Francisco Balagtas y de la Cruz, commonly known as Francisco Balagtas and as Francisco Baltasar, was a Filipino poet and litterateur of the Tagalog language during the Spanish rule of the Philippines.
20 Facts About Francisco Balagtas
2.
Francisco Balagtas is widely considered one of the greatest Filipino literary laureates for his impact on Filipino literature.
3.
Francisco Balagtas was born in Barrio Panginay, Bigaa, Bulacan, as the youngest of the four children of Juan Balagtas, a blacksmith, and Juana de la Cruz.
4.
Francisco Balagtas studied in a parochial school in Bigaa and later in Manila.
5.
Francisco Balagtas later worked as a houseboy in Tondo, Manila.
6.
Francisco Balagtas learned to write poetry from Jose de la Cruz, one of the most famous poets of Tondo, in return for chicks.
7.
Francisco Balagtas swore he would overcome Huseng Sisiw as he would not ask for anything in return as a poet.
8.
In 1835, Francisco Balagtas moved to Pandacan, Manila, where he met Maria Asuncion Rivera, who would effectively serve as the muse for his future works.
9.
Francisco Balagtas is referenced in his work Florante at Laura as 'Selya' and 'MAR'.
10.
Francisco Balagtas wrote his poems in the Tagalog language, during an age when Filipino writing was predominantly written in Spanish.
11.
Francisco Balagtas published Florante at Laura upon his release in 1838.
12.
Francisco Balagtas moved to Balanga, Bataan, in 1840 where he served as the assistant to the justice of the peace.
13.
Francisco Balagtas was appointed as the translator of the court.
14.
Francisco Balagtas married Juana Tiambeng on July 22,1842, in a ceremony officiated by Fr.
15.
Francisco Balagtas even went as far as to tell them it would be better to cut their hands off than let them be writers.
16.
Francisco Balagtas wrote ten comedias and one metrical romance according to Cruz as well as numerous other poems and short plays that are recorded in his book.
17.
The majority of the source material for Francisco Balagtas' work come from Hermenegildo Cruz' book which itself is based on the surviving testimonies and memories of Francisco Balagtas' children at the turn of the century.
18.
Francisco Balagtas wrote in the Ladino style of poems that were popular among his contemporaries.
19.
Francisco Balagtas is said to have written two loas recorded in Cruz's book as well as numerous Ladinos and didactic works.
20.
Five of the ten plays Francisco Balagtas wrote as recorded by Cruz are considered lost.