Guevara, Pedro, 1879-1938

Pedro Guevara (February 23, 1879 – January 19, 1938), was a Filipino soldier, lawyer, legislator, and Spanish writer. He served as Resident Commissioner of the Philippines to the U.S. Congress from 1923 to 1936.

Born in Santa Cruz in the Laguna Province of the Spanish Philippines, he attended local schools before being sent to attend Ateneo Municipal de Manila, and then Colegio de San Juan de Letran. Guevara earned a liberal arts degree at the latter school in 1896, finishing at the head of his class. When the 1896 revolution broke out, Guevara fought the Spanish and earned the rank of lieutenant colonel for his service, including helping to lead Filipino forces in the Battle of Mabitac. In the Philippine-American War, he joined the insurrectionaries who opposed U.S. occupation forces, serving as aide and private secretary to General Juan Cailles, commander of Philippine rebels in Laguna Province. After the war ended, Guevara joined the Philippine constabulary, a paramilitary unit that maintained peace. After five years of service, Guevara returned to civilian life and, in a pattern reminiscent of others who later became Resident Commissioners, worked as a journalist. He became chief editor of Soberanía Nacional (National Sovereignty), a newspaper that championed Philippine independence, and also served as city editor for four other newspapers. During this time, Guevara studied at La Jurisprudencia, a Manila law school, and passed the bar in 1909.

...