
<figure class="image-550">
<img src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-29/vito-belarmino.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Historical sepia-toned portrait of General Vito Belarmino y Loyola in a high-collared military uniform, wearing round spectacles and featuring a mustache." />
<figcaption>
General Vito Belarmino y Loyola (1857–1933) in military uniform, who served as Assistant Secretary of War and Military Governor of Albay during the Philippine Revolution and Philippine-American War.
</figcaption>
</figure>

<p>
He served as Assistant Secretary of War in the First Philippine Republic and was later appointed as the military governor of the Bicol Region. In Bicol, Belarmino organized provincial government institutions, managed local economic resources, and led both conventional and guerrilla operations against foreign forces.   
</p>
<h2>
Early Life, Education, and Municipal Leadership
</h2>
<p>
Vito Belarmino was born on <time datetime="1857-06-15">June 15, 1857</time>, in Silang, Cavite, to <strong>Severino Belarmino</strong> and <strong>Damiana Loyola</strong>. He received his early education in Cavite before moving to Manila to attend the <a href="/kauswagan/articles/2884/the-history-of-colegio-de-san-juan-de-letran" class="news_link">Colegio de San Juan de Letran</a>. His formal studies ended prematurely when a widespread cholera outbreak forced educational institutions in the capital to close, prompting his return to Silang.   
</p>
<p>
At age nineteen, Belarmino entered civil administration in his hometown. Over two decades, he served in several municipal offices within the Spanish colonial local government system. His roles included cabeza de barangay (neighborhood head), teniente mayor (chief lieutenant), secretary to the municipal tribunal, and gobernadorcillo (town mayor). These positions gave him practical experience in record-keeping, local revenue administration, public order, and community organization, which later informed his work as a military administrator.   
</p>


<div class="table-wrapper">
  <table>
    <caption>Table 1: Summary of Municipal Offices Held by Vito Belarmino in Silang, Cavite</caption>
    <tr>
      <th>Office Held</th>
      <th>Primary Administrative Duties</th>
      <th>Connection to Later Military Career</th>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Cabeza de Barangay</td>
      <td>Local tax collection and neighborhood census management.</td>
      <td>Developed skills in local resource accounting and community mobilization.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Secretary to the Tribunal</td>
      <td>Drafting municipal records, legal documentation, and official correspondence.</td>
      <td>Provided training for administrative duties in the War Department.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Teniente Mayor</td>
      <td>Assisting the town executive and managing local public safety.</td>
      <td>Provided initial leadership experience in maintaining municipal order.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Gobernadorcillo</td>
      <td>Serving as chief executive officer of the municipality.</td>
      <td>Established political standing and public trust across Cavite.</td>
    </tr>
  </table>
</div>

<h2>
Military Service in the Revolution against Spain
</h2>
<p>
When the Philippine Revolution broke out in <time datetime="1896-08">August 1896</time>, Belarmino joined the Katipunan, taking the operational name <em>"Walang Gulat"</em>. His military service began in Cavite and expanded into neighboring provinces. He fought alongside <a href="/articles/3325/emilio-aguinaldos-life-and-leadership" class="news_link">Emilio Aguinaldo</a> in Batangas during an attack on Infantry Battalion No. 72 of the Spanish Army stationed in Talisay. During this action, Aguinaldo placed Belarmino in direct command of the assault against the town church, convent, and Spanish guard detachments, resulting in a victory for the revolutionary forces. Belarmino subsequently led troops in actions at Naic, Cavite, and Montalban in present-day Rizal Province.   
</p>





<p>
During this period, Belarmino participated in planning sessions hosted at the Taal, Batangas residence of <a href="/kauswagan/articles/2839/today-in-philippine-history-may-13-1852-gliceria-marella-de-villavicencio-godmother-of-the-philippine-revolution-was-born-in-taal-batangas" class="news_link">Gliceria Marella Villavicencio</a>, a prominent benefactor who supplied funds, food, and transport vessels to the revolutionary army.   
</p>
<p>
Recognizing his administrative background, Aguinaldo appointed Belarmino as Assistant Secretary of War under Secretary Emiliano Riego de Dios at Biak-na-Bato on <time datetime="1897-11-03">November 3, 1897</time>. Belarmino was a signatory to the Constitution of Biak-na-Bato in late 1897. Following the signing of the <a href="/articles/3299/pact-of-biak-na-bato-1897-philippine-revolution-history" class="news_link">Pact of Biak-na-Bato</a> on <time datetime="1897-12-14">December 14, 1897</time>, he was among the 36 revolutionary leaders who accompanied Aguinaldo into exile in Hong Kong.   
</p>
<p>
Belarmino returned to the Philippines in mid-1898 following the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. Contemporary accounts recorded that during military operations, Belarmino treated Spanish prisoners of war with fairness and professional discipline. In September 1898, he represented the province of Batanes as a delegate to the Malolos Congress. His appointment as Assistant Secretary of War was officially reconfirmed on <time datetime="1898-09-30">September 30, 1898</time>.   
</p>
<h2>
Command and Governance in the Bicol Region
</h2>
<p>
On <time datetime="1898-10-29">October 29, 1898</time>, President Emilio Aguinaldo assigned Belarmino to lead the military and civil government of Albay Province, while also appointing him military commander over the neighboring provinces of Camarines and Sorsogon. Upon arriving in Bicol, Belarmino established a republican provincial government structured according to the directives of the Malolos Republic.   
</p>
<p>
Belarmino's leadership in Albay involved both political administration and economic management. Albay was a key economic center due to its production of abaca (Manila hemp), a crop critical for global maritime trade. Working alongside General <a href="/kauswagan/articles/666/jose-ignacio-paua-the-philippine-revolution-only-pure-blooded-chinese-general" class="news_link">José Ignacio Paua</a>, who had been dispatched to collect revolutionary contributions, Belarmino managed local revenues that helped fund the national government in Luzon.   
</p>
<p>
Belarmino also recruited and organized local leaders into the revolutionary forces. On <time datetime="1898-04-02">April 2, 1898</time>, he directed operations during the Battle of Camalig, where revolutionary troops defeated Spanish forces stationed in Albay. Following the engagement, Belarmino promoted local fighter <a href="/kauswagan/articles/1479/september-2-1865-simeon-ola-was-born-in-guinobatan-albay" class="news_link">Simeón Ola</a> to Captain, establishing a military command relationship that continued through the subsequent war with American forces.   
</p>
<p>
When hostilities erupted between Philippine and American forces in <time datetime="1899">February 1899</time>, Belarmino ordered the Port of Legazpi closed. This measure aimed to prevent the export of abaca to foreign markets under occupation control, using trade disruption as leverage to protect the republic's sovereignty. The resulting closure prompted American military commanders to prioritize an invasion of the Bicol region.   
</p>
<h2>
Defense of Albay and Guerrilla Resistance
</h2>
<p>
In <time datetime="1900-01">January 1900</time>, the United States Expeditionary Forces initiated an invasion of the Bicol Peninsula. Brigadier General William August Kobbé commanded a naval expedition transporting the 43rd and 47th Volunteer Infantry Regiments to occupy Legazpi and reopen the abaca trade.   
</p>



General Vito Belarmino: Life, Battles & Legacy


Learn how Katipunan general Vito Belarmino ("Walang Gulat") led local administration, fought Spanish forces, and defended Bicol against U.S. troops.


Life and Legacy of General Vito Belarmino y Loyola

Introduction and Historical Background