Ironclad "Huascar" (Peru)

--Flash2007 (talk) 05:04, November 6, 2015 (UTC)Huáscar is an ironclad turret ship of a type similar to a monitor, built in Britain for Peru in 1864. Her price was a bit more than £81,000 pounds sterling. She was the flagship of the Peruvian Navy and participated in the battle of Pacocha and the Nitrate War of 1879–1883 against Chile. She is named after the 16th-century Incan emperor, Huáscar.

Technical Details:
Captain Cowper Coles (1819 - 1870), about his masterpiece, the Huáscar, wrote:

" ...as a sea-going vessel of 1,100 tons, 300-horse power, and a speed of 12 1/4 knots. Her foremast is fitted with tripods; she carries two 300-pounders in one turret.' ''"

 ...the "Huascar" class of 1865 fitted with a hurricane deck; she was one of six different classes designed and built by Messrs. Laird Brothers, to whom the credit for their great success is due. She can fire right ahead from her 300-pounders, and aft within 15 degrees of the line of keel, but would have a stern chaser either on or under her poop. 

The Illustrated London News, Feb. 17, 1866, page 169, on the Peruvian ironclad turret.ship Huascar writes:

" Messers. Laird Brothers of Birkenhead have lately completed for the Peruvian Government an armour - clad seagoing turret-ship of 1200-tons and 300-horse power with a speed of more than twelve knots an hour on a draught of water of 16 ft., throwing a weight of broadside of 600 lb. from her turret, besides carrying two 40-pounder rifled guns on the quarter-deck. The dimensions are about 200 ft. extreme lenght 16 ft. breadth, 20 ft. deep, and 1100 tons measurement. The hull is of iron of great strenght, and is divided internally by bulkheads water-tight compartments, so as to inclose her turret, engines, boilers- all her vital points, in fact- in separate compartments. In addition to this prevision for the ship's security, there is a double bottom under the engines, boilers, turrets and magazines, extending up to the lower deck. The armour plating is 4½ in. thick extending from her upper deck to 3½ ft. below the load water-line slightly tapering towards the bow and stern, to lessen the tendency to pitch in a sea-way, and rests on teak backing 10 in. thick. The accommodation for the officers and crew is a very superior description, well ventilated by means of skilights and side scuttles and there is free communication from one end of the ship to the other by iron sliding doors on all the water-tight bulkheads. The spaces in the store-room and magazines are ample for the stowage of six months provisions and ammunition. The turret is cylindrical in shape, covered with armour-plates 5½ in. thick and is placed before the engine-room, and is fitted with slides and carriages for two 12½ ton 300 pounders guns on the system of Captain Cowper P. Coles, R.N. The rig is that of a brig, the foremast being fitted as a tripod, on Captain Coles's patent, to give greater range of training to the guns in the turret. The engines are 300-horse power nominal, having cylinders 54 in. in diameter, 3 ft. stroke, driving a four-bladed screw-propeller, 14 ft. 9 in. in diameter, 17 ft. 9 in. pitch. The cylinders have steam-jackets and improved expansion valves. The trials of speed made at the measured mile gave as the result of four runs a speed of 12'27 knots an hour. At the time of these trials the vessel was completed in every way, except guns and sea stores, and had one hundred tons of coal in the bunkers. The mean draught of water was 14 ft. 3 in.; the engines made seventy eight revolutions; pressure of steam, 25 lb., vacuum, 26 in.; indicated horse-power, 1650. The engines worked very well, and the boilers gave an abundant supply of steam. The ship was quick in answering her helm and her steering arrangements are excellent, having one wheel in front of the poop, and the second under the pilot-tower, forward. The Huascar has since been sent to sea, with her guns and all stores, and has behaved very well. "

The British magazine Engeneering, July 4, 1879, page 11, on the Peruvian ironclad turret ship Huascar writes:

" The Peruvians now appear to have only one really powerful vessel in serviceable condition, viz., the Huascar, and, as will be seen by our previous description of the two Chilian ironclads, she is much inferior to them. She is an armour-clad monitor built by Messrs. Laird Brothers, of Birkenhead, in 1866...... She is 190 ft. in length between perpendiculars, 35 ft. in extreme breadth, and 19 ft. 9 in. in depth of hold. Her builder's tonnage is 1101, and indicated horse power 1500. Her draught of water is 15 ft. 6 in., and her maximum speed is said to be 12 knots when her boilers are in good condition, and the bottom is clean. Her usual speed under good working conditions is probably not more than 10 1/2 to 11 knots. She is propelled by a single screw. The Huascar is a rigged two-masted vessel, the foremast being upon Captain Cole's tripod principle. Her freeboard, or height of deck above water, is about 5 ft. She carries two 300-pounder Armstrong guns in one turret, which is protected by 5 1/2-in. armour plating upon a teak backing of 14 in. The sides are protected by armour plating 4 1/2 in. thick amidships, tapering to 2 1/2 in. at the extremities, which is also worked upon a teak backing of 14 in. There is an armoured pilot tower of hexagonal form abaft the turret from which the ship is worked in action; and the openings in the deck are protected by 2-in. iron plates that are shipped in the openings for skylights or hatchways. The Huascar is an iron-built vessel, and at the time she was built was most perfect in all the appliances of defence, and in her internal arrangements. "

Historical Details:
Commanded by Chilean Captain José María Salcedo, Naval Officer in Peru's service, who had supervised construction on behalf of the Peruvian Navy, she left for Peru on 17 January 1866 on a trip that saw some trouble: a month-long wait at Brest, a minor collision with the ironclad Independencia on 28 February, refusal of service by neutral countries, a month of repairs at Rio de Janeiro, insubordination by the commander of Independencia and the capture and sinking of the Spanish brigantine Manuel. When she finally arrived in port at Ancud in allied Chile to join the rest of the combined fleet on 7 June, it was too late for her to participate in the conflict.

Under Captain Lizardo Montero, Huáscar prepared at Valparaíso to participate in a late 1866 expedition to fight the Spanish fleet at the Philippines. However Montero, with several other Peruvian officers, objected to plans for Rear Admiral John R. Tucker–formerly a commander of Confederate warships during the American civil war – to be in command of the fleet, and requested to be relieved. Captain Salcedo took back command of Huáscar, but the expedition was eventually cancelled.

In February 1868, Captain Miguel Grau took command of Huáscar and would remain until 1876, becoming her longest-serving commander. His long years aboard the ironclad would prove very valuable later and he would also become Peru's most renowned naval officer.

Peruvian Civil War (1877)
Huáscar participated in the Peruvian Civil War of 1877. Seized in port in Callao by rebels led by retired Captain Germán Astete, she was used to harass, sabotage and disrupt government forces and shipping lanes. During these actions foreign shipping was also affected, leading to British intervention.

On 29 May 1877, she fought the Battle of Pacocha against two British vessels, the frigate HMS Shah and the corvette HMS Amethyst, commanded by Admiral de Horsey. This battle saw the first use in anger of the newly invented self-propelled torpedo which, at the time, had just entered limited service with the Royal Navy.

Huáscar surrendered to the government after almost one month in rebel hands. Although controlled by rebels at the time, popular and press pressure on the Peruvian government resulted in a formal diplomatic protest to the British government for its attack on the Huáscar; the British Parliament, on the other hand, came close to censuring Admiral de Horsey for his failure to capture her.

Huáscar gained fame in Peru, and would later reach legendary status.

Nitrate War (1879-1884)
Huáscar participated in the Nitrate War (War of the Pacific for the Chilean Historians) and she was under the command of Captain Miguel Grau once again, she became famous for daring harassment raids on Chilean ports and transports. As a result, during the opening months of the war, the ground invasion was delayed for almost six months until the Chilean fleet could find and stop Huáscar. On 21 May 1879, Huáscar led the lifting of the Chilean blockade of Iquique. During the battle, Chilean Captain Arturo Prat, Skipper of the corvette Esmeralda, was killed on Huáscar 's deck. After sinking the corvette Esmeralda by repeated ramming, Huáscar then rescued the survivors before continuing pursuit of the fleeing enemy ship Covadonga.

Huáscar went on with her mission and in the following months accomplished the following:


 * Damaged ports of Cobija, Tocopilla, Patillos and Mejillones, Huanillos, Punta de Lobo, Chañaral, Huasco, Caldera, Coquimbo and Taltal.
 * Sank 16 Chilean vessels, including ships and boats.
 * Damaged the Chilean ships Blanco Encalada, Abtao, Magallanes and Matías Cousiño.
 * Captured the Chilean vessels Emilia, Adelaida Rojas, E. Saucy Jack, Adriana Lucía, Rímac and Coquimbo.
 * Aboard Chilean transport Rímac, captured 260 men from the elite Chilean regiment of line cavalry "Carabineers of Yungay", along with horses, weapons, munitions and supplies. This was her biggest prize.
 * Recovered the Peruvian vessels Clorinda and Caquetá.
 * Destroyed the artillery batteries of Antofagasta.
 * Cut the Antofagasta-Valparaíso communications cable.

Collectively, these actions became known as "Las correrías del Huáscar" ("Huáscar's raids") and held up a Chilean ground invasion for almost six months. As a result, the Peruvian Navy promoted Captain Grau to Rear Admiral while the Chilean Navy replaced her own chief of staff.

During 137 days Huáscar not only evaded the confrontation with the enemy fleet (following orders from the Peruvian Government) but made the coast unsecure for Chilean transport ships.

Huascar was the flying wall of Peru.

Determined to secure the logistic lines needed for the invasion of Perú, committed every possible unit to hunt down Huáscar.

On 8 October 1879, Huáscar was captured by the whole Chilean Navy at the Battle of Angamos, during which Rear Admiral Grau and 32 men of the crew (of total 200 men) were killed.

Huáscar then entered the service of the Chilean Navy. At Arica she fought a duel with the Peruvian monitor Manco Cápac (formerly USS Oneota), being defeated by the Peruvian old river monitor, while participating in the bombardment of the city –where her new commander Manuel Thomson was killed– and she also aided in the blockade of Callao being hit three times from a fort and had one compartment flooded.