Leandro Fullon
Hero and Liberator of Antique
(1874 - 1904)
During the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine-American War, Leandro Fullón y Locsín, a general and government administrator from the Philippines, battled both the Spanish and the American invasion army.
Fullón, a Katipunan member, assisted in setting up the Philippines' first revolutionary government. He founded a Revolutionary Provincial Government in Antique after leading the invading army to Panay. Later, from 1901 until 1904, Fullón served as the Province of Antique's first Filipino governor.
Early Years and Education
Justo Guerrero Fullon and Fausta Gerona Locsin welcomed Leandro Fullón into the world on March 13, 1874, in Hamtic, Antique. Before moving to Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Manila in 1896, he attended Ateneo Municipal de Manila.
Personal Life
Fullon wed Petra Francisco, the daughter of Evaristo Francisco and Margarita Dairo, a well-known Binondo, Manila family, at the age of 22.
Conflict with Spain
General Emilio Aguinaldo sent Fullón, who was now a general in the Philippine troops, on September 6, 1898, and he returned to Antique with 350 men and 140 officers. Numerous local volunteers joined his army after he arrived in Antique on September 21.
In Pandan and Culasi, Fullón installed a revolutionary government. Fullón's troops took San Jose de Buenavista on November 22, 1898. Together with Vicente Gella (representative to the Malolos Congress), Anacleto Villavert Jiménez and José Gontanilla (Council of Justice), Anselmo Alicante (Council of Internal Revenue), and Santos Capadocia (vice governor), he established a Revolutionary Provincial Government.
In San Miguel, Pavia, and outside of Jaro in Iloilo City, Fullón's troops engaged the Spanish. Later, Fullón was named Politico-Military Governor of Antique by the new revolutionary administration in the Visayas.
Conflict with United States
The Spanish-American War came to a conclusion on December 10, 1898, when Spain gave the Philippines to the United States. Fullón joined the resistance on February 11, 1899, when American forces stormed Iloilo. He went back to battle in Antique at the beginning of 1900. Fullón and the other resistance fighter were compelled to surrender on March 22, 1901.
The American government named Fullón Provincial Governor of Antique on April 15, 1901. He served as governor until his death on October 16, 1904, at the age of thirty. The province was badly impacted by the cholera outbreak in 1902 and the escalating religious hostilities between Roman Catholics and Aglipayans during his tenure. Additionally, Fullon disclosed that most pueblo officials did not approve of the amalgamation of the municipalities under the province.
Since 1901, a number of disasters have severely damaged the province's finances by destroying almost all farmland. Less than half of the plantations were spread out in 1903 due to the cholera outbreak and fevers, which first appeared in May and peaked during the planting season.
— Leandro Fullon, Annual Report of the Governor of the Province of Antique (July 15, 1904)
Death
General Leandro Fullon, the liberator of Antique and its first Filipino governor, died on October 16, 1904, at the age of 30.
The exact cause of his death is often linked to the severe health crises affecting his province at the time. Historical records and local accounts state the following:
Disease: During his term as governor, Antique was ravaged by a major cholera epidemic and persistent fevers.
Circumstances: He died in office while managing the province's recovery from these epidemics and other natural calamities.
While some sources list his cause of death generally as "disease" during this period of epidemic, others specifically associate his passing with the health struggles prevalent in Antique in 1904.
