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<img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources/emilio_aguinaldo.webp" alt="Emilio Aguinaldo" />
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(General Emilio Aguinaldo)
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Emilio, nicknamed Miong, was seventh of the eight children of Kapitan Carlos Aguinaldo y Jamir and Kapitana Trinidad Famy y Valero. He had his primary education at the public school in Kawit. His mother who was widowed when he was nine years old sent him to study at the College of <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2884/the-history-of-colegio-de-san-juan-de-letran" class="news_link">San Juan de Letran</a>. However, Aguinaldo quit college and returned home in Kawit. 


At seventeen, Aguinaldo was appointed cabeza de barangay, which his mother arranged for him so that he would not be conscripted in the military. He engaged in barter trade in the 
nearby southern islands and in Manila. During all this time, he became conscious of the growing discontent against the Spanish colonial government. Thus, it was not surprising when he joined the Freemasonry, a fraternity banned by the Church and the government. He was inducted as a neophyte of Pilar Lodge, adopting Colon as his Masonic name, in Imus in the evening of January 
1, 1895, hours after he took his oath as Capitan Municipal, a position entrusted to him by the electoral tribunal. 


His association with Santiago Alvarez got him involved with the secret society of <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/786/today-in-philippine-history-november-30-1863-andres-bonifacio-was-born-in-tondo-manila" class="news_link">Andres Bonifacio</a>. He was inducted in March 1895 in San Nicolas, Manila, adopting the symbolic name 
Magdalo, after Santa Maria Magdalena, patroness of Kawit. 


On January 1, 1896, Kapitan Miong married <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2415/today-in-philippine-history-february-17-1877-hilaria-del-rosario-the-philippines-first-first-lady-was-born-in-imus-cavite" class="news_link">Hilaria del Rosario</a> from Imus. 


On August 19 that same year, the Spanish authorities discovered the Katipunan. Thus, Bonifacio had no choice but to call all the Katipuneros to rise in arms, an event that was marked in history as 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>. Responding to this call, Kapitan Miong led the uprising in Cavite on 
August 31 and the days that followed. All these attacks were successful that he became popular as combat commander and earned the address of his compatriots as "General". 


With most towns in Cavite taken by Aguinaldo’s troops, Spanish forces concentrated their campaigns in Cavite, even urging to cease the hostilities to no avail. Because of this, the 
Spaniards became more determined to have him arrested. It was in early 1897, when the enemy scored against Aguinaldo under the leadership of the new Governor General <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/1395/december-13-1896-camilo-polavieja-arrived-in-manila-as-new-governor-general" class="news_link">Camilo Polavieja</a>, who ordered the vigorous campaign in Cavite. This resulted to the capture of several 
towns under the control of the Katipuneros. In the battles that ensued, many of Aguinaldo’s men perished including his brother Crispulo and his two other generals, <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2835/today-in-philippine-history-february-24-1862-edilberto-evangelista-a-civil-engineer-and-a-revolutionary-general-was-born-in-sta-cruz-manila" class="news_link">Edilberto Evangelista</a> and Flaviano Yengko. 


Unfortunately, the battles that kept the Katipuneros occupied in order to liberate the country from the Spanish colonial government did not spare them from fighting each other. 
They split into two rival factions – the Magdalo that recognized Aguinaldo’s leadership and Magdiwang that gave its support to Bonifacio. This rivalry climaxed at the Tejeros where the two factions met on March 22, 1897. What was supposedly a meeting to settle differences and to change the Katipunan into a revolutionary government turned out to into a deeper conflict and 
resulted to the execution of Bonifacio near Mount Buntis in Maragondon, Cavite on May 10, 1897, leaving Aguinaldo as the undisputed leader of the Revolution.

March 22, 1869: Emilio Aguinaldo was born in Kawit, Cavite