Jose Rizal: Early Life and Family

Chapter 1: Advent of a National Hero

• Jose Rizal was born on June 19, 1861, in Calamba, Laguna Province
• Full name: Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonzo Realonda
• Baptized on June 22, 1862, with Father Rufino Collantes and Father Pedro Casañas as his godfather
• Parents: Francisco Mercado Rizal and Teodora Alonzo Realonda
• Family background: Rizal's family was considered middle-class and was part of the principalia (town aristocracy)

Meanings of Rizal's Names

• Jose: chosen by his mother, who was a devotee of St. Joseph
• Protacio: from Gervacio P., which came from a Christian calendar
• Mercado: adopted in 1731 by Domingo Lamco (Rizal's paternal great-great-grandfather)
• Rizal: in Spanish, means a field where wheat, cut while still green, sprouts again
• Alonzo: old surname of his mother
• Realonda: used by Doña Teodora from the surname of her godmother

Rizal's Parents

• Francisco Mercado Rizal:
  • Born on May 11, 1818, in Biñan, Laguna
  • Studied Latin and Philosophy at the College of San Jose in Manila
  • Married Teodora Alonzo on June 28, 1848
• Teodora Alonzo Realonda:
  • Born on November 9, 1827
  • Educated at the College of Santa Rosa, a well-known college for girls
  • Died in Manila on August 16, 1911, at the age of 85

The Rizal Children

• Saturnina (1850-1913): oldest of the Rizal children, nicknamed Neneng
• Paciano (1851-1930): older brother and confidant of Jose Rizal
• Narcisa (1852-1939): pet name: Sisa
• Olimpia (1855-1887): pet name: Ypia
• Lucia (1857-1919): married Mariano Herbosa
• Jose (1861-1896): the greatest Filipino hero and genius
• Concepcion (1862-1865): died of sickness at the age of 3
• Josefa (1865-1945): pet name: Panggoy
• Trinidad (1868-1951): pet name: Trining
• Soledad (1870-1929): youngest of the Rizal children, pet name: Choleng

Rizal's Ancestry

• Paternal side:
  • Domingo Lamco (great-great-grandfather): a Chinese immigrant who adopted the name Mercado
  • Francisco Mercado (grandfather): married Cirila Bernacha
  • Juan Mercado (father): youngest son of Francisco, married Cirila Alejandro
• Maternal side:
  • Lakan Dula (ancestor): descendant of the last native king of Tondo
  • Eugenio Ursua (great-great-grandfather): Japanese, married to a Filipina named Benigna
  • Regina (maternal grandmother): daughter of Eugenio, married Manuel de Quintos
  • Brigida (maternal great-grandmother): daughter of Regina, married Lorenzo Alberto Alonso (Spanish-Filipino mestizo)

The Rizal Home

• A 2-storey building, rectangular in shape, built of adobe stones and hardwoods, roofed with red tiles
• Behind the house were a poultry yard full of turkeys and chickens, and a big garden of tropical fruit trees

Childhood Years in Calamba

• Happiest period of Rizal's life was spent in Calamba
• Calamba was his hometown and an inspiration to his literary works
• His first sorrow was the death of his sister Concepcion (Concha) at the age of 3

Devoted Son of the Church

• Rizal was a religious boy who grew up a good Catholic
• At the age of 3, he began to take part in the family prayer
• At 5 years old, he was able to read the Spanish family bible

Pilgrimage to Antipolo

• June 6, 1868, Jose and his father went on a pilgrimage to Antipolo
• They rode in a Casco (barge) and prayed at the shrine of the Virgin of Antipolo
• Rizal was awed by the magnificence of the water expanse and the silence of the night

...and more### Francisco de Paula Sanchez

• Inspired Rizal to study harder and write poetry
• Described as a "model of uprightness, earnestness, and love for the advancement of his pupils"

Last Year in Ateneo (1876-77)

• June 1876 - Rizal's last year in Ateneo
• Considered the "pride of the Jesuits"
• Obtained highest grades in all subjects

Graduation with Highest Honors

• March 23, 1877 - Commencement Day
• 16-year-old Rizal received the degree of Bachelor of Arts with highest honors

Extra-Curricular Activities

• An emperor inside the classroom and campus leader outside
• Secretary of the Marian Congregation
• Member of Academy of Spanish Literature and the Academy of Natural Sciences
• Studied painting under Agustin Saez and sculpture under Romualdo de Jesus
• Engaged in gymnastics and fencing

Sculptural Works in Ateneo

• Carved an image of The Virgin Mary on batikuling (Philippine hardwood)
• Father Lleonart requested him to carve an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Anecdotes on Rizal, The Atenean

• Felix M. Ramos - one of Rizal's contemporaries in Ateneo
• Manuel Xeres Burgos - whose house Rizal boarded before he became an infirm

Poems Written in Ateneo

• Mi Primera Inspiracion (My First Inspiration) - first poem he wrote for his mother's birthday
• Wrote poems such as Filicitacion, El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de Magallanes, Y Es Español, and El Combate
• Wrote more poems including Un Recuerdo a Mi Pueblo, Alianza Intima Entre la Region Y La Buena Educacion, and Por la Educacion Recibe Lustre La Patria

Rizal's Religious Poems

• Al Niño Jesus (To the Child Jesus) - a brief ode written in 1875 when he was 14 years old
• A La Virgen Maria (To the Virgin Mary)

Dramatic Work in Ateneo

• Father Sanchez asked him to write a drama based on the prose story of St. Eustace the Martyr
• Summer of 1876 in Calamba - he wrote the religious drama in poetic verses
• June 02, 1876 - finished the manuscript entitled "San Eustacio, Martir"

First Romance of Rizal

• 16 years old - experienced his first romance with Segunda Katigba, a 14-year-old Batangueña from Lipa
• Segunda returned to Lipa and later married Manuel Luz

Medical Studies at the University of Santo Tomas (1877-1882)

• Doña Teodora opposed the idea of sending Rizal to UST to pursue higher education
• April 1877 - Rizal matriculated in the University of Santo Tomas, taking up Philosophy and Letter
• First-year Term (1877-78) - studied Cosmology, Metaphysics, Theodicy, and History of Philosophy

Romances with Other Girls

• Miss L - fair with seductive and attractive eyes
• Leonor Valenzuela - daughter of the next-door neighbors of Doña Concha Leyva
• Leonor Rivera - Rizal's cousin from Camiling, Tarlac; born on April 11, 1867

Victim of Spanish Officer's Brutality

• One dark night in Calamba, during the summer vacation in 1878, Rizal was brutally slashed by a Spanish officer

• Rizal reported the incident to General Primo de Rivera, but nothing came out of it### Rizal's Life and Events

• Rizal attended a banquet sponsored by the Filipino community on June 25, 1884, to salute Juan Luna and Felix Hidalgo's artistic achievements.

• Luna's Spolarium won first prize, and Hidalgo's Christian Virgins Exposed to the Populace won second prize in the National Exposition of Fine Arts in Madrid.

Student Demonstrations

• Bloody riots broke out in Madrid from November 20 to 22, 1884, involving students of the Central University, sparked by Dr. Miguel Morayta's address on "the freedom of science and the teacher".
• The appointment of a new Rector intensified the student demonstrators' fury.

Education and Achievements

• Rizal earned a degree of Licentiate in Medicine from the Universidad Central de Madrid on June 21, 1884, but did not receive his Doctor's diploma due to unpaid fees and an unsubmitted thesis.
• On June 19, 1885, Rizal's 24th birthday, he earned a degree of Licentiate in Philosophy and Letters from the Universidad Central de Madrid.