Rafael Crame y Pérez de Tagle (October 2, 1863 - January 1, 1927) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

Constabulary officer who served as Chief of the former

Philippine Constabulary The Philippine Constabulary (PC; tl, Hukbóng Pamayapà ng Pilipinas, ''HPP''; es, Policía de Filipinas, ''PF'') was a gendarmerie-type police force of the Philippines from 1901 to 1991, and the predecessor to the Philippine National Po ...

from 1917 until his death in 1927.

Early life and education

Rafael Crame was born in

Malabon Malabon, officially the City of Malabon ( fil, Lungsod ng Malabon), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 380,522 people. Located just nort ...

, Province of Manila (now part of

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the seat of government and one of three defined metropolitan areas in ...

) to Don Rafael María de Crame y González Calderon, an artillery officer in the Spanish Army in the Philippines, while his mother was Maria Perez de Tagle. His grandfather was Joaquín Rafael de Crame (b. 1786) who was

Governor-General of the Philippines The Governor-General of the Philippines (Spanish: ''Gobernador y Capitán General de Filipinas''; Filipino: ''Gobernador-Heneral ng Pilipinas/Kapitan Heneral ng Pilipinas''; Japanese: ) was the title of the government executive during the colo ...

in 1835. Crame studied at the

Ateneo Municipal de Manila , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_af ...

and then enrolled in the Spanish military academy from 1879 up to 1881.

Career

Upon completion of his cadetship, he was employed by the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

government in the Negociado de Contribución Territorial. He was a government official in the Administración de Hacienda Pública when the Philippine Revolution broke out in 1896. He served in a battalion consisting of volunteer forces organized by the Spanish armed forces. Crame joined the

in 1902. He was invited to join by a certain Captain Alkinson. Crame started off with the rank of fourth class inspector but gradually rose from the ranks to become a colonel by 1914. In December 1917, Crame was named as chief of the Constabulary and attained the rank of brigadier general. The American Medal of Valor was awarded to him for helping quash a mutiny in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

in 1921. He was said to have declined the citation when he said, “I only did my duty."

Recognition

Crame is recognized for being the first Filipino to become chief of the Philippine Constabulary. On August 7, 2003, 76 years after his death, Crame's remains were exhumed from the

La Loma Cemetery The La Loma Catholic Cemetery (Spanish: ''Campo Santo de La Loma'') was opened in 1884 and is largely located in Caloocan, Metro Manila. A portion of the southern part of the cemetery is located in Manila. The La Loma Cemetery is the oldest ceme ...

in Manila, and he was given a hero's burial at the

Libingan ng mga Bayani Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB, , ) is a national cemetery within Fort Andres Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) in Metro Manila, Philippines. First established in May 1947 as a fitting resting place for Philippine military personnel fro ...

Taguig Taguig (), officially the City of Taguig ( fil, Lungsod ng Taguig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 886,722 people. Located in the northwestern shores of ...

the following day.

Camp Crame Camp General Rafael T. Crame () is the national headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP) located along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) in Quezon City. It is situated across EDSA from Camp Aguinaldo, the national headquarters o ...

, the place that houses the Philippine National Police, was named after him due to his contributions to the Philippine Constabulary and for his being a positive role model to the Philippine para-military police force during his time.

References

External links

*
PNP History
1863 births 1927 deaths Ateneo de Manila University alumni Filipino people of Spanish descent Filipino police officers People from Malabon Burials at the Libingan ng mga Bayani Philippine Constabulary personnel People of the Philippine Revolution {{Philippines-mil-bio-stub