‘Daan nga ili’ revisited: Sarrat residents remember 1815 revolt
March 3 this year marked the 210th anniversary of the start of the violent six-day Sarrat revolt in Ilocos Norte in 1815, which resulted in destruction, deaths, and the transfer of the town center to the other side of the Padsan River.
Today, that old town center is Barangay Nagrebcan in the neighboring municipality of San Nicolas, an archaeological site declared an Important Cultural Property by the National Museum in 2015.
Curiously, Nagrebcan is officially called Santa Monica, the patron saint of Sarrat, where the dedicated church is located.
Nagrebcan comes from the Ilocano word “nagrebaan” meaning destroyed or ruined, and is also referred to as “daan nga ili” or old town.
It is the site of the said revolt by the common people against the local elite and church authorities over the issue of parity and economic mistreatment against the poor.
The revolting class, composed of about 1,500 people, was led by a certain Domingo, a Sarrat native, with groups led by his fellow Sarrateños Mariano Espiritu, Vicente Santiago, and Simon Tomas.
Other cluster leaders included Andres Bugarin and those from the neighboring town of Piddig.
The houses of the rich were pillaged and some residents killed while the convent, where many members of the principalia hid, was also ransacked. Documents from the tribunal (courthouse) were also shredded.
The revolt spread to at least San Nicolas and Piddig and caused damage in both towns.
The “despicable” despensera or housekeeper of the priest in Sarrat, named Rosa Agcauli (also Agcaoili), was killed and dismembered. The account can be found in Isabelo de los Reyes’ two-volume opus on the history of the Ilocos.
Many were also held as prisoners but were released on the fifth day of the conflict when rebels acceded to the parish priest’s request to lay down their arms as they were already surrounded by government troops and a group organized by the principalia. Many fled in the middle of the night.
The following morning, the houses and church complex of Sarrat were destroyed in a conflagration following the arrival of troops from Laoag. This event resulted in the transfer of the town center to the other side of the river.
It is, however, unclear what became of the loot returned by the rebels’ wives to the church the same day it burned down.
Commemoration
To commemorate the 1815 incident, the Santa Monica Parish of Sarrat held a mass in Nagrebcan on March 3, the first mass held by the 301-year-old parish in Sarrat’s old poblacion, particularly in what is believed to be the site of its old church, in more than two centuries.
The event was also a day of prayer for Sarrat residents who perished during the said revolt and to call for the healing of unpleasant memories. It had the support of the local government of San Nicolas and its parish, the Diocesan Shrine of San Nicolas.
The mass was coofficiated by Sarrat parish priest Fr. Ericson Josue and Fr. Mark Lester Castañeda, parish priest of the town of Burgos, also in Ilocos Norte.
Fr. Josue said the event was held in line with the third centennial commemoration and celebration of the establishment of Sarrat as a parish in 1724.
It was also done “to pray for the forgotten dead and ask for healing of memories.”
He said that “part of the celebration is to return to our roots and pray for healing” as well as “ask for forgiveness for the sins committed by our ancestors.”
Old town
Sarrat was established as a visita or mission station of Laoag in 1586, bearing the name Santa Monica de Sarrat. Prior to this, it was called Cabayugan, after a bamboo species.
In 1724, it became an independent parish and town named San Miguel de Sarrat, although it was also called San Miguel de Cuming after the name of a local saffron.
A name variant is San Miguel de Cunig, which, according to Father Josue, was named after the geographic location of the new town, at the foot of Mt. Cunig.
For a long time it was known as San Miguel, but in 1917, the town’s name was changed to Sarrat.
The present town is rich in terms of its built heritage with the presence of the church complex, the Spanish-era Via Crucis structures, ancestral houses including the birthplace of former President Ferdinand Marcos (now a museum), and the tribunal which is now a building in the central school.
For its architectural and aesthetic significance, the Sarrat Church complex was declared an Important Cultural Property by the National Museum in 2009.
Author’s note: Thanks to San Nicolas tourism officer Richie Cavinta for his assistance in this article.
