Artemio Ricarte

Artemio Ricarte was a general during the Philippine Revolution against Spain and during the Filipino - American War.

He was born on October 22, 1866 in Batac, Ilocos Sur to Faustino Ricarte and Bonifacia Garcia. He took his early education in Batac then enrolled at Colegio de San Juan de Letran and finished Bachelor of Arts. He studied for teaching profession at the University of Santo Tomas and then at Normal School. He was sent to supervise a primary school in San Francisco de Malabon (now Gen. Trias, Cavite). There during the dawn of Philippine Revolution, he joined the Katipunan and adopted the code name Vibora (viper).

He lead the attack of the Spanish garrison in San Francisco de Malabon and crushed it on August 31, 1896. He was apponited by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo as a brigadier general and was elected as captain general during the Tejeros Convention. He lead the battles in Cavite, Laguna and Batangas. He was then appointed by Aguinaldo to supervise the surrender of arms in Biak-na-Bato, San Miguel, Bulacan.

When the Filipino-American War broke in 1899, he was the Chief of Operations of the Filipino forces in second zone along Manila. He was captured in 1900 and was deported to Guam together with Apolinario Mabini.

They were returned to Manila in 1903 and was supposed to be released if they took their oath of allegiance to America. Mabini confined, because he was ill. Ricarte refused so he was again deported, this time to Hong Kong. He secretly returned to Manila with the hope of rekindling the revolution but he was captured because of the prize money allocated by the Americans for his capture. Again he was deported to Hong Kong. He and his wife later moved to Yokohama, Japan in self-exile. They lived there until the start of World War II when the Japanese flew him back to the Philippines to help them pacify the Filipinos.

He died on July 31, 1945 in Kalinga.

Artemio Ricarte - an Ilocano pride. His bravery and tough stand of his nationalism is a good example.