hilippine Revolution[edit]

At the onset of the revolution, and in response to reports of "successive triumphs" in Cavite, some
3,000 revolutionary forces marched to seize the town of Paombong, Bulacan, forming a military
government. Del Pilar was among those who marched towards Paombong, although there are also
rumors of him being present during the Cry of Balintawak.[3]
Del Pilar was eventually assigned to the forces of Eusébio Roque (also known as Maestrong Sébio)
in Kakarong de Sili, a fort near the town of Pandi. On New Year's day, 1897, del Pilar participated in
the defense of Kakarong de Sili, managing to escape with only nine others before the Spanish
overran the fort. He recounts in his diary:[3]
"As for me, I need not say how I fought. Those who saw me in peril can tell. A Mauser bullet grazed
my forehead. Thank God I was spared that danger. Finally, I had to leave the fort because, when I
looked for our valiant brothers, none was any longer at his post. This should not cause shame. Self-
preservation is the law of God. I passed the night in the barrio of Manatal."

— Gregorio del Pilar, Recounting his 'baptism of fire' and escape during the Battle of Kakarong de
Sili.
His courage and bravery in that action won him recognition and a promotion to the rank of lieutenant.
[6]
 He eventually left Roque's unit - Roque was sold out to the Spanish by his own soldiers and
executed in February 1897, and del Pilar began to make his way to Imus, Cavite, reaching as far
as Montalban in February. He eventually returned to Bulacan and joined Adriano Gatmaitán's army,
being promoted to captain in the process.[3]
As captain, del Pilar managed feats of bravery. He once managed to single-handedly ambush a
priest and his escort of cazadores from Mambog on their way to Malolos. He shot one of the
cazadores which prompted the rest to flee.
The event is termed as "pinagtambangan," according to the marker that can be found on Malolos
Bridge.
This act netted him several Mauser rifles and four sacks of coins, which he distributed to his troops.
He decreed that married men be given 50 pesos each, unmarried ones 25 pesos, and the remaining
money be sent to Manila to buy a blanket and a cloak for each soldier. [5]

Flag of Gregorio del Pilar

On September 3, 1897, del Pilar executed an attack on the Spanish garrison in the town
of Paombong. He and ten other men slipped into town in the night and fell upon the cazadores in the
basement of the convent during Sunday mass. Del Pilar himself was stationed in the plaza, firing at
the second story of the convent to prevent any men from approaching from the windows. They were
eventually able to capture 14 Mauser rifles. Other versions of the raid vary, however. Some tellings
talk about how del Pilar and his men slipped into town dressed as women, while other versions have
them disguised as cazadores.[3] Del Pilar's success in Paombong caught the attention of Emilio
Aguinaldo, who promoted the captain to a lieutenant colonel, eventually earning his trust and being
let into his inner circle of confidants. Artemio Ricarte noted that Del Pilar's feat in Paombong “exalted
him to the horns of the moon."[7]
Del Pilar celebrated his promotion to lieutenant colonel by creating a distinctive flag for himself and
his battalion: a tricolor with a blue triangle at the hoist, red stripe on top and black at the bottom,
taking cues from the Cuban flag. He first unfurled this flag during his participation in the Battle of
Pasong Balite (modern-day Polo, Bulacan) in 1897.
Due to his closeness to Aguinaldo, del Pilar became one of the signatories of the provisional
constitution of the Republic of Biak-na-Bato in November 1897. When negotiations with the Spanish
took place in the which concluded with the signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, Aguinaldo took del
Pilar with him to exile in Hong Kong.[5]

Second phase and the Philippine–American War[edit]

The exiles in Hong Kong organized a Supreme Council, electing del Pilar to a position second only
to Tomás Mascardo. Aguinaldo's confidence in del Pilar grew such that he wrote the following about
him:[3]
"I took him to Hong Kong, Saigon, and Singapore. He was my man of confidence. I could trust him
with everything. Therefore, I had him always at my side until he died."

— Emilio Aguinaldo
When Aguinaldo was supposed to go to Europe, he took only del Pilar and Colonel José Leyba with
him. The trip ended in Singapore, where Aguinaldo conferred with American consul E. Spencer
Pratt, learning of the American declaration of war against Spain. Spurred by this, Aguinaldo and the
other exiles decided to return to the Philippines to restart the revolution. [3]

Statue of Gregorio del Pilar in Plaza del Pilar, Bulacan, Bulacan

After the Americans defeated the Spanish in the Battle of Manila Bay, Aguinaldo, del Pilar, and other
exiled leaders returned to the Philippines. Aguinaldo named del Pilar Dictator of Bulacan and Nueva
Ecija provinces, an honor Aguinaldo would not confer to anybody else.[8]
On del Pilar's return to the Philippines, he set out to liberating his home province of Bulacan,
eventually accepting Spanish surrender on June 24, 1898. [9] Del Pilar was then called to relieve the
wounded General Pantaleon García and continue operations in Caloocan, ultimately succeeded on
August 13, 1898. The Revolutionary Congress was then inaugurated on September 15, 1898 and
del Pilar became in charge of the military parade. He was promoted to brigadier-general after this
event.[5]
When the Philippine–American War broke out in February 1899, following the cession of the
Philippines by Spain to the United States in the Treaty of Paris of 1898, del Pilar fought alongside
General Antonio Luna in Manila, suffering heavy casualties.[5] Del Pilar's relationships with his fellow
generals were contentious at best. General José Alejandrino wrote of del Pilar:[3]
"There was a young pretentious general who set up his headquarters in one of the nearby towns, not
bothering even to present himself to General [Antonio] Luna. He did not want to recognize any
orders other than those which emanated directly from the Captain General [Emílio Aguinaldo] of
whom he was a great favorite. At the headquarters of General Luna it was learned that his
gentleman spent days and nights at fiestas and dances which his flatterers offered in his honor."

— Jose Alejandrino

Historical marker of the Battle of Quingua (now Plaridel)

Another story between Luna and del Pilar have the two riding together on the front, with Luna so
absorbed in what he was saying that he did not notice they were moving into a danger zone. Del
Pilar did notice but did not back off because Luna had not. After Manila, del Pilar and his troops
moved to Bulacan. Major General Venancio Concepción was placed under his command but the two
did not get along. After the fall of Baliuag each blamed the other. Concepción was eventually moved
under the command of Luna in Pampanga. Del Pilar, for his part, led his troops to a victory over
Major Franklin Bell in the first phase of the Battle of Quingua (modern-day Plaridel, Bulacan) on April
23, 1899. During the battle, his forces repelled a cavalry charge and killed American Colonel John
M. Stotsenburg,.[10] The Americans were, however, reinforced during the second phase of the Battle
and the Filipino forces were forced to retreat. Del Pilar then participated in the Battle of
Calumpit alongside General Luna. Luna, however, had left the battle to punish General Tomás
Mascardo for insubordination, leaving del Pilar with the defense of the Bagbag river. On Luna's
return, the Americans had already succeeded in penetrating the Filipino lines and they were forced
to retreat.[11]
On June 4, 1899, del Pilar joined Aguinaldo in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija and received orders to
capture Antonio Luna, dead or alive, on charges of high treason. It is said that had Luna not come
down himself to Cabanatuan and assassinated by the Kawit Batallion from his headquarters
in Bayambang that del Pilar would have gone down as Luna's killer. [3] Del Pilar and Aguinaldo then
descended upon General Concepcion's headquarters in Pampanga to relieve him of his position, as
he was suspected to be partisan to the assassinated general. Troops surrounded Concepcion's
headquarters and sentries were replaced by the presidential guards. Concepción was then relieved
of his command on suspicions of a conspiracy being plotted against Aguinaldo.
Del Pilar was then tasked with taking possession of Luna's old headquarters in Bayambang, and of
liquidating Luna's former aides-de-camp, Manuel and José Bernal. He arrived in Bayambang on
June 7 and managed to capture a younger Bernal brother, Angel, who was arrested and maltreated.
Manuel Bernal was captured a few days later, located in the house of the Nable José family.
Remedios or Dolores, daughters of the family, was said to be one of del Pilar's last loves. [5] Manuel
was tortured in the presence of his younger brother Angel by del Pilar and his brother Julian del Pilar
for a week before he was killed. José Bernal was captured soon after, taken to Angeles,
Pampanga and murdered by soldiers thereafter.[3]
After this, del Pilar was given command in Pangasinan, where he stayed for five months from June
to November 1899. He was also posted in Pangasinan to defend against a possible mutiny from
Ilocanos outraged with Luna's assassination, as well as to defend against the Guardia de Honor,
a millenarian cult fashioned after the Katipunan.[2] During this time, the American forces were
unusually quiet but the revolutionary government failed to capitalize on this opportunity. Del Pilar
himself, was engaged in a number of love affairs.[3] In a letter sent to a relative in Bulacan, he asked
for the finest of riding boots, while he ordered the best horses in Dagupan to show off his
horsemanship.[2]
By November, Tarlac had fallen to the Americans and Aguinaldo was moving northward
towards Bayambang. From Bayambang, the fleeing government led an expedition to Santa Barbara.
Del Pilar, at the time, had 2,000 troops: 1,000 in the del Pilar Brigade, 350 in the Joven column, 400
in the Kawit Battalion, 100 in the Corps of Lancers, and two vanguard companies. [3] del Pilar led the
expedition northward towards Ilocos. During this time he carried a briefcase containing a girl's letter
and a lock of hair, from one of his loves in Bulacan.