Liberation of Nueva Cáceres (1898)

Two corporals, Elias Angeles and Felix Plazo, stationed at Nueva Cáceres in the First Philippine Republic, defied Spanish authority. As a result, they seized power from the Spanish crown to liberate Nueva Cáceres (modern-day Naga, Camarines Sur) from Spanish control.^[1]

It began with local revolts in Daet. On April 17, 1898, Corporals Elias Angeles and Felix Plazo were sent to Daet to reinforce the government troops there due to the increased activity of the local Katipunan led by Ildefonso Moreno. They traveled on a steamship named "Serrantes" with 25 other soldiers led by Capt. Francisco Andreu from Nueva Cáceres. There, they engaged in a conflict with the local Katipuneros in Daet.

In April 1898, the Katipunero group led by Moreno revolted in Daet. The Spanish forces sought refuge in the house of a Spanish businessman named Florencio Arana. However, the Guardia Civil arrived with a significant amount of weaponry, and the revolt was soon quelled. The Katipuneros engaged in a conflict with the Spanish forces in Daet. During the fight, a friend of a Spanish businessman named Florencio Arana was killed by a member of the Katipuneros led by Moreno. On that same night, 21 rebels were killed at Arana's house. Spanish authorities in Daet arrested and sentenced many rebels to death in the aftermath. It was during these events that Angeles and Plazo witnessed the actions of Moreno and his comrades who planned the revolt. A priest named Father Marcos Gomez (who was Spanish) reported that the bodies of the executed rebels were buried on the grounds of Arana's house.

This was not the only instance of Spanish forces defeating rebels. Many people fled Daet after the events. Spanish authorities searched for those involved in Moreno's revolt. The people of Daet eventually began to return, but the Spanish authorities continued to execute suspected rebels under the authority of the "Tribunal de Cochillo" (Committee of Executioners). This committee was formed by Florencio Arana, Father Antonio Mariblanca, and Lieutenant Maximiliano Correa.^[2]

Historian Juan Ataviado estimates that as many as 500 rebels may have been killed by Spanish forces in Daet.^[3] The two corporals, Angeles and Plazo, returned to Nueva Cáceres deeply affected by the events they witnessed in Daet. They harbored anger toward the Spaniards for their discriminatory treatment of the native population, using terms like "Indio". The year 1898 was a time of great hardship and emotional distress.

Rumors circulated that the Spanish forces were planning to relocate from Nueva Cáceres to Iloilo, which would become the new capital of the Spanish East Indies. News also arrived about the arrival of American forces in Manila Bay. Additionally, reports indicated that Vicente Lukbán's forces were approaching Camarines Norte without encountering resistance from the Spanish. It was further reported that upon reaching Iloilo, the Guardia Civil there fought desperately against a large rebel force in a sea battle. These developments in September 1898 motivated the two corporals, Angeles and Plazo, to plan a revolt in Nueva Cáceres. They acted quickly, rather than waiting for the transfer to Iloilo.^[4]