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Pío del Pilar (July 11, 1860-June 21, 1931) was a revolutionary general of the Philippines. He was born as Pío Isidro y Castañeda. To safeguard his family and prevent them from harassment, he changed his surname to del Pilar. He was born in Barrio Culi-culi (now Pío del Pilar), San Pedro de Macati (present-day Makati) on 11 July 1860.
In May 1896, he joined the Katipunan and formed a chapter called Matagumpay (Triumphant), taking the symbolic name Pang-una (Leader). He was, however, arrested by the Spanish authorities who tried to force him to reveal the roster of the Katipunan.
He designed a war flag for his chapter, a blood-red flag with a white triangle with the letter "K" in each angle, and in the middle, a half sun with seven rays.
He led a group of rebels in the Battle of Binakayan on November 9, 1896, capturing the town from Spanish authorities.
His last battle was with the Americans, in the town of Morong. He fought bravely but he and his men were defeated and captured.
He died on 21 June 1931 at the age of 65 due to lingering illness.
Role in Philippine Revolution
A Magdiwang General and one of the closest officers of the Supremo of Katipunan, Andrés Bonifacio. Bonifacio went to Cavite to mediate with Magdiwang and Magdalo faction that become the Tejeros Convention then that Naic Military Agreement that declares the nullity of the Tejeros Convention wherein he was also one of the signatories.
In time, he changed side, becoming one of Emilio Aguinaldo's trusted generals. It was del Pilar (along with Gen. Mariano Noriel including Gen. Artemio Ricarte) that advised Aguinaldo to change the commutation (banishment) to execution of Andrés and Procopio Bonifacio.
During the Philippine–American War, he was captured but never swore allegiance to the American flag and was exiled to Guam. He continued to fight for the cause of the Filipino people by supporting the Jones Bill for Filipinos' preparation for self governance.
From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%ADo_del_Pilar
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The Philippines are an archipelago of more than seven thousand islands off the southeast coast of Asia. Only half of these islands have been named and roughly one thousand are inhabited. Look at how beautiful they are! People first arrived here from the mainland around 25,000 B.C. by crossing a land bridge which existed at the time.The name comes from Ferdinand Magellan of Portugal, who explored the Philippines in 1521. He claimed them in service of Spain, naming them after Prince Philip. Spain controlled the Philippines for the next 350 years until the Philippine Revolution of 1896.Here's a picture of Fort Santiago, where the national hero Jose Rizal was imprisoned prior to his execution. He was a poet and novelist who supported peaceful reform, rather than violent revolution, against the Spanish government.This is one of poems in which he describes the creation of the world, as a gift to his mother:"Say they that tell of the world, the first dawn of the sun, the first kiss that his bosom inflamed, when thousands of beings surged out of nothing, and peopled the depths, and to the heights mounted, to wherever his fecund kiss was implanted"Violent revolution broke out anyway and the Philippines changed hands from Spanish, to American, to Japanese control over the next fifty years. Following World War Two they finally became an independent republic.Back to the beautiful ocean! You can dream about the Cafe Del Mar resort next time you find your screen saver kicking in when you're still sitting at the desk staring blankly. There's a series of DJ mixes with this title but I don't know if it refers to the same place. I would not be surprised.Annnnd to really get you buying your plane tickets...the sunset over Borocay White Beach!Text by Steve Smith.
