Edralin, Ferdinand Emmanuel Marcos Senior was a Filipino politician who later became the country’s president for twenty-one years. Marcos’ father was an attorney and politician in his own right, and he followed in his father’s footsteps in terms of schooling and career choices. Marcos had a run-in with the authorities early in his childhood when he was accused of murdering one of his father’s political opponents, but he was acquitted after successfully defending himself. He served in the war during WWII and used his experiences as political tools during his first presidential campaign. Marcos was president for two times, imposing martial law in the country during his second term to quiet the threat of protesting organizations, and then winning the presidential elections for the third time when the martial law was lifted.
Childhood and Adolescence
On September 11, 1917, Ferdinand Edralin Marcos was born in Sarrat, Ilocos Norte, the Philippines to Mariano Marcos and his wife Josefa Edralin. Marcos’ father was a licensed lawyer as well as one of the Philippines’ most powerful politicians.
Marcos attended some of the greatest schools in Manila, the Philippines’ capital, but the schools’ names remain unknown. He later went on to study law at the University of the Philippines, just like his father, sometime in the late 1930s. Boxing, swimming, and debate were among his favorite extracurricular activities.
In 1933, one of his father’s political opponents was assassinated after defeating Mariano Marcos in an election. Ferdinand Marcos was charged and tried for his role in the assassination. He was found guilty, but he stood up in court and defended himself. He was found not guilty six years after the purported murder.
The Career of Marcos
Marcos enlisted in the Philippine army shortly after the Second World War began and served as an officer for the length of the conflict.
Ferdinand Marcos entered politics after the Philippines gained independence and the Second World War ended. In 1949, he was elected to the House of Representatives from Ilocos Norte, and he was re-elected twice more during the next ten years.
He served on several significant committees during that decade, including Chairman of the House Committee on Commerce and Industry, member of the Defense Committee, and several more.
Marcos was elected to the Philippine Senate in 1959 and quickly rose through the ranks to become the minority’s floor leader. The Liberal Party made him executive vice president two years after he was elected to the Senate, and he became Senate President two years later. Marcos was responsible for the introduction of a number of new bills during his two-year tenure as Senate President.
Marcos was elected President of the Philippines in 1965, and during his campaign for the presidency, he emphasized his experience as a soldier, and his campaign was successful. Marcos despatched Philippine soldiers to participate in the Vietnam War a year after taking office, and they stayed for four years.
Marcos was re-elected president for the second time in 1969, but the following year he faced left-wing opposition and protests.
The protests, combined with Islamic threats, were one of the main reasons why Marcos declared martial law in the Philippines three years after taking office in his second term, and the country remained under martial control for the next nine years as Marcos attempted to construct a “New Society.”
Opposition leaders and left-wing activists were detained, the press was banned, and Congress was shut down.
In 1978, Ferdinand Marcos was elected Prime Minister of the Philippines, and he ensured that the position was as powerful as that of the country’s president by transferring those powers to his office.
Martial law was lifted three years later, and presidential elections were held. Marcos was elected with a large margin of victory.
Marcos’ third tenure as president of the Philippines was marred by controversy in 1985 when an attempt was made to impeach him for stealing millions of dollars in state assets, but the move was defeated by a committee. In the same year, Marcos called for early elections, which he dutifully won, despite charges of electoral fraud.
The collapse of the electoral process gave the ‘People Power Movement’ more power. The opposition took control of the city a year after the election, and Marcos left. In Hawaii, he was granted asylum.
Personal History and Legacy
In 1954, Marcos married Imelda Romualdez. His wife, Imelda, became a politician as well. Ma Imelda Marcos, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Irene Marcos, and Aimee Marcos were the couple’s four children.
Marcos passed away in Honolulu on September 28, 1989, from heart and kidney problems.
Estimated Net worth
Imelda Marcos is a Filipino politician and ambassador who had a net worth of $5 billion at one point in her career.
In July 1929, Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez was born in Manila, Philippines. She is the widow of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, and she is half of their dictatorship together.