Crispulo Aguinaldo

Crispulo Aguinaldo
Born	(1863-06-10)June 10, 1863 Kawit, Cavite, Philippines
Died	March 24, 1897(1897-03-24) (aged 33) Imus, Cavite, Philippines
Allegiance	First Philippine Republic
Service/branch	Philippine Revolutionary Army
Years of service	1896-1897
Rank	general
Battles/wars	Philippine Revolution

Crispulo Aguinaldo (June 10, 1863 – March 24, 1897) was a native of Kawit, Cavite the older brother of Emilio Aguinaldo and lieutenant general who heroically defended in the Battle of Pasong Santol.^[1]

Early life

Crispulo, was the son of Kapitan Carlos Aguinaldo and Trinidad Famy. He had five brothers namely (Primo, Benigno, Esteban, Ambrosio, and Emilio) and two sisters (Tomasa and Felicidad). He was known as 'Pulong' by his family members, he finished his early studies in his hometown and took up a Bachelor of Arts degree at Colegio de San Juan de Letran. He was married to Irenea Arazaso of Kawit, in which they had seven children. Among their children, only one was named after him because it was his only son. He was a freemason and a Capitan Municipal Of Kawit, Cavite before the revolution.

Revolutionary

He joined the Katipunan, and his troops participated in the Battle of Binakayan on November 11, 1896. They were assiged at the rear position together with his brother Baldomero Aguinaldo. They had defeated the Spanish forces headed by Governor General Ramon Blanco and Colonel Marina. He was also responsible in the insurgents in attacking the Spanish forces in Muntinlupa, Taguig and Pateros in Rizal Province. On February, 1897, he joined his brother, Emilio, who was defending the town of Dasmarinas, Cavite, from the troops of General Lachambre of the division of Captain-General Camilo Polavieja. The Spaniards were victorious in this battle, after which the Filipino forces evacuated the town after days of fighting. General Lachambre and General Antonio Zabala who was the commander of the Spanish forces in Dasmarinas led the attack on Salitran, it was where Gen. Zabala and Crispulo met in a hand-to-hand combat which killed Gen. Zabala.

Tejeros Assembly and death

Crispulo attended the Tejeros Assembly on March 22, 1897, in San Francisco de Malabon (now General Trias) it was where he learned that his brother Emilio was voted as the president of the reorganized revolutionary government. Colonel Vicente Riego de Dios was sent by the assembly to fetch Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo who was then in Pasong Santol. The General refused to come, so Crispulo was then sent to talk to his brother. He greeted and talked to his brother and explained his purpose, but Emilio was hesitant to leave his post because of the pending attack of the Spanish in Dasmarinas and Imus. Crispulo doesn't want to return in Tejeros without his brother, so he offered himself to be left in the area and promised that no Spanish will take over Pasong Santol. They can only take it only over his dead body. But on March 24, two days after Emilio left Pasong Santol, the Spaniards outnumbered them. Although wounded he fought gallantly and died at the age of 33.

References