Introductuion

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The news of the discovery of the Katipunan spread throughout Manila and the suburbs.
Bonifacio, informed of the discovery, secretly instructed his runners to summon all the leaders
of the society to a general assembly to be held on August 24. They were to meet at Balintawak
to discuss the steps to be taken to meet the crisis. That same night of August 19, Bonifacio,
accompanied by his brother Procopio, Emilio Jacinto, Teodoro Plata, and Aguedo del Rosario,
slipped through the cordon of Spanish sentries and reached Balintawak before midnight. Pio
Valenzuela followed them the next day. On the 21st, Bonifacio changed the Katipunan code
because the Spanish authorities had already deciphered it. In the afternoon of the same day,
the rebels, numbering about 500, left Balintawak for Kangkong, where Apolonio Samson, a
Katipunero, gave them food and shelter. In the afternoon of August 22, they proceeded to
Pugadlawin. The following day, in the yard of Juan A. Ramos, the son of Melchora Aquino who
was later called the "Mother of the Katipunan", Bonifacio asked his men whether they were
prepared to fight to the bitter end. Despite the objection of his brother-in-law, Teodoro Plata,
all assembled agreed to fight to the last. "That being the case, " Bonifacio said, "bring out your
cedulas and tear them to pieces to symbolize our determination to take up arms!" The men
obediently tore up their cedulas, shouting "Long live the Philippines!" This event marked the so-
called "Cry of Balintawak," which actually happened in Pugadlawin.

Statement of the problem

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What is so special to a thousand discontented people tearing their tax certificates? We see
rallies and demonstrations like that almost every week. Is there significance for the boys who
cry today? The day we commemorate our national heroes (fourth Monday of August) is derived
from the day the Katipunan tear apart their cedulas, and declared a war of independence. To
this day, it is even contended that this must be the proper "Independence Day" of the
Philippines, noting that the cry followed an organization of a national government. However,
there are also people who view the cry like a widely accepted event like Christmas (birth of
Jesus) or Good Friday (death of Jesus) in the sense that the exact date is not important. What is
significant is what the event means for all. As for the Cry of Pugad Lawin, it is the culmination of
the Revolution which gave birth to our nation. Besides, this is one aspect of history which
makes it exciting. It is not confined to absolute conclusions and definitions. Indeed, there is
more for the future generations to study about.

Significance of the Study

Historian Teodoro Agoncillo, whose seminal work "The Revolt of the Masses: The
Story of Bonifacio and the Katipunan" (1956) helped organize Katipunan history as
we know it today, had the privilege to interview both Masangkay and Valenzuela,
among other surviving veterans of the Revolution. Seeing the similarities and the
differences between the accounts of the Katipuneros, Agoncillo tried to find
possible independent sources to validate their claims. For one, he consulted the
Manila Observatory. This is to know which days from August 22 to 28 (just before
the first battle at Pinaglabanan in San Juan) may fit the weather described by the
existing accounts.

He came to the conclusion that only August 23 may be the viable date to do the
cry, because the rest of the days considered are rainy days. It will prove difficult
to assemble a thousand people at the yard of someone else's house, and then
tear up cedulas into pieces. Agoncillo also notes that August 23 is a windy day. It
will be easier for them to clean up, which may explain why Manuel Sityar, one of
the guardia civil officers patrolling the area at the time, did not notice them.
Agoncillo does not seem to agree to the current site recognized as Pugad Lawin at
Bahay Toro. However, the marker he placed to denote the location of Pugad
Lawin has disappeared. Despite the reputation of Agoncillo, other historians do
not seem to share his ideas all of the time. The location of Pugad Lawin is case in
point.

Nevertheless, to this day, there seemed to be supporters of the notion of "two

cries." One of them would be Soledad Borromeo-Buehler, a descendant of
Masangkay, in her book "The Cry of Balintawak: A Contrived Controversy" (1998).
What supports this claim is the supposed meeting that took place before the cry,
and the supposed battle that took place after the cry. It is forwarded that there
were at least two meetings and two skirmishes prior to the Battle of Pinaglabanan
on August 30. On August 24, there must have been a meeting at Kangkong, and
on August 26, there must have been a meeting at Balintawak. In between, there is
August 23, and August 25. There are two opportunities wherein the Katipunan
may have gathered their forces. Consequently, there are two opportunities for
the Katipunan to encounter Spanish forces, something that may be derived from
the account of Manuel Ros, another guardia civil officer assigned to the area. This
does seem to coincide with Masangkay's claim of two cries on August 24 and 26.
At any rate, she concludes that the "Cry of Pugad Lawin" as we know today is a
"hoax."

There also seems consensus among other Katipunan members who were absent
from the cry that there must have been a momentous event on August 24. For
instance, the Biak-na-Bato Constitution acknowledges that the Revolution began
on August 24, and it was a document ratified by at least one of the Katipuneros
who attended the cry, Cipriano Pacheco. The date was also agreed upon by Emilio
Aguinaldo, who supposedly received the news about the decision to start the
Revolution. Of course, just like Valenzuela, Aguinaldo may not be the most
reliable source to consider. Historians Milagros Guerrero, Emmanuel Encarnacion,
and Ramon Villegas also agree to August 24, even though they claim only a
singular "Cry of Balintawak" which happened at the house of Melchora Aquino at
Sitio Gulod in Barrio Banlat. It is now part of Quezon City.

However, the question of where the cry happened will float again. Did the two
cries happen at Pugad Lawin? Or is Pugad Lawin some code name for a set
location to congregate? If it happened in different places, does that explain why
there are two Pugad Lawins as well, one near Pasong Tamo and one near Bahay
Toro? Or perhaps, as old maps confirm, Pugad Lawin is not a real place at all? in
this case, it might be better to revert to "Cry of Balintawak." Where there two
cedulas to tear with in the first place, or there were two groups of people who
chose to tear their cedulas? Speaking of groups of people, it is interesting to see
who attended the said event, at least according to Masangkay's list:

1. Melecia Ruestra
2. Pastor Santos
3. Salustiano Cruz
4. Procopio Bonifacio
5. Juan de la Cruz
6. Emilio Jacinto
7. Andres Bonifacio
8. Pio Valenzuela
9. Vicente Leyva
10.Ramon Bernardo
11.Geronimo Medina y Cristobal
12.Vicente Molina
13.Miguel Resurreccion
14.Patricio Belen
15.Crispulo Chacon
16.Lorenzo Martinez
17.Tomas Villanueva
18.Pio Santos
19.Tomas Alegre
20.Roman Ramos
21.Tito Miguel
22.Aguedo del Rosario
23.Apolonio Cruz
24.Alejandro Santiago
25.Deogracias Fajardo
26.Juan Fajardo
27.Rogelio Borja
28.Isaac del Carmen
29.Hilario Sayo
30.Cipriano Pacheco
31.Teodoro Plata
32.Jose Trinidad
33.Hermogenes Plata
34.Tomas Remigio
35.Pantaleon Torres
36.Enrique Pacheco
37.Faustino Manalac
38.Cosme Taguyod
39.Rafael Gutierrez
 40.Guillermo Masangkay (himself)
41.Pedro Zabala
42.Briccio Pantas
43.Estanislao Vargas
44.Apolonio Samson
45.Julio Navarro
46.Alejandro Andaya
47.Marcelo Badell
48.Macario Sakay
49.Nicomedes Carreon
50.Francisco Carreon
51.Sarhento Marcelo
52.Valentin Lagasca
53.Eugenio Santos
54.Calixto Santiago
55.Restituto Javier
56.Hermenegildo Reyes

Is it possible that the reader found a possible family ancestor? Anyway, would
have it been easier to know if the rest of the attendees, say Emilio Jacinto or
Andres Bonifacio, can clear up the confusion? At the least, there may be a
consensus that the week leading to the first battle of the Revolution is eventful.

Scope and limitation of the study

Review of Related Literature
Methods of the Study
Limitations of the Study