Ignacio Carrera Pinto (February 5, 1848 – July 10, 1882) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

an hero of 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 ...

. Carrera and his 77 men of the Fourth Company of Chacabuco are regarded in Chile as great heroes, and are commonly referred to as the ''"Héroes de la Concepción"'', after all were killed in the Battle of La Concepción. Carrera was born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

; the son of José Miguel Carrera Fontecilla, of

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

descent,http://diario.elmercurio.cl/detalle/index.asp?id= and of Emilia Pinto Benavente. He was the grandson of Jose Miguel Carrera Verdugo, one of Chile's independence heroes. He was also the great-grandson and great-nephew of Chile's Presidents Francisco Antonio Pinto and Aníbal Pinto. When the

, between Chile, on one side, and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and Bolivia on the other, started in 1879, Carrera Pinto enlisted in 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 ...

's 7th Mobilized Infantry Regimentthe "Esmeralda"

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

. Over the next few years, Carrera's accomplishments and personal merits resulted in a rapid series of promotions, becoming a lieutenant in 1881 and a captain in 1882. He participated in the Lima Campaign and in the Sierra Campaign. In July 1882, during the Sierra Campaign, Captain Carrera was in command of the Esmeralda's Fourth Company of Chacabuco, which was guarding the Peruvian town of La Concepción. Including officers, Fourth Company totaled 77 soldiers, divided into three

platoon A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may rang ...

s under lieutenants Julio Montt Salamanca, Luis Cruz Martínez and Arturo Perez Canto. On July 10, 1882, in the Battle of La Concepción, the town was attacked by 400 regular Peruvian soldiers and large groups of natives, which were part of the forces of Andrés Cáceres, a Peruvian officer who was conducting a

guerrilla war Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tactics ...

. Despite being greatly outnumbered and out of ammunition, the Chilean soldiers did not surrender. The last Chilean soldiers died charging the well-armed Peruvian army with only their bayonets. The Carrera family was one of Chile's most influential families and grew considerably in number. Today, the bulk of the family remains in Santiago and the southern Province of the Bio Bio, although a portion is known to have emigrated to Sweden. The Chilean one thousand peso banknote bears Ignacio Carrera's face.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carrera Pinto, Ignacio 1848 births 1882 deaths People from Santiago Chilean Army officers Chilean people of Basque descent Chilean military personnel of the War of the Pacific Military personnel killed in the War of the Pacific Carrera family