Aguinaldo's 1899 Declaration of Independence

During the Spanish American War (1898), Philippine Revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo declared the Philippines independent of Spain. After Spain’s defeat, the Filipinos expected independence. Instead, as part of the 1898 Treaty of Paris, the US took over the Philippines. In response, on January 5, 1899, Aguinaldo declared the Philippines independent from the US. Philippine newspaper La Independencia printed copies of this declaration which were then put up all over the city of Manila. Amazingly, one of these copies survived! It is in the MacArthur Memorial's collection and is in need of conservation!

Currently, the Virginia Association of Museums (VAM) has it listed as one of Virginia’s Top 10 Endangered Artifact’s of 2023. The public can view this list online and vote for the artifact they would like to see receive a $1000 conservation prize. You can vote once a day now through March 3, 2023.
VOTE: Virginia's Top 10 Endangered Artifacts 2022 (wishpond.com)

If you are listening to this after March 3 2023 – you can’t vote anymore, but you can still enjoy learning about this incredibly unique artifact!!

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