''Rímac'' was a steamer involved in decisive actions of the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

(1879–1884) and

Thousand Days' War The Thousand Days' War () was a civil war fought in Colombia from 17 October 1899 to 21 November 1902, at first between the Colombian Liberal Party, Liberal Party and the government led by the National Party (Colombia), National Party, and lat ...

(1899–1902). After construction of the ship in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 1872, she was purchased by the Compañía Sudamericana de Vapores. However, she was chartered to the

White Star Line The White Star Line was a British shipping line. Founded out of the remains of a defunct Packet trade, packet company, it gradually grew to become one of the most prominent shipping companies in the world, providing passenger and cargo service ...

immediately for their South American route, and departed on her maiden voyage on April 27th 1873, from

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

to Valparaiso. She departed on her final White Star voyage on October 27th of the same year, before returning to her original owners. On 5 May 1874 the Chilean government issued a

subvention A subsidy, subvention or government incentive is a type of government expenditure for individuals and households, as well as businesses with the aim of stabilizing the economy. It ensures that individuals and households are viable by having acce ...

program under which Chilean enterprises supplied Navy with materiel, called "Convenio de subvención." At the beginning of the war and under this agreement ''Rímac'' was handed over to the

Chilean Navy The Chilean Navy () is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense (Chile), Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso. History Ori ...

, together with the ships ''Loa'' and ''Itata''. In May 1879 she towed ''Covadonga'' to

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. Once claimed by Bolivia follo ...

after the

Battle of Punta Gruesa 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, which occurred on the same day, although ...

. In June 1879 the Peruvian ironclad captured ''Rímac'' with 260 men of a cavalry regiment, weapons and ammunition. This loss caused riots in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

and led to the resignation of the

Minister of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...

, Basilio Urrutia Vásquez, and the commander-in-chief of the Chilean Navy,

Juan Williams Rebolledo Juan Williams Rebolledo (c. 182524June 1910) was a Chilean rear admiral who was the organizer and commander-in-chief of the Chilean navy in 1879 at the beginning of the War of the Pacific. As a politician, he was elected from Valparaiso to the n ...

.THE WAR BETWEEN CHILI AND PERU, Timaru Herald, Rōrahi XXXI, Putanga 1605, 12 Whiringa-ā-rangi 1879, Page

retrieved on 6 December 2012 After the defeat of the

Peruvian Army The Peruvian Army (, abbreviated EP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with safeguarding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of national territory on land through military force. Additional missions include assistance in s ...

in the battles of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

and Miraflores, the Secretary of the Navy, Captain Manuel Villar, during the night of 16 January 1881 ordered the destruction of the port defenses and the remaining ships of the

Peruvian Navy The Peruvian Navy (, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Military of Peru, Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Additional missions include ...

, including ''Rímac'', to prevent their (re-)capture by the Chilean troops. The order was executed by the captains Luis Germán Astete and Manuel Villavicencio during the dawn of 17 January 1881. But a few months later, in June 1881 she was refloated and auctioned off to CSAV (again) for $36,000. During the

in Colombia, ''Rímac'', then renamed ''Lautaro'', was lent to the Conservative Party; she was sunk off

Panama City Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...

on 20 January 1902, fighting against ''Admiral Padilla'' of the Liberal Party.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rimac (1872) Auxiliary ships of the Chilean Navy Auxiliary ships of the Peruvian Navy Ships of the War of the Pacific Shipwrecks of the War of the Pacific Scuttled vessels of Peru Maritime incidents in January 1881 Maritime incidents in 1902 1872 ships Ships built on the River Mersey Shipwrecks in the Gulf of Panama

See also

References