Women in the Life of Jose Rizal Quiz

Women in Rizal's Life

• Rizal was linked to at least nine women during his lifetime: Segunda Katigbak, Leonor Valenzuela, Leonor Rivera, Consuelo Ortiga, O-Sei San, Gertrude Beckette, Nelly Boustead, Suzanne Jacoby, and Josephine Bracken.
• These women were likely attracted to Rizal due to his intelligence, charm, and wit.

Segunda Katigbak

• Segunda Katigbak was considered Rizal's "puppy love" and hailed from Lipa, Batangas.
• She was already betrothed to Manuel Luz, and Rizal failed to propose to her due to his shyness.
• Rizal kept a record of his feelings and the end of his dream.

Leonor Valenzuela

• Rizal had an affair with Leonor Valenzuela, a tall lass from Pagsanjan, Laguna.
• He used invisible ink to write love notes to her, which could only be read through the heat emitted by a lamp or candle.
• His last encounter with Leonor was when he bid her goodbye before leaving for Spain.

Leonor Rivera

• Rizal's love for Leonor Rivera lasted 11 years and influenced him to try not to fall in love with other women during his travels.

Gertrude Beckett

• Rizal stayed in the Beckette family house in London while working on his annotation of Morga's work.
• He fell in love with Gertrude, or "Gettie", but left for Paris to avoid the growing feelings between them.
• Before leaving, he gave her a sculpture of the Beckette sisters.

Nelly Boustead

• Rizal stayed with the Boustead family in Biarritz and became friends with Eduardo Boustead's two daughters.
• He practiced fencing with them at Juan Luna's studio, and Nelly became infatuated with him.
• Antonio Luna tried to court Nelly, leading to an ugly scene where he said bad words about her, prompting Rizal to challenge him to a duel.
• The duel was avoided when Antonio sobered up and apologized to Rizal.
• Rizal and Nelly did not end up getting married due to religious differences and Nelly's mother's disapproval of Rizal's poverty.

Test your knowledge about the nine women who were linked with Jose Rizal, including Segunda Katigbak, Leonor Rivera, and Josephine Bracken. Learn about Rizal's love interests and relationships with these women who were attracted to his intelligence and charm.