José Turiano Santiago y Acosta (July 13, 1875 – ) was a Filipino patriot who was among the leaders of the

Katipunan The Katipunan (), officially known as the (; ) and abbreviated as the KKK, was a revolutionary organization founded in 1892 by a group of Filipino nationalists Deodato Arellano, Andrés Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Ladislao Diwa, José Dizon, an ...

that sparked the

Philippine Revolution The Philippine Revolution ( or ; or ) was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against the Spanish Empire from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year History of the Philippines (1565–1898), ...

against Spain in 1896.

Biography

Santiago graduated from the

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (UST; ), officially the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines or colloquially as ''Ustê'' (), is a Private university, private Catholic school, Catholic researc ...

and was a practicing accountant. Santiago joined the Katipunan in 1893 and was among those tasked to organize popular councils in key areas in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

and its environs. He was elected secretary of the secret society's second Supreme Council under the presidency of Roman Basa. It was at this time that he met Marina Dizon, daughter of Katipunan founder

José Dizon José Dizon y Matanza (died January 11, 1897) was a Filipino patriot who was among those who founded the Katipunan that sparked the Philippine Revolution Dizon was born in Binondo, Manila and was married to Roberta Bartolomé, who died in March 1 ...

and member of the Katipunan's women's auxiliary. In the same year, Santiago and Marina, who was already his fiancée, witnessed the wedding of

Andrés Bonifacio Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro (, ; November 30, 1863May 10, 1897) was a Filipino people, Filipino revolutionary leader. He is often called "The Father of the Philippines, Philippine Philippine Revolution, Revolution", and considered a nationa ...

to Gregoria de Jesús. The wedding sponsors were Santiago's half-brother and fellow Katipunan member Restituto Javier and his wife. Santiago himself married Marina Dizon on September 16, 1894 at the Binondo Church in Manila. They would eventually have eight children. The following year, Santiago was elected secretary of the secret society but he and his half-brother Restituto Javier were accused of betraying the secret society because a priest-professor of the

got hold of a coded message of the Katipunan. Since the priest was a friend of Javier's sister, the Katipunan suspected that Santiago and Javier revealed the society's existence and the two were expelled although they were never proven guilty. The Katipunan would not be uncovered until August 1896 and neither Santiago nor Javier had anything to do with it. Santiago and his wife fled their house during that time with Marina burning documents related to the Katipunan. Nonetheless, the half-brothers were among those who were arrested by the Spanish authorities and detained for months. Santiago's father-in-law was also arrested and executed. Javier was later banished to the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. Santiago, however, was released on September 11, 1897. But he remained in contact with revolutionary forces and became a delegate of

Nueva Ecija Nueva Ecija, officially the Province of Nueva Ecija ( ; ; ; ), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Palayan, while Cabanatuan, its former capital, is the largest Local gove ...

to the

Malolos Congress The Malolos Congress (), also known as the Revolutionary Congress () and formally the National Assembly, was the legislative body of the Revolutionary Government of the Philippines. From 1898 to 1899, prior to the Philippine Declaration of I ...

in 1898. When the Americans took Manila, Santiago and his wife tried to live normal lives in Meycauayan,

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...

but had to flee to

Tarlac Tarlac, officially the Province of Tarlac (; ; ; ; ), is a landlocked Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. It had a population of 1,503,456 people according to ...

in the course of the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...

. The couple tried to settle down in Manila anew but Santiago was later exposed as an insurgent and he had to flee to

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. When peace restored in the Philippines, Santiago returned and lived a normal life as an accountant and auditor for several companies in Manila. On July 6, 1908, Santiago was nominated by the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...

to run for the vacant

Philippine Assembly The Philippine Assembly (sometimes called the Philippine National Assembly) was the lower house of the Philippine Legislature from 1907 to 1916, when it was renamed the House of Representatives of the Philippines. The Philippine Assembly ...

seat representing the 1st district of Manila, but lost in the following special election in the same year to

Justo Lukban Justo Lukbán y Rilles (May 28, 1863 – September 2, 1927) was a Filipinos, Filipino physician and politician, Lukban was elected to the Philippine Assembly and was the 3rd Mayor of Manila from 1917 until 1920, he also served as the 3rd Mayor ...

. Ingles (2008), p. 157 He died during the Japanese Occupation.

References

* National Historical Institute, ''Filipinos in History'' 5 vols. (Manila: National Historical Institute, 1995) {{DEFAULTSORT:Santiago, Jose Turiano 1875 births 1940s deaths People of the Philippine Revolution Members of the Malolos Congress University of Santo Tomas alumni Filipino accountants Civilians killed in World War II Nacionalista Party politicians