José Tagle y Santarin (March 18, 1855 – September 12, 1910) was a Filipino military officer who participated in the

Battle of Imus The Battle of Imus (, ), or the Siege of Imus (, ), was the first major battle of the Philippine revolution against the Spanish colonial government in the province of Cavite. It was fought between September 1–3, 1896 at Imus, Cavite provinc ...

during 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), ...

Early life

Prior to the

, the Tagles were part of the

Principalía The ''principalía'' or Nobility, noble class was the ruling and usually educated upper class in the ''Municipality, pueblos'' of History of the Philippines (1521–1898), Spanish Philippines, comprising the ''gobernadorcillo'' (later called t ...

, the country's lowland, Hispanic colonized aristocracy. Tagle was born in Barangay Bayan Luma,

Imus Imus (), officially the City of Imus (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and ''de jure'' Capital city, capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 cens ...

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 ...

, in 1855, one of seven children of Benito Tagle and Simona Santarin, both of Imus. He received his early education at the local school. He was the municipal captain while leading the Imus rebels as the head of the Katipunan chapter in Imus.

Philippine Revolution

José Tagle played a significant role in the opening battle of the

. According to General

Emilio Aguinaldo Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy (: March 22, 1869February 6, 1964) was a Filipino revolutionary, statesman, and military leader who became the first List of presidents of the Philippines, president of the Philippines (1899–1901), and the first pre ...

's account of the battle, Tagle, then head of Barangay Pilar of Imus, first came to his headquarters at Cavite El Viejo on September 1, 1896, to ask for his help in raiding Imus. Together, they proceeded to the town accompanied with a brass band. The

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 ...

s headed by Friar Eduarte and the ''Gurdia Civil'' saw them approaching and fled towards the Imus Hacienda, where they were subsequently subdued. The second time Aguinaldo met Tagle was on September 3, 1896, when the latter went to his headquarters to ask again for reinforcements against the impending attack by strong Spanish forces from

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 ...

then massing off

Bacoor Bacoor (), officially the City of Bacoor (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 664,625 ...

. The resulting battle ended in the defeat of the Spaniards by the Spanish General Ernesto de Aguirre, and the capture of his sword or ''sable del mando'' crafted in

Toledo, Spain Toledo ( ; ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, the capital of the province of Toledo and the ''de jure'' seat of the government and parliament of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla� ...

. Aguinaldo used the sword as his command throughout the Revolution. In recognition of his contribution to the victory in Imus, Aguinaldo appointed Tagle as Municipal Captain of the town with the authority to choose his companions in establishing the government and organizing a revolutionary army in Imus. Imusjf0591 07

He died and was buried in 1910, leaving behind no pictures, letters or war mementos.

Family

He was married to Isabel Bella and they had three children: Agustina Tagle-Ramirez, Veronica Tagle-Gordon and José Tagle Jr. Veronica Tagle married John Jacob Gordon, an American who was stationed at

Subic Naval Base Naval Base Subic Bay was a major ship-repair, supply, and rest and recreation facility of the Spanish Navy and subsequently the United States Navy located in Zambales, Philippines. The base was , about the size of Singapore. The Navy Exchange ...

. They had a child named

James L. Gordon James Leonard Tagle Gordon Sr. (January 17, 1917 – February 20, 1967) was a Filipino-American politician who was mayor of Olongapo from December 30, 1963, until his assassination on February 20, 1967. As mayor, he presided over the transitio ...

, the former mayor of

Olongapo City Olongapo (), officially the City of Olongapo (; ; ; Kapampangan: ''Lakanbalen/Ciudad ning Olongapo''), is a highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 260,317 peo ...

. Among the descendants of Tagle's siblings are former Manila archbishop Cardinal

Luis Antonio Tagle Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle ( , ; born June 21, 1957) is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church, and has been the Dicastery for Evangelization, Pro-Prefect for the Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches of the Dicastery fo ...

(great-grandson of his brother Macario) and Purita Tagle Abad-Lopa (granddaughter of his brother Guillermo), wife of tycoon and industrialist Manuel Lopa Sr. Lopa's children married into the Aranetas, Cojuangcos and Montinolas families. He is the great-grandfather of former Senator

Richard J. Gordon Richard Juico Gordon (born August 5, 1945) is a Filipino lawyer and politician who most recently served as a Senator from 2016 to 2022, and previously from 2004 to 2010. He has been the chairman and CEO of the Philippine Red Cross since 2004. ...

In popular culture

Tagle was portrayed by

Gary Estrada Gary Jason Bocaling Ejercito (; born May 16, 1971), better known as Gary Estrada, is a Filipino actor and politician. He was a former talent of Viva Films during his early years, starring in action and drama films. He is also a politician, ha ...

in the 2012 film, '' El Presidente''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tagle, Jose 1855 births 1910 deaths People of the Philippine Revolution People from Imus People from the Spanish East Indies