León María Guerrero III


León María Ignacio Agapito Guerrero y Francisco, better known simply as Leon Ma. Guerrero III, was a Filipino diplomat and novelist, and was one of the foremost Filipino nationalists of his era. A partner in the law practice of senator Claro M. Recto, he became Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs during the Magsaysay administration. His then controversial advocacy of Asia for the Asians and espousal of a realistic re-examination of relations with the United States are now commonly accepted as being ahead of their time.

Early life

Leoni, as his family called him, was born on 24 March 1915 in Ermita, Manila to one of the nation's most prominent families.
His parents were Dr. Alfredo León Guerrero and Filomena Francisco, the first Filipino woman pharmacist. His sister, Carmen Guerrero Nakpil, would also be grow up to be a journalist and one of the most preeminent figures in Philippine letters.
His paternal grandfather was León María Guerrero y Leogardo, a distinguished botanist, Malolos Congress delegate and member of the first Philippine Assembly. His maternal grandfather was Gabriel Beato Francisco, a journalist who had been manager of El Comercio, the foremost mercantile newspaper during the Spanish regime.
In 1938, he married Anita Corominas of Cebu. She was the daughter of Don Jose Corominas and Doña Paz Escaño. Her maternal grandparents were Don Fernando Escaño and Doña Agustina Faelnar. Her niece was married to the son of José E. Romero, the first Philippine ambassador to the Court of St. James's.

Later life

On retirement he was the country's senior career diplomat, having served as ambassador in London, Madrid, New Delhi, Mexico City and Belgrade. On June 19, 1982, only a few days before he died, he received the, Gawad Mabini, the highest award in the Philippine Foreign Service.
He held the rank of Knight Grand Cross of the Knights of Rizal. Among his many works are internationally acclaimed translations of José Rizal's Noli Me Tangere and El filibusterismo. He also wrote the biography of Rizal: The First Filipino.

Works