Revolutionary_Government_of_the_Philippines
Revolutionary Government of the Philippines (1898–1899)
Temporary government established in the Philippine Islands
The Revolutionary Government of the Philippines (Spanish: Gobierno Revolucionario de Filipinas) was a revolutionary government established in the Spanish East Indies on June 23, 1898, during the Spanish–American War, by Emilio Aguinaldo, its initial and only president.[1] The government succeeded a dictatorial government that had been established by Aguinaldo on June 18[2] and was dissolved and replaced by this government upon its establishment.[3][4] This government endured until January 23, 1899, when the proclamation of the Malolos Constitution established an insurgent Philippine Republic government that replaced it.[5][6]
Four governmental departments were initially created, each having several bureaus: foreign relations, marine, and commerce; war and public works; police, justice, instruction, and hygiene; finance, agriculture, and industry.[7] A revolutionary congress was established with power "[t]o watch over the general interest of the Philippine people, and carrying out of the revolutionary laws; to discuss and vote upon said laws; to discuss and approve, prior to their ratification, treaties and loans; to examine and approve the accounts presented annually by the secretary of finance, as well as extraordinary and other taxes which may hereafter be imposed."[8]
On August 14, 1898, two days after the Battle of Manila of the Spanish–American War and about two months after Aguinaldo's proclamation of this revolutionary government, the United States established a military government in the Philippines, with General Merritt acting as military governor.[9]