Battle of Punta Gruesa: Difference between revisions

Battle of Punta Gruesa
	Part of the War of the Pacific
	; Naval Combat of Punta Gruesa; The stranding of the Independencia; oil on canvas; Thomas Somerscales
Date	May 21, 1879
Location	near Iquique, Peru (present day Chile)
Result	Chilean victory
Belligerents
Chile	Peru
Commanders and leaders
Carlos Condell	Juan Guillermo More
Strength
1 schooner	1 ironclad
Casualties and losses
3 dead ; 5 wounded	5 dead; 5 wounded; 1 ironclad lost

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The Battle of Punta Gruesa was a naval action that took place on May 21, 1879, during the War of the Pacific between Chile and Peru. This may be labelled as the second part of the Naval Battle of Iquique, although it is described in many sources as a separate battle.

History

During the first year of the war, Chilean war efforts were focused on destroying the Peruvian Navy, since the Chileans understood the strategic importance of sea domination. This was in order to enable the Chilean Navy to help the army to conquer Bolivian and Peruvian territories with troop landings and port blockades without interference.

During May 1879, the main ships of the Chilean Navy were sent towards the Peruvian port of Callao in order to destroy its navy, while two old, wooden ships, the corvette Esmeralda and the schooner Covadonga, commanded by Captain Arturo Prat and Captain Carlos Condell respectively, were left blockading the Peruvian port of Iquique.

However, as the Chilean Navy steamed north towards Callao, two ironclad ships of the Peruvian Navy steamed south from Callao, undetected. These ships were the monitor Huáscar and the armoured frigate Independencia, commanded by Captain Miguel Grau and Captain Juan Guillermo More.

History

On the morning of May 21, 1879, the lookout of Esmeralda spotted two ships coming from the north. These were the Peruvian Independencia and Huáscar. Condell noticed the Independencia was moving separated from the Huascar, realizing their plan was to close both Chilean ships in the port and attack from the distance, so he ordered to run south to keep both Peruvian forces divided. The Covadonga headed south while the Esmeralda kept the defense at the port, as it had engine problems making her difficult to maneuver. The battle had begun: Huáscar engaged Esmeralda and Independencia pursued Covadonga south. Many sources (Peruvian mostly) say Condell attempted to escape the Iquique battle, but that can't be the case as the Covadonga had half the speed of the Independencia, making it unlikely for the Covadonga to escape to Antofagasta.

Captain Carlos Condell of the Covadonga realized that the quicker but heavier Independencia had a deeper draft than his schooner, the reason why he decided to run south very close to the coast, risking to run his ship aground. With Independencia in pursuit, both ships exchanged fire. The Independencia's lack of trained gunners and the Covadonga's accurate sniper fire prolonged the chase for over three hours. Chilean-Mapuche sniper Juan Bravo was hailed after the battle for taking down numerous Peruvians.^[3] Captain More of the Independencia, tired because of the prolonged pursuit, lost his temper and patience, deciding to take a riskier approach and ram the Chilean ship. Constantly sounding the depth, he attempted to do so twice, only to have to call off the attack when approaching the shallows. Close to Punta Gruesa, a shallow cove, Covadonga scraped and barely cleared a reef. The Independencia, attempting to ram for a third time, struck the obstacle and immediately took on water while listing to starboard. The Covadonga then turned around and opened fire, while Independencia's crew returned fire^[2] and tried to float her off the reef.

As Captain More realized his ship was lost, he ordered her scuttled, but the magazine was already flooded and it could not be blown up. The Covadonga kept firing, as the crew of the Independencia resisted to surrender. When they finally raised the white flag, Condell's men were preparing the boats to take prisoners, but then they saw the Huáscar coming from the north, so they decided to run south to Antofagasta. Huáscar's commander checked on Independencia and decided to pursue the enemy after seeing she was immobilized, but this cost precious time and Covadonga steamed south as fast as possible. Captain Grau realized that Huáscar could not catch up on the 10 mile head start before dusk, gave up the chase, and returned to assist Independencia and salvage her guns; the crew (those aboard and some who had escaped to the beach) were rescued and the ship set on fire.

The Peruvians lost 5 crew with 5 wounded; 3 Chilean crewmen were killed and 5 wounded.^[3]

Aftermath

The naval battle of Punta Gruesa was a Peruvian defeat. One of the most powerful warships in the Peruvian Navy was lost, while Chile only lost one of its oldest wooden warships.

Commanders

Commanders
Schooner Covadonga	Ironclad Independencia
Carlos Condell de la Haza	Juan Guillermo More

Forces

Technical characteristics	Schooner Covadonga	Ironclad Independencia
Commissioned	1859	1866
Displacement (t)	412 t	3,300 - 3,750 t^[4]
Draught	3,35 m	6,62 m
Armor (mm)	None	114.3 mm
Naval artillery	2 x 70 lb^[5]	1 x 250 lb, 3 x 150 lb, 12 x 70 lb, 2 machine guns
Speed (Knot)	4 kn^[6]	11 kn
Crew	130 men^[7]	375 men

References

^ ^a ^b War report Carlos Condell (Spanish)
^ War report Guillermo More (Spanish)
^ "Combate Naval de Punta Gruesa - 21 de mayo de 1879". armada.cl (in Spanish). Chilean Navy. 2015-04-01. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
^ Grieve Madge, Jorge (1983). Historia de la Artillería y de la Marina de Guerra en la contienda del 79. Lima: Industrialgráfica S.A. p. 220. Calculo que realiza el autor en base al coeficiente de block
^ The covadonga had two cannons of 70 pounds, after May 21, 1879 were installed two cannons of 9 pounds, 3 cannons of 40 pounds. Armada de Chile Archived 2012-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
^ On May 21, 1879, the Covadonga, had a power of 140 HP engine, that allowed a walk of 4 knots, because only two of his 3 boilers operated (Data from Chile Navy)
^ Combate naval de Iquique, boletines y nacionales y extranjeros de 1879. Guerra del Pacífico. Pascual Ahumada Moreno. Valparaíso. 1886 [1] Archived 2005-02-13 at the Wayback Machine

^ Farcau, Bruce W. (Sep 30, 2000). The Ten Cents War: Chile, Peru, and Bolivia in the War of the Pacific, 1879-1884, ISBN 0-275-96925-8
^ Sondhaus, Lawrence (May 4, 2004). Navies in Modern World History, ISBN 1-86189-202-0

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 |conflict=Battle of Punta Gruesa
 |partof=the [[War of the Pacific]]
-|image=[[Image:Combate naval de Punta Gruesa.jpg|300px|]]
+|image=Combate naval de Punta Gruesa.jpg
+|image_size=300px
-|caption=Naval Combat of Punta Gruesa - The stranding of the Independencia
+|caption=Naval Combat of Punta Gruesa<br/>The stranding of the Independencia<br/>oil on canvas<br/>[[Thomas Somerscales]]
 |date=May 21, 1879
 |place=near [[Iquique]], [[Peru]] (present day [[Chile]])
-|result= Decisive Chilean Victory
+|result= Chilean victory
 |combatant1={{flag|Chile}}
 |combatant2={{flag|Peru|1825}}
@@ Line 12: / Line 13: @@
 |commander2={{flagicon|Peru|1825}}  [[Juan Guillermo More]]
 |strength1=1 schooner
-|strength2=1 broadside ironclad
+|strength2=1 ironclad
 |casualties1=3 dead <ref name="Condell"/><br>5 wounded<ref name="Condell">[http://es.wikisource.org/wiki/Parte_oficial_del_Comandante_de_la_Covadonga_Carlos_Condell_sobre_el_Combate_de_Punta_Gruesa War report Carlos Condell (Spanish)]</ref>
-|casualties2=5 dead<ref>[http://es.wikisource.org/wiki/Parte_oficial_de_Juan_Guillermo_More_Ruiz_%2822_de_mayo_de_1879%29 War report Guillermo More (Spanish)]</ref><br>5 wounded<br>1 broadside ironclad lost
+|casualties2=5 dead<ref>[http://es.wikisource.org/wiki/Parte_oficial_de_Juan_Guillermo_More_Ruiz_%2822_de_mayo_de_1879%29 War report Guillermo More (Spanish)]</ref><br>5 wounded<br>1 ironclad lost
 }}
-{{War of the Pacific}}
+{{Campaignbox War of the Pacific}}
-The '''Battle of Punta Gruesa''' took place on May 21, 1879 during the [[War of the Pacific]] between [[Chile]] and [[Peru]]. This may be labelled as the second part of the [[Battle of Iquique|Naval Battle of Iquique]], although it is described in many sources as a separate battle.
+The '''Battle of Punta Gruesa''' was a naval action that took place on May 21, 1879, during the [[War of the Pacific]] between [[Chile]] and [[Peru]]. This may be labelled as the second part of the [[Battle of Iquique|Naval Battle of Iquique]], although it is described in many sources as a separate battle.
-==Context==
+==History==
-During the first year of the war, Chilean war efforts were focused on destroying the [[Peruvian Navy]], since the strategic importance of sea domination. This was in order to enable the [[Military of Chile|Chilean Navy]] to help the [[army]] to conquer Bolivian and Peruvian territories with troop landings and port [[blockade]]s without interference.
+During the first year of the war, Chilean war efforts were focused on destroying the [[Peruvian Navy]], since the Chileans understood the strategic importance of sea domination. This was in order to enable the [[Military of Chile|Chilean Navy]] to help the [[army]] to conquer Bolivian and Peruvian territories with troop landings and port [[blockade]]s without interference.
-During May 1879, the main ships of the Chilean Navy were sent towards the Peruvian port of [[Callao]] in order to destroy its navy, while two old, wooden ships -the [[corvette]] ''[[Esmeralda (1855)|Esmeralda]]'' and the ''[[Schooner Virjen de Covadonga|schooner Covadonga]],'' commanded by Captain [[Arturo Prat]] and Captain [[Carlos Condell]] respectively - were left blockading the Peruvian port of [[Iquique]].
+During May 1879, the main ships of the Chilean Navy were sent towards the Peruvian port of [[Callao]] in order to destroy its navy, while two old, wooden ships, the [[corvette]] ''[[Esmeralda (1855)|Esmeralda]]'' and the ''[[Schooner Virjen de Covadonga|schooner Covadonga]],'' commanded by Captain [[Arturo Prat]] and Captain [[Carlos Condell]] respectively, were left blockading the Peruvian port of [[Iquique]].
 However, as the Chilean Navy steamed north towards Callao, two [[ironclad]] ships of the Peruvian Navy steamed south from Callao, undetected. These ships were the [[monitor warship type|monitor]] ''[[Huáscar (ship)|Huáscar]]'' and the [[battleship|armoured frigate]] ''[[Independencia (Peruvian ship)|Independencia]]'', commanded by Captain [[Miguel Grau Seminario|Miguel Grau]] and Captain [[Juan Guillermo More]].
-== The battle ==
+=== History ===
+On the morning of May 21, 1879, the lookout of ''Esmeralda'' spotted two ships coming from the north. These were the Peruvian ''Independencia'' and ''Huáscar''. Condell noticed the ''Independencia'' was moving separated from the Huascar, realizing their plan was to close both Chilean ships in the port and attack from the distance, so he ordered to run south to keep both Peruvian forces divided. The ''Covadonga'' headed south while the Esmeralda kept the defense at the port, as it had engine problems making her difficult to maneuver. The battle had begun: ''Huáscar'' engaged ''Esmeralda'' and ''Independencia'' pursued ''Covadonga'' south. Many sources (Peruvian mostly) say Condell attempted to escape the Iquique battle, but that can't be the case as the ''Covadonga'' had half the speed of the ''Independencia'', making it unlikely for the ''Covadonga'' to escape to Antofagasta.
-=== Forces in combat ===
+Captain Carlos Condell of the ''Covadonga'' realized that the quicker but heavier ''Independencia'' had a deeper draft than his schooner, the reason why he decided to run south very close to the coast, risking to run his ship aground. With ''Independencia'' in pursuit, both ships exchanged fire. The ''Independencia's'' lack of trained gunners and the ''Covadonga's'' accurate sniper fire prolonged the chase for over three hours. [[Chileans|Chilean]]-[[Mapuche]] sniper [[Juan Bravo (navy officer)|Juan Bravo]] was hailed after the battle for taking down numerous Peruvians.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Combate Naval de Punta Gruesa - 21 de mayo de 1879|url=https://www.armada.cl/armada/tradicion-e-historia/principales-acciones-navales/la-guerra-del-pacifico/combate-naval-de-punta-gruesa-21-de-mayo-de-1879/2015-04-29/092243.html|date=2015-04-01|website=armada.cl|publisher=[[Chilean Navy]]|language=Spanish|access-date=2019-07-04}}</ref> Captain More of the ''Independencia'', tired because of the prolonged pursuit, lost his temper and patience, deciding to take a riskier approach and ram the Chilean ship. Constantly sounding the depth, he attempted to do so twice, only to have to call off the attack when approaching the shallows. Close to [[Punta Gruesa]], a shallow cove, ''Covadonga'' scraped and barely cleared a [[reef]]. The ''Independencia'', attempting to ram for a third time, struck the obstacle and immediately took on water while listing to starboard. The ''Covadonga'' then turned around and opened fire, while ''Independencia'''s crew returned fire{{Ref|Farcau_p74}} and tried to float her off the reef.
+As Captain More realized his ship was lost, he ordered her [[Scuttling|scuttle]]d, but the magazine was already flooded and it could not be blown up. The ''Covadonga'' kept firing, as the crew of the ''Independencia'' resisted to surrender. When they finally raised the white flag, Condell's men were preparing the boats to take prisoners, but then they saw the ''Huáscar'' coming from the north, so they decided to run south to Antofagasta. ''Huáscar's'' commander checked on ''Independencia'' and decided to pursue the enemy after seeing she was immobilized, but this cost precious time and ''Covadonga'' steamed south as fast as possible. Captain Grau realized that ''Huáscar'' could not catch up on the 10 mile [[Head start (positioning)|head start]] before dusk, gave up the chase, and returned to assist ''Independencia'' and salvage her guns; the crew (those aboard and some who had escaped to the beach) were rescued and the ship set on fire.
+The Peruvians lost 5 crew with 5 wounded; 3 Chilean crewmen were killed and 5 wounded.{{Ref|Sondhaus_p159}}
+=== Aftermath ===
+The naval battle of Punta Gruesa was a Peruvian defeat. One of the most powerful warships in the Peruvian Navy was lost, while Chile only lost one of its oldest wooden warships.
+== Commanders ==
 {| class="wikitable"
+|+ Commanders
-![[Image:Naval Jack of Chile.svg|25px|CN Jack]]  [[Armada de Chile]] !![[Image:Naval Jack of Peru.svg|25px|PN Jack]]   [[Marina de Guerra del Perú]]
+|-
+! Schooner Covadonga !! Ironclad Independencia
+|-
+| [[File:Carlos Condell.jpg|thumb|Carlos Condell de la Haza]] || [[File:JGMore.jpg|thumb|Juan Guillermo More]]
+|}
+== Forces ==
+<div align="left">
+{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="float: center; margin-center: 2em; margin-center: 1em; text-align: center; font-size:90%; width:750px;"
+|-
+! width=20%|Technical characteristics
+| width=40%|Schooner [[Spanish schooner Virgen de Covadonga|''Covadonga'']] [[File:CovadongaShip.jpg|245px]]
+| width=40%|Ironclad [[Peruvian ironclad Independencia|''Independencia'']] [[File:Fragata Blindada Independencia.jpg|245px]]
+|-
+| [[Ship commissioning|Commissioned]] || 1859 || 1866
 |-
+| [[Displacement (ship)|Displacement]] (t) || 412 t || 3,300 - 3,750 t<ref>{{cite book
-|''[[Schooner Virjen de Covadonga|schooner Covadonga]]'' (1859)<br />
-Displacement: 630 t<br />
-Draught: 3,35 m<br />
-Armor: none<br />
-Armament: 2 x 70&nbsp;lb<ref>The covadonga had two cannons of 70 pounds, after May 21, 1879 were installed two cannons of 9 pounds, 3 cannons of 40 pounds. [http://www.armada.cl/prontus_armada/site/artic/20090716/pags/20090716172641.html Armada de Chile]</ref><br />
-Speed: 4 Kn<ref>On May 21, 1879, the Covadonga, had a power of 140 HP engine, that allowed a walk of 4 knots, because only two of his 3 boilers operated (Data from Chile Navy)</ref><br />
-Crew: 130<ref name="pascual">Combate naval de Iquique, boletines y nacionales y extranjeros de 1879. Guerra del Pacífico. Pascual Ahumada Moreno. Valparaíso. 1886 [http://www.revistamarina.cl/revistas/2002/3/ahumada.pdf]</ref>
-|| ''[[Peruvian ironclad Independencia|ironclad Independencia]]'' (1866)<br />
-Displacement: 3300 - 3750 [[Long ton|t]]<ref>{{cite book
 | author = Grieve Madge, Jorge
 | title = Historia de la Artillería y de la Marina de Guerra en la contienda del 79
@@ Line 47: / Line 66: @@
 | publisher = Lima: Industrialgráfica S.A.
 | page = 220
-| quote =  Calculo que realiza el autor en base al coeficiente de block}}</ref><br />
+| quote =  Calculo que realiza el autor en base al coeficiente de block}}</ref>
+|-
-Draught: 6,62 m<br />
+| Draught || 3,35 m || 6,62 m
-Armor: 114.3&nbsp;mm<br />
+|-
-Armament: 1 x 250&nbsp;lb, 3 x 150&nbsp;lb, 12 x 70&nbsp;lb, 2 machine guns<br />
+| Armor (mm) || None || 114.3 mm
-Speed: 11 Kn<br />
+|-
-Crew: 375 <br />
+| [[Naval artillery]] || 2 x 70 [[Pound (force)|lb]]<ref>The covadonga had two cannons of 70 pounds, after May 21, 1879 were installed two cannons of 9 pounds, 3 cannons of 40 pounds. [http://www.armada.cl/prontus_armada/site/artic/20090716/pags/20090716172641.html Armada de Chile] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305234724/http://www.armada.cl/prontus_armada/site/artic/20090716/pags/20090716172641.html |date=2012-03-05 }}</ref><br /> || 1 x 250 lb, 3 x 150 lb, 12 x 70 lb, 2 machine guns
+|-
+| Speed ([[Knot (unit)|Knot]]) || 4 kn<ref>On May 21, 1879, the Covadonga, had a power of 140 HP engine, that allowed a walk of 4 knots, because only two of his 3 boilers operated (Data from Chile Navy)</ref><br /> || 11 kn
+|-
+| Crew || 130 men<ref name="pascual">Combate naval de Iquique, boletines y nacionales y extranjeros de 1879. Guerra del Pacífico. Pascual Ahumada Moreno. Valparaíso. 1886 [http://www.revistamarina.cl/revistas/2002/3/ahumada.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050213021315/http://www.revistamarina.cl/revistas/2002/3/ahumada.pdf |date=2005-02-13 }}</ref> || 375 men
 |}
+</div>
-On the morning of May 21, 1879, the lookout of ''Esmeralda'' spotted two ships coming from the north. These were the Peruvian ''Independencia'' and ''Huáscar''. Attempting to escape the ''Covadonga'' headed south, but ''Esmeralda'' experienced engine problems. By this time, the battle was inevitable: while ''Huáscar'' engaged ''Esmeralda'', ''Independencia'' pursued ''Covadonga'' south.
-Captain Condell of the ''Covadonga'' realized that the quicker but heavier ''Independencia'' had a deeper draft than his schooner. He kept close to the coast, with ''Independencia'' in pursuit, while both ships exchanged fire. The ''Independencia's'' lack of trained gunners and the ''Covadonga's'' accurate sniper fire prolonged the chase for over three hours. Captain More of the ''Independencia'' decided to take a riskier approach and ram the Chilean ship. Constantly sounding the depth, he attempted to do so twice, only to have to call off the attack when approaching the shallows. Close to [[Punta Gruesa]], a shallow cove, ''Covadonga'' scraped and barely cleared a [[reef]]. The ''Independencia'', attempting to ram for a third time, struck the obstacle and immediately took on water while listing to starboard. The ''Covadonga'' then turned around and opened fire, while ''Independencia's'' returned fire {{Ref|Farcau_p74}} and tried to float her.
-As Captain More realized his ship was lost, he ordered her [[Scuttling|scuttle]]d, but the magazine was already flooded and it could not be blown up. The ''Covadonga'' kept firing, but retreated when ''Huáscar'' was seen coming from the north. ''Huáscar's'' commander checked on ''Independencia'' and decided to pursue the enemy after seeing she was immobilized, but this cost precious time and ''Covadonga'' steamed south as fast as possible. Captain Grau realized that ''Huáscar'' could not catch up on the 10 mile [[Head start (positioning)|head start]] before dusk, gave up the chase and returned to assist ''Independencia'' and salvage her guns; the crew (those aboard and on the beach) were rescued and the ship set on fire.
-The Peruvians lost 5 crew with 5 wounded; 3 Chilean crewmen were killed and 5 wounded{{Ref|Sondhaus_p159}}.
-== Aftermath==
-The naval battle of Punta Gruesa was a Peruvian defeat; One of the most powerful warships in the Peruvian Navy was lost, while Chile only lost one of its oldest wooden warships.
 ==References==
 {{Reflist}}
-#{{note|Farcau_p74}} Farcau, Bruce W. (Sep 30, 2000). ''The Ten Cents War: Chile, Peru, and Bolivia in the War of the Pacific, 1879-1884'', ISBN 0-275-96925-8
+#{{note|Farcau_p74}} Farcau, Bruce W. (Sep 30, 2000). ''The Ten Cents War: Chile, Peru, and Bolivia in the War of the Pacific, 1879-1884'', {{ISBN|0-275-96925-8}}
-#{{note|Sondhaus_p159}} Sondhaus, Lawrence (May 4, 2004). ''Navies in Modern World History'', ISBN 1-86189-202-0
+#{{note|Sondhaus_p159}} Sondhaus, Lawrence (May 4, 2004). ''Navies in Modern World History'', {{ISBN|1-86189-202-0}}
 ==See also==
@@ Line 76: / Line 89: @@
 *[[Battle of Angamos]]
-{{Campaignbox War of the Pacific}}
+{{War of the Pacific}}
 {{coord missing|Chile}}
@@ Line 85: / Line 98: @@
 [[Category:Naval battles involving Peru]]
 [[Category:Naval battles of the War of the Pacific]]
-[[Category:Conflicts in 1879]]
+[[Category:Battles in 1879]]
 [[Category:1879 in Chile]]
+[[Category:History of Tarapacá Region|Battle of Punta Gruesa]]
+[[Category:May 1879 events]]
-[[es:Combate naval de Punta Gruesa]]
 [[pl:Bitwa pod Iquique]]