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(Teodora Morales Alonzo Realonda de Rizal y Quintos)
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As the young Rizal's first teacher, she had a profound influence on his development and was his inspiration in taking up medicine.
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Teodora was the second child of Lorenzo Alonso and Brijida de Quintos.   In accordance to the decree issued by Governor-General <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/764/today-in-philippine-history-november-21-1849-claveria-issued-a-decree-to-adopt-a-standardized-records-of-filipino-names-and-surnames" class="news_link">Narciso Claveria in 1849</a>, their family adopted the surname <i>"Realonda de Rizal"</i>.  Coming from an able family, Teodora had her 

formal education at the Colegio de Santa Rosa in Manila. Just like her mother, she was well-educated and highly cultured.
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<p>
She was 20 years old when she married Francisco Mercado of Biñan, Laguna in 1848. They settled in Calamba, Laguna and to them were 

born eleven children namely: <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2794/today-in-philippine-history-june-4-1850-saturnina-rizal-the-eldest-sister-of-jose-rizal-was-born-in-calamba-laguna" class="news_link">Saturnina</a>, <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2697/the-little-known-but-equally-patriotic-general-paciano-rizal" class="news_link">Paciano</a>, Narcisa, Olimpia, Lucia, Maria, Jose, Concepcion, Josefa, <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2745/today-in-philippine-history-june-6-1868-trinidad-rizal-younger-sister-of-jose-rizal-was-born-in-calamba-laguna" class="news_link">Trinidad</a>, and <a href="https://kahimyang.com/articles/2999/soledad-rizal-the-heros-controversial-sister" class="news_link">Soledad</a>. 

The Rizal family was primarily engaged in agriculture.
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As the mother of a perceived enemy of the Spanish authorities, Teodora was often persecuted. In 1872, she was imprisoned for two 

and a half years on trumped-up charges of poisoning her brother's wife.  In 1891, she was made to walk fifty kilometers to Sta. 

Cruz, Laguna, for failing to use her hispanicized surname, Realonda de Rizal.  She had insisted on using Alonzo.  Her family was 

ejected from their lands in Calamba due to a land conflict after which they relocated to Manila.
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November 9, 1827: Teodora Alonso, mother of Dr. Jose Rizal was born in Meisik, Tondo, Manila