← 1896 1895 1894 1897 in the Philippines → 1898 1899 1900
Decades:	1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s
See also:	List of years in the Philippines

This is a list of notable events that happened in the Philippines in the year 1897.

Incumbents

Spanish Colonial Government

• Governor-General:
  • Camilo de Polavieja (until April 15)
  • José de Lachambre (April 15 – 23)
  • Fernándo Primo de Rivera (starting April 23)

Philippine Revolutionary Government (Tejeros Government)

• Vice President:
  • Mariano Trías (March 22 – November 2)
• Captain general: Artemio Ricarte

Republic of Biak-na-Bato

• Vice President:
  • Mariano Trías (March 22 – November 2)

Events

January

• January 4 – Eleven of fifteen Filipinos which would be called the Fifteen Martyrs of Bicol are executed in Bagumbayan.^[1][2]
• January 11 – Thirteen Filipinos which would be called the Thirteen Martyrs of Bagumbayan are executed.^[1][2]

February

• February 6:
  • Ten Katipunan members convicted of subversion are executed in Bagumbayan, Manila.^[1]
  • A revolt in parts of Negros Oriental led by native priests ends in a battle with the defeat of the natives from the Spanish forces.^[1]
• February 13 – Governor-General Camilo de Polavieja begins his campaign with 16,000 Spanish soldiers to regain Cavite from Filipino revolutionaries.
• February 17 – Filipino forces win in the Battle of Zapote Bridge occurred in the boundary of Las Piñas and Cavite.^[1]
• February 19 – Spaniards recaptures Silang, Cavite in a battle.^[1]
• February 25 – Spaniards recaptures Dasmariñas, Cavite in a battle.^[1]

March

• March 22 – The two factions of the Katipunan are convened at the Tejeros Convention to resolve the leadership status in the organization.
• March 23 – Nineteen Filipinos which would be called the Nineteen Martyrs of Aklan are executed in Kalibo.^[2]

May

• May 10 – Andrés Bonifacio and his brother Procopio Bonifacio are killed in Maragondon, Cavite.

November

• November 1 – The Republic of Biak-na-Bato is established by Emilio Aguinaldo and his fellow revolutionaries, the first republic to be established in the Philippines.

December

• December 14 – The Pact of Biak-na-Bato is signed between Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera and Emilio Aguinaldo to end the Philippine Revolution.^[3]

Holidays

As a colony of Spanish Empire and being a catholic, the following were considered holidays:

• January 1 – New Year's Day
• April 15 – Maundy Thursday
• April 16 – Good Friday
• December 25 – Christmas Day

Births

• January 23 – Ildefonso Santos, Filipino poet, sculptor, and writer (d. 1984)
• March 3 – José Romero, Filipino politician (d. 1978)
• June 29 – George J. Willmann, Naturalized Filipino missionary from the United States. (d. 1977)
• September 11 - Francisca Susano, Filipino supercentenarian, (d. 2021)
• December 3 – Elisa Ochoa, first Filipina in the Congress of the Philippines (d. 1978)

Deaths

• January 4 – Executed eleven of the Fifteen Martyrs of Bicol.^[1][2]
• January 11 – Executed Thirteen Martyrs of Bagumbayan.^[1][2]
  • José Dizon, one of the founders of Katipunan^[2]
• February 6 – Executed members of Katipunan:^[1]
  • Román Basa (b. 1848)
  • Teodoro Plata (b. 1866)
  • Vicente Molina^[2]
  • Hermenegildo de los Reyes^[2]
  • José Trinidad^[2]
  • Pedro Nicodemus^[2]
  • Feliciano del Rosario^[2]
  • Gervasio Samson^[2]
  • Doroteo Dominguez
  • Apolonio de la Cruz
• February 17 – Edilberto Evangelista,^[1] Filipino civil engineer and general (b. 1862)
• March 23 – Executed Nineteen Martyrs of Aklan.^[2]
• May 10 – Andrés Bonifacio, Filipino nationalist and revolutionary; one of the founders of Katipunan (b. 1863)

Unknown dates

• Those executed after January 11, 1897:^[2]
  • Hugo Perez
  • Pedro Joson
  • Marcello de los Santos Esguerra
  • Eugenio de los Reyes y Herrera
  • Valentin Matias Lagasca y Cruz