Rizal's Childhood in Calamba

• Lecture about the childhood years of Rizal in Calamba.

Calamba During Rizal's Time

• Calamba was an enchanted agricultural town between Laguna de Bay and Mt. Makiling.
• The Dominican Friars virtually owned the town.
• It became prosperous due to sugar production.
• Life was filled with hardships for tenant farmers on Dominican haciendas.
• Living conditions were better compared to other Laguna towns.
• The town's beauty inspired Rizal's poetic and artistic sensibilities.
• The misfortunes suffered by tenants caused Rizal to hate oppression.

Birth of Young Jose

• Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonzo Realonda was born on June 19, 1861.
• Rizal's mother almost died during delivery due to his large head.
• Fr. Rufino Collantes baptized Rizal in Calamba Church three days after his birth.
• Fr. Pedro Casañas was Rizal's Godfather.

Rizal's Family

• Rizal was the seventh of 11 children of Don Francisco and Doña Teodora.
• His siblings in order of birth were Saturnina "Neneng" (1850), Paciano (1851), Narcisa "Sisa" (1852), Olimpia "Ypia" (1855), Lucia (1857), Maria "Biang" (1859), Jose "Pepe" (1861), Concepcion "Concha" (1862), Josefa "Panggoy" (1865), Trinidad "Trining" (1868), and Soledad "Choleng" (1870).
• Saturnina married Manuel T. Hidalgo.
• Paciano married Severina Decena.
• Narcisa married Antonio Lopez.
• Olimpia married Silvestre Ubaldo.
• Lucia married Mariano Herbosa.
• Maria married Daniel Faustino Cruz.
• Jose married Josephine Bracken.
• Josefa and Trinidad never married
• Soledad married Pantaleon Quintero.

Rizal's Ancestry

• Rizal came from a mixed racial background.

Rizal's Father's Side

• Domingo Lamco, a Chinese merchant, was Rizal's great-grandfather.
• Domingo Lamco married Ines Dela Rosa, a wealthy Chinese mestiza.
• In 1849, Domingo Lamco adopted the surname Mercado to comply with Narciso Claveria's decree on Spanish surnames for all Spanish subjects in the Philippines.
• The couple moved from Manila's Parian to Biñan and became tenants in the Dominican hacienda.
• Juan Mercado, Rizal's grandfather, married Cirila Alejandro, a Chinese-Filipino mestiza.
• Juan Mercado became a gobernadorcillo of Biñan
• Juan and Cirila had 14 children, one of whom was Don Francisco, Rizal's father.

Rizal's Mother's Side

• Manuel de Quintos, Rizal's great-grandfather, was a Chinese mestizo from Lingayen, Pangasinan.
• Manuel de Quintos married Regina Ursua, who had Japanese ancestry.
• Brigida, one of their daughters, married Lorenzo Alberto Alonso. Teodora, Rizal's mother and one of their five children.

Rizal's Immediate Family

• Rizal was raised in a middle-class family, belonging to the principalia class of his town.

Socio-Economic Status

• The Rizal family had access to private tutoring and a well-built stone house.
• The family possessed carriages and horses, symbols of wealth, and a home library.
• The Rizal family had personal servants, and a thriving business in rice and sugar, enabling them to send their children to study in Manila.

Influence of Rizal's Father

• Don Francisco Mercado studied Latin and Philosophy at Colegio de San José in Manila.
• Rizal admired his father for his honesty, frugality, and industry.
• From his father, Rizal inherited dignity, self-respect, serenity, poise, and a disciplined nature.

Influence of Rizal's Mother

• Doña Teodora Alonso studied at Colegio de Santa Rosa, a prestigious school for girls in Manila.
• Rizal described his mother as a disciplinarian, a woman of culture, religion, and a devoted and hardworking housewife.
• From his mother, Rizal inherited warmth, virtue, a practical temperament, stoicism, a sense of self-sacrifice, a dreamer's temperament, and a fondness for poetry.

Childhood Days and Memories

• Rizal had fond memories of his childhood in Calamba, which shaped his character, values, and interests.
• Spending time with family in the garden, exchanging stories, and experiencing closeness to nature are treasured memories.
• His parents gave him care and attention due to his poor health.
• He was seriously devout, participating in novenas and religious processions.
• He fondly remembered the daily family prayer during the Angelus and listening to legends and fairy tales narrated by his personal servant.

Father Leoncio Lopez

• An esteemed, scholarly, and respected priest in Calamba during Rizal's boyhood.

Rizal's Intellectual Gifts

• Rizal showed signs of being intellectually gifted from an early age.

Early Intellectual Development

• At three years old, he mastered the alphabet.
• He developed an interest in reading the books in their home library with Dona Teodora (his Mother) as his teacher and critic.
• Displayed talent for sketching, painting, sculpture, and literature.

First Literary Work

• Encouraged by Dona Teodora, Rizal wrote his first poem at the age of eight, titled "Sa Aking Kabata".
• The poem reflected his early sense of nationalism, as he associated love for one's native language with the desire for freedom.
• Rizal recognized that the Filipino language was as rich and valuable as Latin, English, and Spanish.
• Rizal urged his fellow children to cherish and preserve their own language, which he believed had once flourished but was later lost due to colonial influence.

Rizal's Three Uncles

• There were 3 uncles, brothers of his mother, who played a great part in the early education of Rizal.

Tio Gregorio

• A lover of books, instilled in Rizal a great love for books. Taught him to work hard, to think for himself, and to observe life keenly.

Tio Jose

• Who had been educated at Calcutta, India and the youngest brother of Donya Teodora, encouraged Rizal to paint, sketch, and sculpture.

Tio Manuel

• Looked after the physical training of his sickly and weak nephew.
• He encouraged Rizal to learn swimming, fencing, wrestling, and other sports, so that in later years Rizal's frail body acquired agility, endurance, and strength.

The First Taste of Injustice

• Rizal witnessed the harsh treatment of his townmates by Spanish officials and the Guardia Civil.

The Injustice Suffered by Dona Teodora

• Dona Teodora was arrested and imprisoned after José Alberto’s wife conspired with the Guardia Civil and falsely accused Dona Teodora of attempting to poison her.
• Dona Teodora was forced to walk 50 km from Calamba to Santa Cruz and remained imprisoned for two and a half years.
• She was only freed when Governor-General Rafael de Izquierdo granted her release, influenced by young Soledad’s graceful dancing

The Martyrdom of Gomburza

• Another event that greatly influenced Rizal was the execution of the three Filipino priests-Gomburza (Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora) in 1872.
• 11 year old Rizal learned of this injustice suffered by the three priests from his older brother, Paciano.

Preparations for Formal schooling

• Rizal's first teacher was his mother, Doña Teodora.
• Through her patience, conscientiousness, and understanding, Dona Teodora taught Rizal the alphabet and prayers by the time he was three years old.
• She also discovered his aptitude for poetry and encouraged him to write verses to develop his talent..
• His first tutor was Maestro Celestino, followed by Maestro Lucas Padua
• His third tutor, Leon Monroy, was a former classmate of his father and played a significant role in honing Rizal’s reading, writing, and Latin skills.

Education as an Ilustrado

• Rizal's educational path followed that of other children from the principalia class, who were trained to become middle-class intellectuals or ilustrados.
• He started with private tutors at home, then sent to a private secondary school.
• Later, he pursued higher education at a university and completed his studies in Europe.