Battle of Tarapacá

Battle of Tarapacá

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Tarapacá


caption=
partof=the War of the Pacific
date=November 27, 1879
place=San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, Peru
result=Peruvian victory
combatant1=flag|Chile
combatant2=flag|Peru|1825
commander1=flagicon|Chile Luis Arteaga
commander2=flagicon|Peru|1825 Andrés Cáceres
strength1=3,000 infantry
10 field guns
strength2=4,200
casualties1=516 killed,
176 wounded,
60 captured
casualties2=236 killed,
261 wounded,
76 missing
The Battle of Tarapacá occurred on November 27, 1879 during the War of the Pacific.

Background

Following a significant defeat during the battle of San Francisco at the hands of the Chilean invaders, the remnants of the Peruvian army were scattered, demoralized and almost leaderless.

Upon realizing that a column of exhausted Peruvian soldiers under the command of Andres Avelino Caceres had stopped near the town of Tarapacá to rest and obtain water, the Chilean colonel Luis Arteaga decided to take advantage of the situation.

Thus, Arteaga dispatched a party of five hundred men hurriedly in a desperate attempt to crush the Peruvians. However, Arteaga soundly underestimated the battle capabilities of his enemies, who fought energically and managed to capture many artillery pieces after a series of brilliantly planned ambushes.

Despite this unexpected success, Caceres' victory proved Pyrrhic for the Peruvians, who were unable to obtain any strategical advantage from the skirmish. Ironically, the Peruvians were forced to bury their captured cannon upon being unable to carry them away due to insufficient logistics.

The battle of Tarapacá marks the beginning of Andres Avelino Caceres' career as one of the most distinguished military leaders in Peruvian (and South American) history.

The Chilean Eleuterio Ramírez Molina perished during this battle.

See also

*War of the Pacific


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Battle of Iquique — Part of War of the Pacific Naval Combat of Iquique The sinking of the Esmeralda …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Angamos — Part of War of the Pacific Naval Battle of Angamos …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Chipana — Part of War of the Pacific Chilean corvette Magallanes …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Tacna — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=Battle of Tacna caption= Drawing of the Battle of Tacna partof=War of the Pacific date=May 26, 1880 place= Department of Tacna, Perú result= Decisive Chilean victoryEnd of the Peru Bolivian alliance… …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Arica — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=Battle of Arica caption=The Battle of Arica by Juan Lepiani depicts Bolognesi s final moments. Oil on canvas, Lima, Peru. partof=the War of the Pacific date=June 7, 1880 place=Morro de Arica, Peru (present day… …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Pisagua — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=Battle of Pisagua caption= partof=War of the Pacific date=November 2, 1879 place=Port of Pisagua, Peru (Chile since 1884) result= Chilean victory combatant1=flag|Chile combatant2=flag|Peru|1825… …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of San Francisco — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=Battle of San Francisco caption= partof=War of the Pacific date=November 19, 1879 place=South America result= Chilean victory combatant1=flag|Chile combatant2=flag|Peru|1825 flag|Bolivia|state… …   Wikipedia

  • Order of Battle at Tacna — The Battle at Tacna was an engagement during the War of the Pacific (1879–1883) between Chile and the Allied Forces of Peru and Bolivia. It was fought on May 20, 1880, with the forces aligned as follows: Contents 1 Chilean North Operations Army 1 …   Wikipedia

  • Chilean Army order of battle — This is a list of the various commands and military units of the Chilean Army. Introduction All the infantry and artillery regiments are named after important battles of the Army plus various places in Chile, while the cavalry regiments are named …   Wikipedia

  • War of the Pacific — This article is about the 19th century war between Bolivia, Chile and Peru. For the Pacific theatre of WW II, see Pacific War. War of the Pacific …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”