rizal presented to the Jesuit Fathers of Barcelona, they decided to
support Rizal financially by lending him money, that he paid upon arrival of
his allowance from the Philippines.
• This financial assistance allowed him to tour the city of
Barcelona and developed an appreciation for its architecture of
Arabic and Greco-Roman designs.
• The arrival of Jose Rizal’s allowance from the Philippines
enabled him to transfer to a better boarding house located at
Calle de Sitjes where he was relieved with better amenities than
his first house.
• Jose Rizal was also treated well by his landlady SeÑorita
Silvestre who called him “Don Pepe” as a sign of respect to
a young talented Filipino student.
• When Jose Rizal had adjusted in Barcelona, he met his former
classmates in Ateneo, they shared experience about Spain.
• With such exchanges and actual experience of living in
Barcelona, Jose Rizal began to realize the different social and
political atmosphere of Spain compared to the Philippines.
• In Barcelona, there was freedom of the press, assembly and he
could travel to places without restrictions and suspicion, unlike
in the Philippines.
• With this newfound freedom. Rizal wrote the following articles
for his country.
Amor Patrio (Love of Country)
• Rizal explain in this essay, that the Philippines is the country for
the Filipinos not for Spain.
• Under the pen name, Laong Laan (Ever prepared), the essay
was sent to the Philippines and translated in Tagalog by
Marcelo H. Del Pilar, which was published in the Diaryong
Tagalog a local newspaper in Manila on August 30, 1882.
• Jose Rizal encouraged his compatriot in Spain and the Filipino
people to love the Philippines as the country of their own.
Las Viajes (On Travel)
• The essay explained the gains of a man who is well travelled to
many places in the world. This peace was published in
Diaryong Tagalog in 1882.
• The following lines are excerpts from the essay:
Just as it is said that man is multiplied by the number of languages
he possesses and speaks, so also is his life prolonged and renewed as
he
as he goes traveling in different countries. He lives more because
he sees, feel enjoys and studies more than one who has seen only the
same fields and the same sky to whom yesterday is the same as today
and tomorrow, that is his whole life, all his past, his present and perhaps
his future, can be reduced into the first down and the first sunset.
xxxXXxx..
Rizal in Madrid, Spain
• Rizal found Barcelona a pleasant place and he intended to stay
in the city to continue his study in the field of Medicine.
• Jose Rizal followed the advice of his elder brother Paciano; he
enrolled at the Central University of Madrid in November 3,
1882, both in Medicine (Opthalmology) and in Philosophy and
Letters.
• When Jose Rizal felt at ease in Madrid, he also studied Painting
and Sculpture in the Academia of San Fernando.
• While studying, Jose Rizal engaged in physical fitness
practicing shooting and fencing at the Hall of Arms Sanz y
Carbone, and in his personal financial capacity, he took up
lessons in French, German and English languages.
• While in Madrid, Rizal’s political ideas were widened.
• Jose Rizal became a witness to Spain political turmoil of the
Liberals and the Conservatives; he witnessed greater paradox
in terms of politics and social life in the Philippines compared
to its Spanish Colonizers.
• With this paradox in mind, Jose Rizal became active Filipino
and Spanish organizations focused in improving the Philippines
social and political situation.
• Jose Rizal joined the Circulo Hispano Filipino- an association of Filipino
Scholars, students and Spaniards interested in Philippine concerns and
issues. Unfortunately, the organization failed to last, due to disunity
among members.
• Rizal wrote about his membership in the circulo dated October 10, 1882.
• Rizal as a Mason; While in Madrid, Jose Rizal was exposed to
the idealism carried by Masonry through well known Spaniards
such as Miguel Morayta and Francisco Pi y Margal.
In March of 1883, Jose Rizal officially joined the Masonic lodge Acacia
in Madrid Spain, where he was further exposed to liberalism and views
that criticized the Catholic Church and friars in the Philippines.
Rizal’s Literary Works while in Madrid
• Dudas (Doubts)
• Using pen name Laong-Laan, Jose Rizal wrote this essay in
Madrid, Spain, on November 7, 1882.
• In this Philosophical work of Rizal, he discussed the epidemical
malady (disease) that is invading society that resulted in doubts
about love and spirits.
• The following lines are excerpts from the essay:
Well, now: If doubt has already invaded our mind and our heart;
If we cannot love because we no longer believe in pure and
disinterested love; xxxxxXXXxxx..
Revista de Madrid (Review of Madrid)
• Revista de Madrid (Review of Madrid) Jose Rizal wrote this
poem on November 29, 1882. The piece was supposedly
published in Diyaryong Tagalog, but the paper closed shop.
• The following lines are excerpts of the literary work:
The trees are shedding their popous dresses and converted
Into dry skeletons, complete the sadness of foggy days.
A fine rain, an even finer wind horrible, freezing that comes from
Guadarrama, as if this wants to remind Madrid. Rizal continues,
here are stones and lines of the penultimate month of the year,
the simple notes of its funeral song intoned to the death of nature.
xxXXxx..
 Mi Piden Versos
(They Ask Me for Verses)
• Composed by Rizal at the request of the Filipinos who were
members of the Circulo hispano- filipino in Madrid in December
31, 1882.
• In this poem, Jose Rizal expressed his longing for the
Philippines with the following excerpts:
They ask me to play the lyre
Mute and broken long ago;
Sound a note I no longer do
No ‘ore my Muse doth me inspire
She lisps, raves, devoid of fire…. xxxXXxxx..
A La SeÑorita C. O. y R. (To Miss C.O. y R)
• Jose Rizal wrote this poem in August 22, 1883, which Jose
Rizal dedicated to Miss Consuelo Ortega y Rey whom he had
intimate relationship.
• The following line are excerpts from the peace:
The thick shadows I feel anew
Cover the soul with their dense tulle;
If not beautiful flower, at least a bud;
For it wants of Air and light. xxxXXxxx…
 El Filibusterismo en Filipinas
(Rebellion in the Philippines)
• This article was believed to have been written by Rizal in the
year 1884, for a Madrid newspaper named El Progresso.
 Pensamientos de un Filipino
(Reflection of a Filipino)
• The essay was believed to be written by Rizal between 1883 to
1885 in Madrid Spain, Rizal spoke of being a liberal minded
and anti-friar Filipino that bears penalties such as exile.
Brindis (Toast)
• This was a notable speech delivered by Rizal on June 25, 1884 in
the banquet honoring the triumphs of Juan Luna and Felix
Resurreccion Hidalgo in the field of painting in Spain.
• The following lines are excerpts from the speech:
Luna and Hidalgo belong as much to you as to us; you love
them and we see in them generous hopes, precious examples.
The Filipino youth in Europe whose hearts always remain young for
the
disinterestedness and enthusiasm that characterize
their actions, offer to Luna as a crown, a modest gift but the most
spontaneous and the most voluntary
of all the gifts presented to him. xxxXXxxx…….
Scholastic Record of Rizal in Madrid
• Rizal’s scholastic records in the Degree of Licentiate in
Medicine at the Central University of Madrid in June 21, 1884,
which was declared by Jose Rizal to his family through a letter
“At last I am a Physician”. “Two or three friends have embraced
me with effusion with sincere brotherly joy”.
• Fifth year (1882-83) Medicine
Medical Clinic 1 ……………………………………………. Good
Surgical Clinic 1 ………...……………………………….. Good
Obstetrical Clinic ………………………………………… Fair
Legal Medicine ………………………………………… Excellent
• Sixth Year (1883-84) Medicine
 Medical Clinic 2 …………………………………………………. Good
 Surgical Clinic 2 ………………………………………….. Very Good
 Licentiate in Medicine …………………………………….. Fair

• Doctorate Course (1884- 1885) Medicine

 History of Medical Science …………………………………. Fair
 Surgical Analysis …………………………………………………. Good
 Normal History …………………………………………………... Excellent
 Doctor of Medicine …………………………………..... Not awarded
Title of Medicine
• The title Doctor of Medicine was not awarded for the official
reason that Rizal failed to settle the needed money for the
University Fee to present his thesis for graduation.
• However, Jose Rizal was still a Doctor after graduation, except
that the law at that time, state that he was not allowed to
practice his medical profession in the city, Jose Rizal was only
allowed to practice his medical profession in the province.
• On June 19, 1885, the Universidad Central de Madrid awarded
him the degree of licentiate in Philosophy and Letters with a
rating of Excellent.
• (1882- 1883) Philosophy and Letters
Universal History …………………………………………. Very Good
General Literature ……………………………………….. Excellent
• (1883-1884) Philosophy and Letters
Universal History 2 ……………………………………….. Excellent
Greek and Latin Literature ……………………. Excellent with prize
Greek 1 ……………………………………………… Excellent with prize
• (1884- 1885) Philosophy and Letters
Spanish Literature …………………………………. Excellent with
Scholarship
Greek 2 …………………………………………………. Excellent
History of Spain …………………………………….. Excellent
Hebrew …………………………………………………. Excellent
Licentiate in Philosophy and Letters……….. Good
 H I G H ,
SO A R
Sources
• De Viana, Agusto (2019). Laon- Laan, A guide for study and
understanding of the life and contributions of Jose Rizal to
Philippine nationhood and society. Books Atbp. Publishing
Corp.
• Zaide & Zaide (2011). Rizal: Life, Works and Writings of a
Genius, Writer, Scientist and National Hero. 2nd Ed. All nations
Publishing Co., Inc. Cubao, Quezon City, Philippines .
• J.A Lopez & A.E Paras.,(2010). Rizal Life Works and Writings of
the Greatest Malayan 3rd Edition. HisGoPhil Publishing House,
Inc.