Narciso Abuke was an

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in the

Philippine Revolutionary Army The Philippine Revolutionary Army, later renamed Philippine Republican Army (Spanish: ''Ejército Revolucionario Filipino''; Tagalog: ''Panghimagsikang Hukbong Katihan ng Pilipinas''), was the official armed forces of the First Philippine Repu ...

during the Philippine-American War. He was Area Commander of General Lukbán's forces for Northern

Samar Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...

. After the war, he helped establish peace and order in Samar, in the transition to American governance. Abuke is credited for killing Pedro de la Cruz, the fighting leader of the

Pulahan The Pulahan (literally "those wearing red" in Cebuano; es, pulajanes), also known as dios-dios, were the members of a religious revival of Philippine beliefs that developed in the Visayas prior to the Philippine Revolution. At its peak, it ...

. He was Mayor of

Catarman, Northern Samar Catarman, officially the Municipality of Catarman ( war, Bungto han Catarman; tgl, Bayan ng Catarman), is a 1st class municipality and capital of the province of Northern Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of ...

Military career

Philippine-American War

In the Philippine-American War, Abuke held the rank of

and was given command of Northern Samar. On February 15, 1900, Abuke left Laguan for Bido, a small town along the

Catubig Catubig, officially the Municipality of Catubig ( war, Bungto han Catubig; tl, Bayan ng Catubig), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Northern Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 32,174 people. Hi ...

River. 5 days later, American Major J.C. Gilmore arrived with orders to occupy Laguan. However, upon learning of Abuke's presence, Gilmore formed a hunting party to hunt Abuke immediately. As Gilmore neared Bido on a steamer, Abuke along with 60 men and 40 guns, fired on them. Gilmore and his men returned fire, killing one of Abuke's men and injuring 3 including Abuke who sustained a minor shoulder injury. Abuke and his men retreated to Catubig. Catubig was a key strategic position. It was the main source of rice for the area, located at the heart of Northeastern Samar and brought access to all the towns along the river.

Surrender

On April 26, 1902, Gen. Claro Guevarra, who took command of Samar following General Lukbán's capture, surrendered Samar to Major-General Frederick D.Grant. On April 27, 1902, Gen. Claro Guevarra, Abuke and the other officers took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States.

Political career

Major-General

Frederick D. Grant Frederick Dent Grant (May 30, 1850 – April 12, 1912) was a soldier and United States minister to Austria-Hungary. Grant was the first son of General and President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant and Julia Grant. He was named after his ...

seeing the difficulty in restoring order to Samar, gave Abuke, Col. Rafael and Maj.

Eugenio Daza Don Eugenio Daza y Salazar (November 15, 1870 – December 16, 1954) is a Filipino '' principale'' (nobleman) recognized by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) as the first ''maestro'' (teacher) in the Samar province. He was ...

, active roles in securing Samar. They were each given a district where they were responsible for the return of displaced peoples to their communities. They were tasked with encouraging reconstruction, convincing the '' principales'' to swear an oath to the U.S. and organizing local government. With the support of Abuke, MG Grant established the provincial government of Samar with municipal governments and representatives from all but one of the towns, in only forty-nine days. A feat that MG Grant writes considering the challenges "a triumph for the Army". Governor George Curry, the American governor of Samar, appointed Daza and Abuke as Captains of the Samar

Philippine Constabulary The Philippine Constabulary (PC; tl, Hukbóng Pamayapà ng Pilipinas, ''HPP''; es, Policía de Filipinas, ''PF'') was a gendarmerie-type police force of the Philippines from 1901 to 1991, and the predecessor to the Philippine National Po ...

. Daza oversaw East-Samar and Abuke West-Samar. As captains they appointed subordinate officers and enlisted men. They led companies of 100 armed men each. During their time Daza and Abuke captured leaders and bandits of the

. Abuke is credited with killing their fighting leader, Pedro de la Cruz and 20 of his men.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abuke, Narciso Filipino military leaders 20th-century Filipino politicians Philippine Constabulary personnel People from Samar (province)