José Rizal was born to Francisco Engracio Rizal Mercado Alejandra II and Teodora Morales Alonso Realonda Quintos. He hailed from a family of prosperous farmers. Rizal was the seventh of eleven children. José's father adopted the family name 'Rizal' from 'Ricial', which meant 'green fields'. Even as a child, José advocated political ideas ahead of the time. He spoke of freedom and citizen rights, issues that brought on the ire of the authorities. He actively participated in poetry and essay writing and made notable contributions to Philippine literature. He openly criticized Spanish colonization of the Philippines.
Rizal graduated from Ateneo Municipal de Manila. He obtained a Land Surveyor and Assessor Degree. He also studied Philosophy at the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Arts and Letters. And, this was not all; he registered for the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery course in ophthalmology, but did not complete the course on account of indiscriminate behavior against Filipino students. Instead, he opted for Licentiate in Medicine from the Universidad Central de Madrid.
Rizal also attended the University of Paris and Heidelberg for a second doctorate. His induction as a member of Berlin's Ethnological and Anthropological Society is immortalized in his poem, 'A las flores del Heidelberg'. He strongly advocated unification of Oriental and Occidental values. Rizal is fondly remembered as a multi-faceted scholar. He displayed facets of his persona as a polymath, ophthalmologist, educator and historian, alongside artistic pursuits like painting, sculpting and creative writing. Rizal is remembered for authoring two popular novels: Noli me Tangere and El filibusterismo.
Rizal advocated a political system that presented scope for Philippine's participation in the Cortes, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and equal rights for all citizens. In 1892, he legalized these social reforms, at the expense of being disbanded. He was openly declared 'enemy of the state' by the Spanish due to his rebellious nature and ideologies promoted in his novels. He was imprisoned in 1896, while his brother, Paciano, was tortured by the Spanish authorities. Due to his participation in the nascent rebellion in 1892, Rizal was deported to Zamboanga. There, he not only helped the locals to build a school and hospital, but also led the effort towards incorporating a better water supply system.
He was supportive of self sufficiency of the youth and resourcefulness of farmers. The four years of exile were also ones that witnessed the development of the revolution back home. Inspite of being elected as Honorary President of the Katipunan, he condemned the revolution. Rizal courted Josephine Bracken, an Irish woman. He did not marry her since marriage would require him to embraceCatholicism, which was against the revolution. 1896 witnessed a nationwide uprising in the Philippines, resulting in the proclamation of a democratic republic. Rizal chose to serve in Cuba, to help victims of yellow fever. Enroute, Rizal was arrested in Barcelona and sent back to Manila. He was tried before a court-martial on the charges of 'rebellion' and 'conspiracy'. Rizal was convicted and sentenced to death.
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