Pablo Tecson

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Tecson and the second or maternal family name is Ocampo.

The Honorable Pablo Tecson
Portrait of Pablo Tecson
Member of the Philippine Assembly from Bataan's at-large district
In office 1912–1915
Preceded by	Tomás del Rosario
Succeeded by	Maximino de los Reyes
4th Governor of Bulacan
In office 1902–1906
Preceded by	José Juan Serapio
Succeeded by	Teodoro Sandiko
Member of the Malolos Congress from Cagayan
In office September 15, 1898 – November 13, 1899 Serving with Vicente Guzman Pagulayan and Anastacio Francisco
Personal details
Born	Pablo Tecson y Ocampo (1859-07-04)July 4, 1859 San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan, Captaincy General of the Philippines
Died	April 30, 1940(1940-04-30) (aged 80) San Miguel, Bulacan, Philippine Commonwealth
Political party	Magdalo faction of the Katipunan, Nacionalista Party
Spouse(s)	Juana Mendoza Tomasa V. Bulos-Tecson
Relations	Felisa C. Tantoco
Children	Vicente M. Tecson Jose Tecson Tantoco (1904–) Lorenzo B. Tecson Josefina B. Tecson-Buencamino Isabel B. Tecson Benjamin B. Tecson Paulita B. Tecson-Arias Zenaida B. Tecson-David
Alma mater	San Juan de Letran
Occupation	Brigadaire General (Philippine Revolution); Governor General, Bulacan; Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (U.S. Protectorate); Agriculturist

Pablo Ocampo Tecson (born Pablo Tecson y Ocampo; July 4, 1859 – April 30, 1940) was an officer in the Revolutionary Army serving under Gen. Gregorio del Pilar (responsible for the eventual surrender of the Spanish forces) and a representative to the Malolos Congress. He was elected the Governor General of Bulacan immediately following the Philippine–American War. 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, Bulacan, Philippines; the son of Tiburcio Tecson and Paula Ocampo. He studied in San Miguel and later, at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Intramuros, Manila, 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, 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 (Kataastaasang Kagalanggalangang Katipunan, or KKK)(Filipino: nang mga anak nang bayan), which operated out of San Miguel.

On December 14, 1897, the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, was signed in Tecson's residence. It called for a truce between Spanish Colonial Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera, 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. (Aguinaldo later used the money to purchase firearms.) Following Aguinaldo's return from exile in Hong Kong, Tecson defected from the Civil Guards and joined Aguinaldo's Republican Army as a captain.

Following the Cry of Nueva Ecija, he fought alongside General Manuel Tinio (especially in Nueva Ecija) and General Francisco Macabulos. 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 (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 at the Malolos Congress (which drafted the Charter of the First Philippine Republic) 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 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.

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.

Further reading

• Carlos Quirino – Quirino, Carlos. Who's Who in Philippine History. Manila: Tahanan Books, 1995.
• Wenceslao Retana – Retana, W. E.: El Periodismo Filipino (noticias para historia) 1811–1894. Madrid: Viuda de M., Minuesa de los Rios, 1895.
• U.S.A. Library for history; "The Capture of Aguinaldo from America," Book 10;