Tarlac City, Tarlac – The Provincial Government unveiled the painting of Spanish General Juan Alaminos y Vivar at the Carlos P. Romulo Library in this city.

According to a social media post by the Provincial Government on July 29, Asociacion del Legado Hispanico en Ultramar (HISPAULT) President Engineer Jose Antonio Portillo Corpas undertook the donation of the said painting.

The donation of the painting was in recognition of the strong historical correlation between the Philippines and Spain and is also aimed at honoring and celebrating the country’s colonial history.

Governor Christian Tell Yap, Vice Governor Estelita Aquino, and Board Member Harmes Sembrano received the painting of the Spanish General as a sign of the continued support of the Provincial Government for arts, culture, and history.

General Alaminos (1813–1899) served as the 96th Governor-General of the Philippines. A native of Cuéllar, Spain, he was born on 27 October 1813.

Before the abdication of King Amadeo I of Spain, Alaminos was sent to assume the position of Governor-General of the Philippines on 24 January 1873. He was the first Governor-General to arrive in and depart from the Philippines on a steamship.

During his term, Alaminos fought against the Archbishop of Manila, Gregorio Melitón Martínez, keeping the conflict between the colonial government and the Church ongoing. It was during the administration of former Governor-General Carlos María de la Torre y Navacerrada when the conflict was rekindled.

Around 1870, the Governor-General appointed Luis Alcalá-Zamora as Bishop of Cebu, but it was not approved by Archbishop Gregorio Melitón Martínez.

Alaminos was replaced by an interim governor in 1874, during the administration of President Francisco Serrano, 1st Duke of la Torre. He died in 1899. During his administration in the Philippines, Alaminos, Pangasinan, and Alaminos, Laguna, were named in his honor.

Professor Lino Dizon, the Commissioner of the National Historical Commission, in his speech imparted Alaminos’s contributions in the creation of Tarlac province on 28 May 1873, the town of Pura on 18 November 1873, and his initiation that led to the creation of the town of Moncada on 1 May 1874. He also thanked Corpas and HISPAULT for the donation of the portrait of Vibar.

Yap, for his part, likewise thanked Corpas and HISPAULT for the donation and also thanked Dizon for imparting his knowledge of the contributions of Alaminos to the history of the province.