Filipino-American Hostilities

Emilio Aguinaldo agreed to hold a peace conference between Filipino and American leaders. The

conference lasted from January 9 to 29 in 1899. It ended without definite results, because the Americans
were actually just biding time, waiting for more reinforcements to arrive from the US. Hostilities finally
exploded between the Filipinos and Americans on February 4, 1899 in San Juan. An American soldier
named Robert Grayson, saw 4 armed Filipino men on San Juan Del Mote Bridge and ordered them to stop,
but they ignored him. This prompted Grayson to fire at the men, who immediately fired back. The following
day MacArthur ordered his troops to openly engage the Filipinos in battle. The Filipino American War was
on. From San Juan, American soldiers marched on to Pasig and nearby areas. In a matter of days, they were
able to overrun Guadalupe, Pateros, Marikina, and Caloocan.

General Antonio Luna and his men showed great heroism when they attacked Manila on the night of
February 24, 1899. They burned the living quarters of the Americans in Tondo and Binondo, and reached as
far as Azarraga Street (now Claro M. Recto Avenue), where they met by formidable American troops. Luna
was forced to retreat to Polo, Bulacan two days later. When American reinforcements arrived in the
Philippines, General Elwell Otis immediately attacked the northern part of Manila, while General
Henry Lawton went to the south. General Arthur MacArthu, Jr. marched to Malolos, which was then the
capital of the Philippine Republic. Malolos was taken on March 31, 1899. By this time, however, Aguinaldo
had already moved his headquarters to San Fernando, Pampanga. General
Fredrick Funston crossed the Pampanga River in April 1899 and entered San
Fernando. On May 5, the Americans had gained control of Pampanga.
Fortunately, Aguinaldo was able to flee to San Isidro, Nueva Ecija.

The death of Antonio Luna. A significant event that greatly weakened

Aguinaldo’s forces was the death of General Antonio Luna, acknowledged as the
best and most brilliant military strategist of the Philippine Revolution. He was
brave, intelligent, and well educated; but he also had a fiery temper, and was a
strict disciplinarian. His harsh and rough manner earned him a lot of enemies,
who latter plotted to kill him. In June 1899 Luna was at his command post in
Bayambang, Pangasinan when he received a telegram allegedly sent by
Aguinaldo. The telegram instructed him to proceed to Aguinaldo’s headquarters in Cabanatuan, Nueva
Ecija. On June 5, Luna arrived at the headquarters, a convent on the town plaza in Cabanatuan, but was told
that Aguinaldo left for Tarlac. Angry, Luna went out of the convent and was met and killed by Captain
Pedro Janolino with Kawit, Cavite troops. General Luna was buried at the nearby churchyard. Aguinaldo's
role on his death is not clear and his killers were never charged or investigated.

Aguinaldo Flees. Philippine military strategies began to fail with the death of Antonio Luna.
The generals started to disagree among themselves, and the Filipinos began losing battles. On November 13,
1899, General Emilio Aguinaldo fled to Calasiao, Pangasinan with his wife, son, mother sister, and some
Cabinet members. The Americans followed in hot pursuit; but Aguinaldo still managed to elude them.
However, he soon realized that being constantly on the run put the women in his group at great
disadvantage. So, on December 25, 1899, he surrendered them to the American Aguinaldo then continued
his march from Pangasinan to Palanan, Isabela. There he stayed for some time, since the place was
mountainous and difficult to approach. Aguinaldo’s loyal men guarded all roads leading to the area. 
https://www.philippine-history.org/filipino-american hostilities.htm#:~:text=Hostilities%20finally%20exploded
%20between%20the,4%2C%201899%20in%20San%20Juan.&text=The%20following%20day%20MacArthur
%20ordered,to%20Pasig%20and%20nearby%20areas.

The Filipino-American Hostilities

The American insistence on the evacuation by Aguinaldo's army of the strategic points along the
Manila Bay area, the refusal of the American military authorities to allow the Filipino soldiers to enter the
city after its surrender, and the American limitation of the areas to be occupied by the Filipino troops after
the mock battle of Manila, led progressively to the deterioration of Filipino-American relations. The
misunderstandings that followed these incidents climaxed in the signing of the Treaty of Paris without
consultation with the Filipinos. McKinley issued his co-called "Benevolent Assimilation" Proclamation on
December 21, 1898. Gen. Elwell Otis, who received the proclamation published it on January 4, 1899 with
some amendments inserted in such a way as not to coney the meanings of the original "sovereignty,"
"protection," and "right of cession". But Gen. Miller published the original copy of the proclamation. A copy
fell into the hands of the officials of the Revolutionary Government. The proclamation was immediately
subjected to severe attacks. Attempts, however, were made by mixed commission of Filipinos: Florentino
Torres, Ambrosio Flores, and Manuel Argueles and Americans: Gen. R. P. Hughes,Col. James F. Smith, and
Lieutenant-Colonel E.H. Crowder to relax the tension between the two peoples, but the Americans members
of the commission tried to prolong the sessions without trying to improve the situation because they were
waiting for the American reinforcements which were then on their way to Manila. Finally, on February 4,
1899, an American sentry shot a Filipino soldier, resulting in the outbreak of the Filipino-American
hostilities. On February 4, Private Willie Grayson, with two other members of his patrol, advanced ahead of
the village in San Juan to ascertain whether there were Filipino soldiers in t he vicinity. Suddenly four armed
men appeared before Grayson. He said later, recounting the event:
"I yelled "Halt!"...the man moved. L challenged with another "Halt!" Then he immediately shouted
"Halto!" to me. Well I thought the best thing to do was to shoot him. He dropped. *** We retreated to where
our six other fellows were I said, "Line up fellows; the Enemy are in here all through these yards." We then
retreated to the pipe line and got behind the water work main and stayed there all night. It was some minutes
after our second shots before Filipinos began firing.
The Filipinos fought at a disadvantage, for they had no sufficient arms with which to fight the enemy.
But it took the Americans almost three years to conquer the Filipinos.
http://hostilitiesoffilipinoandamerican.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-filipino-american-hostilities_22.html

Timeline of Major Events

Date Event

Throughout the Spanish-American War, the Filipinos and the Americans worked as
allies. There were various communications between Filipino insurgents, led by
1898 Emilio Aguinaldo, and American leaders. Aguinaldo was led to believe by the
American military officers that the Philippine Islands would be given independence
at the end of the Spanish-American War. No written agreements were made.

1 May 1898 Commodore George Dewey defeated the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay, Philippines.

U.S. forces continued to maintain possession of the city of Manila. Filipino troops
May-Jun 1898
withdrew from the city in August.

Philippine Declaration of Independence (Pagpapahayag ng Kasarinlan ng

12 Jun 1898
Pilipinas) proclaimed.

The Treaty of Paris ends the Spanish-American War. At the treaty meeting, the
10 Dec 1898
United States purchased the Philippine Islands from Spain for $20 million.

United States President, William McKinley, published the "Benevolent

21 Dec 1898 Assimilation" Proclamation which stated that the purpose of the U.S. presence in the
Islands was to "assert its sovereignty."

21 January 1899 The Malolos Constitution is promulgated creating the First Philippine Republic.

4 Feb 1899 Armed hostilities began between the Americans and the Filipinos. There were very
 few major military battles during the conflict. Guerrilla fighting was common.

24 Nov 1899 U.S. troops secured control of central Luzon, the major island of the Philippines.

General MacArthur announced an amnesty plan which pledged “complete immunity

21 June 1900 for the past and liberty for the future” to Filipinos who surrendered. Most Filipino
insurgents did not accept.

23 March 1901 Aguinaldo captured by Philippine Scouts led by General Frederick Funston.

Aguinaldo pledges allegiance to the United States of America, ending the Philippine
19 April 1901
Insurrection.

President Theodore Roosevelt issues unilateral amnesty formally ending the war.
4 July 1902 Guerrilla warfare between the insurgents and the Americans continued on and off
for several years.

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Philippine_Insurrection,_1899_to_1902

Philippine American War

"It seems to me that we are doing something that is contrary to our principles in the past." – General Reeve
Written Accounts
Primary Source Document #1
Emilio Aguinaldo, “True Version of the Philippine Revolution” (1899)
As president, Aguinaldo led the self-proclaimed Philippine Republic during the Philippine-American War
(1899-1902). In 1899 he wrote a short book outlining his perspective of U.S. –Filipino relations. He
appealed to the democratic sentiments of U.S. citizens, likening to his movement to the American
Revolution.
            To All Civilized Nations and Especially to the Great North American Republic
Spain maintained control of the Philippine Islands for more than three centuries and a half, during which
period the tyranny, misconduct and abuses of the Friars and the Civil and Military Administration exhausted
the patience of the natives and caused them to make a desperate effort to shake off the unbearable galling
yoke…
…
… the Commander urged me to return to the Philippines to renew hostilities against the Spaniards with the
object of gaining our independence, and he assured me of the assistance of the United States in the event of
war between the United States and Spain.
…
When the Spaniards ran out of ammunition and surrendered, with all their arms, to the Filipino
Revolutionists, who took their prisoners to Cavite. In commemoration of this glorious achievement I hoisted
our national flag in presence of a great crowd, who greeted it with tremendous applause and loud,
spontaneous and prolonged cheers for “Independent Philippines” and for “the generous nation”—the United
States of America.
This glorious triumph was merely the prelude to a succession of brilliant victories, and when the 31st May
came—the date fixed for general uprising of the whole of the Philippines—the people rose as one man to
crush the power of Spain.
…
In the course of official business General Anderson solemnly and completely endorsed the promises to me,
asserting on his word of honour that America had not come to the Philippines to wage war against the
natives nor to conquer and retain territory, but only to liberate the people from the oppression of the Spanish
Government.
…
I, Emilio Aguinaldo—though the humble servant of all, am, as President of the Philippine Republic, charged
with the safeguarding of the rights and independence of the people who appointed me to such an exalted
position of trust and responsibility—mistrusted for the first time the honour of the Americans … no other
course was open to me but to repel with arms such unjust and unexpected procedure on the part of the
commander of friendly forces.
…
I need not dwell on the cruelty which, from the time of the commencement of hostilities, has characterized
General Otis’s treatment of the Filipinos, shooting in secret many who declined to sign a petition asking for
autonomy. I need not recapitulate the ruffianly abuses which the American soldiers committed on innocent
and defenseless people in Manila, shooting women and children simply because they were leaning out of
windows; entering houses at midnight without the occupants’ permission—forcing open trunks and
wardrobes and stealing money, jewelry and all valuables they came across…
…
Are we, perchance, less deserving of liberty and independence than those revolutionists? Oh, dear
Philippines! Blame your wealth, your beauty for the stupendous disgrace that rests upon your faithful sons.
You have aroused the ambition of the Imperialists and Expansionists of North America and both have placed
their sharp claws upon your entrails!
…
…So I trust in the rectitude of the great people of the United States of America, where, if there are ambitious
Imperialists, there are defenders of the humane doctrines of the immortal Monroe, Franklin, and
Washington; unless the race of noble citizens, glorious founders of the present greatness of the North
American Republic, have so degenerated that their benevolent influence has become subservient to the
grasping ambition of the Expansionists…
Distressing, indeed, is war! Its ravages cause us horror. Luckless Filipinos succumb in the confusion of
combat, leaving behind them mothers, widows and children. America should not continue a war in
contravention of their honourable traditions as enunciated by Washington and Jefferson.
…
The veracity of these facts rests upon my word as President of this Republic and on the honour of the whole
population of eight million souls, who, for more than three hundred years have been sacrificing the lives and
wealth of their brave sons to obtain due recognition of the natural rights of mankind—liberty and
independence.
DBQs
1. Describe how the author portrays the United States.
2. How does the author portray himself and the Filipino Revolution?
3. What does the writing say about the author’s education level?
4. Do you think this writing was widely circulated in the United States? Why or why not?
 
Emilio Aguinaldo, True Version of the Philippine Revolution, (Tarlak, P.I., 1899), Dedication, 6-7, 10-11, ,
24-25, 41-43, 54-59.
Primary Source Document #2
Private William Grayson, “Aguinaldo: A Narrative of Filipino Ambitions”
The Filipinos had become suspicious of the true motives of the United States in going to the Philippines.
Their suspicions were confirmed by the Treaty of Paris under which Spain ceded the Philippines to the
United States. Neither Spain nor the United States gave Felipe Agoncillo, Aguinaldo’s special envoy, a
chance to present the wishes of the Filipinos in the Paris peace talks. Suspicion turned to hostility, and war
between the two sides became inevitable. The Filipinos were outraged when they learned that Spain had
ceded the country to the United States.
On the night of February 4, 1899  an American sentry, Private William W. Grayson, with another soldier,
encountered three armed Filipinos on a bridge in San Juan del Monte near Manila. Recalling the incident,
Grayson said:
About eight o’clock, Miller and I were cautiously pacing our district. We came to a fence and were trying to
see what the Filipinos were up to.
Suddenly, near at hand, on our left, there was a low but unmistakable Filipino outpost signal whistle. It was
immediately answered by a similar whistle about twenty-five yards to the right. Then a red lantern flashed a
signal from blockhouse number seven. We had never seen such a sign used before. In a moment, something
rose up slowly in front of us. It was a Filipino.
I yelled Halt! and made it pretty loud, for I was accustomed to challenging the officer of the guard in
approved military style. I challenged him with another loud halt! Then he shouted halto! to me. Well, I
thought the best thing to do was to shoot him. He dropped. If I didn’t kill him, I guess he died of fright. Two
Filipinos sprang out of the gateway about fifteen feet from us. I called halt! and Miller fired and dropped
one. I saw that another was left. Well, I think I got my second Filipino that time….
The Filipino troops fired back at the American lines and before the night was over, fighting had broken out
between Filipino and American forces.
DBQs
1. What occurred between the U.S. soldiers and the Filipinos?
2. Why would the Filipino challenge the U.S. Soldier
3. Do you think that either side knew what the consequences of their actions would be?
4. How do you think this situation could have been handled better?
Private William Grayson, in Edwin Wildman, Aguinaldo: A Narrative of Filipino Ambitions(Norwood, MA,
Norwood Press, 1901).
Primary Source Document #3
President William McKinley, “Decision on the Philippines” (1900)
At the end of the Spanish-American war, pressure on President McKinley to annex the Philippines was
intense. After originally deciding against the United States annexing the Philippines, he changed his mind
out of fear that another power would seize the Philippines. After Dewey defeated the Spanish fleet at Manila
Bay, a German fleet sought to set up a naval base there. The British, French, and Japanese also sought bases
in the Philippines. Unaware that the Philippines were the only predominantly Catholic nation in Asia,
President McKinley said that American occupation was necessary to “uplift and Christianize” the Filipinos.
“When next I realized that the Philippines had dropped into our laps, I confess I did not know what to do
with them. I sought counsel from all sides-Democrats as well as Republicans-but got little help. I thought
first we would take only Manila; then Luzon; then other islands, perhaps, also.
I walked the floor of the White House night after night until midnight; and I am not ashamed to tell you,
gentlemen, that I went down on my knees and prayed to Almighty God for light and guidance more than one
night. And one night late it came to me this way-I don’t know how it was, but it came:
That we could not give them back to Spain-that would be cowardly and dishonorable; That we could not
turn them over to France or Germany, our commercial rivals in the Orient-that would be bad business and
discreditable; That we could not leave them to themselves-they were unfit for self-government, and they
would soon have anarchy and misrule worse then Spain’s was; and That there was nothing left for us to do
but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them and by God’s
grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died.
And then I went to bed and went to sleep, and slept soundly, and the next morning I sent for the chief
engineer of the War Department, and I told him to put the Philippines on the map of the United States, and
there they are and there they will stay while I am President!”
DBQs:
1. How does President McKinley appeal to the morals of the American public?
2. What were reasons that made McKinley chose to annex the Philippines
3. How do you think the Filipinos felt about this decision?
4. Describe the significance of President McKinley’s decision?
https://blogs.baylor.edu/philippineamericanwar/document-page-3/
Philippine-American War
(1899-1902)
NAME OF CONFLICT: The Philippine-American War
ALTERNATE NAMES: The Philippine Insurrection (US), The Philippine War of Independence (Phil)
BELLIGERENTS:
The United States
vs.
The Philippines
DATES OF CONFLICT:
BEGAN: February 4, 1899
ENDED: July 4, 1902 (This is the "official" end of the war, as proclaimed by U.S. President Theodore
Roosevelt. Fighting continued on several islands for years to come.)
TYPE(S) OF CONFLICT: Inter-State (From the Philippine perspective) and Colonial (From the American
perspective).
RELATED CONFLICTS:
PREDECESSOR: The Philippine Revolution of 1896 (1896-1898), The Spanish-American War (1898)
CONCURRENT: The Boxer Rebellion (1900)
SUCCESSOR: The Moro Wars (1902-1913?)
  
CAUSES OF CONFLICT:
The basic causes of the Philippine-American War can be found in the U.S. government's quest for an
overseas empire and the desire of the Filipino people for freedom. In other words, this war was a clash
between the forces of imperialism and nationalism.
After centuries as a Spanish colony, a revolution led in part by Emilio Aguinaldo broke out in 1896 in the
Philippine Islands. After fighting a savage guerilla war for two and a half years, the Filipinos suddenly
found themselves in a seemingly advantageous position as allies of the United States. In 1898, Spain fought
a losing war with the United States in which her colonies of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Guam were overrun
with relative ease by the U.S. Army and her Atlantic Fleet devastated outside of Santiago, Cuba. Similarly,
Spain's Pacific Fleet was wiped out in the Battle of Manila Bay, and American troops landed on the outskirts
of the capitol city.
Following the surrender of the Spanish colonial government in the Philippines to American military forces
in August,1898, tensions developed between U.S. and Filipino forces near Manila. The American
government decided to keep the Philippines as a colony, thereby denying independence to the Filipino
people. Aguinaldo and his army of nearly 80,000 veteran troops realized that their "allies" in the Spanish
War would soon become foes.
DESCRIPTION OF CONFLICT:
As early 1899, U.S. and Filipino forces faced off as a tense situation became worse. American forces held
the capitol of Manila, while Aguinaldo's army occupied a trench-line surrounding the city. On the evening of
February 4, 1899, Private William Grayson of the Nebraska Volunteers fired the first shot in what would
turn out to be a very bloody war. Grayson shot at a group of Filipinos approaching his position, provoking
an armed response. Shooting soon spread up and down the ten-mile U.S.-Filipino lines, causing hundreds of
casualties. Upon the outbreak of hostilities, U.S. troops, supported by shelling from Admiral Dewey's fleet,
quickly overwhelmed the Filipino positions while inflicting thousands of casualties. Within days, American
forces spread outward from Manila, using superior firepower, mobile artillery and command of the sea to
full effect.
 
By November of 1899, Aguinaldo and his forces had been pushed further and further into central Luzon (the
main Philippine island) and he realized he could not fight the Americans with conventional military units. At
this point, he ordered his followers to turn to guerilla tactics to combat the American army. From this point
on, the war became a savage, no-holds-barred guerilla conflict made up of ambushes, massacres and
retribution. Both sides engaged in wanton violence and slaughter. Villages were destroyed, civilians
murdered, prisoners tortured and mutilated along with a host of other atrocities. Many American officers and
non-coms had served in the Indian Wars, and thus applied the old belief that "the only good Indian was a
dead Indian" to their relations with the Filipinos. This attitude of course was reciprocated by the native
forces.
Emilio Aguinaldo was captured in March, 1902, and organized opposition from his followers soon faded.
Despite the official end to hostilities proclaimed on July 4, 1902, individual tribes in Luzon and the Muslim
Moros of the southern islands launched further uprisings for another decade or so.
CONSEQUENCES OF THE PHILIPPINE-AMERICAN WAR:
1. Independence for the Philippines was delayed until 1946.
2. The United States acquired an overseas colony which served as a base for U.S. business and military
interests in the Asia/Pacific region.
3. Following the conclusion of major hostilities, the U.S. did it's best to "Americanize" the Philippines.
Through successful civilian administration, the Islands were modernized and the nation prepared for
eventual independence. The Philippines became an independent nation on July 4, 1946.
CASUALTY FIGURES:
U.S.-- 4,234 dead and 2,818 wounded.
Philippines-- 20,000 military dead and 200,000 civilian dead. (approximate numbers). Some historians
place the numbers of civilian dead at 500,000 or higher.
UNIQUE FACTS OR TRENDS:
1. This was the first major land campaign fought by the U.S. outside of the Western Hemisphere.
2. The Philippine-American War can be considered America's first "Imperialistic" conflict.
SOURCES:
1. In Our Image: America's Empire In The Philippines. 1989, by Stanley Karnow. pp. 75-195.
2. The Wars of America. 1981, by Robert Leckie. pp. 563-574.
The Philippine-American War, 1899–1902
After its defeat in the Spanish-American War of 1898, Spain ceded its longstanding colony of
the Philippines to the United States in the Treaty of Paris. On February 4, 1899, just two days before the
U.S. Senate ratified the treaty, fighting broke out between American forces and Filipino nationalists led by
Emilio Aguinaldo who sought independence rather than a change in colonial rulers. The ensuing Philippine-
American War lasted three years and resulted in the death of over 4,200 American and over 20,000 Filipino
combatants. As many as 200,000 Filipino civilians died from violence, famine, and disease.

“Battle of Manila Bay”

The decision by U.S. policymakers to annex the Philippines was not without domestic controversy.
Americans who advocated annexation evinced a variety of motivations: desire for commercial opportunities
in Asia, concern that the Filipinos were incapable of self-rule, and fear that if the United States did not take
control of the islands, another power (such as Germany or Japan) might do so. Meanwhile, American
opposition to U.S. colonial rule of the Philippines came in many forms, ranging from those who thought it
morally wrong for the United States to be engaged in colonialism, to those who feared that annexation might
eventually permit the non-white Filipinos to have a role in American national government. Others were
wholly unconcerned about the moral or racial implications of imperialism and sought only to oppose the
policies of President William McKinley’s administration.
After the Spanish-American War, while the American public and politicians debated the annexation
question, Filipino revolutionaries under Aguinaldo seized control of most of the Philippines’ main island of
Luzon and proclaimed the establishment of the independent Philippine Republic. When it became clear that
U.S. forces were intent on imposing American colonial control over the islands, the early clashes between
the two sides in 1899 swelled into an all-out war. Americans tended to refer to the ensuing conflict as an
“insurrection” rather than acknowledge the Filipinos’ contention that they were fighting to ward off a
foreign invader.

Emilio Aguinaldo
There were two phases to the Philippine-American War. The first phase, from February to November of
1899, was dominated by Aguinaldo’s ill-fated attempts to fight a conventional war against the better-trained
and equipped American troops. The second phase was marked by the Filipinos’ shift to guerrilla-style
warfare. It began in November of 1899, lasted through the capture of Aguinaldo in 1901 and into the spring
of 1902, by which time most organized Filipino resistance had dissipated. President Theodore Roosevelt
proclaimed a general amnesty and declared the conflict over on July 4, 1902, although minor uprisings and
insurrections against American rule periodically occurred in the years that followed.
The United States entered the conflict with undeniable military advantages that included a trained fighting
force, a steady supply of military equipment, and control of the archipelago’s waterways. Meanwhile, the
Filipino forces were hampered by their inability to gain any kind of outside support for their cause, chronic
shortages of weapons and ammunition, and complications produced by the Philippines’ geographic
complexity. Under these conditions, Aguinaldo’s attempt to fight a conventional war in the first few months
of the conflict proved to be a fatal mistake; the Filipino Army suffered severe losses in men and material
before switching to the guerrilla tactics that might have been more effective if employed from the beginning
of the conflict.

President Theodore Roosevelt

The war was brutal on both sides. U.S. forces at times burned villages, implemented civilian reconcentration
policies, and employed torture on suspected guerrillas, while Filipino fighters also tortured captured soldiers
and terrorized civilians who cooperated with American forces. Many civilians died during the conflict as a
result of the fighting, cholera and malaria epidemics, and food shortages caused by several agricultural
catastrophes.
Even as the fighting went on, the colonial government that the United States established in the Philippines in
1900 under future President William Howard Taft launched a pacification campaign that became known as
the “policy of attraction.” Designed to win over key elites and other Filipinos who did not embrace
Aguinaldo’s plans for the Philippines, this policy permitted a significant degree of self-government,
introduced social reforms, and implemented plans for economic development. Over time, this program
gained important Filipino adherents and undermined the revolutionaries’ popular appeal, which significantly
aided the United States’ military effort to win the war.
In 1907, the Philippines convened its first elected assembly, and in 1916, the Jones Act promised the nation
eventual independence. The archipelago became an autonomous commonwealth in 1935, and the U.S.
granted independence in 1946.
Betrayal of Trust – The San Juan Del Monte Bridge Incident
BETRAYAL OF TRUST – THE SAN JUAN DEL MONTE BRIDGE INCIDENT
by Quennie Ann J. Palafox
      Without any single doubt, the Filipino-American War is one of the most unforgettable events in our
history because in just one day, the fate of the nation was changed and its impacts are still felt to date and
will persist down to the future generation.
      The following events that happened preceding to the San Juan accident led to the worsening of Filipino-
American relations: the American order of the retreat by the Aguinaldo’s army of the strategic points along
the Manila Bay area; the Filipino soldiers were prevented to enter the city after its capitulation and the areas
to be occupied by the Filipino troops were limited; and, the controversy behind the signing of the infamous
Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898 without the consent of the Filipinos.

When Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo declared the much-awaited independence of the country on June 12, 1898 in
Kawit, Cavite the Filipinos thought that they are completely free at last and they have found new ally in the
Americans. However, they never imagined that the alliance will be cut-short as the real intentions of the
Americans were unveiled after the American expeditionary contingent under Maj. Gen. Arthur MacArthur
arrived in July, completing the estimate of 15, 000, military troops by Gen. Nelson Miles, the overall
ranking officer in the US Army. The frank and straightforward warning from the American command to fire
on any Filipino revolutionary who would cross the American areas manifested a deception.
      Aguinaldo, fully aware that the Philippine sovereignty needed foreign recognition, sent Don Felipe
Agoncillo to sought audience in Washington DC but failed to win the Filipino cause. On December 10,
1898, the United States and Spain formally concluded the Treaty of Paris, in which Spain ceded the
Philippines to the United States for $20 million. This was followed by Pres. McKinley’s declaration of the
Policy of Benevolent Assimilation on December 21, 1898, to prevent the adverse reaction of the Filipino
people against the American occupation and rule. Another event that aroused the suspicion of the Filipinos
was when the first Philippine Commission led by Jacob Schurman set foot on the country to conduct a
survey of the islands and come up with a recommendation as to the most appropriate kind of government
should be established for the Filipinos.
       In the last week of January 1899, hostility had worsened between Filipinos and American troops as
movements were restricted from both sides in their respective territories. This infuriated the Filipinos and
felt that they were being alienated in their own land. Both parties had agreed upon drawing the ‘line of
demarcation’ between the two forces. There were acts of injustice and prejudice committed by American
officials, officers, and soldiers against Aguinaldo, his men, and ordinary citizens.
       On February 1, a group of American engineers was arrested by the Filipino troops. General Otis
protested to Gen. Aguinaldo. The latter replied that the five Americans were not arrested but only detained.
Furthermore, he explained that the Americans were found within the Filipino lines and that they were
detained in accordance with the decree of October 20, 1898 prohibiting foreigners from approaching the
Filipino defensive works.
        This incident was followed on February 2 when General Arthur MacArthur protested the presence of
Col. Luciano San Miguel’s soldiers within his territory. The latter in order to appease the former, ordered his
men to withdraw from the American lines.
        Finally, on February 4, 1899, Private William W. Grayson, an American sentry stationed near the San
Juan Bridge shot and killed two unarmed Filipino soldiers trying to cross into the American-held sector.
After the shot, the Filipinos began firing.
        Aguinaldo the next day sent a representative to Otis to deliver his message to the American commander
to prevent antipathies and that the firing on the side of the Filipino soldiers on that had been against his
order. Otis, who was so confident of American victory, answered the “fighting, having begun, must go on to
the grim end”. It can be concluded that the Americans took advantage of this incident to declare war.
Consequently, Aguinaldo sent a telegram to all local chiefs informing them of the start of the Filipino-
American hostilities and ordering them to prepare the people for any emergency. Aguinaldo who wanted to
find out the origin of the incident designated Felipe Buencamino, Sr. to carry out an investigation. On the
other hand, the American military authorities made no attempt to investigate the incident. Instead, they
ordered an all-out attack against their former allies. The following day marked the beginning of the Filipino-
American War and it took the Americans three years to subjugate the Filipinos.
http://nhcp.gov.ph/betrayal-of-trust-the-san-juan-del-monte-bridge-incident/