With almost all of Cavite in the hands of the Spaniards, [ Governor General ] Primo de Rivera issued another decree extending the benefit of his pardon beyond May 17, 1897. His purpose was to win over the Filipinos to his policy of attraction. A few took advantage of the governor's decree, while the rest continued their resistance against the enemy.

Aguinaldo, meanwhile was in Talisay, Batangas where he had established his headquarters. The enemy surrounded the area in the hope of capturing him, but he slipped through the Spanish cordon on June 10 and proceeded with his men to the hilly region of Morong ( Rizal ). With 500 picked men, he crossed the Pasig to Malapad-na-Bato, near Guadalupe, and from here he secretly passed through San Juan del Monte and Montalban, and on to Mount Puray. After a well-earned rest, Aguinaldo and his men proceeded to Biak-na-Bato, San Miguel de Mayumo, where he established his headquarters.

News of Aguinaldo's arrival at Biak-na-Bato reached the towns of Central Luzon. As a consequence, armed men from Pangasinan, Zambales, and Ilocos provinces, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija, renewed their armed resistance against the enemy. From Biak-na-Bato, Aguinaldo and his men joined forces with those of General Mariano Llanera of Nueva Ecija and harassed the Spanish soldiers garrisoned in the Central Luzon Provinces. With the coming of the rainy season, Primo de Rivera's campaigns were temporarily halted.

Before July 1897, Aguinaldo and his men had already established a republican government at Biyak-na-Bato, known as the Biyak-na-Bato Republic. The provisional constitution of this Republic was prepared by Felix Ferrer and Isabelo Artacho, who copied, almost word for word, the Cuban constitution of Jimaguayu. The Biyak-na-bato Constitution was signed on November 1, 1897. Its preamble states:

History of the Filipino People. Teodoro A. Agoncillo

Top History Links

Filipino Spirit