MINIATURES

  Execution in Cavite September 1896 Days after the Katipunan's attack in San Juan, Manila was gripped by the fear of a full-fledged insurrection, similar in magnitude to that in Cuba, spreading to the suburbs and nearby provinces in a short time. The Spanish crown, already challenged by dwindling resources due to years of fighting revolutionaries in its prized Caribbean possessions, was frantic to avert another impending disaster. Other European powers were eagerly eyeing their hidden interests in the Pacific, waiting for Spain to finally fall. Meanwhile, the American press continued to entice the American public with the idea of U.S. intervention in the Cuban conflict. At the start of the revolution, the colonial government in the Philippines rounded up suspected leaders and sympathizers of the uprising. It first vented its anger and vengeance on its known critics, the "Ilustrados," some of whom curiously returned to the Philippines from Europe one by one just before th...