Led by Colonel Marcos V. “Marking” Agustin and Valeria “Yay” Panlilio, the group is best known for capturing former Philippine president Emilio Aguinaldo, who had collaborated with the Japanese, and for their role in the battle to retake the Ipo Dam from the Japanese.
The Marking Guerrillas were first formed in early 1942 by Colonel Agustin, a former officer in the Philippine Scouts. In July of that year, he was joined by Panlilio, a journalist and intelligence agent. The group initially consisted of 150 men, but it grew to consist of roughly 12,200 members by 1945.
The Marking Guerrillas were part of a larger resistance movement known as the Fil-American Irregular Troops (FAIT), which was organized under U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Hugh Straughn. The FAIT was responsible for conducting a number of successful operations against the Japanese, including the capture of the Ipo Dam.
The Marking Guerrillas played a significant role in the liberation of the Philippines from Japanese occupation.
There are four distinct issues of currency by the Marking’s Guerrillas group. Both notes illustrated here are from the first issue.
