Nicolasa Dayrit
Encyclopedia
Non-combatant
Non-combatant is a term in the law of war describing civilians not taking a direct part in hostilities, as well as persons such as medical personnel and military chaplains who are regular soldiers but are protected because of their function as well as soldiers who are hors de combat ; that is, sick,...
in the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Her actions not only included helping to minister the sick and wounded Philippine combatants, but also played a major role in appeasing General Antonio Luna
Antonio Luna
Antonio Luna y Novicio was a Filipino pharmacist and general who fought in the Philippine-American War. He was also the founder of the Philippines's first military academy.- Family background :...
during his confrontation with General Tomas Mascardo
Tomas Mascardo
Tomas Mascardo was a Filipino general during the Philippine Revolution. He led the battles against the Spaniards from the start of the revolution and became a governor of Cavite from 1910 to 1912.-Early years:...
. This contributed to the collapse of the Bagbag-Quingua
Plaridel, Bulacan
The Battle of Plaridel was fought in 1945 between troops of the Philippine Commonwealth Army units and the local Bulaceño resistance fighters and those the Japanese Imperial forces in the town municipality of Plaridel.-Barangays:...
-Sta. Maria defense line based on the Pampanga River
Pampanga River
Pampanga River is the second largest river in the island of Luzon, next to Cagayan River and the third largest river in the Philippines...
, which was held against the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
forces.
Governor Tiburcio Hilario, at the same time sent three emissaries to convince General Mascardo to submit himself to Luna's authority as Chief of Staff. At first Mascardo was nowhere to be found but later, he appeared in Betis to inform General Luna that he was willing to follow the latter's orders. That afternoon Luna returned to his headquarters, only to learn that his troops had been defeated in the Battle of Quingua
Battle of Quingua
The Battle of Quingua was fought on April 23, 1899, in Quingua — now Plaridel, Bulacan, Philippines, during the Philippine-American War. The engagement was a two-part battle. The first phase was a brief victory for the young Filipino general Gregorio del Pilar over the American Cavalry led by...
.
Early life
Ancestry
Her father Don Florentino was the grandson of Don Florentino Dimaculangan Dayrit, the eldest son of Don Juan Dayrit, the uncle of Don Fabian Dayrit, the gobernadorcillo of Lubao, Pampanga in 1821. Don Florentino Dimaculangan Dayrit's mother was Doña Dolores Bondoc Dimaculangan Dayrit, the mother of Don Benedicto Dimaculangan Tuazon, the illegitimate son of Don Antonio Tuason, the Grand Patriarch of the Tuason Family in Marikina, Philippines.Doña Dolores' mother Perpetua Pineda Bondoc was from Lubao, Pampanga. Perpetua's parents were Beatriz Pineda of Culiat, Pampanga (now Angeles City) and Carlo Bondoc of San Fernando, Pampanga. Beatriz and Carlo where both children of hardworking Capampangan farmers. After their wedding, they settled at Lubao, Pampanga where Carlo's parents Lucio Bondoc and Rosa Guiang, both from Pampanga, gave the couple a piece of land where they could start as a family.
Doña Dolores' father Ricardo Galang Dimaculangan was from Sta. Cruz, Manila. Ricardo's mother was Barbara Galang, a daughter of a fisherman from Masantol, Pampanga and Ricardo's father was Pascual Dimaculangan, a Sangley
Sangley
Sangley , is an archaic term used in the Philippines to describe and classify a person of pure Chinese ancestry, while mestizo de sangley was used to refer to a person of mixed Chinese and indigenous ancestry Sangley (Sangleye, Sangley Mestizo, Mestisong Sangley, Mestizo de Sangley or Chinese...
or Chinese mestizo native of Sta. Cruz, Manila and a laborer of the Spanish government.
Perpetua and Ricardo lived at Binondo, Manila. Perpetua was a cook of the Spanish friars of the Binondo, Catholic Church while Ricardo worked for the Spanish friars as a sacristan.
Nicolasa was blood related to the Sauzas of Marikina who are the descendants of Don Santiago Sauza, the 22nd gobernadorcillo of Marikina from Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico whose family were the makers of the world famous Sauza Tequila.
Nicolasa's father Don Florentino was the second cousin of Don Juan Tuazon Sauza of Marikina who was the husband of Doña Natividad Sumulong, the sister of Don Policarpio Sumulong who was the mayor of Antipolo, the father of Senator Juan Sumulong y Marquez, the father of Doña Demetria Sumulong Sumulong, the mother of President Corazon C. Aquino, the mother of President Benigno Aquino III
Benigno Aquino III
Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III , also known as Noynoy Aquino or PNoy, is a Filipino politician who has been the 15th and current President of the Philippines since June 2010....
.
She was well-remembered by Criselda Alison Embrado
Criselda Alison Embrado
Criselda Alison Embrado , also known as Sedang, was the fifth child and the only daughter of Don Ricardo Embrado y Del Rosario of Bohol and of Dona Dolores Alison y Cui of Carcar, Cebu...
Sauza (8 February 1899 Carcar, Cebu / June 2000 Kidapawan City
Kidapawan City
Kidapawan City is a 1st class city in the province of Cotabato, Philippines per Department of Finance Order No. 20-2005. It is the capital city of Cotabato Province. It is a favorite tourist destination in the late October to December and in the summer, where thousands of tourist climb the majestic...
, North Cotabato), the second wife of her nephew Demetrio Mendoza Sauza as a woman of remarkable bravery. Criselda met her in 1930s in Manila. Nicolasa was also a woman of intelligence, diplomacy and humility.
Activities in the Philippine-American War
When American forcesMilitary of the United States
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
started bombarding this area, General Luna requested reinforcements from General Tomas Mascardo in Guagua, Pampanga
Guagua, Pampanga
Guagua is a first-class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 104,284 people in 18,438 households....
but the latter carried out the order slowly and in protest. As a result, Luna ordered Mascardo arrest. The latter reacted sharply, arguing to Luna's emissary that while President Aguinaldo
Emilio Aguinaldo
Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy was a Filipino general, politician, and independence leader. He played an instrumental role during the Philippines' revolution against Spain, and the subsequent Philippine-American War or War of Philippine Independence that resisted American occupation...
's decree applied to all troops of the provinces of Pampanga and Nueva Ecija
Nueva Ecija
Nueva Ecija is a landlocked province of the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is Palayan City...
, which were under Luna's jurisdiction, the decree did not apply to general officers of these troops. Mascardo concluded his response with the words, "If General Luna has enough guts to enforce his decree, Mascardo has enough to resist him."
Incensed, General Luna wired Governor Tiburcio Hilario to prepare for his arrival. He also ordered a special train into which all available infantry, cavalry, and artillery forces were loaded. To Luna, Mascardo's non-cooperation was a sign of weakness.
At this moment, the women of the province proved their high sense of patriotism
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
while the men exerted every effort to bind and unite their armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
. To the revolutionary leaders, the welfare of the Republic was greater that that of any man. Governor Tiburcio Hilario met General Luna first and pleaded with him to restore peace and unity at a crucial moment. He requested a delegation of women led by Nicolasa Dayrit and Pampanga's Red Cross
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide which was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and to prevent and alleviate human...
President Praxedes Fajardo, to bring flowers and kneel before General Luna. The women met him on the steps of the convent in Bacolor on April 24, 1899, and successfully dissuaded Luna from violently confronting Mascardo.
Ancestors
Later life
At the end of the war, perhaps due to the rigors of ministering the sick and the wounded, Nicolasa found herself often ill, unable to leave her bed. Many doctors treated her, to no avail. Someone advised her family to consult a young doctor who had just arrived from MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Dr. Vicente Panlilio. She married Dr. Panlilio, and he built for his bride a two storey house at San Jose Street, near Doña Antonina's house in the center of town. It was an elegant semi-concrete house with a concrete porch and a verandah through which one entered the living room.
The Panlilio's had five children: Luis, the eldest was a Harvard law graduate who became a good corporation lawyer and an industrialist, the second was Carlos who seemed to be the tallest young man in town while Teresita who looked much like her mother, married Justice Augusto Luciano of Magalang; Pablo, an American educated architect, became successful in his field aside from being an industrialist while the youngest is Lourdes.
During the Japanese occupation, like most prominent families in San Fernando, the Panlilios lost their house to the Japanese. General Masaharu Homma
Masaharu Homma
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army. He is noteworthy for his role in the invasion and occupation of the Philippines during World War II. Homma, who was an amateur painter and playwright, was also known as the Poet General.-Biography:...
occupied it. When Manila was declared an open city, the Panlilios moved in, hoping that they would be more secure there. But in the Battle of Malate, Dr. Panlilio was lost, never to be seen again. Doña Nicolasa became despondent and died of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on April 12, 1945, possibly due to her depression.
Re-interment and Military Honors
Regional Corporations and Municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago
-Trinidad:Historically, Trinidad was divided into eight counties.-Tobago:Tobago is governed locally by the Tobago House of Assembly.Historically, Tobago was divided into seven parishes . In 1768 each parish of Tobago had nominated representatives to the Tobago House of Assembly...
, Pampanga with full honors and an overnight vigil with members of the Philippine Marines
Armed Forces of the Philippines
The Armed Forces of the Philippines is composed of the Philippine Army, Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force...
serving as honor guards. On September 10, 2006, the National Historical Institute placed a marker in her monument, recognizing her contributions to the fight for Philippine Independence.