General Aquilino Tiburcio de León y Gregorio Tolomeo was a Filipino freedom fighter who was a general during the 1896

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), ...

and 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 ...

. He first served under

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 ...

in 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 ...

, and then, reluctantly, under the revolutionary government formed by

Emilio Aguinaldo Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy (: March 22, 1869February 6, 1964) was a Filipino revolutionary, statesman, and military leader who became the first List of presidents of the Philippines, president of the Philippines (1899–1901), and the first pre ...

Biography

Tiburcio was born in 1862 to Pedro de León and Florencia Gregorio in Polo (now

Valenzuela Valenzuela may refer to: Places * Valenzuela, Paraguay * Valenzuela, Metro Manila, Philippines * Valenzuela, Spain * Valenzuela de Calatrava, Spain * Valenzuela, Louisiana Other uses * Valenzuela (surname), including a list of people with the ...

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 ...

. "''Heneral Tibo''", as he was often referred to, is credited for having established units of the Katipunan in the towns of

Polo Polo is a stick and ball game that is played on horseback as a traditional field sport. It is one of the world's oldest known team sports, having been adopted in the Western world from the game of Chovgan (), which originated in ancient ...

, Obando,

Marilao Marilao (), officially the Municipality of Marilao (), is a municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 254,453 people. Marilao is derived from the Tagalog word "marilaw", which tr ...

Meycauayan Meycauayan , officially the City of Meycauayan (), is a 1st class component city in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 225,673 people. The place got its name from the Tagalog words ''m ...

Bocaue Bocaue , officially the Municipality of Bocaue (), is a municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 141,412 people. Among its tourist attractions are a town museum located near th ...

, Santa Maria, and

San Jose del Monte San Jose del Monte, officially the City of San Jose del Monte (abbreviated as SJDM or CSJDM); ; ; ; ; ), is a component city in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 651,813 people, maki ...

, and of

Caloocan Caloocan, officially the City of Caloocan (; ), is a highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,661,584 people making it the fourth-most populous city in the Philippines. Caloo ...

Malabon Malabon, officially the City of Malabon (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 380,522 people. Located just north of the city of Manila, Malabon is ...

Navotas Navotas, officially the City of Navotas (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it ha ...

Bataan Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula ...

. In August 1896, when Spanish authorities discovered the existence of the Katipunan and moved against it, Bonifacio was away, conferring with de León at Pasong Balite on the outskirts of Bulacan. On learning that the Spanish had uncovered their organization, Bonifacio ordered all Katipuneros to gather at Balintawak, where they announced their rebellion by tearing up their ''cedulas'' (residency documents) in what would later be known as the "Cry of Balintawak". Later, de León's forces were the only unit of the Magdiwang faction of the Katipunan to survive the death of Bonifacio. When Aguinaldo later asked him to commit his forces to the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic (), now officially remembered as the First Philippine Republic and also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was a state established in Malolos, Bulacan, during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish ...

, de León was reluctant to do so, being loyal to Bonifacio. He eventually agreed, saying he was doing so only for the sake of the country. He is also known for his role in the

Battle of Tullahan River 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 c ...

during the Philippine–American War - a battle which enabled the forces of the Aguinaldo government to flee to

Northern Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

Memorials

On February 18, 1968, the Sangguniang Nayon (Village Council) of Torres Bugallon signed into law the renaming of their community after Hen. Tiburcio de Leon "''bilang karangalan nito sa pagiging bayani ng himagsikan sa panahon ng pamahalaang Kastila''" (in recognition of his role as a hero of the revolution during the time of the Spanish Government). After the change in terminologies during the reign of President Marcos, this community is now known as Barangay Hen. Tiburcio de Leon, Valenzuela, Bulacan. The Hen. Tiburcio de Leon Elementary School is also named after him. A stone monument was raised by his comrades (Veteranos de la Revolución) in memory of Heneral Tibo in the town of Timog, Bulacan.

Gallery

File:2871Gen._T._de_Leon,_Valenzuela_City_Landmarks_30.jpg, Gen. Tiburcio de Leon Elementary School, Valenzuela City File:FvfGenTiDeLeon0217_15.JPG, Gen. T. de Leon National High School

External links

Sources

People of the Philippine Revolution 1862 births Year of death missing Filipino generals Filipino revolutionaries People from Valenzuela, Metro Manila People from the Spanish East Indies {{philippines-bio-stub