Jose Rizal's Life and Nationalist Movement

Early Life and Education

• Jose Rizal was born on June 19, 1861, in Calamba, Laguna, Philippines
• Parents: Francisco Mercado Rizal and Teodora Alonso Realonda
• Eldest of 11 children
• Early education:
  • Learned alphabet from his mother
  • Studied in Binan, Laguna under Justiniano Cruz
  • Attended Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Manila (1871-1877)
• Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Santo Tomas (1877-1881)
• Studied medicine at the University of Santo Tomas (1881-1882)
• Moved to Madrid, Spain to continue studying medicine (1882-1885)
• Earned Licentiate in Medicine from the Universidad Central de Madrid (1885)

Travels and Exile

• Rizal traveled to:
  • Germany (1886-1887): studied ophthalmology and wrote Noli Me Tangere
  • France (1887-1888): continued studies and wrote El Filibusterismo
  • England (1888-1889): translated Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas
  • United States (1889-1890): wrote Makamisa and other works
• Returned to the Philippines in 1890, but was exiled to Dapitan, Mindanao (1892-1896) due to his writings and nationalist activities
• Married Josephine Bracken in 1896, shortly before his execution

Nationalist Movement

• Rizal's novels:
  • Noli Me Tangere (1887): exposed the social ills of the Philippines under Spanish rule
  • El Filibusterismo (1891): sequel to Noli, advocating for reform and independence
• Founding member of the La Liga Filipina (1892), a reformist organization
• Inspired the Katipunan, a secret society that led the Philippine Revolution against Spanish colonial rule
• Rizal's ideas and writings influenced the development of the Philippine national identity and the struggle for independence