In 1761 Aguilar entered the school of San Francisco de Borja in Antigua Guatemala graduating in philosophy in 1772. Through further study he became a sub-deacon in 1776 and a deacon in 1778. Thereafter he was appointed the curate of Zacatecoluca.[3]
Participation in independence efforts
On 5 November 1811 in San Salvador, the supporters of independence organized the beginning of a liberation movement. Participants included doctors such as Santiago José Celis, the priests and brothers Nicholas, Vicente and Manuel Aguilar, and the priest José Matías Delgado. Others included Manuel José Arce, Juan Manuel Rodríguez and Pedro Pablo Castillo. Many of the participants were linked by family ties.[4] After the insurrection failed, Manuel Aguilar was imprisoned from October 1811 until 4 March 1813.[5]
As part of the second independence movement in 1814 Manuel Aguilar preached a sermon thanking the people for having asked for their freedom during the first rising in 1811. Unsurprisingly the sermon was unpopular with the Spanish authorities.[6]
↑Gaitán, Chester Rodolfo Urbina; Urquiza, Waldemar, eds. (2009). Historia 1 y 2 El Salvador (in Spanish). San Salvador: Ministerio de Educación. p.139. ISBN978-99923-63-68-3.
↑Meléndez Chaverri, Carlos (2000). José Matías Delgado, prócer centroamericano[José Matías Delgado, Central American politician] (in Spanish) (2nded.). San Salvador: Concultura. pp.123–129, 137, 147, 165, 190–199, 213–215. ISBN9992300574. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
↑Gavidia, Francisco (1917). Historia moderna de El Salvador[Modern history of El Salvador] (in Spanish). San Salvador: Imp. Melendez. p.80. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
