Pacific War. Pacific War Spain returns to South America
Today Bolivia is an inland state. In the 19th century, it had access to the sea - a 400 km long coastline with seven ports. She lost it as a result of the conflict known as the Second Pacific, or Saltpeter, War.
Back in the 1860s, the reserves of guano and saltpeter mined in the Peruvian department of Tarapaca and in the Bolivian territory of the Atacama Desert aroused great hidden envy among the Chilean government, which did not own many equally significant deposits. As guano reserves are depleted, saltpeter becomes the main export product and the most important source of income for Peru. Bolivia, which did not have the resources to self-development deposits, allowed Chilean entrepreneurs, operating with the support of English capital, to mine saltpeter. The sparsely populated areas of the Atacama were actively populated by Chileans. Adding to the tension between Bolivia and Chile was the uncertainty of the borders between the two states. The Bolivian government sought to sign agreements on the state border with Chile, customs duties for the Chileans' extraction of saltpeter in Atacama, and at the same time - to establish allied relations with Peru, which was also faced with Chilean expansion in the area of the saltpeter deposit in the Tarapacá department. As a result, a secret defense treaty was signed between Peru and Bolivia in February 1873. With this agreement, the Peruvian side ensured free activity for its entrepreneurs in the Bolivian territory of Atacama, and also secured the saltpeter deposits in the department of Tarapaca. And in 1874, the Chilean-Bolivian border treaty was signed.
According to this document, the new border ran along the 24th parallel of southern latitude. At the same time, in the zone between the 23rd and 24th parallels, Chilean entrepreneurs could freely mine saltpeter, but Bolivia collected export duties. In addition, Chileans were able to import food into Bolivia without collecting duties, as well as equipment and devices necessary for the extraction of saltpeter.
Despite the signed agreements, relations between the countries remained difficult. In 1875, the Peruvian government began nationalizing the saltpeter industries, which caused indignation among Chilean and English entrepreneurs. Bolivia followed Peru, declaring saltpeter a national treasure and introducing an additional tax on the export of saltpeter in February 1878. In such a situation, Chilean entrepreneurs turned to the government of their country for help.
BEGINNING OF COMBAT OPERATIONS
For about a year, the situation continued to escalate. The Chilean government announced the denunciation of the border treaty, seeking, at an opportunity, to take possession of the largest Bolivian port of Antofagasta, through which the bulk of saltpeter exports passed. In December 1878, the Bolivian government demanded that the Anglo-Chilean company KSFA pay arrears, and on February 1 of the following year it seized its property. In response, on February 14, 1879, Chile landed a force of five hundred soldiers under the command of Colonel Sotomayor in Antofagasta. Having encountered no resistance from the small number of Bolivian soldiers, the Chileans captured the capital of the Atacama province. Peru expressed its protest to what was happening and demanded the withdrawal of Chilean troops from Bolivian territory. In response, Chile demanded the denunciation of the agreement between the Bolivian side and Peru. The representative of Peru in Chile promised to consider this issue in parliament. But the Chileans felt that Peru was simply delaying time to prepare for the start of hostilities, and on April 5, 1879, they were the first to declare war on Peru.
ARMY OF THE PARTIES
Both Peru and Bolivia, as well as Chile, entered the war completely unprepared. Their peacetime armies were tiny, the command and control system was archaic, and the military medical service, as well as supply agencies, were completely absent. From a technical point of view, the Chilean army looked preferable. In units and in warehouses, it had more than one and a half hundred field and mountain guns, most of them modern. Breech-loading 75-mm and 87-mm Krupp guns fired at a distance of 4500-4800 m with shells weighing 4.3-6.3 kg. The Peruvian army had about 120 guns, but old muzzle-loading ones, with a caliber of 55 and 60 mm. Their firing range was 2500-3800 m, and the projectile mass barely exceeded 2 kg. The Bolivian army had new 60 mm Krupp mountain guns, but there were only six of them.
The Peruvian fleet had two armored ships (Huascar and Independencia), Chile also had two (Cochrane and Blanco Encalada). Chilean ships of more modern construction were better armed and armored.
Their surprise attack on the allies played a large role in the success of the Chileans. The Bolivian coast was captured by the end of March 1879, which allowed the Chilean army to reach the southern borders of Peru.
The situation was aggravated by political strife and ethnic conflicts within Bolivia and Peru. In addition, England almost openly sided with Chile. The British prevented the Peruvians from purchasing weapons in Europe.
WAR AT SEA
On April 5, 1879, the Chilean squadron under the command of Admiral Rebolledo began blockade and bombardment of the ports of Iquique and Mollendo. But already on May 21, the Peruvian battleships Huascar and Independencia managed to sink the enemy sloop Esmeralda and thereby lift the blockade. Despite the numerical superiority of the enemy, the Huascar monitor, under the command of Captain Grau, kept the Chileans from landing on the coast of Peru for five months.
The Peruvians were even able to capture the enemy transport ship Rimac, which was carrying reinforcements for the Chilean troops occupying Antofagasta.
The commander of the Chilean army was given the main task of destroying the battleship Huascar and landing troops on the Peruvian coast. But it was only possible to complete it in the fall. The Peruvian battleships Huascar and Union, on October 8, 1879, collided with the Chilean squadron at Angamos (between the ports of Mejillones and Antofagasta), where they were defeated. The Huascar monitor was captured by the enemy. Huascar commander Miguel Grau, who died in battle, is considered a national hero of Peru.
LANDING IN PISAGUA
After neutralizing the Peruvian fleet, the Chileans began to implement the second stage of the war. The Peruvian province of Tarapaca became the landing site for Chilean soldiers. The Chilean government believed that the capture of Tarapaca with its saltpeter deposits would force the Allies to admit defeat. In addition, revenues from the sale of saltpeter would cover a significant part of Chile's military expenses. On November 2, 1879, a ten-thousand-strong Chilean corps arrived at the port of Pisagua. Thus, the main forces of the Allies, located to the south, near Iquique, were cut off from the territory of Peru. The army of the Peruvian general Buendia numbered about 9 thousand people, but it was demoralized by the passivity and outright cowardice of the Bolivian allies: their main forces, located in Takiy, did not dare to engage in battle. The Peruvians, in the battle of Tarapaca on November 27, managed to push back the Chileans, securing an escape route to the north. However, the entire province of Tarapaca with a population of 200 thousand people (1/10 of the population of Peru) and rich deposits of saltpeter was lost to Peru.
ADVANCE NORTH
Success at Takiy contributed to the further advancement of the Chileans. On February 26, 1880, 11 thousand soldiers landed at Punta Coles without encountering resistance from the Peruvians. On March 22, Chilean troops defeated an enemy detachment near Los Angeles, cutting the only direct supply line between Lima and southern Peru (now the delivery of supplies and reinforcements was possible only by a long, roundabout route - through Bolivian territory). Peruvian troops in the south of the country were cut into three parts - in Arequipa, Arica and Taquia. On May 26, 1880, the 14,000-strong Chilean army defeated the Allied troops (8.5 thousand Peruvians and 5 thousand Bolivians) at Tacna, and on June 7, the Chileans defeated the enemy at Arica. As a result of these battles, Bolivia actually left the war, and the Peruvians had to retreat. As a show of force, on September 10, 1880, Chile landed a force of 2,200 people in northern Peru - in Chimbote. There were no Peruvian troops here, and the Chileans, having collected “tribute” from local landowners, left unhindered.
INTERCLOSURE
In an effort to inflict a final defeat on the enemy, the Chileans set the goal of capturing the capital of Peru, Lima. On November 19-20, 1880, a landing force of almost 9 thousand people knocked out the three thousand Peruvian garrison from the port of Pisco (320 km from Lima). Peruvian President Pierola ordered the preparation of two parallel defensive positions south of Lima - at Chorrillos and Miraflores. But on January 13, 1881, the Peruvian troops were defeated in the first position, and two days later - in the second. On January 17, the Chileans occupied the Peruvian capital. Further resistance of the Peruvians took on the character of semi-guerrilla actions.
In 1883, the Chileans inflicted two more significant defeats on the Peruvians, and on July 12, the Peruvian government was forced to sign a treaty transferring the province of Tarapaca to Chile. As a result of the truce concluded between Chile and Bolivia on April 4, 1884 in Valparaiso, the latter was deprived of the Antofagasta region and, accordingly, access to the sea. The peace treaty signed in 1904 consolidated these agreements, but with one condition - Chile undertook to provide Bolivia with a “corridor” to access the Pacific Ocean. However, this has not yet been done.
You might be interested:
The War in the Pacific began in limited pockets but grew to become a significant part of the global conflict - culminating with the atomic bombing shortly before the end of the war.
Japanese expansionism
For Japan, the global economic crisis had devastating consequences. Trying to cope with them, the Japanese successfully began to colonize nearby Manchuria, which Japan had claims to since the time of the Sino-Japanese War. The country hoped that in this way new foreign trade markets would open for Japanese products, more territories would appear for the development of agriculture and access to many minerals. Although Manchuria was not profitable as quickly as hoped, the Japanese population was excited about further expansion.
The territories that Japan chose for its expansion had already been colonized by European powers, so as the Japanese sought to colonize, a conflict developed that inevitably escalated into war. Indochina belonged to France, the British owned colonies in Burma, Malaya and Singapore and put pressure on Siam (modern Thailand). The Kingdom of the Netherlands expanded across the resource-rich group of islands as part of the East India Company, and even the Americans laid claim to the Philippines. In such a situation, Japan felt oppressed - according to the Japanese, world powers intended to invade even deeper into Japan's original sphere of influence. Among the Japanese public, seething with resentment that the Europeans were taking away their property right under their noses, a pan-Asian sentiment emerged: Asia should belong to the Asians, and by virtue of its military and economic power, Japan was called upon to take the leading role in establishing " a new order in East Asia." The idea took root in the minds of the Japanese that an invasion of Southeast Asia would be a step towards the liberation of the fraternal Asian peoples from the colonial oppression of the Europeans. In 1940, events in Europe began to play into the hands of the Japanese. Germany, already an ally of Japan, managed to defeat the French and Dutch in June, and the future of both countries was in jeopardy. In France, the puppet government
Pétain, under the Vichy regime, under pressure from Germany, there was only one option left - to allow the Japanese to enter French Indochina - "for support", as it was called. At first, the Dutch colonial administrations in the Pacific region still managed to hold their positions. Great Britain, now Germany's only military adversary in Europe, could no longer guarantee security for its colonies. Therefore, in 1940, the only tangible resistance to Japanese expansionist policies came from the United States.
Before the attack on Pearl Harbor
The United States was significantly superior to Japan in terms of population, size of territory, and the strength of its industrial economy. The decision to go to war against such an enemy was not entirely easy, although the United States was becoming an increasingly serious obstacle to the implementation of expansionary plans. The generous military and economic assistance that the United States provided to the Chinese nationalists further complicated the position of the Japanese army in Asia and increased anti-American sentiment. In addition, American oil interests in Southeast Asia deprived the Japanese fleet of the opportunity to move south. And the decisive role was played by the fact that the Americans refused to recognize Japan’s claims to Manchuria.
At the end of 1941, Japan was ready to break into Southeast Asia. To prevent the war from escalating, Japan made one last diplomatic attempt and invited Roosevelt to negotiate. In November 1941, the attempt finally failed; Roosevelt categorically did not want to fall under suspicion by making concessions to fascism - a reproach addressed to Chamberlain, and therefore dashed the hopes of the Japanese that they associated with the meeting. Now Japan saw only one option: war. The military recognized the benefits of a preemptive strike on the US Pacific Fleet while it was still in port. Attack: The weather in the first months of 1942 could make it difficult in extraterritorial waters, and Japanese oil reserves could be maximally used up before the summer. Therefore, the blow was struck immediately: December 7
1941 (in Washington; December 8 in Tokyo) The Japanese launched their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor (Hawaii) and destroyed the US Pacific Fleet in its home harbor.
Japan has the upper hand
At first, Japan had free reign in Southeast Asia as Roosevelt declared a "Germany first" policy. Thus, Japan achieved influence in the region, occupying two important cities that had previously been under the control of the British: Hong Kong on December 25, 1941 and Singapore on February 15, 1942. At the beginning of 1942, the Japanese finally captured the islands of Burma belonging to the Dutch East India Company, Malaya, Sumatra, and the Philippines; they were at the peak of their power. In May 1942, Allied forces won the Battle of the Coral Sea. It was the first naval battle between aircraft carriers, and although the Allies suffered more serious damage, Japanese losses were greater and their plan to attack Port Moresby in New Guinea was thwarted. Port Moresby, as it turned out, was one of the most important Allied strongholds in the Pacific, and if the Japanese captured it, they would be in a favorable position from which they could launch an attack on northern Australia.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor: the destroyer USS Shaw.
Naval Battle of Midway
A month after the Battle of the Coral Sea, Japan attacked the American naval base on the Midway Islands in the center of the Pacific Ocean. It was intended as retaliation for the air raid on Tokyo carried out in April 1942 - the first so-called “Doolittle Raid” on Japanese soil. The raid was carried out on the orders of Colonel James Doolittle from an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. The strike deeply shocked the Japanese people, who were not prepared for an air war.
This daring attack on Midway Island, in which the Japanese were forced to split their front in two, would have brought decisive defeat to the Americans - had it been successful. However, the US Navy, thanks to its superior communications technology, was aware of the Japanese plans and was able to request additional ships, which rushed to the base and launched a surprise counterattack. Among others, there was the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, which was hastily repaired after the Battle of the Coral Sea. In the Battle of Midway, which lasted from June 4 to June 7, 1942, the Americans achieved a decisive victory: four Japanese aircraft carriers were destroyed. This battle marks a turning point in the Pacific War; Japan was no longer able to recover from the loss of aircraft carriers - the country was forced to go on the defensive.
The Allies Strike Back
The war in the Pacific took place primarily at sea. In August 1942, the US 1st Marine Division landed on Guadalca Nal, the largest of the Solomon Islands, and began a fierce land battle that was not won until February 1943. In August 1942, the Japanese attacked an Australian base at Milne Bay, New Guinea. Australia responded to the Japanese attack in early September - the first Allied victory in land combat. With increasing success, the Allies operated under the so-called “island hopping” policy: fighting, they advanced from island to island and liberated them from the Japanese occupiers, often suffering very heavy losses, while the goal was to break through as close to Japan itself as possible. Thus, from the beginning of 1943, all of New Guinea was under the protection of the Australians and Americans, and in the next two years the United States advanced even further into Japanese-occupied territories; in November 1943 they landed on the Solomon Islands, and in mid-1944 on Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands).
The atomic mushroom over Nagasaki rose above the city to a height of more than 6000 m; At least 75,000 people became victims of this second atomic bomb (the first hit Hiroshima).
Battle of Leyte Gulf
In October 1944, the largest battle in history took place in Leyte Gulf in the Philippines. The superior Japanese armed forces tried to prevent the Allied forces from taking the Philippine island of Leyte; this battle completely destroyed the Japanese fleet, and in the future it no longer posed a serious threat. In the battle, the Japanese used kamikaze pilots for the first time to make suicide flights. The use of these extreme battle tactics was interpreted as a sign of the Japanese's growing fatalism. Japanese suicide pilots flew their planes into the midst of enemy ships to achieve maximum destructive potential. The first kamikaze raid was recorded on October 21, 1944 on the Australian ship HMAS Australia.
After the victory in Leyte Gulf, the Allied countries still had two months left before the planned capture of Okinawa, so for now it was decided to occupy the island of Iwo Jima with the local Japanese air base. The offensive began in February 1945, and the fighting was fierce as Japanese soldiers were ordered to fight to the last and kill as many enemy soldiers as possible. The island was taken in 1945, just in time before the invasion of Okinawa.
Battle of Okinawa
In March 1945, the Americans began carrying out air raids on Japanese cities, which claimed thousands of lives. The British managed to drive the Japanese out of Burma, and in April the Americans launched an invasion of Okinawa. Okinawa was part of the Ryukyu Archipelago, and therefore belonged to Japan. Unlike Iwo Jima, here the civilian population was directly affected by the fighting. It is estimated that more than 100,000 Japanese were killed or committed suicide after propaganda leaflets about American atrocities were distributed. At the end of June, Okinawa was occupied. It was the last major battle of the Pacific War, although it didn't seem that way at the time.
Atomic bombing
12,000 casualties on the American side and 100,000 on the Japanese side - such were the losses in Okinawa - these data forced US President Truman to bring the end of the war as soon as possible. The Allied forces were weakened by continuous fighting, and when the jubilation of victory in Europe died down, few were prepared for a conventional attack on the Japanese islands. In addition, it was necessary to take into account the serious losses of Allied soldiers. The war in Europe was over, and the Russians were preparing an attack to retake Manchuria. However, Truman wanted to slow down the expansion of his Russian allies in that region. As a result of his thoughts, on August 6, 1945, the Americans dropped atomic bomb on Hiroshima - it completely destroyed the city and claimed a total of about 200,000 human lives (including victims of the consequences). August 9, 1945 A second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. Six days later, on August 15, the Japanese surrendered - and the war in the Pacific, and with it the Second world war, was finally completed.
16 June 1948 ceremony in Cardiff, Wales, UK; The mortal remains of 4,000 American soldiers are carried aboard the US Lawrence Victory for return to New York.
Consequences
From 1945 to 1952 Japan was under direct American occupation under the overall command of General Douglas MacArthur. Japanese Emperor Hirohito was not accused as a war criminal, he was rehabilitated and - although with restrictions on his powers - declared emperor again. He retained a number of representative functions and supported the new constitution drawn up by the American occupiers. The new constitution ordered the Japanese to disarmament and demilitarization; at the same time, it guaranteed women's suffrage and decided to free the Japanese education system from indoctrination - through the abolition of the imperial decree on education, which served main reason the emergence of extreme nationalism in Japanese society.
In the wake of the Pacific War, the International Military Tribunal for Far East- an analogue of the Nuremberg trials in Germany. The trials were conducted from 1946 to 1948, the main indictments were as follows: waging wars of conquest and cruel treatment of prisoners of war. Eyewitness accounts of the Nanjing massacre of December 1937, in which a population of at least 200,000 were slaughtered, led to the conviction of defendants who included former prime ministers and foreign ministers, generals and racial supremacist theorists. All of the defendants were convicted - some died during the trial, and seven of the 25 were sentenced to death, including both former prime ministers Hirota and Tojo, who were hanged in 1948.
World
The Communist invasion of South Korea in 1950 forced the United States to divert its attention and efforts away from Japan, and gradually power returned to the hands of Japanese politicians. This process of gradually returning Japanese sovereignty resulted in the Treaty of San Francisco, which was signed on September 8, 1951. Ratification of the treaty in April 1952 marks the end of the American occupation of Japan.
Main cause of the Pacific War 1879-1883 Chile vs Bolivia with Peru historians call the desire of the Chilean leadership to acquire saltpeter deposits located in the Atacama Desert on the territory of these states bordering the northern borders of Chile. This war pursued the interests of the Chilean Saltpeter Company, which was the owner of these deposits. Because of this, this war is often called the Saltpeter War.
Another prerequisite for this military conflict was the disputed status of these territories, which, after the liberation of Bolivia by Simon Bolivar in 1825, were annexed to this country, although the main population in this region were Chileans. For a couple of decades, no one cared about this, but then in 1842 large deposits of guano (bird dung) and saltpeter were discovered in the north of Atakma. After this, a low-intensity confrontation began between Chile and Bolivia. Neighboring states were sometimes involved in the conflict; in some periods, under the influence of an external threat, the parties signed parity agreements.
The confrontation reached its culmination when in 1878 Daza, the Bolivian dictator, having in his arsenal a secret agreement with Peru, in which the Peruvians were guaranteed a certain share of the profits from the production of saltpeter, decided to increase taxes on Chilean mining enterprises. This became the match that lit the fire of war. Moreover, the Peruvian government tried to the last to return the conflict to a peaceful course, since the country was not prepared for war. Their attempts were unsuccessful.
Start
The military conflict began with the entry on February 14, 1979 Chilean warship "Blanco Encalada" to the Bolivian port of Antofagasta. During the same period, a number of ships from the Chilean flotilla entered the ports of Cobijo and Mejillones. After this, a state of emergency was declared in Bolivia on February 27, then trade relations were severed in March, and on April 5, 1879, Chile declared war against Bolivia and Peru. Why the conflict that began in February escalated into a real war today there are two polar points of view. Each side blames the other.
War
Due to the fact that the terrain in the disputed territory is very difficult, naval battles played a large role in the confrontation. in spring Peruvian ship "Huascar" and won a resounding victory over the powerful Chilean ship Esmeralda. The second Peruvian ship "Independencia" ousted the Chilean "Virgin of Cavadonga" to the north, but as a result of the chase, wanting to destroy a ship of smaller displacement, it ran aground and sank. The result of these naval battles was the lifting of the blockade on the port city of Iquique. Captain "Huascar" Grau during the same period was able to capture the steamship "Rimac" (06/23/1879), where there was Chilean cavalry on board. This incident caused a change in the commander-in-chief of the Chilean army. Williams, who resigned, was replaced by Riveros. It was under his command that the second main ship of Peru, the Huascar, was captured in October 1879, which put an end to naval battles.
At the end of 1879 they began battles on land. As a result of the victories of the Chilean army, the provinces of Arica, Tarapaca, and Tacna were ceded to Chile. Even though Peruvian troops won the battle near Tarapacá in the fall of 1879. One of the largest battles is considered to be a battle near Tacna (Peru); in May 1880, 10 thousand soldiers from Bolivia and Peru and 15 thousand from Chile took part in it. Thanks to a slight advantage in firepower, the Chilean troops won. The winners lost 2 thousand soldiers killed and 500 wounded, the opposing side lost 2,800 dead, 2,500 were captured or wounded. After this battle, Bolivia withdrew from the war.
During the war, due to robberies and looting by both the Chilean army and its troops in Peru, the dictator Pierola was deposed, his place was taken by a civilian government, which eventually also disintegrated into regional authorities. The leader of Peru was Miguel Iglesias, who was eventually able to consolidate the country and achieve a peace treaty with Chile in the person of the head of the occupied territories, Patricio Lynch. It was signed on October 20, 1883 near Lima in Ancona. Throughout the war, partisan detachments were active in the occupied territories.
Bottom line
The result of the war was the death of 14 to 23 thousand people and the transfer of the provinces of Tarapaca and Arica to Chile. The province of Tacna after some time returned back to Peru. Although the deposits went completely to Chile, after some time they were transferred to the British as payment for loans issued during the military confrontation. In addition, the war gave each side its own national hero. For Peru became one Grau, and for Chile - Prat.
Peru on the path of independent state development in the context of world history: 1826 - mid-90s of the 20th century
The Pacific, or saltpeter, war, in which Peru was involved in 1879 on the side of Bolivia against Chile, had a long history. Guano and sulfur, a significant part of which in the 60s of the XIX century. mined in the Bolivian part of the coastal Atacama desert and the Peruvian department of Tarapaca, aroused jealousy in Chile, which did not have such rich deposits. With the depletion of guano, saltpeter became one of the most important sources of income for Peru. If in 3, guano exports amounted to 2.4 million pounds. Art., then in 1878 only 1.8 million f. Art. At that same time, by 1876, the value of saltpeter exports from Peru amounted to 5.2 million pounds sterling. If in 1865-1869. 10.5 million quintals of saltpeter were exported, then in 1875 - 9. - 26.7 million quintals.
In 1841, large deposits of saltpeter were discovered in the Bolivian part of the Atacama near Antofagasta. Chilean capital, closely related to English capital, was invested in the exploitation of this deposit. Desert villages were vigorously populated by Chileans. Due to the uncertainty of the borders, Chile's relations with Bolivia were extremely tense. Since Bolivia itself did not develop these deposits and could not really interfere with Chilean expansion, the conclusion of agreements on the border and customs duties in the Atacama alternated with attempts to enter into allied relations with Peru, which was also faced with the activity of the Chileans in Tarapaca. In February 1873, a secret treaty between Bolivia and Peru was concluded, which was of a defensive nature.
Peru proceeded from the need to secure its saltpeter deposits in Tarapaca and ensure the free activity of Peruvian entrepreneurs in the Bolivian part of Atacama. The Peruvians also feared that Bolivia might become completely dependent on Chile, which could undermine Peru's position in the saltpeter trade. According to the Bolivian-Chilean Treaty of 1874, new borders between the two countries were fixed at the 24th parallel of south latitude. In the zone between the 23rd and 24th parallels of southern latitude, Chilean entrepreneurs could freely mine saltpeter, but export duties were collected by Bolivia. Chile received the right to import food, machinery and production tools into Bolivian territory duty-free. Mejillones and Antofagasta became the main ports for the export of saltpeter and silver. The Bolivian government has stated that it will not increase customs taxes on the export of saltpeter, silver and guano, and that other taxes on Chileans and their property will not increase for 25 years. Active activities in the Bolivian part of the Atacama were launched by the "Compania de Selitres y Ferrocarril de Antofagasta" (CSFA), which received a concession of a territory of 375 square meters in November 1979. leagues (league equals 5572 m).
In the context of the global economic crisis that began in 1873, the contradictions between the two Pacific countries sharply worsened. Saltpeter remained the most reliable source of income. Peru sought a way out of the crisis by establishing a state monopoly, first on the sale of saltpeter (1873), and then a monopoly on the production and sale of saltpeter (1875) in order to increase income and regulate prices for guano and saltpeter on the world market. The Peruvian state sought to limit the expansion of Chilean and English capital in Tarapaca and control the mining of saltpeter in the Bolivian part of Atacama. And here, an increasing number of ships from Europe and the United States loaded saltpeter in the ports of Antofagasta and Mejillones, as Chilean companies sold it at a reduced price, due to the terms of the 1874 treaty, which allowed for the payment of very moderate export duties.
An agent of the Peruvian government, Juan Meiggs, the brother of the Peruvian railway magnate, American Enrique Meiggs, received a concession for the yet unexploited saltpeter deposits in Toco, paying 120 thousand pesos for an annual lease. In 1875-1878. existing offices were also purchased for almost 1 million pesos. They Dust are transferred to state ownership. The Peruvian state acted most decisively in Tarapaca. Here, in 1875, 15,713 offices were nationalized, of which the Peruvians owned 8,905 worth 10 million soles, and the Chileans owned 2,037 worth 3.5 million soles. The remaining 4,771 offices belonged to English, German, French and other entrepreneurs. Foreigners in Tarapaca owned about 40% of the total saltpeter production (Peruvians -58.5%, Chileans - 19, British - 13.5, Germans - 8, French - 1%) 6 . The number of Chileans in Tarapaca also increased - out of 26.6 thousand people in its population in 1876, about 17 thousand Peruvians remained.
The nationalization of saltpeter made it possible for the Peruvian state to speed up the process of capital accumulation, increase income and overcome the crisis. But it aroused fierce opposition from Chilean and English entrepreneurs, who demanded only government bonds as payment for their property. The English trading house of Gibbs, which played a leading role in foreign investments in both Atacama and Tarapaca, stood behind the back of the Chilean government, which was dissatisfied with the nationalization. England, the main capitalist country of the 19th century, advocated freedom of enterprise and, naturally, was an ally of the Chileans in the fight against the state monopoly of Peru. Nationalization initially led to a reduction in saltpeter production in Tarapacá. The mining trees were empty, unemployment was growing. Thus, in the village of Negreiros in 1876 there were 549 gels, and in 1879 only 60 people remained.
A similar process was observed in Bolivia. Bolivian President Hilarion Dafish came to power in 1876 in the wake of demands to declare saltpeter a national treasure, since the bulk of the income from its mining in the country went to Chile and England. In the country, due to drought, famine was raging, the budget deficit (in 1978, with income of 1.8 million pesos, amounted to 872 thousand pesos. And in Chile, a crisis raged, where agriculture suffered from three consecutive crop failures of the main export crop - wheat. It grew the cost of living, which threatened to take to the streets. Contradictions between liberals and conservatives intensified. In the conditions of the crisis and the possibility of losing their positions, the ruling circles of Bolivia saw a way out in increasing external expansion. On February 14, 1878, by decision of the Bolivian Congress, additional saltpeter exports were established. tax in ? per 1 quintal. The main exporter of saltpeter was the Anglo-Chilean company KSFA. The Commission immediately appealed to the Chilean government for support, pointing out that as a result of this tax the company, which had a capital of 4 million pesos. thousand employed workers, a rebellion could arise that neither Chile nor Bolivia could cope with. But in the Chilean ruling circles they intended to act radically. The loss of income from saltpeter threatened the economic interests of a powerful group of the oligarchy associated with the KSFA. The shareholders of this company included the Minister of War K. Saavedra, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs at the end and at the beginning of the war D.A. Fierro and D. Santa Maria, Ministers of Finance X. Segers, Justice X. Unaeus, Minister of the Interior A. Vargas, prominent General R. Soto, banker of Anglo-Chilean origin (during the war - Minister of War) Edwards and others. Influential The English financial and industrial trust Anthony Gibbs and Suns owned 34% of the shares of KSFA. A. Edwards controlled 42% of the company's shares. Let us note that the manager of the company was the Englishman G. Hicks. Even more interested in saltpeter were among the large Chilean owners of offices in Tarapaca, including the future President of Chile, Jose Manuel Maceda, and A. Edwards’ relative, Enrique Edwards. Chilean capital in? amounted to 1.2 million f. Art.; English capital here also represented a considerable amount - 1 million pounds. Art. It belonged mostly to the Gibbses. The Englishman W. Kiernan reports that the owners of the saltpeter enterprises expropriated by the Peruvian government literally knocked on the thresholds of the Chilean parliament, insisting on war with Peru and the capture of Tarapacá in order to eliminate that country’s state monopoly on saltpeter. In the Chilean parliament there were demands for the withdrawal of the entire coast of the Atacama Desert, including the Peruvian one. Peru's active activity in purchasing offices in the Bolivian part of the Atacama threatened a complete loss of income from saltpeter for Chilean and British capital.
The unity of Chile and England in their intention to end by force the state monopoly on saltpeter in Peru and the attempt to establish it in Bolivia is proven by numerous facts. This is evidenced by the activities of the English envoy in Lima, Spencer St. John. In his reports for 1878, he condemned the establishment of a state monopoly on saltpeter, since, in his opinion, this was beneficial only for the Peruvian state and was detrimental to trade as a whole, i.e. English interests. After all, “trade in the coastal province of Tarapaca is extremely important for England due to the huge number of English ships engaged in loading saltpeter. In Iquique (the main port of Tarapaca) more than half of all ships come from England.” Considering the tight relationship between England's envoys and the Foreign Office and the influence on the foreign political department of the British holders of bonds of Peru's external debt, such a position was determined by the generally anti-Peruvian orientation of London's diplomacy.
Already in January 1877, the diplomatic representative of England in Chile stated that “efforts are being made for Chile to take possession of Antofagasta and the adjacent coast. It is believed that for a long time Chile has been greedily casting its gaze on the Bolivian port. Chileans living here believe that unpopularity President Dasa and his government, the unenviable state of the state treasury and the country as a whole make it possible to proceed with its annexation.” But the most efforts to incite Chile's aggressive aspirations were made by the Jibbses, who subsidized Chilean newspapers, and in particular the country's largest El Mercurio and La Prensa, which published “patriotic” articles. Their representative in the company, G. Hicks, demanded the capture of Antofagasta and condemned the hesitations of the Chilean government. In a note dated November 8, 1877, Chile announced to Bolivia its intention to denounce the 1874 border treaty, which would make it possible to declare that Antofagasta belonged to the Chilean state.
Hoping for Pepy's support, Dasa nevertheless decided to insist on his demands. December 18, 1878 The police demanded that the KSFA pay 80 thousand pesos by February 14, 1879 to cover arrears. On February 1, 1879, I. Dasa ordered the company's property to be sealed and scheduled an auction for its sale on February 14. On February 12, 1879, the Chilean envoy left La Paz in protest.
On February 14, 1879, without a declaration of war, a detachment of half a thousand Chilean troops led by Colonel E. Sotomayor landed in Antofagasta and captured the capital of the Bolivian province of Atacama without encountering resistance (there were only 40 Bolivian soldiers there). Anthony Gibbs and Sons, one of the main shareholders of KSFA, was satisfied: the Chilean government complied with its demand. As a representative of this company in Valparaiso wrote to the London leadership in January 1879: “We had in Congress several influential Chileans, shareholders of our company, and if the government did not fulfill its promises of immediate action in resolving this issue, it would be subject to intense pressure was exerted in Congress. And there is no doubt that the government would be forced to act more energetically," Peru tried to achieve the withdrawal of Chilean troops. But the Chileans demanded the denunciation of the defense treaty between Bolivia and Peru. Peruvian representative in Chile X. Lavalier referred to the need to resolve this issue in parliament. Chile, believing that Peru was delaying negotiations in order to prepare for war, declared war on Peru on April 5, 1879. Chilean President A. Pinto frankly told Lavalier that “the Chilean military and sailors consider the present moment suitable for an attack on Peru, since it is Chile is stronger now."
And indeed, although the armies of Bolivia and Peru had more soldiers than the enemy, their combat readiness, weapons and training lagged sharply behind the Chilean army. The Chilean army took into account the experience of the Franco-German war. Its armament is new Comblain-type guns, 70 Krupna cannons. in the ground army - it was much more effective than the enemy. Large units of the Chilean army had headquarters that the Bolivian and Peruvian military did not have. Every Chilean officer had maps and plans of the area, and Peruvian officers, for example, after the battle of Tarapaca, searched the corpses of Chilean officers in search of maps of their own territory. The Peruvian and Bolivian troops looked like guerrilla formations, often led by “colonels” - hacendados, who, with their own money, formed detachments of Indians who were not trained in military affairs. In the presence of a long maritime border, supremacy at sea played a huge, if not decisive, role. And here Chile had superiority - its navy had battleships of the latest design with thick armor, the personnel were led by officers trained in England. One ironclad Chile, built in 1874, could successfully resist two Peruvian ironclads built in the 1860s (the first had 9 1/2 inches of armor, the second - 4 1/2).
The weakness of the armies of Bolivia and Peru was compounded by the weakness of the political elite. Thus, in Peru the civilists fought against the military, the provinces against Lima. In the rural areas - the sierra - there was an archaic socio-economic structure of the feudal type. The country was also weakened by interethnic contradictions: creoles-whites against Indians, Chinese against blacks, and blacks against white hacendados. Internationally, the weakness of Peru, which owned the most important strategic raw materials of the 19th century. - nitrates - was strengthened by the anti-Peruvian orientation of the strongest power in the world at that time - England [ The position of England during the Pacific War is indicative - the British government prevented the Pierola government from purchasing weapons in Europe. It reacted favorably to Chile's intention to annex southern Peru. The British envoy in Lima so openly expressed his hostility towards Peru that he provoked an official protest from the Peruvian Foreign Secretary]. The surprise of Chile's attack and its decisiveness in conducting military operations also played a role. The entire coast of Bolivia was captured during March. The Chilean army reached the southern borders of Peru.
Already on April 5, 1879, the Chilean squadron led by Admiral U. Rebolledo blockaded the Peruvian port of Iquique, and then bombarded the city? The port of Molendo was set on fire by the squadron's fire. Nevertheless, on May 21, 1879, Peruvian ships - the battleship Huascar and the frigate Independencia - in the Iquique area managed to sink one of the Chilean ships - Esmeralda - and lift the blockade of the port. But in this battle, the Independencia hit a reef and Peru lost the most powerful warship of its fleet. Despite the superiority of the Chilean navy, for five months the Peruvian battleship Huascar, under the command of Miguel Grau, kept the Chileans from landing on the Peruvian coast. Moreover, on July 23, the Peruvians captured the Chilean transport ship Rimac, which was transporting reinforcements to Chilean troops in Antofagasta. This caused the removal of the Chilean Minister of War K. Saavedra and the commander of the fleet U. Rebolledo. The new leaders of the army and navy were given the main task - to destroy Huascar.
In October, Huascar and Union collided with a Chilean squadron between the ports of Mejillones and Antofagasta in the area of Cape Angamos. In an unequal battle, the Peruvian fleet was defeated. The commander of the Huascar, Miguel Grau, was killed. Since then, he has been considered a national hero in Peru.
Once Chile achieved complete superiority at sea, the second stage of the war was transferred to Peruvian territory. The target of the Chilean landing was the Peruvian part of the Atacama Desert - Tarapaca. Chile believed that the capture of Tarapaca, with its huge saltpeter deposits, would force Peru and Bolivia to admit defeat. In addition, income from the export of saltpeter from Tarapaca would greatly ease the financial burden of the war on Chile.
In turn, Allied troops concentrated in advance in the main port and capital of the department, Iquique, and the surrounding area. 9 thousand Peruvians and Bolivians, led by the Peruvian general X. Buendia, concentrated here. The Allied army was poorly trained and armed with outdated artillery.
On November 2, 1879, a 10,000-strong Chilean army landed in Pisagua in? km north of Iquique. Thus, the Allied army found itself cut off from the rest of Peru, since the weak Bolivian group (3 thousand people) in Tacna under the command of Bolivian President I. Das did not dare to join the battle. On November 16, under the pretext of fatigue of the troops, Dasa stopped his march to the south and returned back to Tacna. The cowardice of Daza, who feared that if he were defeated he would lose the presidency, demoralized the Bolivian units that were part of X. Buendia's army in the south.
Buendia went to meet the Chileans from Iquique and for two weeks, from November 4 to 19, his army languished under the scorching desert sun. Meanwhile, the Chileans settled down at the heights of San Francisco near the village of Dolores, where there was enough water and provisions. On November 19, the Peruvians and Bolivians rushed to attack the Chilean positions. The two-hour battle was unsuccessful for the allies; the Chilean artillery suppressed the allied artillery and their soldiers began to run away in panic. But since the Chileans believed that this was only a reconnaissance battle, they did not pursue the enemy. The Bolivians retreated to their territory, and the Peruvians left Iquique and headed to Tarapaca. But here, on November 27, 1879, Peruvian troops numbering about 2 thousand people, led by X. Buendia, were overtaken by the Chileans. This time the battle was decided in favor of the Peruvians, who captured the Chilean cannons. The Peruvians could not pursue the Chileans who retreated in panic - they did not have cavalry. But nevertheless, Buendia decided to continue the retreat - after all, the main forces of the Chileans had not yet approached Tarapaca. Peruvian troops, having passed through the desert, without provisions or resources, reached Arica on December 19. Here Buendía and his chief of staff Suárez were arrested for surrendering Tarapacá, but were later acquitted.
Command of the remnants of the army was transferred to Admiral L. Montero. The Tarapacá disaster led to major political changes in Peru. President Mariano Ignacio Prado, while in Arica, refused to lead the army and left the country under the pretext of purchasing weapons in Europe on December 19, 1879. He knew well that defeat would threaten the loss of the presidency and, fearing for his fate, left his post at the height of the war. He transferred presidential powers to the old and sick vice president, General La Puerta. Neither Congress nor the Council of Ministers were notified of the departure. In Lima, the news of the actual desertion of the president caused anger and indignation. On December 23, Prado's political opponent Nicolas de Pierola seized power, relying on part of the Lima garrison. The resistance of troops loyal to the president was soon crushed. Pierola proclaimed himself "Supreme Leader of the Republic" and "Defender of the Indian Race." In two days of clashes on the streets of Lima, 60 people were killed and 200 were injured. Almost simultaneously, on December 28, Bolivian President I. Daza was overthrown. Both countries began to energetically prepare to repel Chile's further aggressive plans.
Having captured Tarapaca, where, in addition to saltpeter deposits, the last rich guano resources were located, Chile offered to pay the Peruvian debt to England with 50% of the proceeds from the sale of guano. The Committee of Peruvian Bond Holders in London, at its meeting in February 1880, welcomed this decision of Chile with a triple "hurrah". On March 18, 1880, the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Salisbury, strongly supported Chile's “right” to dispose of all revenues in the occupied territory. Then the state saltpeter monopoly was abolished, and the offices were bought up cheaply by private individuals. The greatest activity in buying up offices was carried out by the English financial speculator T. North, associated with the Gibbses (one of them was a director of the Bank of England).
Thus, already during the war, the British captured the lion's share of Tarapacá's saltpeter wealth. It is not surprising that the formal neutrality of England did not prevent Chile from acquiring weapons from England and France, using the resources of Peru in the occupied territory. And Peru's attempts to obtain a loan from the Dreyfus house V Paris for purchase weapons were blocked by the London Committee of Peruvian Debt Bondholders. Yet the new governments of Peru and Bolivia prepared vigorously to fend off further Chilean expansion. Pierola announced the conscription of all men aged 18 to 50 years into the army. Guns and ammunition were purchased from the USA.
The Chilean government realized that only the defeat of the allied army located in the departments of Arica and Tacna, north of Tarapaca, would lead to the collapse of the union of Peru and Bolivia. This was all the more justified because in the camp allies Clashes were observed between the commander of the Bolivian troops, President N. Campero, and Admiral Montero.
Taking advantage of their superiority at sea, the Chileans dictated the place and time of subsequent military operations. Peru's ports were blocked. As with the operation in Tarapaca, the Chilean landings took place north of the Allied troops in the department of Tacna. On February 25, 1880, a large contingent of Chilean troops landed in the port of Ilo, north of Tacna. As a result, allied forces were cut off from the main territory of Peru. The size of the Allied army was? men and 16 guns of an obsolete design, the Chileans had 13,520 infantry, 1,200 cavalry and 40 Krupp guns. While in the Lima area there was an army of 15 thousand, well armed and fairly well trained, in Tacna the allies had an army without proper weapons, exhausted by the long retreat from Tarapaca. A three-thousand-strong detachment of the Peruvian army was stationed in Arequipa, fresh and equipped with modern weapons, but its commander did not respond to requests for help from the southern army. Pierola did not trust many military men and placed his supporters in leadership positions. All this weakened the allied army. The main ports of the combat area - Ilo, Moquegua, Mollendo (the port of the Arequipa department) - were occupied by the Chileans without much effort.
Horrifying events unfolded on the morning of May 26, 1880, when the commander of the Chilean troops, General M. Baquedano, launched the advanced units into the attack. But she was repulsed. In the second attack, cannon fire practically destroyed the left flank of the allies - the Bolivian cavalry. The Allied first flank, led by Montero, continued to stubbornly resist for more than two hours, but was forced to abandon the battlefield due to the enormous loss of life from artillery fire and the depletion of ammunition. Allied losses amounted to 400 wounded and killed, and 2,300 Chileans. The remnants of the Bolivians, led by President Camagro, headed to Bolivia, and Montero retreated to the department of Puno.
The city of Arica, which converged to the south, was doomed after the fall of Tacna. From the sea it was blocked by the Chilean squadron. The only hope was in the seemingly impregnable fortress on the Morro rock. About 1,800 people took refuge here under the command of Colonel Francisco Bolognesi. Overhanging the port, Morro was surrounded on the landward side by a series of trenches. And therefore, when on June 5, 1880, Baquedano approached with a detachment of almost four thousand and offered surrender, the Peruvians refused. At dawn on June 7, protected by dense cannon fire from land and sea, the Chileans rushed to attack. Numerical superiority and a well-planned attack from three sides ensured the victory of the Chileans. The battle ended with a merciless bayonet charge that killed 600 of Morro's defenders. Then the city of Arica was plundered and set on fire. Later, Bolognesi, who staunchly defended the fortress and fell on the battlefield, was proclaimed a national hero of Peru.
The Tacna Campaign brought Bolivia out of the war. Her troops returned to their homeland, removing their defenses. The Chileans did not go inside Bolivia - their goal of capturing the coastal provinces was achieved. Peru could no longer hope for a turn in the war in its favor. After the campaign in Tacna and Arica, a long period of negotiations began to sign a peace treaty.
Influential circles of the English bourgeoisie considered it necessary to secure their interests in Peru and end the war. They were especially hampered by the blockade of Callao and the constant bombing of port cities by the Chileans - after all, British firms also operated there. In July 1880, England turned to the United States and a number of European states to jointly seek to end the war. In turn, the United States, hoping to take over the guano trade in Tarapaca, relying on an alliance with the Dreyfuses, offered to mediate in the negotiations.
On October 22, 1880, representatives of the warring countries gathered on board the US corvette Lackawanna in the Arica roadstead. Relying on the promise of US support for Peru and Bolivia, the allies resolutely refused to make concessions to Chile. Chilean diplomats demanded the transfer of Antofagasta and Tarapaca to the victors, payment of compensation of 20 million pesos (Peru - 11 million pesos) to cover its expenses for military operations, and the abolition of the 1873 treaty on the union between Peru and Bolivia. It was also envisaged that Chile would retain Moquegua, Tacna and Arica until the previous conditions were met. In secret negotiations with Bolivia, it was offered to transfer the Peruvian territories of Tacna and Arica for a separate peace with Chile. Chile rejected any arbitration by a third party, in particular the United States. The parties' intransigence led to the failure of negotiations.
Already during peace negotiations in September-October 1880, the Chilean squadron led by Lynch carried out raids along north coast Peru with landing in 30 cities and villages - Chimbote, Maite, Chiclayo, Lambayeque, Paclemayo, Ferrenaf, Azcona, Chepen and Trujillo, etc.
Undermining the economic base of the Peruvian resistance, misleading the Peruvians about the direction of the next Chilean attack - such was the goal of Lynch's expedition. Total war against Peru was openly proclaimed in Chile. Here is what the leading Chilean newspaper El Ferrocarril wrote on September 8, 1880: “It is necessary to destroy the soldiers, industry, and resources [of Peru]. Not a single hut should remain out of reach of our naval artillery fire... It is necessary to ruthlessly destroy and kill. Today, and precisely today, we must act in the name of one goal, with one thought - to completely destroy all the resources and all the wealth of our enemies." And of course, the return to Peru of the territories captured by the Chileans was absolutely unacceptable for Santiago. After all, as Chilean Foreign Minister José Manuel Balmaceda said in Congress on September 6, 1880: “We need Tarapaca as a source of wealth and Arica as a profitable (trading) point on the Pacific coast.”
President of Chile Pinto wrote to his friend A. Altamirano on September 20, 1880. “I am convinced that Peru will not agree to make peace on the terms that we offer it, and will yield only when it is completely destroyed and weakened. In my opinion, this can best be achieved by maintaining the occupation of those territories that we have conquered. Our navy must bombard her, disrupt her trade, land troops on the coast to paralyze her trade and disorganize her sugar industry, from which Peru now receives its income."
The Chilean Navy carried out these government plans almost literally. About 30 large sugar haciendas were destroyed, modern equipment of sugar factories was destroyed, and their owners were forced to pay huge indemnities. Active assistance to the Chileans was provided by Chinese coolies who worked on the haciendas practically in the position of slaves. For example, having landed in Chimbote with 400 sailors on September 10, Lynch demanded that the owner of the two largest sugar haciendas, Dionisio Derteano, pay an indemnity of 100 thousand pesos (500 thousand francs). ). He refused. Then Lynch ordered all buildings and the railroad to be blown up with dynamite. All trees were cut down, crops were burned, horses and mules were confiscated. All food products - rice, sugar, etc. were loaded onto transport ships. The guides, loaders and executors of Lynch's orders were the Chinese. Two large haciendas, valued at 10 million francs, ceased to exist. In two months, spreading horror and destruction, Lynch's expedition, without achieving a strategic turning point in the war, robbed Peru of 1 million francs. in specie currency and 35 million francs. paper money, excluding huge amount sugar, rice and cotton. During the expedition, the Chileans lost only 3 people.
Only belatedly did the Peruvians begin to strengthen the southern approaches to the capital. Part of the Chilean troops landed south of Lima in Pisco (about 210 km from Lita) on November 19, 1880. The main part of the Chilean army landed on December 22 near the city of Chilca (40 km south of Lima). The total strength of the Chilean army was 27 thousand people. The landing and further advance of the Chileans towards Lima did not meet organized resistance from the Peruvians, who decided to defeat the Chileans on the immediate approaches to the capital. On the way to Lima, the Chileans, as in the north, plundered the richest haciendas in the valleys of the Cañete, Ica and Lurina rivers.
The Peruvian army, numbering 30 thousand people, consisted of hastily recruited Indians and volunteer artisans from Lima, college and university students. But, as Manuel Gonzalez Prado, a contemporary of the events, notes, even before the frontal collision, many people belonging to the wealthy strata of society spread panicky rumors and expressed disbelief in the fortitude of the army. Many of them deserted and took refuge under the shadow of foreign Red Cross missions. President N. Pierola led the defense of Lima.
At dawn on January 13, 1881, Chilean troops began an assault on Peruvian positions in the area of the village of San Juan near the famous Peruvian resort of Chorrillos. The first line of defense of the Peruvian army was located here. The most stubborn battle took place for the Morro Solar fortress, the defense of which was led by Minister of War M. Iglesias. Despite stubborn resistance, the Peruvians were sent to Chorrillos and there the fire of the Krupp cannons of the Chilean artillery completed the rout. The gross mistake of N. Pierola, who did not give the order to the reserve to help the defenders, became one of the main reasons for the defeat of the Peruvians. The Chileans lost ? people killed and wounded, Peruvians - 4 thousand people.
Having burst into the unprotected Chorrillos, the Chileans subjected the village to destruction and robbery, and then set it on fire.
15 January, the second stage of the battle for Lima began - the battle near the village of Milaflores. Initially, the Peruvians were successful. Their right flank and center, led by A. Caceres and Suarez, launched a bayonet counterattack. However, Lynch's fresh division and Martinez's reserve battalion arrived to help the Chileans. They pushed back the Peruvians and attacked the flanks of the Peruvian defense. The destructive fire of the cannons of the Chilean squadron stopped the resistance of the Peruvian army. Pierola fled to the sierra. On January 17, the Chileans occupied Lima. As a result of the Lima operation, the largest military campaign in the history of South American wars (the Chileans lost 5,433 people, of which 1,229 were killed, the Peruvians - 6,000 killed and 3,000 wounded), Chile inflicted a decisive defeat on the Peruvian-Bolivian coalition. However, only the coast of Peru was captured. The interior of the country with its rich cities of Arequipa, Cusco, Cajamarca remained under the jurisdiction of the Pierola government.
To the east of Lima, the path into the country for Chilean troops was blocked by General L. Caceres: a new stage of the war began, in which the Peruvians opposed the tactics of guerrilla warfare to the Chilean troops.
With the consent of the Chileans, representatives of the richest families of the city of Lima (notables) “elected” the famous lawyer Francisco Garcia Calderon as president. He reflected the views of the civilists, ardent opponents of Pierola. Calderon declared his intention to make peace, but only Chile and the United States recognized him. So there were two governments in Peru, each of which was not averse to starting peace negotiations.
The matter of concluding a peace treaty, however, was complicated due to the active diplomatic activity of the United States, which sought to extract maximum benefits from such a complicated situation in order to increase the penetration of American capital into South America.
The intentions of the United States are clearly demonstrated by a confidential letter from the American envoy I. Christiansi to US Secretary of State John Blaine dated May 4, 1881, which, in particular, said: “The only effective way for the United States to establish control over the trade of Peru and dominate or at least significant influence on this coast is to intervene actively to force a peaceful settlement on acceptable terms and to bring Peru under our control by protectorate or annexation... If Peru comes under the control of our country, we will dominate all the other republics of South America and The Monroe Doctrine will become a reality. Large markets will open for our goods, a wide field will open for the entrepreneurial activity of our people."
Initially, the support of the State Department was supported by the plan of the French-Belgian company "Credit Industrial", which held in its hands a significant part of the public debt of Peru. Fearing that the annexation by the Chileans of the southern part of Peru, rich in saltpeter and guano, would lead to the final loss of its investments, the company proposed establishing a US protectorate over this territory and transferring to it the right to freely export guano and saltpeter from here until the Peruvian debt was paid in full. The company took upon itself the payment and indemnities of Peru to the Chilean conquerors upon the conclusion of the peace treaty. Representatives of Credit Industrial agreed with the State Department to carry out this plan, and then, together with the new envoy of the United States and Peru, General S. Hurlbut, arrived in Lima in August 1881 and assured Calderon that he could count on US support.
In September 1881, Hurlbut reached an agreement with the Calderon government to provide the United States with a naval and coal base at Chimbote (in northern Peru). Hurlbut, in a message to the US Secretary of State, described the advantages of this kind of deal - there is no need for Senate approval, but meanwhile the United States will receive a naval base in the best bay on the Pacific coast, American ships will be provided with coal, American entrepreneurs will be able to develop the richest deposits of metals and create plantations. Due to subsequent revelations of these dark machinations in the press and the US Congress, the project failed. At the same time, he alerted the United States' European rivals. During a congressional investigation in 1882 into Blaine's activities and the rapid diplomatic activity of the United States in Peru, the Secretary of State said: “It is completely erroneous to consider this war a war between Chile and Peru. This is an English war with Peru, and Chile is its instrument.”
Relying on the support of England, which feared that the Chimbote agreement could weaken its influence in South America, Chile decisively suppressed the activities of the Calderon government. He was arrested by the Chilean occupation authorities on November 6, 1881 and expelled from the country to Chile. Calderon transferred the powers of the President to Vice President Montero, who led the resistance to the Chileans in Cajamarca.
Chili's drastic measures irritated Blaine. Under the pretext of insulting the US government in connection with the arrest of Calderon, which was recognized by Washington, Blaine decided to bring the matter to intervention. In early December, he sent an emergency mission to South America with the US fleet, led by the experienced diplomat W. Trescott. Blaine's instructions rejected Chile's territorial claims to Peru and threatened to sever diplomatic relations with Chile [ In relations between Chile and Peru for a long time There was tension due to the fact that in 1895, due to the fault of Chile, a plebiscite did not take place. Only in 1929 did the parties agree on the division of the disputed territories. Tacna remained with Peru, Arica went to Chile, and it was stipulated that neither side could transfer these territories to a third party, which in this case meant Bolivia. In this country, and in our time, there are claims to Arica and Tacna as territories giving access to the sea to replace those lost as a result of the war.].
But the unexpected happened. In connection with the death of US President Garfield, his post was taken by Vice President C.A. Arthur, hostile to the Republican faction led by Blaine. Blaine resigned. F. Frelinghuysen became Secretary of State. Subsequently, the United States limited itself in the conflict between Peru and Bolivia to only offering “good offices.”
But as long as resistance continued in the Andes, peace was difficult to achieve. The soul of the Peruvian resistance was General A. Caceres, Minister of War in the Montero government. Relying on the Indian peasantry and the semi-regular army, he waged a guerrilla war against the invaders. The predatory nature of the Chilean expeditions into the country raised the Indians to fight in the name of protecting their hearths. At the same time, their class nature was also reflected - the peasants destroyed the estates of the rich who collaborated with the occupiers. For example, in the central Sierra region, peasants captured more than 25 large haciendas. The punitive expedition of the Chileans to Junin and Huanuco in June 1881 ended in a shameful flight.
In January-July 1882, the occupiers made a new attempt to destroy L. Caceres, but constant attacks by partisans, disease and lack of provisions forced the Chileans to retreat this time. And yet this resistance of the Peruvians, which did not extend beyond the Andean regions, could not change the situation in favor of Peru. The large sugar planters and commercial bourgeoisie of Costa sought to end the war and the occupation of the coast at any cost. Their point of view was expressed by a prominent pierolist, former Minister of War M. Iglesias, who escaped from captivity after the battle for Lima. On August 31, 1882, he, supported by the occupiers, appealed to the nation to end the war.
In January-February 1883, Chilean troops again launched a series of punitive expeditions into the Sierra. The decisive battle took place on July 10, 1883 in the northern department of Cajamarca, near the town of Huamachuco, where Caceres suffered a complete defeat.
On October 20, 1883, in the resort town of Ancon, near Lima, representatives of Iglesias and the Chilean government signed a peace treaty, according to which Peru ceded the territory of the Tarapaca department to Chile, and the departments of Tacna and Arica remained occupied by Chile for 10 years. After 10 years, the fate of these departments was to be decided by a plebiscite, and the country that received the right to own them had to pay another compensation of €0 million pesos. The treaty also established terms for the payment of debt to Peruvian creditors and compensation for losses suffered by the Chileans during the war. In total, Chile captured a territory of 68,776 square meters from Peru. km.
On October 23, 1883, Chilean troops left Lima, settling on the outskirts of the city. The occupiers finally left Peru in August 1884 after the Peruvian Congress ratified the Treaty of Ancona.
The Pacific War, characterized by its duration and fierceness, largely and for a long time determined the atmosphere of mutual hostility among the Andean countries of the Pacific coast. Enormous funds were allocated to the war, which exacerbated the economic weakness of these countries and facilitated the penetration of foreign capital. The strengthening of the expansion of the nascent imperialism of England and the United States in Chile, Bolivia and Peru is the most significant and fatal of the consequences of the Pacific War. The enslavement of these countries began at an accelerated pace from that time on. Even the winner of the war, Chile, lost control of saltpeter, which passed into the hands of the British.
The Republic of Peru, which before the war was distinguished by its economic achievements and, thanks to the state monopoly on the extraction and sale of saltpeter, had a real opportunity to overcome the financial and economic crisis, was thrown back far. Its cities on the coast lay in ruins, the Sierra was destroyed by the occupiers, famine gripped the majority of the population, and the country became financially dependent on imperialist states, primarily on England. The war slowed down the process of initial accumulation of capital and the establishment of the national bourgeoisie. Tens of thousands of people died. Peruvian historian X. Tamayo Herrera regarded the Pacific War as "the most tragic event and the real disaster in the history of Peru." Another famous Peruvian historian X, Senate Lezcano wrote: “The Pacific War of 1879-1883 for Peru is the most terrible and painful event in its entire history. Its consequences are still felt today and will be felt for many years to come.” There is also political chaos, impoverishment of the people and demoralization of society, which the Peruvian historian E. Bonilla characterizes as collapse.
The social structure of Peruvian society also changed dramatically. The statistics given by the Peruvian economist of the 19th century are interesting. Jose Clavero in the book "Treasures of Peru", published in 1898. If in 1870 there were 18 millionaires in the country, then in 1894 there were none left. The number of rich people decreased accordingly from 11,587 to 1,725 people, people of average income - from 22,148 to 2000. If in 1870 there were no beggars in the country, then in 1894 there were 500 thousand of them. The number of workers decreased from 1,236,000 people up to 345 thousand. Peruvian historian Z. Amayo, citing these figures and analyzing the impact of the war on further development country, rightfully came to the conclusion that “if there had been no war, the history of Peru would have been completely different.”
A balanced and somewhat bitter outcome of the war was summed up by the famous Peruvian historian, one of the founders of the Peruvian Historical Society, Alberto Taro del Pino: “The Pacific War, prepared and provoked by Chile, for the first time in history witnessed such a historical phenomenon, when one of the countries turned out to be an instrument of alien economic interests, interests English entrepreneurs who were hampered by the nationalist policy of the Peruvian state regarding saltpeter and guano. The rulers of Chile worked for the sake of the English capitalists, filling their chests. They did nothing for their compatriots who shed their blood on the battlefields, while Peru defended its natural resources from the robber imperialists. And this is a great feat of the Peruvians."
The First Pacific War of 1864–1866 was the last attempt by the Spanish Empire to restore its influence in the former Latin American colonies. At the same time, it turned out to be the first large-scale use of steam fleet in the Southern Hemisphere. It turned out that the ships needed not only ammunition and food, but also large reserves of coal, and even in a conflict with a weaker enemy, the fleet could not carry out its tasks without a reliable base.
Spain returns to South America
The reign of Queen Isabella II from 1833 to 1868 was the most controversial period in 19th-century Spanish history. This was the era of the decline of the Spanish colonial empire; there was a constant confrontation between “progressives” and “moderates” in the country, complicated by the struggle between military factions. At the same time, thanks to political and economic reforms, the country entered a period of rapid industrial development, one of the consequences of which was the construction of a steam armored fleet.
Isabella II desperately tried to restore the greatness of Spain; the fleet became one of the means of reviving the colonial empire. Since the late 1850s, Spain regularly got involved in overseas military adventures: the war with Morocco, the intervention in Mexico, the capture of Santo Domingo. The Spaniards took advantage of the fact that a civil war was raging in the North American States, so the Americans had to forget about the “Monroe Doctrine” for some time.
However, the queen and her ministers wanted more - to restore Spanish influence in South America. In 1862, a squadron was sent there under the command of Rear Admiral Luis Hernandez-Pinson Alvarez: the frigates Nuestra Señora del Triunfo and Resolution, the corvette Vencedora and the schooner Virgen de Covadonga. The screw frigates that had just entered service had a displacement of 3,200 tons and a speed of up to 11 knots, each carrying twenty 68-pounder and fourteen 32-pounder guns. The 778-ton "Vencedora" carried two 68- and 32-pound guns, and the 630-ton "Covadonga" carried two short 68-pound howitzers on rotary machines. All naval artillery was smoothbore.
Luis Hernandez-Pinson Alvarez.
dspace.unia.es
The official purpose of the expedition was to explore the Pacific coast; the squadron included a group of scientists: three zoologists, a geologist, a botanist, an anthropologist and a taxidermist, as well as a photographer and artist Rafael Castro Ordonez.
At first, the expedition proceeded quite peacefully. At the end of 1862, she visited Argentina, in the spring of 1863 she arrived in Chile, and in July she called at the Peruvian port of Callao. Here Hernández-Pinzón, despite the lack of diplomatic relations between Spain and Peru, was kindly received by the then Peruvian President Juan Antonio Peset.
Map of the Pacific expedition from the report of its leader Manuel Almagro.
Manuel de Almagro. Comisión Científica del Pacífico. Breve descripción de los viajes hechos en América por la Comision científica. Madrid, 1866
However, the instructions also directed Hernández-Pinzón to demonstrate Spain's strength in the region. The reason for such a demonstration appeared in August 1863, when in the north of Peru, during a conflict between immigrants from Spain and the people of the local landowner Manuel Salcedo, a certain Juan Miguel Ormazabal, a Basque by nationality, was killed. Since the murdered man was listed as a Spanish citizen, Madrid demanded punishment for the perpetrators and compensation for damages. But the Peruvian authorities first delayed answering, and then refused to recognize the authority of the Spanish envoy Salazar y Maserredo, who specially arrived from Chile in March 1864. The Peruvians were alarmed by the scope of his powers: in the documents, Salazar was officially called "Special and Extraordinary Commissioner to the Queen", and this was the title of a colonial official. In addition, Salazar immediately threatened to use force, and the Peruvians showed him the door.
An enraged Salazar returned to the squadron and demanded that Hernandez-Pinson use force. The admiral had no choice but to carry out the order of the extraordinary royal commissioner. On April 14, 1864, the Spanish squadron, leaving scientists in the Chilean Valparaiso, arrived at the Chincha archipelago and landed a landing party of 400 marines there. Peruvian governor Ramon Baye was arrested.
Envoy Eusebio Salazar y Maserredo.
La Ilustración espanola y americana, 1871
The Chincha Archipelago is a group of three small rocky islands with a total area of less than one square kilometer, lying 12 miles off the coast of Peru and 120 miles south of Callao (the main port of that country). At that time, the islands had great economic value, as guano was mined here - a natural fertilizer made from bird droppings, which formed the basis of Peru's exports. On top of that, Spain did not recognize the independence of Peru, so from the point of view of the Spaniards, the islands were the territory of the empire.
Through the French consul, Hernandez-Pinson conveyed a message that he was ready to return the islands, but subject to payment of the indemnity due to Spain as a result of the Peruvian War of Independence according to the so-called “Captulation of Ayacucho.” The Peruvian government once recognized this debt, but continually delayed its payment. Thus, from both a moral and a legal point of view, the Spaniards considered themselves to be right.
The parties are preparing for battle
At that moment, the Republic of Peru could not wage war at sea. The Peruvian Navy, once the best in South America, after civil war 1856–1858 was in a deplorable state. Only the 1,743 GRT screw frigate Amazonas, built in England in 1852, was fully combat-ready. It had 16 long and 10 short smoothbore 32-pounder guns, one rotating 84-pounder gun and could reach 9.5 knots.
Peruvian frigate "Amazonas".
marina.mil.pe
The second frigate, Apurimac (1666 gross tons), built there in 1855, sank in 1860 along with the floating dock. In 1863, she was raised and rebuilt into an ironclad by installing a 76-mm belt of flattened railroad rails, as the southerners did in the United States. To compensate for the weight, the ship's spar was cut off, and under the vehicle the frigate could produce no more than 7 knots. In England, two armored turrets with four 300-pound (254 mm) Armstrong guns were specially ordered for the battleship, but in the end they did not make it onto the ship, but they strengthened the coastal defense of Callao in time. In addition, Peru had a 250-ton screw schooner "Tumbes" with two 68-pound guns, a schooner "Loa", which was in a completely unfit condition, as well as two armed steamships.
However, Hernandez-Pinzon did not intend to fight with Peru: he believed that the capture of the Chincha Islands was quite enough to influence the policies of his opponents. Indeed, after Envoy Salazar was recalled for arbitrariness, Peruvian President General Juan Antonio Peset began negotiations with Spain, trying to negotiate the most favorable terms for the return of the islands.
At the same time, the Peruvian government began hastily strengthening its fleet, opening a nationwide fundraiser for the construction of new ships and the modernization of old ones. The coastal defense of Callao was strengthened, and a mission was sent to Europe to purchase new weapons (primarily naval ones).
There were no official hostilities with Spain, so in the summer of 1864 the Peruvians managed to get a loan of 12 million pesos from England and order two battleships at once: the 3,500-ton battery frigate "Independencia" and the 2,000-ton turret naval monitor "Huascar" with two rifled muzzle-loading 254 mm guns. In addition, with the same money, at the beginning of 1865, the Peruvians were able to buy from France the cruisers Georgia and Texas, which were being built in Nantes for the Confederate fleet. They were renamed "Union" and "America" respectively. These rather large ships of the same type had a displacement of 1827 tons, reached a speed of up to 12 knots and carried twelve 68-pound muzzle-loading rifled guns.
In addition, by 1865, the Peruvians managed to commission two small armored ships on their own. The casemate "Loa", rebuilt from the wooden steam gunboat "Colette", had a displacement of about 658 tons, carried two cannons of 110 and 32 pounds and was protected by 76-mm armor made from flattened railway rails. The 300-ton gunboat "Victoria" was built in Peru itself, at the Ramos brothers' shipyard in Callao; it was equipped with a vehicle removed from a steam locomotive, carried the same 76 mm armor and one 68-pound smoothbore gun behind the armor on a turntable. Finally, in March 1865, the small armed steamship Colon, built in San Francisco on a Peruvian order, with two 12-pound cannons, set off for Peru.
Casemate battleship "Loa" in Callao. Photo from the collection of Gonzalo Magutya.
Wikimedia Commons
Meanwhile, the Spanish squadron managed to lose one of the ships: the frigate Nuestra Señora del Triunfo burned down on the night of November 24-25, 1864, when one of the sailors broke a jar of turpentine and tried to wipe up a puddle by the light of an oil lantern. Three more frigates (Reina Blanca, Berenguela and Villa de Madrid) were sent from Spain to strengthen the Pacific squadron, and the former Spanish Minister of Naval Affairs, Vice Admiral Jose Manuel Pareja, became the new commander.
A split was brewing in Peru itself. Parliament and society demanded active action, but President Peset and the “Junt of Defense” he created understood perfectly well that the republic could not do anything with the Spanish squadron. However, the occupation of the remains of Chincha deprived the state of budget revenues, and it was impossible to delay solving the problem, so in December 1864, the Peruvian authorities began negotiations with Pareja. On January 27, 1865, on board the frigate Villa de Madrid in Callao, the so-called “Treaty of Vivanco-Pareja” was signed, which satisfied almost all the demands of the former metropolis: recognition of the commission to investigate incidents with Spanish citizens, as well as payment of all debts and compensation in the amount 3 million gold pesos (about 2.4 million dollars at the then exchange rate). In exchange for this, Spain returned the Chincha Islands.
Spanish frigate Reina Blanca.
labombalima.blogspot.com
The amount of payments was small compared to the 12 million loan taken in England for the war with Spain, but the Peruvians considered the agreement a national humiliation, and President Peseta a traitor. Unrest broke out in the country, escalating into a civil war; President Peset was overthrown by Colonel Mariano Ignacio Prado and left the country on November 7 on an English ship. Prado organized elections in the capital, following their results he declared himself the legitimate president, after which he refused to fulfill the agreement with Spain.
Birth of a coalition
Meanwhile, a third party appeared in the conflict. England, France and the United States declared their neutrality, but Peru was supported by its neighbors Bolivia, Chile and Ecuador. In September 1864, the Chileans officially refused to supply the Spanish squadron with coal, which was a serious blow for it. At the same time, military equipment flowed freely from Chile to Peru and even detachments of armed volunteers were sent. Spanish ships detained two Chilean ships with weapons heading to Peru, and relations between the parties became tense.
On September 17, 1865, the Spanish squadron approached Valparaiso, where Admiral Pareja demanded an apology from the Chilean authorities, payment of compensation, the lifting of the ban on coal supplies to Spanish ships and a 21-gun salute to his flagship Villa de Madrid. The Chileans refused, and on September 24 Pareja, who had recently received reinforcements from the metropolis in the form of the newest battery battleship Numancia, declared a naval blockade of Chile. Three days later, Chilean President José Joaquín Pérez declared war on Spain. At the same time, negotiations began on joining the anti-Spanish coalition of Bolivia (which at that time had access to the Pacific Ocean between Chile and Peru) and Ecuador.
The Spanish battleship Numancia is the most modern and powerful ship of the Spanish fleet. It was built in France, had an iron hull, a displacement of 7,190 tons, a belt 140 to 100 m thick, and a 120 mm battery containing thirty-four 68-pounder (200 mm) smoothbore guns. Officially, the maximum speed of the battleship was 13 knots, but in practice it developed no more than 10. In addition, the smooth-bore guns of the Rivera system were already hopelessly outdated by the mid-1860s.
foro.elgrancapitan.org
Events took an anecdotal turn: the Chileans were at war with Spain, and the Peruvians, because of whom it all started, had not yet opened hostilities. Since it was impossible to blockade all 1,600 miles of the Chilean coast, Pareja distributed his forces as follows: the flagship frigate Villa de Madrid, together with Vencedora and Covadonga, blocked Valparaiso, the main base of the Chilean fleet, the frigate Berenguela - Coquimbo, the frigate " Reina Blanca" - Caldera, where eight Chilean ships were destroyed, the frigate "Resolution" - Concepcion Bay. These were the main ports of northern Chile, through which the main trade with the outside world took place. The Chilean merchant fleet had 267 ships with a total capacity of 61,000 tons, so the cessation of trade communications had a painful impact on the country's economy. In addition, in the first days of the blockade, the Spaniards managed to capture several Chilean steamships, the largest of which was the coal ship Matias Cusiño with a capacity of 877 brt. However, the morale of the country's population turned out to be high, and the level of training of the Chilean fleet was quite good.
By this time, the Chilean navy had three steam corvettes: Abtao (four 203-mm smoothbore guns and five 40-pound rifled guns), Arauco (ten 70-pound rifled guns in the battery and a 100-pound rifled gun on a turntable) ) and "Esmeralda" (twenty 30-pound smoothbore guns). In addition, there were five advice and gunboats: "Maipu", "Ancud", "Valdivia", "Nublia" and "Concepcion", carrying from three to six guns with a caliber of 20 to 100 pounds. Two more ships, Chacabuco and O'Higgins, were built in England on the model of the screw sloop Alabama, but the British government refused to transfer them to Chile until after the war.
Chilean corvette Esmeralda.
Revista de Marina. Publicacion bimestral de la Armada de Chilie. Vol. 106, No. 789, Marzo-Abril 1989
This fleet could not resist the blockade, but immediately launched active operations. Already on November 17, an anecdotal incident occurred: a boat from the Spanish frigate Resolution, armed with one cannon, stopped the small Chilean tugboat Independencia in the Bay of Concepcion. The tug lowered the flag and stopped, but when the boat moored to it, it turned out that there were about a hundred Chilean soldiers in tow, and the Spaniards had to surrender.
On November 26, 1865, near Papudo, the 900-ton Chilean corvette Esmeralda met the Spanish schooner Covadonga, which Pareja was using as a messenger ship. The Chileans resorted to deception: as they approached, they raised the British flag and only before opening fire changed it to the Chilean one. At a short distance, the numerous Chilean artillery played a decisive role - under a hail of cannonballs and bombs, the Covadonga lowered the flag. In the shootout, 4 Spaniards were killed, 6 more officers and 115 sailors were captured, secret correspondence and the squadron's signal book were captured.
For Admiral Pareja, who had plunged his country into a war with a coalition of Latin American states, this was the last straw: on November 27, 1865, he shot himself while dressed in full dress uniform. The leadership of the squadron was taken over by Commodore Casto Mendez Nunez, the commander of the largest Spanish ship, the battleship Numancia.
Then events developed rapidly. On December 5, Peru and Chile officially entered into an alliance against Spain, and on December 14, 1865, Prado, who had already promoted himself to general, declared war on Spain. In January 1866, Ecuador joined the anti-Spanish alliance, followed by Bolivia in March. They did not start hostilities, but closed their ports to the Spaniards. Thus, the entire Pacific coast of South America formed a coalition hostile to Spain, and Mendes Nunez’s ships had nowhere to bunker.
Casto Mendez Nunez. Engraving by Pascual Serra y Mas, Madrid, Prado Museum
In addition, the forces of Spain’s opponents were constantly growing: heavy guns purchased there for coastal defense were delivered from England to Peru, and the purchased steam corvettes “America” and “Union” were supposed to arrive from France in mid-January 1866. In addition, after the end of the Civil War in the United States, the Peruvians managed to recruit several Confederate naval officers into their service, including Captain John Tucker, the former commander of the battleship Chicora. In June 1866 these people arrived in Callao.
Battle of Abtao
While awaiting the arrival of ships from Europe, the Allies decided to concentrate their naval forces in southern Chile. At the beginning of January 1866, the frigate Amazonas and the battleship Apurimac, under the command of Captain 1st Rank Manuel Villar, arrived in the northern part of Ancud Bay, where the military harbor of Abtao was located. There were ship repair facilities here, and most importantly, the bay was separated from the ocean by the Chiloe archipelago, and it was very difficult to get into it without a pilot. The Chilean Esmeralda, the captured Covadonga, as well as the gunboats Lautaro and Antonio Varas (850 tons each) and the armed steamer Maipu were already stationed in Abtao.
Chiloe Archipelago and Ancud Bay.
Wikimedia Commons
On January 15, while approaching Abtao, the frigate Amazonas, due to an error by the Chilean pilot, hit rocks at the exit of the Chacao Strait, which separates the island of Chiloe from the mainland in the north. The ship was subsequently destroyed by a storm. This is how the Allies suffered their first loss, although some of the ship's cannons were removed and installed on the shore to protect the harbor of Abtao. However, on February 4, the corvettes America and Union, which arrived from Europe, joined the squadron, after which Esmeralda was again sent to cruise to the north.
Having learned about the concentration of the enemy in Abtao, Mendes Nunez sent the frigates Reina Blanca (3800 tons) and Villa de Madrid (4478 tons) here. Each ship carried thirty 68-pounder (200 mm) and fourteen 32-pounder (160 mm) smoothbore guns, and the Madrid also had two rifled 150 mm and 80 mm guns.
Knowing the difficulties of passing through the Strait of Chacao, the Spanish ships moved along the southern route - through the Gulf of Ancud. Closer to Abtao they walked slowly, constantly measuring the depths. Reina Blanca was leading the way. On February 7, at 10 a.m., Spanish ships were spotted from the Covadonga on patrol. Only at 15:30 the Peruvian Apurimac was the first to open fire on the Spanish frigates, which were about 8 cabs away.
Scheme of the battle of Abtao.
Wikimedia commons
The Peruvian-Chilean squadron fired while anchored in the strait between the mainland and the island of Abtao: some of the ships were being repaired, some of them had their cars dismantled. Only “Covadonga” actively maneuvered, sometimes approaching the enemy at a distance of up to 4 cabs.
The Allies had 57 guns against the Spanish 92. "America" received six hits, "Union" and "Apurimac" - three each, "Covadonga" - one. In turn, the Spanish frigate Reina Blanca ran aground, came under concentrated fire from ships and shore, and ultimately received 16 hits, including one hole in the stern below the waterline. Villa de Madrid received 11 hits, which did not cause him much harm. There were three killed and six wounded on the Spanish ships. The Peruvians lost 12 people, the armored frigate Apurimac suffered the most, receiving a hole below the waterline and damage to the vehicle.
Battle of Abtao.
histarmar.com.ar
The Spanish squadron had to conserve ammunition, therefore, having fired about 2000 shots, it was forced to cease fire and retreat to the south, and in the morning next day left Ancud Bay. This gave grounds for the Allies to declare victory. A special medal was minted in Peru with the inscription “February 7, 57 guns versus 92”. The Spaniards limited themselves to mocking the cowardice of the Chileans and Peruvians in their press. However, in fact, the battle knocked down the arrogance of the Spaniards: no matter what the press wrote, the South American fleets unexpectedly turned out to be serious opponents.
Bombing of Valparaiso
Meanwhile, Mendez Nunez with the battleship Numancia moved south along the coast of Chile in search of enemy ships. The Chileans had already returned their merchant ships to the ports or transferred them to the flags of other states, but on March 9, the frigate Reina Blanca, which was going to meet with Mendes Nunez, captured the paddle steamer Pacaj de Maule (450 GRT) in the Gulf of Arauco. The Spaniards were very lucky: the ship was heading to Montevideo and had 126 people on board to staff the crews of Huascar and Independencia.
In turn, on March 25, the Peruvian corvettes America and Union went to the Strait of Magellan to intercept the Spanish frigate Almansa (3980 tons), sent to reinforce the squadron of Mendez Nunez. The raid was unsuccessful: at the very end of April, Almansa slipped unhindered into the Pacific Ocean.
The Peruvian corvette America, which was wrecked during the tsunami in 1868.
history.navy.mil
The northern part of Chile and the entire coast of Peru and Bolivia were open to action by the Spanish fleet, but it turned out that it was powerless against the coast: several attempts to fire at the Chilean troops did not produce any results. Then Mendez Nunez decided to take an extreme step - to attack the largest Chilean port of Valparaiso.
Realizing that it was impossible to defend Valparaiso, the Chileans declared it an open city. Among other things, this implied duty-free trade, and therefore was beneficial to Chile’s main trading partners - England and the USA. This allowed the Chileans to hope that the Great Powers would protect the city from the Spaniards.
By the end of March 1866, the entire Spanish squadron had gathered at Valparaiso: the battleship Numancia, the wooden steam frigates Reina Blanca, Villa de Madrid, Berenguela and Resolution, as well as the corvette Vencedora, two transports and several small trophy ships. At this time, there were two neutral squadrons in and near Valparaiso: the English one under the command of Rear Admiral Denman (two frigates and a gunboat) and the American one under the command of Captain John Rogers (the frigate Vanderbilt, the two-turret monitor Monadnock and four corvettes).
Captain Rogers demanded that Mendez Nunez abandon the attack on Valparaiso, to which the Spanish admiral proudly replied:
“I will be forced to attack American ships, and even if I have one ship left, I will continue the bombardment. I serve Spain and the Queen, and I would rather maintain honor without ships than ships without honor."
Bombardment of Valparaiso by the Mendez-Nunez squadron. Painting by English artist William Gibbons, circa 1870
As a result, the Americans and British refused to defend the city, and on March 31, 1866, at 9 a.m., the Spanish squadron began bombing. The shelling lasted three hours and involved the Reina Blanca, Villa de Madrid, Resolution and Vencedora. Apparently, Mendez Nunez sought to conserve ammunition on his most powerful ship, the battleship Numancia. The Spaniards fired between 2,000 and 3,000 bombs, with observers noting that the accuracy of the fire was very poor, and some of the shells fell very close to the ships that fired them.
Fires broke out in the city, the customs building and part of the warehouses with goods in the port burned down. The total damage was estimated at 2 million pounds sterling, according to other sources - at 14,733,700 dollars or 14 million pesos. However, there were almost no casualties, since residents left their homes in advance.
The shelling of Valparaiso did not have the expected effect and did not lead to the end of the war. British traders suffered the main damage from it, which led to a deterioration in Spain's relations with England. At the same time, the Spaniards became convinced that sea power, not supported by land power, could not win the war. In addition, Mendez Nunez was running low on gunpowder and shells. The more the Spanish ships fired, the more cloudy the prospects for the Pacific squadron became.
To be continued…
Literature:
- History of the 19th century. Ed. Lavissa and Rambo. M.: Sotsekgiz, 1939
- H. Wilson. Armadillos in battle. M.: Isographus, EKSMO, 2003
- Jack Greene, Alessandro Massignani. Ironclads at War: The Origin and Development of the Armored Warship, 1854-1891. Pennsylvania: Combined Publishing, 1998
- Pedro de Novo y Colson. Historia de la guerra de España en el Pacífico. Madrid: Imprenta de Fortanet, 1882
- B. Vikuna Mackenna. Historia de la guerra se Chilie con Espana (1863-1866). Santiago 1883
- Fabián Novak Talavera. Las Relaciones entre Perú y España (1821-2000). Lima, Perú: Fondo Editorial de la Universidad Católica del Perú, 2001
- http://liberea.gerodot.ru/neoglot/chinvoy.htm