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<img src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-26/andres-bonifacio.avif" alt="Andrés Bonifacio" loading="lazy" />
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(The sole surviving photograph of Andrés Bonifacio - Wikipedia)
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<p>
Led by Bonifacio and <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/823/today-in-philippine-history-december-15-1875-emilio-jacinto-was-born-in-trozo-tondo-manila" class="news_link">Emilio Jacinto</a>, approximately 800 to 1,000 Katipuneros attacked a Spanish powder magazine (<b class="lt-bold">El Polvorín</b>) in San Juan del Monte, now San Juan City, a part of Metro Manila. The revolutionaries, mostly armed with bolos, bamboo spears, and a handful of rifles, faced a smaller but better-equipped Spanish garrison reinforced by colonial troops. The clash resulted in heavy losses for the Katipuneros, but it prompted the Spanish Governor-General Ramón Blanco to <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2050/today-in-philippine-history-august-30-1896-governor-blanco-placed-8-provinces-under-martial-law" class="news_link">declare martial law in eight provinces</a>, escalating the revolution.
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<h2>
Background
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<p>
The Philippine Revolution stemmed from growing discontent with Spanish colonial policies, including heavy taxation, forced labor, and suppression of Filipino rights. The Katipunan, or <b class="lt-bold">Kataas-taasang, Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan</b> (Supreme and Venerable Association of the Children of the Nation), was established in 1892 by Bonifacio and others to organize a secret society dedicated to independence through armed revolt.
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<b class="lt-bold">Teodoro Patiño</b>, a member of the Katipunan, exposed the existence of the secret society to Spanish authorities. He disclosed the Katipunan's plans to a friar after a dispute with a fellow member.  This forced Bonifacio to accelerate plans for rebellion. On August 23, at Pugad Lawin (or Balintawak), Bonifacio and his followers tore their cedulas (residence certificates symbolizing Spanish control) in the "<a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/523/today-in-philippine-history-august-23-1896-katipuneros-led-by-andres-bonifacio-tore-their-cedulas" class="news_link">Cry of Pugad Lawin</a>", signaling the start of the uprising.
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<p>
By August 29, Bonifacio had gathered forces from various Katipunan chapters. At 5 p.m., he met with about 800 men at Hagdang Bato in San Felipe Neri (now Mandaluyong). By evening, the group, now numbering around 1,000 including local police who defected, advanced toward San Juan del Monte. Their primary target was El Polvorín, a strategic gunpowder depot guarded by a small Spanish force of about 12 Philippine soldiers and two Spanish officers, armed with Mauser rifles.
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A second group under <b class="lt-bold">Sancho Valenzuela</b> arrived from Santa Mesa, bolstering the attackers. The Katipuneros' armament was rudimentary: bolos, spears, anting-anting (amulets believed to provide protection), and limited firearms. This disparity in weaponry would prove critical.
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The Battle of San Juan del Monte, the dawn of the Philippine revolution, took place on August 30, 1896