Isabelo de los Reyes y Florentino, also known as Don Belong (July 7, 1864 – October 10, 1938), was a prominent
Filipino patriot, politician, writer, journalist, and labor activist in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was the original founder and proclaimer of the ''
Iglesia Filipina Independiente
The Philippine Independent Church (; ), officially referred to by its Philippine Spanish name (IFI) and colloquially called the Aglipayan Church, is an Independent Catholic, independent catholic Christian denomination, in the form of a Religi ...
'', the first-ever Filipino
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
Church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
in history in the form of a
nationalist church, which was proclaimed in 1902. He was also the founder and first president of the first-ever
labor union
A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
federation
A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...
in the Philippines, the ''
Unión Obrera Democrática''. He is popularly known today as the "Father of Philippine Folklore", the "Father of the Philippine Labor Movement",
and the "Father of Filipino Socialism".
As a young man, de los Reyes followed his
mother
A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...
's footsteps by initially turning to writing as a career; his works were part of the 1887 ''Exposicion General de las Islas Filipinas'' in
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
.
He later became a journalist, editor, and publisher in
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 ...
, and was imprisoned in 1897 for
revolutionary activities. He was deported to the
Kingdom of 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 ...
, where he was jailed for his activities until 1898. While living and working in Madrid, he was influenced by the writings of European socialists and
Marxists
Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflict, and ...
.
Returning to the Philippines in 1901, de los Reyes founded the first modern trade union federation in the country in 1902. He also was active in seeking independence from 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 ...
. After serving in the
Philippine Senate
The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives as the lower house. The Senate is composed of 24 senators who are elected at-large (the country f ...
in the 1920s, he settled into private life and religious writing. De los Reyes wrote on diverse topics in history, folklore, language, politics, and religion.
He had a total of 27 children with three successive wives from getting widowed each time; he survived all his wives.
Early life and education
Isabelo de los Reyes was born to
Leona Florentino
Leona Josefa Florentino (19 April 1849 – 4 October 1884) was a Filipina foundational poet, dramatist, satirist, and playwright who wrote and poetically spoke in Ilocano, her mother tongue, and Spanish, the ''lingua franca'' of her era. She is ...
and Elías de los Reyes in
Vigan
Vigan, officially the City of Vigan (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
,
Ilocos Sur
Ilocos Sur (), officially the Province of Ilocos Sur (; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Located on the mouth of the Mestizo River is the capital of Vigan, while Candon is ...
and baptized as
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
.
["Isabelo de los Reyes", Senators' Profiles]
/ref> His mother, of mixed Spanish and Filipino descent and forced in marriage at the age of 14, is recognized as the first significant female poet of the Philippines for her works in both Spanish and Ilocano and is recognized as the "mother of Philippine women's literature"[The History of Filipino Women's Writings]
, an article from Firefly - Filipino Short Stories (Tulikärpänen - filippiiniläisiä novelleja), 2001 / 2007. and a pioneer in Philippine lesbian literature. De los Reyes may have been distantly related to Ventura de los Reyes, a creole merchant who was the first Philippine delegate to the Spanish Cortes through his father's side. He may also have been a "distant cousin" of 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 ...
through a Chinese tax collector married to both Rizal's grandmother and de los Reyes' grand-aunt.
Elías and his children shunned Leona away from the family due to her progressive feminist and pro-equality ideals, which were viewed negatively under the Spanish colonial patriarchy.[ This left Isabelo without a mother as Elías entrusted his six-year-old son to the care of Don Marcelino Crisólogo, a wealthy relative] who was also a writer in the vernacular. Crisólogo was married to Felipa Florentino, sister to Leona. Beluco, as he was called in his youth, was enrolled in a grammar school attached to the local seminary run by Augustinians
Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13 ...
(''Seminario de Vigan''); their harsh discipline made him a lifelong critic of friars.[ De los Reyes was a free spirit and chafed against seminary life. Once, he led a student strike against the friars to protest the maltreatment of students.] His stay in the Vigan Seminary helped him develop a fascination for legends, music, songs, and Ilocano traditions.
In 1880 at age 16, de los Reyes went to 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 ...
without his uncle's consent, where he finished ''Bachiller en Artes'' at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran
The Colegio de San Juan de Letran (), also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers in Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. I ...
. After that, he studied the Civil Code, Penal Code, the Mercantile Code, judicial proceedings and drafting documents, palaeography
Palaeography (American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, UK) or paleography (American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, US) (ultimately from , , 'old', and , , 'to write') is the study and academic disciplin ...
, and anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...
at the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas
The University of Santo Tomas (UST; ), officially the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines or colloquially as ''Ustê'' (), is a Private university, private Catholic school, Catholic researc ...
. It was in Santo Tomas where he first met Gregorio Aglipay
Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayán (; Filipino language, Filipino: ''Gregorio Labayan Aglipay Cruz''; pronounced ; May 5, 1860 – September 1, 1940) was a Filipino former Roman Catholic (term), Roman Catholic Priesthood (Catholic Church), priest ...
.
Early career and journalism
While studying in the Colegio de San Juan de Letran, he supplemented his allowance by taking to journalism,[ setting type for ''La Oceana Española'' as well as writing for periodicals such as ''Diario de Manila'', ''El Comercio'', ''La Revista Popular'', and ''La Opinion''. In November 1882, his work, ''La expedicion de Li-Ma-Hong contra Filipinas'' was published in ''Diario de Manila'' and garnered him a prize.]
His father Elias died in 1883, thus allowing him to visit his feminist mother Leona Florentino
Leona Josefa Florentino (19 April 1849 – 4 October 1884) was a Filipina foundational poet, dramatist, satirist, and playwright who wrote and poetically spoke in Ilocano, her mother tongue, and Spanish, the ''lingua franca'' of her era. She is ...
for the first time in around 14 years. Isabelo, who was around aged 20 at the time, reconnected ties with his mother, who was suffering from tuberculoses at the time. Leona died the following year on October 4, 1884 and was buried in Vigan Cathedral
The Metropolitan Cathedral and Parish of the Conversion of Saint Paul, commonly known as Vigan Cathedral, is a Catholic Church in the Philippines, Roman Catholic cathedral in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Philippines. It contains the Archdiocese of Nueva ...
.[ Despite the limited time they had, Leona had made a solid impact and influence towards Isabelo, which led Isabelo to a literary career. Leona is also credited for Isabelo's progressing views towards democracy, Philippine sovereignty, and equality by the era's standards, which later on marshalled to his support for Philippine revolution, women's right to university education, and women's right to suffrage as an adult.
Ever since he was young, de los Reyes had been intrigued by the growing interest in the "new science" of ''El saber popular'' (]folklore
Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...
). On March 25, 1884, Jose Felipe Del Pan wrote an article in ''La Oceania Filipina'' calling readers to contribute folklore articles, inspired by interest in the subject in the peninsula. De los Reyes was urged by del Pan to contribute and gave him books on the subject that piqued his interest. Two months later, de los Reyes submitted his articles concerning the folklore of Ilocos, Malabon, and Zambales.
In 1886, de los Reyes worked as Manila correspondent for ''El Eco de Panay'', a newspaper in Iloilo
Iloilo ( ; ), officially the Province of Iloilo (; ; ; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital and largest city is Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas and politically independen ...
, but was replaced by Wenceslao Retana
Wenceslao Emilio Retana y Gamboa (28 September 1862 – 21 January 1924), also known as W. E. Retana or Wenceslao E. Retana, was a 19th-century Spanish polymath.
A civil servant, colonial administrator, biographer, political commentator, publ ...
when his reports began to appear too liberal. His reputation as an independent-minded writer was such that in 1887, ''La Opinion'' hired him as a foil for their ultra-conservative staff writer, Camilo Millan.
In 1884, de los Reyes was married to Josefa Hizon Sevilla, his first wife. Sevilla was the daughter of Gregorio Sevilla, the ''capitan'' of Malabon. Shortly after, the couple started a pawnshop, which failed. They also opened a bookstore, which similarly failed because de los Reyes "refused to sell the good ones". Eventually, they were able to build a modest fortune as a commercial agent of rice, tobacco, indigo, and other products.
In 1887, at the age of 23, del Pan compiled de los Reyes' articles and submitted them to the ''Exposición General de las Islas Filipinas'' in Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, where he won a silver medal. These articles would eventually become one of his most important contributions to Philippine studies, ''El Folk-lore Filipino''. ''Folk-Lore'' was published in 1889 in two volumes. De los Reyes' interest in folklore continued. He collected materials, wrote for periodicals, and issued an open letter calling on readers to collect, publish, and organize a folklore society, which did not materialize. De los Reyes wrote ''Folk-Lore'' not just as a book for legends and fables, but eventually as "a general archive at the service of all sciences", expanding his definition of "folklore" to include "popular knowledge relevant to all sciences", including sections on religion, customs, literature, and articles on Diego Silang, millenarian
Millenarianism or millenarism () is the belief by a religious organization, religious, social, or political party, political group or Social movement, movement in a coming fundamental Social transformation, transformation of society, after which ...
revolts, and local miracles of the Virgin Mary.
During this time, Isabelo de los Reyes also propagated the literary works of his mother Leona, notably her poems. Despite Leona's many works, only 22 surviving literary contributions, as many of which were destroyed by either time or her husband, were posthumously presented at the Exposicion General de Filipinas in Madrid in 1887 three years after her death. They were again presented at the International Exposicion in Paris in 1889 and at the St. Louis International Exposition in Missouri in 1904. They were also included in the Encyclopedia Internationale des Oeuvres des Femmes (International Encyclopedia of Women's Works) in 1889. Because of these publications, Isabelo ensured that his mother's writing would be known even outside the country and preserved through time, something that was thought to be impossible for his mother, who was a vocal lesbian
A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...
woman, given the patriarchal nature of the Spanish colonial era.[
De los Reyes also published in rapid succession multiple works: ''Ilocandias'' (1887), ''Articulos Varios'' (1887), ''Las Islas Visayas en la epoca de la conquista'' (1889), ''Historia de Filipinas'' (1889), and the two-volume ''Historia de Ilocos'' (1890). These and other works won him a measure of recognition as a scholar.] By 1889, he was listed as a corresponding or honorary member of societies such as the ''Imperial y Real Sociedad Geografica de Vienna'', ''Academia Indo-China de Francia'', and the ''Sociedad Española de Geografia Comercial''.
In 1889 he founded '' El Ilocano'', said to be the first newspaper written solely in a Philippine vernacular
Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...
. De los Reyes declared that he founded ''El Ilocano'' to "serve urbeloved ''pueblo'' Ilocos by contributing to the enlightenment of her children, defending her interests." ''El Iloco'' lasted for seven years. By 1893, de los Reyes was able to acquire his own printing press, which he set up in the basement of his house in Binondo and called ''Imprenta de Isabelo de los Reyes''. Proud of his provincial origins, he boasted that the press parts were fabricated by Vigan artisans and he hired Ilocanos as printshop personnel.
Aside from ''El Ilocano'', de los Reyes also published the periodicals ''La Lectura Popular'' (1890–1892), a Tagalog biweekly joint venture with Jose de Jesus, and ''El Minicipio Filipino'' (1894), a short-lived Spanish-Tagalog magazine devoted to colonial jurisprudence.
Imprisonment and exile
As the Philippine Revolution
The Philippine Revolution ( or ; or ) was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against the Spanish Empire from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year History of the Philippines (1565–1898), ...
of 1896 began, multiple personalities suspected of being a part of it were arrested by the Spanish government. One of these people was de los Reyes, who at the time, openly advocated reforms, and if necessary, "take up arms against the tyrants".
De los Reyes was arrested on February 12, 1897, and taken to Bilibid Prison. He was charged with membership in ''La Liga Filipina
La Liga Filipina () was a secret society. It was founded by José Rizal in the house of Doroteo Ongjunco at Ilaya Street, Tondo, Manila on July 3, 1892.In 1892, prior to its birth, Rizal alighted at the Old Malolos station to campaign in the ...
'', the political organization organized by Rizal, as well as being knowledgeable of the 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 ...
, however, he denied all of this. De los Reyes, however, sold types to Emilio Jacinto
Emilio Jacinto y Dizon (; December 15, 1875 – April 16, 1899) was a Filipinos, Filipino general during the Philippine Revolution. He was one of the highest-ranking officers in the Philippine Revolution and was one of the highest-ranking office ...
for the Katipunan's printing press, and he later claimed that he made a financial contribution to the ''Liga''. De los Reyes also claimed that while he declined when Julio Nakpil asked him to join the ''Liga'', he offered to give Nakpil a thousand pesos to purchase revolvers from someone on board the steamer ''Salvadora'', and that he offered his services as a soldier.
In Bilibid, de los Reyes wrote his ''Memorial sobre la revolution'', which initially was the ''Memoria de agravios de los Filipinos''. The document was addressed to the Governor-General, Fernando Primo de Rivera
Fernando Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte, 1st Marquess of Estella (24 July 1831 – 23 May 1921) was a Spanish army officer and politician.
Fernando Primo de Rivera was the son of Jose Joaquin Primo de Rivera y Ortiz de Pinedo (1777-1853), an ...
and was meant to gain sympathy for the rebels. His ''Memoria'' pointed out that the friars sowed the seeds of colonial revolt in the Philippines. De los Reyes' wife, Josefa, died while he was in prison. When his son, Jose, broke the news to him, de los Reyes wept unabashedly. He was permitted to attend his wife's funeral.
De los Reyes was pardoned on May 17, the King's birthday, but was arrested again shortly after complaining about the injustice of his arrest and reminding the governor-general of the ''Memoria'' that he sent. De los Reyes was deported aboard the ''SS Alicante'' in June 1897, and was interred at the Montjuïc Castle
Montjuïc () is a hill in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
Montjuïc or Montjuich, meaning "Jewish Mountain" in medieval Latin and Catalan, is a broad, shallow hill in Barcelona with a rich history. It was the birthplace of the city, and its st ...
in Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
for six months, before being released as part of the terms of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato
The Pact of Biak-na-Bato, signed on December 14, 1897, created a truce between Spanish colonial Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera and the revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo to end the Philippine Revolution. Aguinaldo and his fellow re ...
.
Exile in Spain
During his time in Montjuïc, de los Reyes read works by anarchists and syndicalists who influenced his thought. A sympathetic guard supplied him with anarchist books and newspapers. De los Reyes also met Ramon Sempau, a Spanish poet-journalist who left an impression on de los Reyes.
After his release in 1898, de los Reyes was barred from leaving Spain and became a drifter in Barcelona. It was during this time that he came to know radicals such as Francisco Ferrer
Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia (; January 14, 1859 – October 13, 1909), widely known as Francisco Ferrer (), was a Spanish radical freethinker, anarchist, and educationist behind a network of secular, private, libertarian schools in and aroun ...
, Alejandro Lerroux
Alejandro Lerroux García (4 March 1864, in La Rambla, Córdoba – 25 June 1949, in Madrid) was a Spanish politician who was the leader of the Radical Republican Party. He served as Prime Minister three times from 1933 to 1935 and held sever ...
, and others. He began reading the works of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (, ; ; 1809 – 19 January 1865) was a French anarchist, socialist, philosopher, and economist who founded mutualist philosophy and is considered by many to be the "father of anarchism". He was the first person to ca ...
, Mikhail Bakunin
Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin. Sometimes anglicized to Michael Bakunin. ( ; – 1 July 1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist. He is among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major figure in the revolutionary socialist, s ...
, and other socialist thinkers. He also joined protest actions and was imprisoned for a short time by police authorities. He was released and was forced to relocate from Barcelona to Madrid.
During his time in Madrid, he was taken in by Doña Justa Jugo Vidal and met with other Filipinos to discuss the Philippine situation. He also met Señorita María Ángeles López Montero and married her on Christmas Eve in 1898. He published ''La Religion del Katipunan'', which he wrote during his stay in Montjuïc, and he was commissioned by the British and Foreign Bible Society
The British and Foreign Bible Society, often known in England and Wales as simply the Bible Society, is a non-denominational Christian Bible society with charity status whose purpose is to make the Bible available throughout the world.
The ...
to translate
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...
the Bible
The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
to Iloko
Iloco (also Iloko, Ilocáno or Ilokáno; ; Iloco: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language primarily spoken in the Philippines by the Ilocano people. It is one of the eight major languages of the Philippines with about 11 million ...
. De los Reyes later said that this work was "one way by which ecould contribute to the liberalization of dogmatic religion."
At the onset of the Spanish–American War
The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
, de los Reyes was employed as Counselor of the Ministry of the Colonies (''Consejero del Ministerio de Ultramar''), which he held until 1901. In this capacity, de los Reyes helped rally Filipino support against the Americans, thinking that this would create conditions favorable to the Philippines. He believed that once the Americans were repelled, they would be granted autonomy, and should Spain renege, then the already armed Filipinos could take matters to their own hands. He had received assurances from the governor-general Basilio Augustín regarding autonomy, and together with other Filipinos in Spain, offered to return to the Philippines to organize militias to fight the Americans.
De los Reyes wrote anti-American articles for ''La Correspondencia de Epaña'' and other papers. On November 10, 1898, as Spain's loss of the Philippines became imminent, he and Dominador Gómez
Dominador Gómez (born José María Dominador Vicente Gregorio Gómez de Jesús; November 4, 1866 – May 14, 1930) was a Filipino ilustrado nationalist, physician, writer, legislator, and a labor leader.
Early life
Gomez was born in Int ...
published ''Filipinas ante Europa'', which had the editorial logo: ''Contra Norte-America, no; contra el imperialismo, sí, hasta la muerte!'' (Against the Americans, no; against Imperialism, yes, until death!) It ran for 86 issues between October 25, 1899, and June 10, 1901. After closing, it briefly reappeared as ''El Defensor de Filipinas'', which ran monthly from July 1 to October 1, 1901.
After Aguinaldo's surrender, de los Reyes was repatriated to Manila on July 1, 1901. Given guarantees by the American consul in Barcelona that he will not be harassed upon his arrival in the Philippines, he left Spain on September 14 aboard the steamer ''Montevideo''. De los Reyes arrived in Manila on October 15, 1901.
Return to the Philippines
On his return, de los Reyes quickly set about to launching several initiatives that he already had in mind while still in Spain. On October 25, 1901, ten days after he returned to Manila, he sought authority from the Philippine Commission to publish his ''Defensor de Filipinas'', which was refused. On October 31, he appeared before the commission, with Pedro Paterno
Pedro Alejandro Paterno y de Vera Ignacio (February 27, 1857 – April 26, 1911), 993 pages was a Filipino politician. He was also a poet and a novelist.
His intervention on behalf of the Spanish led to the signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato ...
and Pascual H. Poblete to seek permission to form a political party, the ''Partido Nacionalista'', which was also denied. He wanted to push for a party that would push for independence within the framework of US occupation. Eventually, Poblete persistently managed to form the short-lived Partido Nacionalista (predecessor of the Nacionalista Party
The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...
), which de los Reyes had also joined. He was eventually named its leader.
In tandem with party building, de los Reyes also set about organizing a workers' movement in the Philippines. In 1901 to 1902, Hermenegildo Cruz and other members of the Carmelo and Bauermann publishing house approached de los Reyes to seek advice in forming a cooperative store for rice and other staples. The ''Union Democratica de Litografos, Impresores, Encuadernadores y Otros Obreros'' was thus formed, which came to be known as the labor union federation '' Union Obrera Democratica'' (UOD) on February 2, 1902. De los Reyes was its first president.
De los Reyes took home with him works by socialists such as Karl Marx
Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...
, Proudhon, Bakunin, and Errico Malatesta
Errico Malatesta (4 December 1853 – 22 July 1932) was an Italian anarchist propagandist, theorist and revolutionary socialist. He edited several radical newspapers and spent much of his life exiled and imprisoned, having been jailed and expel ...
. Malatesta's ''Propaganda socialista fra contadini'' was particularly familiar to union organizers. The UOD was the first labor union federation in the Philippines, soon being joined by neighborhood associations from 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 ...
, Quiapo
Quiapo may refer to:
* Quiapo, Chile, a location in Arauco Province
*Quiapo, Manila, a district in the Philippines
** Quiapo Church
The Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno (), commonly known as Quiapo Church and canonically ...
, Santa Cruz and Sampaloc; company guilds from the San Miguel Brewery
San Miguel Brewery, Inc. (SMBI) is a subsidiary of San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc. (part of San Miguel Corporation) and jointly owned with Kirin Holdings Co. Ltd. The company is the Philippines’ largest brewery with a market share of ove ...
and L.R. Yangco Shipping Company; and trade associations of printers, ''tabaqueros'', tailors, sculptors, seamen, and cooks. At its peak in 1903, the UOD's membership was estimated at twenty thousand.
As conceived by de los Reyes, the UOD's aim was to "achieve the longed-for alliance between capital and labor" by bringing together workers and employers in a spirit of friendship, mutual respect, and recognized interdependence. De los Reyes also wished to enlighten the masses as a prerequisite to modern nationhood. In this end, he organized ''veladas instructivo-recreativas'' as a way to "improve themselves and learn the life of cultured peoples". He had observed that workers in Europe had clubs and cafes where they could read newspapers and discuss current events, and wished to emulate that in the Philippines. De los Reyes also published the UOD's official organ, ''La Redencion del Obrero''.
De los Reyes spent this time mediating in labor disputes and other union-organizing activities. The press at this time called him a "Malay Lerroux" and compared him to Spanish labor leader Pablo Iglesias. On August 17, 1902, he was arrested on the trumped-up charge that he gave orders to assassinate scabs in a strike at the Commercial Tobacco Factory. De los Reyes was eventually released on January 30, 1903, by Governor William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...
, stating that the statute "was not in line with current American thinking on the subject" and was given the condition that he would henceforth shy away from labor organizations. While in prison, de los Reyes tendered his resignation from the UOD on September 14, 1902, and was later replaced by Dominador Gómez.
After leaving the UOD, de los Reyes tried to patch up internal rivalries within the organization but ultimately failed. The UOD was dissolved and in its place was the ''Unión del Trabajo de Filipinas The Unión del Trabajo de Filipinas (UTF; ) was a trade union confederation in the Philippines. It was formed, with support of the U.S. administration of William Howard Taft, as a substitute for the defunct Unión Obrera Democrática Filipina. The ...
'', headed by writer Lope K. Santos
Lope K. Santos (born Lope Santos y Canseco, September 25, 1879 – May 1, 1963) was a Filipino people, Filipino Tagalog language, Tagalog-language writer and former List of Senators of the Philippines, senator of the Philippines. He is best kn ...
. After this, de los Reyes focused on his ''Redencion del Obrero'' while contributing to papers like ''El Comercio'', ''Grito del Pueblo'', and others. He took up causes such as labor rights, universal suffrage, the exclusion of Chinese immigrant labor, and parity of Filipinos and Americans in the civil service. The right of women to suffrage was an important advocacy of Isabelo during his adult life.[
]
Japan, Hong Kong, and return to Spain
De los Reyes left the Philippines in February 1903 for a vacation, going to Japan and Hong Kong. He also sought to continue his translation of the bible and to oversee its printing in Yokohama
is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...
, although others suggest that his true purpose was to meet with Filipino revolutionary general Artemio Ricarte
Artemio Ricarte y García (October 20, 1866 – July 31, 1945) was a Filipino general during the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine–American War. He is regarded as the ''Father of the Philippine Army'', and the first Chief of Staff of ...
, who was in exile at the time. Details are unclear whether de los Reyes met with Ricarte in Yokohama or in Hong Kong, although it was certain that a meeting took place between the two in Manila. De los Reyes relayed to him the Philippine situation and tried to dissuade him from resuming hostilities with the US.
In 1905, de los Reyes once again left for Spain where he stayed until 1909. During this time, he worked as a juror in Barcelona until 1908. He also went back to mend relations with his wife, María Ángeles López Montero, who repeatedly urged him to stay away from politics. During his stay in Spain, he wrote texts such as ''Gregorio Aglipay y otros prelados de la Iglesia Filipina Independiente'' (1906) and ''Biblia Filipina''. He also published ''La Religion Antigua de Filipinas'' (1909).
De los Reyes returned to Manila on April 3, 1909, with Lopez, however she could not adjust to the climate. After a few months, he brought her to Tokyo to recuperate. Lopez died on February 10, 1910, while giving birth to twin daughters.
Later years and death
In 1912 at the age of 48, de los Reyes was elected a board member (councilor) of 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 ...
, and began his political career. Winning re-election, he served until 1919. He ran as a candidate for the labor-based group called the ''Union Reformista''. As board member, he worked on social welfare ordinances, pushed for "Filipinization" of the civil service, and filed resolutions urging immediate and absolute independence of the Philippines.
De los Reyes also met and married María Lim, a mestiza de sangley from Tondo. They married in the independent Aglipayan Church, which de los Reyes had helped found. She would eventually die in childbirth in 1923. As she was dying, she asked de los Reyes that they be married in the Roman Catholic rite, to which he agreed.
Beginning his campaign for the senate in 1921, in 1922, de los Reyes won a Senate seat in an election serving alongside Santiago Fonacier
Santiago Antonio Fonacier y Suguitan (May 21, 1885 – December 8, 1977) was a Filipino priest, bishop, writer, educator, and politician who became a senator and the second '' Obispo Maximo'' of the ''Iglesia Filipina Independiente'', also infor ...
, and later with Elpidio Quirino
Elpidio Rivera Quirino (; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Philippine nationality law, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953.
A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered p ...
, to represent the First Senatorial District. As senator, he brokered projects, appointments, and other forms of patronage for his constituents. He was known for crying out "Enough of this nonsense!" whenever he was exasperated with debates on the Senate floor.
De los Reyes suffered a stroke which left him paralyzed and bedridden on June 5, 1929. He retired from politics after a short stint as appointive vice mayor of Manila from 1930 to 1931. He devoted his time to compiling Aglipayan texts and largely slipped out of public notice. A frail de los Reyes' last foray into politics was when he ran in the 1935 Philippine legislative election
Events
January
* January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's Colonial empire, co ...
s, losing badly.
De los Reyes died on October 10, 1938, in a Manila hospital leaving behind 15 of his remaining and surviving children. A legal battle between his children regarding his custody ensued during the last years of his life. De los Reyes executed a document of retraction from his Aglipayan faith on September 14, 1936, two years before his death, as attested by some of his Roman Catholic daughters, although the authenticity of the so-called metanoia was vehemently contested by other family members asserting that de los Reyes no longer had full control of his faculties that time due to deteriorating health and old age. It is not known whether he retracted his Aglipayan beliefs and died a Catholic. He had both funeral blessings from Gregorio Aglipay
Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayán (; Filipino language, Filipino: ''Gregorio Labayan Aglipay Cruz''; pronounced ; May 5, 1860 – September 1, 1940) was a Filipino former Roman Catholic (term), Roman Catholic Priesthood (Catholic Church), priest ...
at the Funeraria Nacional, Manila and then according to Roman Catholic rites at the San Sebastian Church, Manila. His body was initially interred at the Manila North Cemetery
The Manila North Cemetery (Spanish: ''Cementerio del Norte'') is one of the oldest cemeteries in Metro Manila, Philippines. The cemetery is owned by and located in the City of Manila, the national capital, and is one of the largest in the met ...
before being transferred to the former location of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente National Cathedral
The National Cathedral, canonically known as the Cathedral of the Holy Child, is the national cathedral of the (Philippine Independent Church) and the seat of the '' Obispo Maximo'' (Supreme Bishop), the Church's chief pastor and spiritual hea ...
in Tondo, Manila
Tondo is a district located in Manila, Philippines. It is the largest, in terms of area and population, of Manila's sixteen districts, with a census-estimated 654,220 people in 2020. It consists of two congressional districts. It is also the se ...
in 1944, on order of his son, Isabelo Jr. However, after the World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, his remains were permanently transferred to the María Clara Parish Church of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente in Sta. Cruz, Manila.
The Isabelo de los Reyes Elementary School in Tondo, Manila was named after his honor.
Philippine Independent Church
Albeit an anti-friar, de los Reyes was a very religious person. De los Reyes was involved with the secular Filipino clergy as early as 1899, when he became a part of negotiations with the Holy See
The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...
. On January 22, 1899, de los Reyes, representing the "Committee of Paris", visited the Papal Nuncio
An apostolic nuncio (; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international organization. A nuncio is a ...
Giuseppe Francica-Nava de Bontifè in Madrid to convey the Aguinaldo government's desire for the Holy See to send a delegate to look into the conditions of the Philippines. However, de los Reyes discerned that the Holy See was more inclined to listen to the Spanish friars. De los Reyes wrote in ''Filipinas Ante Europa'':
Enough of Rome! Let us now form without vacillation our own congregation, a Filipino Church, conserving all that is good in the Roman Church and eliminating all the deceptions which the diabolical astuteness of the cunning Romanists had introduced to corrupt the moral purity and sacredness of the doctrines of Christ...
On his return to the Philippines in 1901, de los Reyes campaigned for the establishment of a Filipino Church independent from the authority of the Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. On August 3, 1902, with the help of Pascual H. Poblete and other members of the UOD, the ''Iglesia Filipina Independiente
The Philippine Independent Church (; ), officially referred to by its Philippine Spanish name (IFI) and colloquially called the Aglipayan Church, is an Independent Catholic, independent catholic Christian denomination, in the form of a Religi ...
'' (Philippine Independent Church or also known as the Aglipayan Church) was formed, with Gregorio Aglipay
Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayán (; Filipino language, Filipino: ''Gregorio Labayan Aglipay Cruz''; pronounced ; May 5, 1860 – September 1, 1940) was a Filipino former Roman Catholic (term), Roman Catholic Priesthood (Catholic Church), priest ...
, an excommunicated
Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...
priest from the Roman Catholic Church, as its proposed head (albeit in absentia
''In Absentia'' is the seventh studio album by British progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, first released on 24 September 2002. The album marked several changes for the band, with it being the first with new drummer Gavin Harrison and the f ...
). At the time, Aglipay was in talks with the Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
and the Jesuits
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
to prevent a schism
A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...
, though neither of these events bore fruit. Aglipay initially dissociated himself from the schism, before realizing the futility of staying outside it. In September 1902, he accepted de los Reyes' offer for the position of ''Obispo Maximo'' (Supreme Bishop
The Supreme Bishop (), abbreviated O.M., is the leader or primate of the autocephalous nationalist Independent Catholic denomination ''Iglesia Filipina Independiente'' (Philippine Independent Church) or IFI, known informally as the "Aglipayan Chu ...
) and subsequently got consecrated to episcopacy and in turn, also consecrated some other bishops for the new church.
De los Reyes, who was also later excommunicated formally by the Roman Catholic Church as a schismatic apostate
Apostasy (; ) is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous religious beliefs. One who ...
, traveled all over the country to rally people to the new church. He also directed the Church publications ''Boletin de la Iglesia Filipina Independiente'' and ''La Iglesia Filipina Independiente: Revista Catolica''. He also turned his residence into a temporary seminary. In 1929, de los Reyes was appointed an honorary bishop, a position he held until his death. In this capacity, he wrote multiple devotional and doctrinal texts such as the ''Biblia Filipina'', ''Oficio Divino'', ''Catequesis'', ''Plegarias'', ''Genesis Cientifico y Moderno'' and the ''Calendario Aglipayano''.
Marriage and family
In 1884, at the age of 20, de los Reyes married Josefa Sevilla, the daughter of Gregorio Sevilla, the ''capitan'' of Malabon
Malabon, officially the City of Malabon (), is a 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 north of the city of Manila, Malabon is ...
. He and his wife had ten children. His wife died of illness in 1897 while he was in Bilibid prison.[
In late December 1898, he married María Ángeles López Montero (the daughter of a retired Spanish infantry colonel) in ]Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, also in a Roman Catholic ceremony. She died in 1910 while giving birth to their ninth child.
De los Reyes' last marriage in 1912 was to the 18-year-old María Lim, a '' mestiza de sangley'' from Tondo. They married in the independent Aglipayan Church. They also had several children before María also died in childbirth in 1923. Before her death, she had asked that they be married according to the Roman Catholic rite, to which de los Reyes agreed.
With his own family spanning Roman Catholic and Aglipayan traditions, de los Reyes was tolerant of religious diversity among his children. His namesake Isabelo de los Reyes Jr. (1900–1971), a son from his second marriage with Lopez and whom he shares the same death day with at October 10, although baptized Roman Catholic, was ordained an Aglipayan priest and later became '' Obispo Máximo IV'' of the Church for 25 years. De los Reyes Jr. is also widely known as the "Father of Ecumenism
Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...
in the Philippines". His daughters Ángeles, Elisa, and Elvira also from his second marriage, along with Crescencia from his third marriage, became professed nuns in the Roman Catholic Church.
De los Reyes was married and widowed three times, siring a total of 27 children. He survived all his wives.
Works and writings
Throughout his life, Isabelo de los Reyes wrote and published multiple works in various subjects, such as history, folklore, politics, and religion. He used Spanish, Tagalog, and Ilokano in his writings. De los Reyes also published multiple newspapers.
He wrote critically of the Spanish and American colonial governments in the Philippines.
Publications
* ''El Ilocano''
* ''La Lectura Popular''
* ''El Municipio Filipino''
* ''Filipinas ante Europa''
* ''El Defensor de Filipinas''
* ''La Redencion del Obrero''
* ''Boletin de la Iglesia Filipina Independiente''
* ''La Iglesia Filipina Independiente: Revista Catolica''
Scholarly works and essays
* ''El Folk-lore Filipino''
* ''La expedicion de Li-Ma-Hong contra Filipinas''
* ''Ilocandias''
* ''Articulos Varios''
* ''Las Islas Visayas en la epoca de la conquista''
* ''Historia de Filipinas''
* ''Historia de Ilocos''
* ''Memoria sobre la revolution''
* ''Memoria de agravios de los Filipinos''
* ''Kalendariong Maanghang''
* ''La Religion Antigua de Filipinas''
Novels and stories
* Mariquit the Tramp
* ''Sing sing ni Diego''
* '' Ang Singsing ng Dalagang Marmol'' (circa 1905), a novel
Religious texts
* ''Gregorio Aglipay y otros prelados de la Iglesia Filipina Independiente''
* ''Biblia Filipina''
* ''Oficio Divino''
* ''Catequesis''
* ''Plegarias''
* ''Genesis Cientifico y Moderno''
* ''Calendario Aglipayano''
He also translated into ''Iloko
Iloco (also Iloko, Ilocáno or Ilokáno; ; Iloco: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language primarily spoken in the Philippines by the Ilocano people. It is one of the eight major languages of the Philippines with about 11 million ...
'' the Gospels of the New Testament and the Acts of the Apostles.
References
External links
*
*
*
* De los Reyes' ''Historia de Ilocos''
volume 1
volume 2
, Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes
The Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library (MCVL; in , BVMC) is a large-scale digital library project, hosted and maintained by the University of Alicante in Alicante, Spain. It comprises the largest open-access repository of digitised Spanish-langua ...
El Ilocano
Miguel de Benavides Library's Digital Collection
Province of Ilocos Sur
Official Website
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reyes, Isabelo De Los
1864 births
1938 deaths
People from Vigan
Ilocano people
Colegio de San Juan de Letran alumni
University of Santo Tomas alumni
Senators of the 7th Philippine Legislature
Senators of the 6th Philippine Legislature
Manila City Council members
Nacionalista Party politicians
Filipino novelists
Tagalog-language writers
Spanish-language writers of the Philippines
Filipino writers of bilingual works
Filipino translators
People excommunicated by the Catholic Church
Filipino people imprisoned abroad
Labor in the Philippines
Filipino trade unionists
Filipino journalists
Filipino newspaper editors
Filipino socialists
19th-century journalists
Burials at the Manila North Cemetery
Members of the Philippine Independent Church
Filipino Christian religious leaders
Members of the Senate of the Philippines from the 1st district