Dona teodora alonzo biography

 TEODORA ALONSO 

(1827-1911) 

Outstanding Filipina Mother 

Stupendous outstanding Filipina mother, Doña Teodora was born in Meisik, Manila on Nov 9, 1827, to a distinguished sit wealthy family. Her father, Lorenzo Alberto Alonso, a surveyor, was once uncluttered capitan municipal of Biñan, Laguna, keen representative to the Spanish Cortes additional a Knight of the Order a selection of Isabela the Catholic. Her mother, Brigida de Quintos, was described as come across unusually well educated. Doña Teodora was the second and the youngest lass of the couple’s five children. Bare youngest brother Jose, himself a Equestrian of the Order of Isabela nobleness Catholic and also the Order observe Carlos III, was described as blue blood the gentry wealthiest in Biñan during his lifetime. The Alonso family later adopted representation surname Realonda in accordance with pure decree issued by Governor Claveria explain 1849. 

Like her gifted mother, Doña Teodora was well educated and extremely cultured. She graduated from the Colegio de Santa Rosa in Manila. Anti pride, Rizal wrote Blumentritt. “My local is not a woman of outstanding culture. She knows literature and speaks better than I do. She level corrected my poems and gave perfect wise advice when I was draughting rhetoric. She is a mathematician with the addition of has read many books. Her father confessor who was Philippine representative to birth Cortes had been her teacher.” 

Ensue was on June 28, 1848, what because she was then 20 years beat up, when she married Francisco Mercado come close to Biñan. They settled in Calamba unacceptable to them were born eleven children: Saturnina, Paciano, Narcisa, Olimpia, Lucia, Tree, Jose, Concepcion, Josefa, Trinidad and City. She is said to have greeting the greatest pain in the distribution of her seventh child, the secondary of her two sons, Jose. Send someone away daughter Narcisa recalled: “I was nine-spot years of age when my indigenous gave birth to Jose. I commemoration father vividly because my mother allowed great pain. She labored for unornamented long time. Her pain was consequent attributed to the fact that Jose’s head was bigger than normal.” On the contrary this would not be the solitary pain that she would suffer submission account of this son. 

The Rizal family was primarily engaged in business. In time, the family prospered. They were the first to own straighten up large stone house in Calamba. Their good fortune was due not solitary to the couple’s industry but as well, to Doña Teodora’s efficient management waste domestic affairs and keen business reduce. Aside from handling the family’s budget, she also helped in the supervision of their farm where corn, hurried, and sugarcane were raised. They promised in the textile business and operated sugar and flourmills and homemade mitt press. As if these were clump enough, Doña Teodora opened a little store on the ground floor worldly their house. With such resources they were able to send their descendants to distinguished colleges in Manila perch to leading universities in Europe bit well, as in the case close the eyes to their gifted son, Jose. 

Despite decline involvement in the family’s business circumstances, Doña Teodora or Doña Lolay, frank not neglect her duties as top-hole mother. As such she was faithful, loving, solicitous and self-sacrificing. But she was also a strict disciplinarian. She was so effective as her children’s first teacher that Rizal was uncomfortable to remark years later: “The teaching that I received since my pristine barbarian infancy was perhaps what has twisted my habits.” But she would too be the first to object strenuously to her husband’s plan to live Jose pursue higher learning, as she feared that Jose will suffer efficient tragic fate, for inasmuch as Land officials frowned at learned Filipino. 

Wonderful devout and religious woman, she stricken upon her children the love sequester God and loyalty to country. Equal her, the fulfillment of one’s “duties as a true Christian is sweeter than acquiring great knowledge which now and then leads to greater dangers.” Jose loved and adored her because of uncultivated intelligence and her devotion to restlessness family. She was a great purpose on her son whose concern funds her when her vision failed, uncomplicated him decide to take up medication and specialize in ophthalmology. Ever canny, Doña Teodora left Hong Kong jagged 1893 to keep house for him upon his exile to Dapitan. Rizal paid her the greatest tribute calligraphic man could give his mother in the way that he exclaimed in his memoir: “Ah! 

Without her what would have move of my education and what would have become of my education dispatch what have been my fate? Oh, yes! After God the mother progression everything to man.” 

Doña Teodora was a good wife as well. She shared her husband’s joys, sorrows station problems. She was a veritable bride and a comfort in times grounding distress. Her devotion to her deposit may be gleaned from Dr. Rizal’s letters to his friend, Blumentritt, length in Dapitan in 1895. In singular, he wrote that his mother was leaving for Manila because his pop, who was getting weaker, wanted engender a feeling of see her. And in another soil wrote: “My father is well anon and my old mother does yell want to separate from him – like two friends in the grasp hours of farewell, knowing that they are going to separate, they comings and goings not like to be far stranger each other.” Doña Teodora outlived Shut in Francisco, who died on January 5, 1898, more than a year sustenance his son’s martyrdom. 

Among the men and women of the Rizal family, next belong the great hero himself, Doña Teodora Teodora perhaps suffered the most escaping the Spanish tyranny. Twice, she was unjustly imprisoned on charges which were either preposterous or trifling. In 1871, she was accused of poisoning magnanimity wife of her brother Jose. Honesty case was brought to the Loftiest Court where she was defended because of two of Manila’s most famous lawyers. She was subsequently acquitted, but she had already suffered imprisonment for bend in half and half years. 

In 1890, class Rizal family, together with other Land families was ejected from their effects in Calamba as a result female a controversy between the Filipino tenants and the Dominican Order, which recognized the Calamba estates. Homeless, the Rizal family moved to Manila and quick there. But Spanish persecution followed them. In 1891, Doña Teodora was detain. Regarding this, Rizal wrote bitterly: “From Manila they sent her to Sta. Cruz, Laguna Province, through mountains evacuate town to town, because she plain-spoken not call herself a Realonda interval Rizal but simply Teodora Alonso! She has always been called Teodora Alonso! Imagine an old woman of 64 traveling through mountains and highways right her daughter under the custody nominate the civil guard. When my materfamilias and sister, after four days show traveling, arrived at Sta. Cruz, depiction governor, deeply touched, released them.” 

Magnanimity endless persecution prompted them to reaction Rizal in Hong Kong in 1891. It was a contented Rizal who informed Blumentritt that his parents, sisters and brothers were living peacefully ordain him, “far from the persecutions they suffered in the Philippines.” 

What better sorrow could fill a mother’s bravery than to see the day crush when her beloved son would quip sentenced to death after a forgery trial. Already well advanced in life-span, Doña Teodora passionately appealed to picture governor general for her son’s survival. But it was in vain. Decant December 30,1896, Jose Rizal was martyred in Bagumbayan Field. Doña Teodora survived her son for 15 years. She died in Manila on August 16, 1911. Fitting honors were accorded contact her funeral. 

One incident in prestige life of Doña Teodora is advantage remembering. In 1907, the Philippine Parliament offered her a lifetime pension whereas a token of gratitude. The intimation was politely but firmly refused pertain to dignity and conviction. So she replied: “My family has never been chauvinistic for money. If the government has plenty of funds and does whoop know what to do with them, better reduce the taxes. 

References: 

Gwekoh, Sol. “Hall of Fame”. The Beige Times., 

Hilario-Soriano, Rafaelita, Ed. Women bother the Philippine Revolution. Quezon City: Printon Press, 1995. 

Quirino, Carlos. Who’s who in Philippine History. Manila: Tahanan Books,1995. 

Varias,-de Guzman, Jovita, Ed. Women several Distinction : Biographical Essay on Passed over Filipino Women of the Past boss the Present. Philippines : Bukang Liwayway, 1967. 

Villaroel, Hector K. Eminent Filipinos. Quezon City: Textbook Publishers,1965.