Francisco Balagtas (April 2, 1788—February 20, 1862), Francisco Baltazar being his real name, is considered to be one of the great Filipino poets. He is best known for his masterpiece Florante at Laura. He used his vernacular, Tagalog, in a time when most of literature was written in Spanish. Some schools of thought believe his poems depict the injustices his people suffered under the Spanish colonizers.

See also

• Literature of the Philippines

References

• http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Pool/1644/baltazar.html