In line with the 125th Philippine Independence Day celebration, the City Government of Tayabas will celebrate the historic 1898 siegewhich ended Spanish colonial rule in the province on Aug. 13.
Dubbed “Trece de Agosto”, the highlight of the observance is the reenactment of the 2-month siege around the Cuartel de Tayabas where the Spanish troops led by Lt. Col. Joaquin Pacheco defended the town against Filipino revolutionaries led by generals Eleuterio Marasigan, Miguel Malvar and Vicente Lukban.
The surrender of the Spanish forces led to the liberation of Tayabas province and enabled the victorious Filipino army to proceed southward to the Bicol Region.
According to Tayabas City Mayor Lovely Reynoso-Pontioso, the annual commemorative event immortalizes the bravery and patriotism of the people of the city and Filipinos in general, across generations. She said that among the city’s key programs is cultural and historical preservation because of its rich tangible, intangible, natural, and culinary heritage.
Known locally as “Araw ng Tayabas”, the event will be held at the Casa Comunidad, one of the biggest 19th-century stone houses in the country, and now serves as a museum, gallery, tourism, and socio-civic center.
The reenactment will be highlighted by the raising of the Philippine flag at the belltower of the St. Michael Archangel Minor Basilica, where it was also raised 125 years ago after the Spanish surrender. It will be followed by a civic parade to the new City Hall for the unveiling of the Quincentennial Wall with National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) chairman Dr. Emmanuel Calairo as guest of honor.
The celebration will also include a forum on the Siege of Tayabas at the Casa Comunidad by Mark Anthony Glorioso, shrine curator of the (NHCP) Museo ni Jessie Robredo, on August 12.
Republica Filipina Reenactment Group (RFRG), will play the role of both Spanish and Filipino combatants, while the local theater group Susi ng Tayabas will serve as the civilian population. RFRG is a Manila-based group of history aficionados that reenacts key events during the Philippine Revolutionary Era through extensive research and period-accurate costumes, paraphernalia, and military doctrine.
Chartered as a component city in 2007, Tayabas was the colonial-era capital town of Tayabas province, which is now known as Quezon. It is also the hometown of Apolinario Dela Cruz or Hermanong Puli, founder of the pre-Revolution Cofradia de San Jose which advocated for religious reforms from the Spanish friars.