MANILA, Philippines — Manilans remember on Sunday, July 3, 2011, on his 53rd death anniversary, a man who wielded his pen as mightily as his sword during the Philippine Revolution 114 years ago.

Masses for Lopez will be held at St. Joseph Gagalangin Church, Tondo Church, Manila Tayuman Cathedral, and St. Joseph the Worker Church at 6:30 a.m. to be followed by a commemorative rite and wreath laying at the monument of Honorio Lopez at Moriones, Tondo, Manila.

Honorio Lopez is remembered not only for his nationalist feats which made him the hero of Manila, but for his varied accomplishments in various fields. He was one of the very few Filipinos who fought foreign invaders in three wars.
The first of those battles was against the Spaniards in 1896, the second against the Americans in 1899, and the third against the Japanese in 1941.

Lopez was a nationalist, propagandist, journalist, actor, politician, writer, publisher, seer, and pacifist. He became an official interpreter of the Philippine government at the age of 20. When the revolution broke out, he sought General
Artemio Ricarte’s group and was designated as the general’s aide-de-camp.

He later became the youngest colonel in the Philippine Revolution under Gen. Mariano Trias.

The young Honorio became known as the “hero of Manila” after capturing Tondo from the Spanish army in 1898. When the Americans came, he continued his fight against the new invaders.

The idea of preparing an almanac that would suit the needs of the Filipino homes came to Lopez during the underground days of the Revolution.

After the revolution, he continued writing his Tagalog almanac, founded the “Academia Tagala,” and organized the first company of “Tagalog Zarzuela.”

He took part in the first film shot and shown in the Philippines under the direction of Dr. Edward Meyer Gross.

The film was entitled “La Vida de Jose Rizal” where Lopez played the role of Jose Rizal, along with Titay Molina and another actress Chananay. This made Lopez the “first Filipino actor.”

He became editor of the Tagalog sections of “Libre,” “La Patria,” and “La Consolacion” national newspapers.

Lopez later entered politics and became one of the first elected councilors of Manila for 1916-20 during the administration of Mayor Justo Lukban.

During the World War II, Lopez together with his son, Philippine Army Col. Gemiliano Lopez Sr., was imprisoned in Fort Santiago, Intramuros, for giving moral and material assistance to the underground forces. After World War II, Lopez worked for the restoration of peace and order, and was responsible for the surrender of tens of thousand of firearms and hundreds of thousands of ammunition to President Manuel Roxas.

Later, Lopez became technical assistant to President Ramon Magsaysay and then to President Carlos Garcia.

He was also president of the Legion de Veteranos de la Revolution and a member of the Board of Pensions for revolutionary veterans.

At the time of his death, Lopez was survived by his two children, namely Dr. Gemiliano Lopez, Sr. a retired colonel in the Philippine Army who died in 1992 and the late Dr. Belen L. de Guia.

Among his grandchildren are former Manila Representative Jaime C. Lopez, former PSC Chairman, Manila Assemblyman, and Manila Mayor and now the Chairman-CEO of the PNOC- Exploration Corporation Gemiliano C. Lopez
Jr., Court of Appeals Justice Rebecca Lopez Salvador, and former Councilor Honorio U. Lopez II. The youngest direct descendant, the great-grandson of Honorio Lopez, is incumbent Manila Rep. Carlo V. Lopez.

In official recognition of Lopez’s service to the country in general and to Manila in particular, the city government of Manila renamed North Bay Blvd. in Tondo to Honorio Lopez Blvd. in 1967.