# The Alferez — Noli Me Tangere character guide

> The Alferez in Noli Me Tangere by José Rizal.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0018-xi-the-rulers

## Snapshot

The civil guard commander of San Diego, a man who kicks doors open, dreams of medals, and needs a friar to tell him where the danger is.

## Who they are

The alferez commands the barracks with bluster and a revolver he is eager to use, but when Padre Salví bursts in with news of a conspiracy, he is reduced to asking who to arrest. His marriage to Doña Consolacion is a running brawl, and his readiness to shoot first and think later makes him the perfect instrument for the friar's schemes. He embodies the colonial state's muscle — brutal, vain, and entirely dependent on the church for direction.

## In the story

### [The Rulers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xi-the-rulers)

The drunken, abusive commander of the Civil Guard who competes with the curate for power, often beating his wife and harassing the townspeople.

### [The Story of a Mother](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxi-the-story-of-a-mother)

Orders Sisa's release, dismissing the curate's accusation as tricks of a rascally friar.

### [In the Wood](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxiv-in-the-wood)

Engages in a tense exchange with Padre Salví about the assault on Padre Dámaso and the missing sacristans.

### [The Sermon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxxi-the-sermon)

Frowns when Padre Dámaso compares Saint Diego to a celestial Civil Guard, feeling slighted.

### [The Dinner](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxxiv-the-dinner)

Engages in tense banter with Padre Salví and is present during the altercation between Ibarra and Padre Dámaso.

### [The Procession](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxxviii-the-procession)

The alferez is part of the group accompanying the Captain-General during the procession.

### [Doña Consolacion](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xxxix-do-a-consolacion)

Returns to find his wife torturing Sisa; he stops the abuse and confronts his wife about a letter she wrote to the alcalde.

### [The Two Señoras](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/xlvii-the-two-se-oras)

Arrives to break up the fight, threatens Doña Victorina, and is challenged by Linares at Doña Victorina's insistence.

### [LIV: Revelations](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/liv-revelations)

Receives news of the plot from Padre Salví and prepares to arrest the conspirators.

### [LV: The Catastrophe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/lv-the-catastrophe)

Commands the guards during the uprising; orders arrests and threatens violence.

### [Vae Victis!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/chapters/lvii-vae-victis)

Presides over the interrogation and torture, displaying cruelty and frustration at Tarsilo's defiance.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/characters/alferez
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/noli_me_tangere_se/characters