Examine the causes of the Philippine Revolution (1896).

The question requires candidates to consider the interrelationship between the factors that caused the Philippine Revolution (1896). Some causes may predate the timeframe but they must be clearly linked to the issue raised in the question. A comparative approach may or may not be used. Candidates may refer to the clergy’s opposition to Spanish dominance of the Filipino Catholic Church and the dismay at Spanish repression following the Cavite Revolt (1872), during which three priests became martyrs. There may be discussion of the role of the Propaganda Movement led by Rizal, who campaigned from Europe against Spanish corruption in the Philippines, and the failure of the Spanish to reform their colonial government. Candidates may also refer to the immediate cause of the revolt which was the discovery by the Spanish of Bonifacio’s 100 000 strong secret revolutionary society. While other, relevant, interrelationships such as international influences may be considered, the bulk of the response will remain on focussed on the events in the Philippines.

The question required candidates to consider the interrelationship between the factors that caused the Philippine Revolution (1896). Candidates could have identified a broad range of social, political and economic causes or focused more in-depth on a few factors and either of these approaches would have been valid.