Rafael Manio Ileto (October 24, 1920 – June 19, 2003) was a Filipino general who served as the 22nd Secretary of the

Department of National Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philippi ...

(DND) of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. He also became the Vice Chief of Staff of the

Armed Forces of the Philippines The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ( fil, Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The ...

(AFP). He also served as Philippine Ambassador to

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Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, and

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

Early years

Rafael Ileto was born on October 24, 1920, in San Isidro, Nueva Ecija. He took up his primary education in his hometown, and finished his secondary education in Nueva Ecija High School in

Cabanatuan City Cabanatuan, officially the City of Cabanatuan ( fil, Lungsod ng Cabanatuan; ilo, Siudad ti Cabanatuan), is a 1st class component city in the province of Nueva Ecija, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 327,325 peo ...

. Ileto then entered the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

pursuing an Engineering degree for the first two years, but later entered the

Philippine Military Academy The Philippine Military Academy ( fil, Akademiyang Militar ng Pilipinas / es, Academia Militar de Filipinas) also referred to by its acronym PMA is the premier military academy for Filipinos aspiring for a commission as a military officer of ...

in 1940. Topping his class in PMA, Ileto gained his appointment to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, through the Foreign Cadet Program. He finished with the accelerated Class of 1943 (which actually graduated in 1942), along with prominent members such as Brig. Gen.

Robin Olds Robin Olds (July 14, 1922 – June 14, 2007) was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the United States Air Force (USAF). He was a " triple ace", with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. ...

, Maj. Gen.

Harold Parfitt Major General Harold Robert Parfitt (August 6, 1921 – May 21, 2006), was the last Governor of the Panama Canal Zone, from 1975 to 1979. Biography He was born in Coaldale, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Coaldale, Pennsylvania on August 6, 19 ...

, Brig. Gen.

Robert F. McDermott Brigadier General Robert Francis McDermott (July 31, 1920 – August 28, 2006) was the first permanent Dean of the Faculty at the United States Air Force Academy, and later served as Chairman and CEO of USAA. He is often referred to as the "Father ...

, and Gen. Bernard W. Rogers.

Military & Political career

Upon graduating from West Point, 2nd. Lt. Ileto entered the

Infantry School A School of Infantry provides training in weapons and infantry tactics to infantrymen of a nation's military forces. Schools of infantry include: Australia *Australian Army – School of Infantry, Lone Pine Barracks at Singleton, NSW. France ...

for three months in

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. From there he joined the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment in

Camp San Luis Obispo Camp San Luis Obispo is the original home of the California Army National Guard. It served as an Infantry Division Camp and Cantonment Area for the United States Army during World War II. History Camp San Luis Obispo, formerly called Camp Merri ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, which departed on September 19, 1943, to join the Pacific Theater of Operations - beginning with the

New Guinea Campaign The New Guinea campaign of the Pacific War lasted from January 1942 until the end of the war in August 1945. During the initial phase in early 1942, the Empire of Japan invaded the Australian-administered Mandated Territory of New Guinea (23 Jan ...

. In New Guinea, Lt. Ileto transferred to the famed

Alamo Scouts The Alamo Scouts (U.S. 6th Army Special Reconnaissance Unit) was a reconnaissance unit of the Sixth United States Army in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II. The unit is best known for its role in liberating American prisone ...

of the

Sixth United States Army Sixth Army is a theater army of the United States Army. The Army service component command of United States Southern Command, its area of responsibility includes 31 countries and 15 areas of special sovereignty in Central and South America and ...

. With the Alamo Scouts, Ileto saw action in southern

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 ...

during the

Battle of Leyte A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, and thereafter in the

Invasion of Lingayen Gulf The Invasion of Lingayen Gulf ( fil, Paglusob sa Golpo ng Lingayen), 6–9 January 1945, was an Allies of World War II, Allied Amphibious warfare, amphibious operation in the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Philippines during World War II. In t ...

on January 9, 1945. On January 30, 1945, Lt. Ileto with the Alamo Scouts under the command of Lt. Col.

Henry Mucci Henry Andrews Mucci (March 4, 1909 – April 20, 1997) was a colonel in the United States Army Rangers. In January 1945, during World War II, he led a force of 121 Army Rangers on a mission which rescued 513 survivors of the Bataan Death Marc ...

, successfully rescued 516

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

held by the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...

POW Camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military prisons. ...

in Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija.Ambassador Francis J. Ricciardone's Remarks at the Commemoration of the Cabanatuan Rescue Mission of January 30, 1945
This has become to date the most successful rescue mission of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

, and is known as the

Raid at Cabanatuan The Raid at Cabanatuan ( fil, Pagsalakay sa Cabanatuan), also known as the Great Raid ( fil, Ang Dakilang Pagsalakay, link=no), was a rescue of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians from a Japanese camp near Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija, Ph ...

. After the

Liberation of Manila The Battle of Manila ( fil, Labanan sa Maynila; ja, マニラの戦い; es, Batalla de Manila; ) was a major battle of the Philippine campaign of 1944–45, during the Second World War. It was fought by forces from both the United States and ...

, Lt. Ileto married Ms. Olga Clemena at the

Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

, while taking a short course for lower staff officers. He returned to the Philippines thereafter, and helped in rebuilding the post-war Philippine Military Academy. In 1947, he was deployed to

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

, and took on early retirement from the service in 1949. In 1950, he enlisted once more, with the

Philippine Army The Philippine Army (PA) (Tagalog: ''Hukbong Katihan ng Pilipinas''; in literal English: ''Army of the Ground of the Philippines''; in literal Spanish: ''Ejército de la Tierra de la Filipinas'') is the main, oldest and largest branch of the ...

this time, and was first assigned in the General Headquarters (GHQ). It was here that he met once more Gen. Alfonso Arellano, whom Ileto acquainted during World War II. Both officers came with the idea to constitute a

special forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

unit in the same fashion as that of the Alamo Scouts. Gen. Arellano gave the task to Ileto to organize the

1st Scout Ranger Regiment The Scout Rangers, known officially as the First Scout Ranger Regiment,https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2011/11/26/751758/scout-rangers-legend-continues is a Philippine Army unit specializing in anti-guerrilla jungle warfare, raids, ambushes, c ...

, which was established on November 25, 1950, at the Scout Ranger Training Unit (SRTU) in Fort Bonifacio. Capt. Ileto commanded the unit until 1955.. From commanding the Scout Ranger Regiment, Capt. Ileto was designated foreign affairs attaché to

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

and

Vientiane Vientiane ( , ; lo, ວຽງຈັນ, ''Viangchan'', ) is the capital and largest city of Laos. Vientiane is divided administratively into 9 cities with a total area of only approx. 3,920 square kilometres and is located on the banks of ...

. After this diplomatic stint, he was assigned with once more to the GHQ J-2 Intelligence, as a staff officer. From there he was appointed as Operations Chief of the

National Intelligence Coordinating Agency The National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) is the primary intelligence gathering and analysis arm of the Government of the Philippines in charge of carrying out overt, covert, and clandestine intelligence activities. The NICA cooper ...

from 1959 to 1964. He again went back for further studies in 1965 in the Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, and later joined the

Armed Forces of the Philippines Command and General Staff College The Armed Forces of the Philippines Command and General Staff College, known officially as the AFPCGSC or GSC, ( Filipino: ''Dalubhasaan ng Pangasiwaan at Kawanihang Heneral ng Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas'') is one of the training units of the A ...

Fort Bonifacio Fort Andres Bonifacio (formerly named Fort William McKinley) is the site of the national headquarters of the Philippine Army (Headquarters Philippine Army or HPA) located in Metro Manila, Philippines. It is located near the national headquarter ...

. Thereafter, he became Commanding General of the 1st PhilippineC Zone, covering all provinces north of

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

before being promoted to Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence (J-2) in 1969. Col. Ileto once more returned to the United States to study under the Defense Resources Management Course at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in 1969. From there Brig. Gen. Ileto was appointed

Commanding General of the Philippine Army The Commanding General of the Philippine Army (CGPA) is the overall commander and senior general of the Philippine Army, the ground warfare branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It is normally held by a three-star rank of Lieutenant Gener ...

, a post which he held until 1971. When Pres.

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

declared

Martial Law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

on September 21, 1972, Ileto was one of the few generals who opposed the President, losing favor for the next series of promotions in the patronage politics that has already begun in the promotion system in the AFP. In 1973, Ileto became Deputy Chief of Staff of the AFP was then promoted to

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, then Vice Chief of Staff as a

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

from 1975 until his retirement in 1978. Concurrent to this position, Gen. Ileto also served as the Philippine Ambassador to

and

from 1975 to 1980, and to

, and

from 1980 to 1986. During the

People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...

, Amb. Ileto played as mediator between the camp of Pres.

and the opposition. Amb. Ileto was then appointed as Undersecretary of Defense by Pres.

Corazon Aquino Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; ; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipina politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992. She was the most prominent figure of the 1986 People P ...

. Upon the resignation of Juan Ponce Enrile after an alleged coup attempt against Pres. Corazon Aquino, Ileto was appointed as the Secretary National Defense on November 23, 1986. He resigned from this government position after a falling out with the President on January 21, 1988.Manila Defense Chief Quits And Ramos Is Named to Job
/ref>

Later life

On June 19, 2003, Ileto died at the

Philippine Heart Center The Philippine Heart Center is a hospital in Central, Quezon City, Philippines, specializing in the treatment of heart ailments. It was established in 1975. Background The Philippine Heart Center is a hospital specializing in the treatment of ...

after a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at the age of 82. He was buried at the

Libingan ng mga Bayani Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB, , ) is a national cemetery within Fort Andres Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) in Metro Manila, Philippines. First established in May 1947 as a fitting resting place for Philippine military personnel fro ...

on June 23 with full military honors.Frialde, Mike, ''Ileto buried with honors at Libingan'', Philippine Star, June 23, 2003
/ref>

Early years

Military & Political career

Later life

See also

References

Further reading