Antonio Luna's impressions of Madrid

ANTONIO Luna y Novicio was undoubtedly a man of many talents. He is especially remembered for his military skill and for the sinister way he was assassinated — a murder that some have attributed to Aguinaldo. He spent, as did many Filipino ilustrados of that time, the best years of his youth in Spain, where he actively took part in political activism and contributed periodically to La Solidaridad (1889-1895), directed by a livid anti-friar intellectual from Bulacan — Marcelo del Pilar.

An outstanding revolutionary, several achievements carried out during his short life are well known. However, what has remained largely forgotten is a literary jewel he published in Madrid in 1891 under the pseudonym Taga-Ilog: Impresiones. This book, a treasure of Filipino literature in Spanish, can be aptly described as a pearl necklace, of which each piece contributes harmoniously to build a vivid and picturesque portrait of Spain, in a very colorful, rich style. The Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino published a good Tagalog translation a few years ago which is unfortunately sold out already.