The Raid on Callao was a failed operation of the Chilean navy during the War of the Pacific. The mission of this expedition was to seek a direct confrontation between the Chilean squad and the squad of the Peruvian navy supposedly anchored in the port of Callao, Peru's main port. The mission was unsuccessful because, when the Chilean ships arrived at Callao, the bulk of the Peruvian force was not in the port.
On April 25, 1879, the president of the cabinet of ministers, Antonio Varas, sent a letter to Major General Justo Arteaga, commander of the Northern Operations Army in Antofagasta, and to Rear Admiral Juan Williams, commander of the Squadron in Iquique, where he asked their opinion on 2 government plans: the blockade of Callao or the occupation of Iquique with an army. On May 9, Rear Admiral Williams spoke out against the blockade of Callao, because the existence of the island of San Lorenzo provides two exits, making an effective blockade of that port very difficult. Williams already had in mind to carry out a violent act in Iquique.
The government sent Francisco Puelma to Antofagasta on May 6 to coordinate with Rafael Sotomayor, secretary of the Chilean squad, the development of an operations plan and speed up the organization of the Army. Sotomayor traveled to Antofagasta from Iquique in the armored Cochrane. Upon its return to Iquique, the Cochrane touched [[Huanillos] and Pabellón de Pica, destroying or capturing the few boats that had been saved from the first Chilean incursion.
Rear Admiral Williams planned an attack on the Peruvian squadron in Callao and only his General Staff and the frigate captain Manuel Thomson, commander of the corvette Esmeralda, knew about it; he was ignored by the other chiefs and officers. What decided Williams to expedition to Callao, was that on May 15 the Cochrane rejoined the Chilean squad in Iquique and the arrival in Iquique of the transport [[Matías Cousiño (transport}|Matías Cousiño]], which the Chilean government chartered to the Compañía Explotadora de Lota y Coronel on May 12 to serve as charcoal burner to the squad. Along with Matías Cousiño, the Covadonga gunboat and the corvette came to join the Chilean squad and a shipment of ammunition and boom torpedoes. Williams determined that the Esmeralda and the Covadonga remain in Iquique to preserve the blockade, but since he wished to have Captain Thomson on his expedition to Callao, he reorganized the naval commands. Thomson assumed command of Abtao, while Frigate Captain Arturo Prat, Commander of Covadonga, assumed command of La Esmeralda and Lieutenant Commander Carlos Condell, Commander of Abtao, became Commander of Covadonga.
On May 15, the Esmeralda fired a shot to the ground; one of his shots damaged the water pumping machine and injured 2 workers, another pierced the chimney of the same factory and another exploded in the gasometer pool.
The Expedition to Callao
Only after the steam of the race had sailed from Iquique to the south on May 15, Rear Admiral Williams entrusted Rafael Sotomayor, but under reservation, his plan to attack Callao. Williams called Captain Prat and gave him a closed letter with the order to open it only on May 20, at the same time he ordered him to maintain the blockade while the squad was absent. The closed sheet that the Admiral had entrusted to Captain Prat contained a brief notice of the object of the Squad's expedition, addressed to Prat, and an official letter, containing the same notice, which he was to send to the Government at the first opportunity. That same day, Rear Admiral Williams sent to the General Command of the Navy, the notice that he was setting sail with the Squadron to establish the blockade of Arica, but along with it was a private letter to the head of said Command, Eulogio Altamirano, in which he explained that the attached letter was only a ploy so that this news does not reach Peru, but without explaining what he was trying to do.
On May 16, boom torpedo tests are carried out and at 4 pm, the Cochrane, Chacabuco, O'Higgins, Abtao and the transport Matías Cousiño leave the roadstead of Iquique heading west. The next day, after the Ilo of the Pacific Steam Navigation Company arrived without any message for Williams or Sotomayor, the armored Blanco Encalada and the Magellan gunboat left the port, leaving only La Esmeralda and Covadonga for the blockade of Iquique. All the vessels gathered about 40 miles west of the coast and headed towards the Hormigas de Afuera islands, about 30 miles west of Callao, at a speed of 6 knots. On the night of the 17th, the coalman Matías Cousiño, commanded by the British sailor Augusto Castleton, lost sight of Camarones and the Squadron continued its defeat with the only supply of coal that each ship had on board.
Plan of the attack
On May 18, Rear Admiral Williams revealed his plan to attack Callao to his subordinates. This consisted of dividing the squad into the following sections:
1st Section: Blanco Encalada, Cochrane and Abtao
2nd Section: Chacabuco, O'Higgins and Magallanes
Special section: Several Torpedo Boats
Logistical support: Matías Cousiño
The special section consisted of the Blanco Encalada, Cochrane and Chacabuco boats that were armed with boom torpedoes.
The tactic consisted of a surprise attack between 2 and 3 in the morning or earlier if possible, in total darkness, using the Abtao as a fire. The Abtao with a minimum of crew, under the command of Captain Thomson and loaded with 200 quintals of gunpowder, would be placed between the Peruvian warships and the batteries of the port of Callao, would set fire to the fuse that was supposed to produce the explosion, would act as suddenly a discharge with its 3 guns of 150 pounds and the crew would escape in the steam launch of the ship; by rockets it would be revealed if the line of Peruvian ships was oriented north - south or east - west. Taking advantage of the firelight, the White and the Cochranethey would use their artillery against the Peruvian ships, preparing to use their spurs and if possible, shoot at the population. The boats will glide smoothly and as stealthily as possible between the enemy ships, and choosing the right moment, they will apply their torpedoes with preference against the Peruvian armor and monitors. The 1st Section and the Special Section would fall back to the 2nd Section after a signal from the Cochrane rockets.
The 2nd Section would be at the rear of the 1st Section and when the Abtao caught fire, they would shoot at the batteries and the population, avoiding getting closer than 2,000 meters, taking care not to damage foreign ships. The Magallanes would maneuver to provide assistance and pick up shipwrecked after the Abtao caught fire. The Matías Cousiño would be in the rear, ready to assist any ship that requested it.
The Defenses of Callao
Since before the start of the war, Callao was armed with 8 heavy pieces. On May 21, 1879, it had the following distribution, from south to north:
Santa Rosa Battery, with 2 Blakely 500 pound guns.
Torre de La Merced, at the beginning of La Punta, with 2 Armstrong 300 pound guns in an armored rotating tower.
Ayacucho battery, with 2 Blakely guns of 500 pounds.
Junín Tower, height of the current Naval Base, with 2 Armstrong 300-pound guns in an armored rotating tower.
The Chilean squad arrived at Hormigas Islands on the 21st and at night approached 8 miles from San Lorenzo Island, launching the boats with torpedoes, but they arrived on the 22nd at 4:30 a.m. and Rear Admiral Williams appreciates that they are not there. the Peruvian armored vehicles. The boats picked up a boat from an Italian fisherman, whose crew said that the Peruvian armored vehicles, accompanied by 3 transports, had left for the south four days ago, and that they had Army troops on board.
The Chilean ships were sighted in Callao at 6 am The Peruvian gunboat Pilcomayo went to recognize them at 7:30 am and returned at 8:30 am, reporting on the Chilean ships, including the Esmeralda. The presence of the Chilean squad in Callao, mobilized many officers from Lima to Callao, among whom were the Peruvian Lieutenant Colonel Elías Latorre, brother of the commander of the Magallanes, the Chilean frigate captain Juan José Latorre.
When the Chilean squad did not find the Peruvian armor, it withdrew at 9:45 am without carrying out any military action. The Pilcomayo left to watch them at 11 am and returned at 2 pm, reporting that the Chilean squad was traveling south at full speed.
On the 23rd at 2:45 am, the Limeña transport anchored in Callao, coming from Pacocha. This Peruvian ship, had left in convoy with the armored vehicles on the 16th, but was detached on the 19th to Pacocha.
The Return of Iquique
At first, Rear Admiral Williams thought of dividing the squad in two: one with one tank and the two corvettes O'Higgins and Chacabuco and the other with the other tank, the Magallanes and the Abtao, so that one of these divisions could be rush to reach Iquique in aid of the Esmeralda and Covadonga, while the other Division would go to Arica in search of the Peruvian squad. The lack of coal from the ships did not make this plan possible.
On May 25, the Chilean squad stopped at San Nicolás, where all the coal from the corvettes Chacabuco and O'Higgins passed to Cochrane and Magallanes. The corvettes began sailing voyage out to sea; the O'Higgins to Valparíso, for maintenance and change of boilers, where he arrived on June 14, while the Chacabuco to Iquique, to meet with the squad.
On the afternoon of the 26th, Magellan intercepted the small steamer Ballestas, obtaining news of the fighting in Iquique and Punta Gruesa.
Incursion to Mollendo
The news of the fighting on the 21st was confirmed by Domingo Godoy, appointed plenipotentiary minister of Chile in Colombia and who was traveling on the Amazon steamer of the Pacific Steam Navigation Company, which was intercepted in Mollendo on May 28.
The Magallanes and Abtao intentraon 28, cut the submarine cable in Mollendo unsuccessful and bombed the port, after which they withdrew.
On the 28th, the Peruvian Limeña transport, which was traveling to Mollendo from north to south, encountered the Amazonas transport, which was traveling from south to north, fleeing when it was spotted. Due to this, the Limeña avoided entering Mollendo that same day, doing so on the 29th, when the Chilean squad had already withdrawn. At 7:30 pm on the 29th, when Limeña was heading to Arica, she met Magallanes, who chased her for almost 1 hour without reaching her.
Encounter with the Huáscar
The Huáscar returned to Iquique to disembark the frigate captain Ramón Freyre, who had been injured by splinters in the legs, together with the senior surgeon Santiago Távara, who gave him medical treatment. He arrived at that port at dusk on the 29th and they agreed that the Huáscar would spend the night on the high seas to return to port with daylight to pick up the disembarked and receive new orders. But when the Huáscar returned to Iquique, it sighted at the entrance to the port, on May 30, the armored Blanco Encalada and Cochrane, the corvette Abtao and the Magallanes gunboat. He was chased by Blanco and Magellanfrom 7 am to 3 pm, as Cochrane and Abtao stayed behind due to lack of coal, suspending the persecution because Blanco had only 15 tons of coal and Magallanes for two days of cooking.[1] While the Huáscar set course for Pacocha, at 4:45 pm, in the vicinity of Arica, he sighted a steamship, it was the transport Matías Cousiño, both approaching to recognize each other and at 6:20 pm, the Huáscar began its pursuit until 7:50 pm, when he gave up on it.
Arrival of Iquicue
On May 31, the Chilean squad once again anchored in Iquique. First, the Cochrane that was towing Abtao and then, the Blanco Encalada and the Magallanes who came from pursuing Huáscar. That same day, the transport Matías Cousiño entered, who proceeded to supply coal to all the ships, recovering their operations and proceeded to restart the Blockade of Iquique on June 1.
Bibliography
Bulnes, Gonzalo (1911). Guerra del Pacífico, Tomos I y II. Sociedad Imprenta y Litografía Universo. Valparaíso.
Ekdhal, Wilhelm (1911). Historia Militar de la Guerra del Pacífico. Tomo I. Sociedad Imprenta y Litografía Universo. Valparaíso.
Machuca, Francisco (1927). Las Cuatro campañas de La Guerra del Pacífico. Tomo I. Imprenta Victoria. Valparaíso.
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References
↑ Bulnes, Gonzalo (1911), Guerra del Pacífico. Tomo I.
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