Mariano Ponce y Collantes (; March 22, 1863 – May 23, 1918) commonly known as just Mariano Ponce was a Filipino physician, writer, statesman, and active member of the Propaganda Movement. In Spain, he was among the founders of '' La Solidaridad'' and ''Asociación Hispano-Filipino''. Among his significant works was ''Efemerides Filipinas'', a column on historical events in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

which appeared in ''La Oceania Española'' (1892–1893) and ''El Ideal'' (1911–1912). He wrote ''Ang Wika at Lahi'' (1917), a discussion on the importance of a national language. He also served as

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...

's representative to the Philippine Assembly from 1909 to 1912.

Biography

Ponce was born in Baliuag,

to Mariano Ponce and Maria Collantes. He had six siblings: Vicente, Fransisco, Jacinto, Carmen, Pedro, and Consolacion Ponce. He also completed his primary education in Baliuag. He completed his secondary education at the private school of Juan Evangelista, Hugo Ilagan, and Escolastico Salandanan 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 ...

. He later enrolled 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 ...

and took up medicine at the

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 ...

. In 1881, he traveled to

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 ...

to continue his medical studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid. There he joined

Marcelo H. del Pilar Marcelo Hilario del Pilar y Gatmaitán (; ; August 30, 1850July 4, 1896), commonly known as Marcelo H. del Pilar and also known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Pláridel,.''Filipinos in History: Volume II'', National Historical Commission o ...

, Graciano López Jaena,

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 ...

and others in the Propaganda Movement. This espoused Filipino representation in the Spanish Cortes and reforms in the Spanish colonial administration of the Philippines. Ponce was the co-founder of '' La Solidaridad'' with fellow co-founder Graciano López Jaena. He was also the head of the Literary Section of the Asociacion Hispano-Filipina, created to aid the Propaganda Movement where he served as secretary. In La Solidaridad, his works included daily editorials on history, politics, sociology and travel. Ponce used several pen names, including "Naning", his nickname; "Kalipulako", named after Lapu-Lapu; and "Tigbalang", a supernatural being in Filipino folklore.Mariano Ponce: Founder of La Solidaridad Mariano Ponce 2019 historical marker

Mariano Ponce 1970 stamp of the Philippines

Ponce was imprisoned when the revolution broke out in August 1896 and was imprisoned for forty eight hours before being released. Fearing another arrest, he fled to France and later went to Hong Kong where he joined a group of

Filipinos Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino language, Filipino, Philippine English, English, or other Philippine language ...

and

Chinese Filipinos Chinese Filipinos (sometimes referred as Filipino Chinese or Chinoy/Tsinoy in the Philippines) are Filipinos of Chinese descent with ancestry mainly from Fujian, but are typically born and raised in the Philippines. Chinese Filipinos are one ...

, who served as the international front of the Philippine revolution. In 1898,

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 ...

chose him to represent 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 ...

. Ponce was tasked to draft a framework of the

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

government. In 1898, Emilio Aguinaldo selected him as a diplomatic representative of the First Republic to Japan. He traveled to Japan to seek aid and purchase weapons. During his stay he met with the founder and First President of the Chinese Republic;

Sun Yat-Sen Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...

. Through discussions and negotiations, Dr. Sun and Ponce became close friends. Dr. Sun introduced Ponce to a Japanese Filipino man named José Ramos Ishikawa, who assisted Ponce in purchasing weapons and munitions for the revolution. The shipment, unfortunately failed to reach the Philippines due to a

typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...

off the coast of Formosa. Mariano returned to Manila with his wife, a Japanese girl named Okiyo Udanwara (or Udagawa). In 1909, he was made director of "El Renacimiento" (The Renaissance). He joined the Partido Nacionalista (Nationalist Party) and established "El Ideal" (The Perfect), the party's official organization. Ponce later ran for a seat in the Philippine Assembly and was elected assemblyman for the second district of

in 1909. He served for one term until 1912. Mariano_Ponce_family_mausoleum5

Ponce wrote his memoirs, "Cartas Sobre La Revolución" (Letters on the Revolution). He died in the Government Civil Hospital in Hong Kong, on May 23, 1918. His remains were originally interred in the Cementerio del Norte, Manila. According to local historian Rolando Villacorte, his remains were transferred to the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

Ponce family mausoleum in Baliuag Catholic Cemetery. There, he is interred alongside his wife, brother Jacinto, daughter Maria, and grandson Marianito Ponce Gonzales. On May 23, 2019, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines opened the Museo ni Mariano Ponce at the Ponce property in Baliuag, Bulacan.

References

External links

*
Mariano Ponce Timeline

Scans of the Cartas Sobre La Revolución
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ponce, Mariano 1863 births 1918 deaths People of the Philippine Revolution Filipino exiles Filipino expatriates in Hong Kong Filipino nationalists 19th-century Filipino medical doctors Filipino writers University of Santo Tomas alumni Complutense University of Madrid alumni Politicians from Bulacan Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Bulacan Colegio de San Juan de Letran alumni Nacionalista Party politicians Burials at the Manila North Cemetery Members of the Philippine Legislature Filipino propagandists People from the Spanish East Indies