Manuel Quezon

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Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina (August 19, 1878 in Baler, Tayabas, Philippines – August 1, 1944 in Saranac Lake, New York, United States) was the first Filipino president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines under U.S. colonial rule in the first half of the 20th century. He is considered by most Filipinos to have been the second President of the Philippines, after Emilio Aguinaldo. He has the distinction of being the first Senate President elected to the presidency, the first president elected through a national election, and the first incumbent to secure re-election (for a partial second term, later extended, due to amendments to the 1935 Constitution). He is known as the "Father of the National Language".

His Spanish Mestizo parents were Lucio Quezon and Maria Dolores Molina. During the Philippine-American War he was an ayuda-de-campo to Emilio Aguinaldo. He rose to the rank of Major and fought in the Bataan sector during the retreat and surrender in 1901.

He received his primary education from his mother and school teacher in their home town and tutors (his father from Paco, Manila, was a Sergeant in the Spanish Army), and later boarded at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran where he completed secondary school. After the war, he completed Law at the University of Santo Tomas and passed the bar examinations in 1903, placing fourth. He worked for a time as a clerk and surveyor, entering government service as an appointed fiscal for Mindoro and later Tayabas. He became a councilor and was elected governor of Tayabas in 1906 as an independent. In 1907, he was elected to the first Philippine Assembly, where he served as majority floor leader and chairman of the committee on appropriations. From 1909–1916, he served as one of the Philippines’ two resident commissioners to the U.S. House of Representatives, lobbying for the passage of the Philippine Autonomy Act or Jones Law.

Other Information

Born : August 19, 1878
Birthplace : Baler, Tayabas, Philippines
Died : August 1, 1944 in Saranac Lake, New York, United States
Birth name : Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina
Father : Lucio Quezon
Mother : Maria Dolores Molina
Nationality : Filipino
Ethnic Affiliation : Tagalog
Schoolos Attended :

private tutor (1883-1887)
Secondary, Colegio de San Juan de Letran(1889)
Bachelor of Arts, summa cum laude, University of Santo Tomas (1894)
Bachelor of Laws, University of Santo Tomas
Doctor of Laws honoris causa University of the Philippines, Georgetown University

Political party : Nacionalista Party (1938–1944)
Other political affiliations : Independent (1906-1907), Partido Nacionalista (1907-22), Partido Colectivista Liberal (1922), Partido Nacionalista Consolidado (1923-33), Partido Nacionalista-Democrata (1934), Nacionalista Coalition (Coalition Party) (1935-1937), Partido Nacionalista (1937-1944)
Spouse : Aurora Antonia Aragon y Molina
Children:

Maria Aurora (“Baby”) Quezon
Maria Zeneida (“Nini”) Quezon
Luisa Corazon Paz ("Nenita") Quezon
Manuel L., Jr. (“Nonong”) Quezon

Profession : Lawyer
Religion : Roman Catholic

Positions held

Private Citizen

September 19, 1903 – appointed Fiscal of Mindoro
March 12, 1904 – appointed Fiscal of Tayabas
Practiced law in the firm of Francisco Ortigas (1904-1906)
Chairman, Appropriations Committee (1907-1909)

Government

Municipal councilor of Tayabas, Tayabas (1906)
Elected Governor of Tayabas (March 5, 1906)
Member and Majority Floor Leader of the First Philippine Assembly (1907)
Majority Floor Leader (1907-1909)
Resident Commissioner to the U.S. Congress (1909-1916)
Senator for the Fifth Senatorial District (1916-1935)
1st President of the Philippine Senate (1916-1935)
1st President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines (November 15, 1935 – August 1, 1944)

Notable Events

Pre-Presidency

Tydings-McDuffie Independence Law in 1934

Presidency

Administration, cabinet, and Supreme Court appointments 1935–1941
Government-in-exile
War cabinet 1941–1944

Awards and achievements

4th Place, 1903 Bar Examinations

The Filipino Profiles