Case Study 4:

Where Did the Cry of

Rebellion Happen?
Group 4
Elgrito de Rebellion or Cry of
Rebellion
The Cry of Rebellion marks the start of
revolutionary events that swept the
Spanish colonies in the late 19th century.
This happened on August 1896,
northeast of Manila.
Controversies arise as to
when and where this
event happened.
 A monument for the
heroes of 1896 was
created at the corner of
Epifanio de los Santos or
EDSA and in Bonifacio
Drive on 1962 and then
the Cry was celebrated
every August 26.
Various accounts says
different places and
dates of the Cry
 Lt. Olegario Diaz
a guardian civil, identified the Cry to
have happened in Balintawak on
August 25, 1896
Teodoro Kalaw
a filipino historian,
marks the place to be
in Kangkong,
Balintawak, on the
last week of August
1896
Santiago Alvarez
a katipunero and son
of Mariano Alvarez,
leader of Magdiwang
faction in Cavite, put
the Cry in Bahay
Toroin Quezon City
on August 24, 1896
 Pio Valenzuela
a katipunero and privy
to many events
concerning the
Katipunan stated that
the Cry happened in
Pugad Lawin on August
23, 1896
Gregorio Zaide
a historian, identified
the Cry to have
happened in Balintawak
on August 26. 1896
Teodoro Agoncillo
put it at Pugad Lawin on
August 23, 1896
according to statements
by Pio Valenzuela
 Primary Source:
Accounts of the City
Guillermo Masangkay
On August 26, a big meeting was held
at Apolonio Samson’s house, cabeza of
Balintawak in Caloocan
 Among these who attended were Bonifacio, Emilio
Jacinto, Aguedo del Rosario, Tomas Remigio, Briccio
Pantas, Teodoro Plata, Pio Valenzuela, Enrique
Pacheco, and Francisco Carreon.
They were all leaders of the Katipunan and composed
of the board of directors of the organization. Delegates
from Bulacan, Cabanatuan, Cavite, and Morong were
also present.
The meeting was opened by Bonifacio
at 9 o’clock in the morning while
Jacinto acting as secretary. The agenda
was to discuss when the uprising was
to take place.
 Teodoro Plata, Briccio Pantas, and Pio
Valenzuela were all opposed to starting
the revolution too early. Bonifacio went
out of the hall sensing he would lose in
the discussion.
Bonifacio talked to the people who were
waiting outside for the result of the
meeting and he appealed to them in a
fiery speech in which he said:
“You remember the fate of our countrymen who were
shot in Bagumbayan. Should we return now to the
towns, Spaniards will only shoot us. Our organization
has been discovered and we are all marked men. If we
don’t start the uprising, the Spaniards will get us
anyway. What then, do you say?”

“Revolt!” the people shouted as one.

 Bonifacio then asked the people to give a
pledge that they were to revolt. He told them
that the sign of slavery of the Filipinos were
the cedula tax charged each citizen.
“If it is true that you are ready to revolt… I want to see you
destroy your cedulas. It will be a sign that all of us have
declared our severance from the Spaniard.”
 Primary Source:
Accounts of the City
Pio Valenzuela
 August 19, 1896
Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, Procopio
Bonifacio, Teodori Plata, and Aguedo del Rosario
arrived at Balintawak.
August 20, 1896
Pio Valenzuela arrived on that place.
 August 22, 1896
The first place were some 500 members of the
Katipuneros met at the house and yard of
Apolonio Samson and Kangkong. Among
those who were there were Briccio Pantas,
Alejandro Santiago, Ramon Bernardo,
Apolonio Samson and others.
 August 23, 1896
The debate to whether the revolution starts
on August 29, 1896 or not was carried out
in Pugad Lawin in the yard of Juan
Ramos, son of Melchora Aquino
After the tumultuous meeting, many of those
present tore their cedulas and shouted,
“Long live the Philippines! Long live the
Philippines!”
 With the accounts presented, there is a
markable disagreement to where and when
the Cry happened. Using primary and
secondary sources, it happened in four
places (Balintawak, Kangkong, Pugad
Lawin, Bahay Toro) while the dates differ
(23, 24, 25, 26th of August 1896)
 In Valenzuela’s account, he once told the
Spanish investigators that the Cry happened
on Wednesday, August 26 in Balintawak but
later in his work “Memoir” of the Revolution,
he said that it happened at Pugad Lawin on
August 23.
According to Guerrero, Encarnation, and
Villegas, all these places are in
Balintawak, then part of Caloocan,now,
in Quezon City.
As for the dates, Bonifacio and his troops
may have been moving from one place to
another to avoid being located by the
Spanish government, which could explain
why there are several accounts of the Cry.