Pablo Ocampo Tecson (born Pablo Tecson y Ocampo; July 4, 1859 – April 30, 1940) was an officer in the

Revolutionary Army In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

serving under Gen. Gregorio del Pilar (responsible for the eventual surrender of the Spanish forces) and a representative to the

Malolos Congress The Malolos Congress (also known as the Revolutionary Congress), formally known as the National Assembly, was the legislative body of the Revolutionary Government of the Philippines. Members were chosen in the elections held from June 23 to Septe ...

. He was elected the

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan ( tl, Lalawigan ng Bulacan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on August 15, 1578, and part of the Metr ...

immediately following the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...

. Tecson later served as Insular Secretary of the Philippine Bureau of Agriculture.

Early life and education

Pablo Tecson was born July 4, 1859 in

San Miguel de Mayumo San Miguel, officially the Municipality of San Miguel ( tgl, Bayan ng San Miguel), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 172,073 people. It is the third larg ...

, Bulacan,

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 ...

; the son of Tiburcio Tecson and Paula Ocampo. He studied in San Miguel and later, at the

Colegio de San Juan de Letran The Colegio de San Juan de Letran, (transl: College of San Juan de Letran) also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers i ...

Intramuros Intramuros (Latin for "inside the walls") is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila. Present-day I ...

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 ...

, where he finished his Bachelor of Arts program.

Early career

Tecson worked as a writer for a Spanish-era magazine, the ''Catholic Periodical Guide'' (''Pahayagan Patnubay ng Catolico''), in

Malolos Malolos, officially the City of Malolos ( fil, Lungsod ng Malolos), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to th ...

, the county seat of Bulacan; its initial publication being in April 1890.

Military action against Spain

When the revolution against Spain broke out, Tecson was an officer in the Spanish Civil Guards (''Guardia Civil'') in San Miguel.

Background

In 1896, Tecson co-founded the Arao (''Balangay Arao'') branch of a secret society-turned-revolutionary government, the

Katipunan The Katipunan, officially known as the Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan or Kataastaasan Kagalang-galang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK; en, Supreme and Honorable Association of the Children of the Nation ...

(''Kataastaasang Kagalanggalangang Katipunan'', or ''KKK'')(

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

: ''nang mga anak nang bayan''), which operated out of San Miguel. On December 14, 1897 the

Pact of Biak-na-Bato The Pact of Biak-na-Bato, signed on December 15, 1897, created a truce between Spanish colonial Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera and the revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo to end the Philippine Revolution. Aguinaldo and his fellow rev ...

, was signed in Tecson's residence. It called for a truce between Spanish Colonial Governor-General

Fernando Primo de Rivera Fernando Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte, 1st Marquess of Estella (24 July 1831 – 23 May 1921) was a Spanish politician and soldier. Fernando Primo de Rivera was the son of Antonio Hermenegildo Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte and his wife Ana Ma ...

, and insurgent leader, Emilio Aguinaldo, to end the Philippine Revolution. Aguinaldo and his fellow revolutionaries were given amnesty and money and agreed to go into voluntary exile in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

. (Aguinaldo later used the money to purchase firearms.) Following Aguinaldo's return from exile in

, Tecson defected from the Civil Guards and joined Aguinaldo's Republican Army as a captain. Following the ''

Cry of Nueva Ecija The first Cry of Nueva Ecija ( Filipino: ''Sigaw ng Nueva Ecija''; Spanish: ''Grito de Nueva Écija'') occurred on September 2–5, 1896, in the province of Nueva Ecija, in the Philippines under Spanish rule. It followed shortly after the Cry ...

'', he fought alongside General Manuel Tinio (especially in

Nueva Ecija Nueva Ecija, officially the Province of Nueva Ecija ( tgl, Lalawigan ng Nueva Ecija , also ; ilo, Probinsia ti Nueva Ecija; pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Nueva Ecija; Kapampangan: ''Lalawigan/Probinsia ning Nueva Ecija''), is a landlocked province i ...

) and General

Francisco Macabulos Francisco Macabulos y Soliman (September 17, 1871 – April 20, 1922), commonly known today as Francisco Makabulos, was a Filipino patriot and revolutionary general who led the Katipunan revolutionary forces during the Philippine Revolution ag ...

. He himself was eventually ranked brigadier general under del Pilar.

Battle of San Miguel

On May 24, 1898, Tecson launched attacks on the Spanish Civil Guard garrisons in San Miguel and

San Rafael, Bulacan San Rafael, officially the Municipality of San Rafael ( tgl, Bayan ng San Rafael), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 103,097 people. With the continuous exp ...

(collectively known as the Battle of San Miguel); which ended with the Spanish force's surrender on June 1, 1898.

Wartime politics

In 1898, Tecson represented the province of

Cagayan Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the C ...

at the Malolos Congress (which drafted the

Charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

of the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic ( es, República Filipina), now officially known as the First Philippine Republic, also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was established in Malolos, Bulacan during the Philippine Revolution against ...

) a few months before the outbreak of the war with America. He cast the deciding vote which addressed the constitutional provision of the separation of church and state.

Military action against the United States

Battle of Quingua

The

Battle of Quingua The Battle of Quingua ( fil, Labanan sa Quingua, es, Batalla de Quingua) was fought on April 23, 1899, in Quingua — now Plaridel, Bulacan, Philippines, during the Philippine–American War (1899–1902). The engagement was a two-part battl ...

was fought on April 23, 1899, in Quingua, Bulacan (now Plaridel), which resulted in a rout of the Filipinos by their former allies, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Career and politics following the war

Tecson was elected governor general of Bulacan—the first accepted under American rule, serving from 1902–1906. In 1904, he was named as a delegate of the Philippine's Worlds Fair Commission. Tecson resigned from government service in 1906 and went into farming. He was one of the first to promote the silk culture industry in the Philippines. He returned to government service in 1907, becoming the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture.

Philanthropy, legacy and death

Tecson died on April 30, 1940 and is buried in San Miguel. Before his death, he donated land for a public burial ground for Filipino patriots.