By the year 1810 it was plain that it would no longer be possible to carry on the colony’s trade by means of the galleons to Mexico. The Spanish Cortes (cor´tās), therefore, passed a decree discontinuing these ships, and Manila merchants were given permission to fit out private ships, under the Spanish flag, for trade with America. The last state galleon left Manila for Acapulco in 1811. That same year saw the start of the first newspaper in the Philippines, and the beginning of an effort by the young men of Manila to bring about a better understanding between the colony and the mother country.
About this time the cause of political liberty began to win a hearing in Spain. The Liberal Party was in power there, and a strong feeling for popular government was winning its way in the country. In 1809 the Supreme Council in Spain convened the famous Cortes de Cadiz, in which were assembled delegates from all Spain’s colonies—Cuba, Venezuela, the Philippines, etc. The Cortes some time later passed what is known in history as the Act of Constitution of 1812. It gave to each of the colonies the right to send one or more representatives to the Cortes.
The Filipino delegate who signed this Act of Constitution was Ventura de Los Reyes (ven tö´rä dā los rī’es). The Act was sworn to by the proper officials in Manila in 1813, but soon afterwards was suspended. It came into force again, however, a few years later, and in 1820 the Cortes again admitted representatives from the Philippines. There were seventeen of these representatives, and they took part in the parliamentary debates of 1822–1823.
A short time afterwards the Constitution was again suspended by act of Ferdinand VII. A little later King Ferdinand died, and again two Filipino deputies sat in the Cortes. Filipino members also sat in the Cortes during the reign of Isabella II., but upon the opening of Parliament in 1837 it was voted to exclude them. Thus the dream of the Filipinos, of representation in the government, came to naught.
All this gave the people a taste of political freedom. The men who represented the islands in the Spanish Cortes came back to Manila full of the idea of equal rights for all. They preached this doctrine to the people, and their words found ready hearers. Soon, on Luzon, a group of young Filipinos and Mestizos gathered. Their aim was to bring about real reforms in the government, and to secure greater peace, prosperity, and liberty to the people. The discontent of the Filipinos began to be of a more intelligent sort, and to have a definite purpose. The people were coming to a clearer idea of what they wanted, and of the nature of the reforms needed in the country.
KING FERDINAND VII.
At this time, too, foreigners began to do business in Manila. England, by force of arms, had gained the right to trade with this port, and “the shut door” was no longer possible. Mexico had obtained her freedom from Spain, and the islands were now governed direct from the Peninsula. The independence of Mexico had a marked influence on the Filipinos in Luzon. They began to feel that they too might strike for their rights. They had no idea of winning independence, but they felt that they must have greater liberty. To meet this growing discontent more troops were asked for, and were sent from Spain. The King’s Regiment was reorganized from these, and a force of 10,000 men was kept in and about Manila.
In the Visayas matters were different. The people there were farther from the capital. They knew little or nothing of the changes and the differences brought about by the Constitution of 1812. They had no idea of the meaning of the word “equality” as between themselves and their rulers. Most of them had never heard of the Constitution of 1812. They did not dream that political equality had ever been thought of for them.
The colony was at this time troubled outwardly as well as within. Spain and England were at war, and the English were a source of danger and anxiety to the archipelago. Several expeditions had to be raised to fight off the British from various places on the islands, where they had set up headquarters. The Moros and the wild tribes of Mindanao were also giving trouble. They even came as far north as Manila, and carried off men and women into captivity in the south.