The Ilustrados (, "erudite", "learned" or "enlightened ones") constituted the Filipino intelligentsia ( educated class) during the Spanish colonial period in the late 19th century. Elsewhere in

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...

(of which the Philippines were part), the term '' gente de razón'' carried a similar meaning. They were late Spanish-colonial-era middle to

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status. Usually, these are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper cla ...

Filipinos, many of whom were educated in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and exposed to Spanish liberal and European nationalist ideals. The ''ilustrado'' class was composed of Philippine-born and/or raised intellectuals and cut across ethnolinguistic and racial lines—'' mestizos'' ''(''both '' de Sangleyes and de Español), insulares, and indios'', among others—and sought

reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

through "a more equitable arrangement of both political and economic power" under Spanish tutelage. Stanley Karnow, in his '' In Our Image: America's Empire in the Philippines'', referred to the ''ilustrados'' as the "rich Intelligentsia" because many were the children of wealthy landowners or '' inquilino'' ( tenant) lessee families. They were key figures in the development of Filipino nationalism.Glossary: Philippines, Area Handbook Series, Country Studies, Federal Research Division, Library of Congress, LOC.gov (undated)
retrieved on: July 30, 2007
, retrieved on: August 1, 2007 Karnow, Stanley. '' In Our Image: America's Empire in the Philippines'', Ballantine Books, Random House, Inc., March 3, 1990, 536 pages, page 15. - The Rise of the Philippine Middle Class (Ilustrados), Mega Essays LLC, MegaEssays.com, 2007
retrieved on: August 1, 2007Philippines: The Spanish Colony, Student Encyclopedia Article, Encyclopædia Britannica Online, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., Britannica.com
retrieved on: August 1, 2007, Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines, Department of Foreign Affairs, PhilippineEmbassy-USA.org (undated, archived from on July 13, 2007), retrieved on: August 1, 2007

History

The most prominent ''ilustrados'' were Graciano López Jaena, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Mariano Ponce, Antonio Luna and

José Rizal José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is popularly considered a na ...

, the Philippine national hero. Rizal's novels '' Noli Me Tangere'' ("Touch Me Not") and '' El Filibusterismo'' ("The Subversive") "exposed to the world the injustices imposed on Filipinos under the Spanish colonial regime".Salvador, Fr. Emerson, Liberalism in the Philippines, The Revolution of 1898: The Main Facts, Newsletter of the District of Asia, Society of St. Pius X, District of Asia, January - March 2002
retrieved on: August 1, 2007 In the beginning, Rizal and his fellow ''ilustrados'' preferred not to win

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

from

, instead they wanted legal equality for both ''

peninsulares In the context of the Spanish Empire, a ''peninsular'' (, pl. ''peninsulares'') was a Spaniard born in Spain residing in the New World, Spanish East Indies, or Spanish Guinea. In the context of the Portuguese Empire, ''reinóis'' (singular ''r ...

'' and natives—'' indios'', '' insulares'', and ''

mestizos ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to ...

'', among others—in the economic reforms demanded by the ''ilustrados'' were that "the Philippines be represented in the Cortes and be considered a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Spain" and "the secularization of the parishes." However, in 1872, nationalist sentiment grew strongest, when three Filipino

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

s, José Burgos, Mariano Gomez and

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

Jacinto Zamora Jacinto Zamora y del Rosario (August 14, 1835 – February 17, 1872) was a Catholic Church in the Philippines, Filipino Catholic Priesthood in the Catholic Church, priest, part of the Gomburza, a trio of priests who were falsely accused of muti ...

, who had been charged with leading a military

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military or a crew) to oppose, change, or remove superiors or their orders. The term is commonly used for insubordination by members of the military against an officer or superior, ...

at an

arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

, near

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

, were executed by the Spanish authorities. The event and "other repressive acts and activities, Rizal was executed on December 30, 1896. His execution propelled the ''ilustrados''. This also prompted unity among the ''ilustrados'' and

Andrés Bonifacio Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro (, ; November 30, 1863May 10, 1897) was a Filipino people, Filipino revolutionary leader. He is often called "The Father of the Philippines, Philippine Philippine Revolution, Revolution", and considered a nationa ...

's radical ''

Katipunan The Katipunan (), officially known as the (; ) and abbreviated as the KKK, was a revolutionary organization founded in 1892 by a group of Filipino nationalists Deodato Arellano, Andrés Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Ladislao Diwa, José Dizon, an ...

''. Philippine policies by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

reinforced the dominant position of the ''ilustrados'' within Filipino society.

Friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

estates were sold to the ''ilustrados'' and most government positions were offered to them. File:Antonio Luna, Eduardo de Lete and Marcelo H. del Pilar.jpg, Ilocano Antonio Luna, Insular Criollo Eduardo de Lete (center) and Tagalog Marcelo H. del Pilar (seated, right), in

, 1890 File:Filipino Ilustrados Jose Rizal Marcelo del Pilar Mariano Ponce.jpg, Three prominent ''ilustrados'' in Spain: Dr.

, Marcelo H. del Pilar and Mariano Ponce''(from left to right)''. Photo was taken in Spain in 1890. File:Filipino Ilustrados in front.jpg, The four Filipino Ilustrados in front of the three peninsula Spaniard artists are; (left to right)

Juan Luna Juan Luna de San Pedro y Novicio (, ; October 25, 1857 – December 7, 1899) was a Filipino painter, sculptor and a political activism, activist of the Philippine Revolution during the late 19th century. He became one of the first recog ...

, Pedro Paterno,

Félix Hidalgo Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...

and Miguel Zaragoza File:Governor Julio Llorente y Aballe.jpg, Julio A. Llorente, a Spanish- Cebuano

Mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...

- Ilustrado who would become the first Philippine governor of

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

and

Samar Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...

. File:Pedro Alejandro Paterno.jpg, Sangley-Tagalog mestizo from Manila - Pedro Paterno,

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and a

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

who would become the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

of the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic (), now officially remembered as the First Philippine Republic and also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was a state established in Malolos, Bulacan, during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish ...

. File:Jacobo Zobel - Filipino nationalist.png, Jacobo Zóbel pharmacist and businessman.

References

Notes

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History

See also

References

Notes

Sources