Abel-Nicolas Georges Henri Bergasse du Petit-Thouars (March 23, 1832 – March 14, 1890) was a French sailor and vice-admiral who took part in the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

, the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a clique seeking to seize political power in the name of the Imperi ...

, the Franco-Prussian War and the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...

. He is considered a hero in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, known there as the ''Savior of Lima''.

Early life

Petit-Thouars was born in Bordeaux-en-Gâtinais,

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

. He was adopted by his maternal uncle Vice Admiral

Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars __NOTOC__ Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars (3 August 1793 – 16 March 1864) was a French naval officer important in France's annexation of French Polynesia. Early life He was born at the castle of La Fessardière, near Saumur. His uncle Aristide Aube ...

, a member of the Aubert Du Petit-Thouars family, originating from

Touraine Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vie ...

, and a noble family since 1711. adding the du Petit-Thouars surname to his name. When he was 15 years old, he entered the ''

École navale École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

'', incorporating himself to the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

when he was 21 years old.

Military career

He took part in the

, where he was wounded and was made a Knight of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

. In 1868, he commanded the

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...

'' Dupleix'' during the Japanese revolution. On 8 March 1868, a skiff sent to

Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...

was attacked by samurai retainers of the ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' of Tosa; 11 sailors and a midshipman were killed. The attack and French demands for punishment of the samurai involved became known as the

Sakai incident 270px, Monument to the Tosa samurai at Myōkoku-ji in Sakai The was a diplomatic incident that occurred on March 8, 1868, in Bakumatsu period Japan involving the deaths of eleven French sailors from the French corvette ''Dupleix'' in the port ...

. In 1870, he commanded a floating battery on the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

river during the Franco-Prussian War. As a rear admiral, he was in charge of the 1880 pacification of the

Marquesas Islands The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in th ...

, which had been conquered by his uncle

forty years before.

War of the Pacific

On the way back to France from his mission in the

, he commanded the French Navy's observation mission at the

. As the

Lima campaign The Lima campaign is the third land campaign of the War of the Pacific, carried out by Chile between December 1880 and January 1881. The campaign ended with the Chilean occupation of the Peruvian capital and the establishment of the Chilean aut ...

saw success after success, and the

occupation of Lima , common_languages = Spanish , religion = , stat_year1 = , stat_area1 = , stat_pop1 = , title_leader = President , leader1 = Aníbal Pinto , year_leader1 ...

became imminent, reports of Chilean destruction resulted in a meeting between the different observing powers, concluding that such an event would not be allowed in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

proper. His role in the defense of Lima, had the

Chilean army The Chilean Army ( es, Ejército de Chile) is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 80,000-person army (9,200 of which are conscripts) is organized into six divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade. In recent years, and a ...

attacked the city as it had done in

Barranco ''Barranco'' (), which is Spanish for "ravine", may refer to: Places * Barranco, Belize, a village in Toledo District, Belize * Barranco, Spain, a village south of Jijona, Alicante, Spain *Barranco District, Peru *Barranco de Loba, Colombia Perso ...

, Chorrillos and Miraflores, would have been to use his fleet against the occupying army. According to Peruvian historiography, this was accomplished due to Petit-Thouars communicating directly with Chilean commander-in-chief of the occupation,

Manuel Baquedano Manuel Jesús Baquedano González (; January 1, 1823 – September 30, 1897) was a Chilean soldier and politician, who served as Commander-in-chief of the Army during the War of the Pacific, and briefly as President of Chile during the civil war ...

. According to Chilean historiography, however, negotiations were led by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

J. M. Sterling. Nevertheless, what is known is that Petit-Thouars' role would have been a bombardment of the city. Because of his role in the war, he became known as the ''Savior of Lima'', and a key south-to-north broad one-way street in Lima, Petit Thouars Avenue, is named after him. It runs through Miraflores, San Isidro, Lince, and

downtown Lima Lima is a district of Lima Province in Peru. Lima district is the oldest in Lima Province and as such, vestiges of the city's colonial era remain today in the historic centre of Lima, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 and ...

. He was promoted to vice admiral in 1883, and later died in

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

on 14 March 1890.

Family

Great-grand uncles: *

Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars (5 November 1758, Bournois – 12 May 1831, Paris) was an eminent French botanist known for his work collecting and describing orchids from the three islands of Madagascar, Mauritius and Réunion. Introd ...

(1758–1831), botanist * Aristide Aubert du Petit-Thouars (1760–1798), French Navy officer, a hero of the

Battle of the Nile The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; french: Bataille d'Aboukir) was a major naval battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the Navy of the French Republic at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast off the ...

Uncle and adoptive father: *

(1793–1864), French Navy admiral and botanist, took possession of

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...

for France

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:du Petit-Thouars, Abel-Nicolas Bergasse 1832 births 1890 deaths People from Loiret French Navy admirals French military personnel of the Crimean War People of the War of the Pacific French military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War Dupetit Thouars family