Marcelino Gutiérrez Chávez ( – ) was a Peruvian

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

who had a minor role in the

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

headed by his brother Tomás Gutiérrez against then president

José Balta José Balta y Montero (25 April 1814 – 26 July 1872) was a Peruvian soldier and politician who served as the 19th President of Peru from 1868 to 1872. He was the son of John Balta Bru and Agustina Montero Casafranca. In 1865, he aided Ma ...

on 22 July 1872, being the only one of his brothers to survive the riots caused in the aftermath of Balta's murder on 26 July.

Early life

Gutiérrez was born in Huancarqui to a family of Spanish descent in 1829, the son of parents Luis Gutiérrez and Julia Chávez. In 1849, he enlisted, along with his three brothers in 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 ...

, with Tomás distinguishing himself above the others. He was described by historian

Jorge Basadre Jorge Alfredo Basadre Grohmann (12 February 1903 – 29 June 1980) was a Peruvian historian known for his extensive publications about the independent history of his country. He served during two different administrations as Minister of Educati ...

as having a gentle character. Marcelino Gutiérrez married Mercedes Vargas in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

's San Marcelo Church on 8 November 1869. Vargas was from

Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara language, Aymara and ), also known by its nicknames of ''Ciudad Blanca'' (Spanish for "White City") and ''León del Sur'' (Spanish for "South's Lion"), is a city in Peru and the capital of the eponymous Arequipa (province), ...

, the legitimate daughter of Manuel Vargas and Andrea Rojas Zúñiga. His brother Tomás sponsored the ceremony. He had five children with her, all born in Arequipa: Rosa Mercedes (1869), María Mercedes Hortensia (1877), María Natalia (1882), Leonor Angélica (1887) and Carmela Emperatriz Emiliana (1890). He was also the father of María Eliselda Eduarda, baptized on 28 October 1866, in the same church, whose mother was Josefa Revolledo.

Military career

Gutiérrez was first promoted to

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

in 1851, becoming

second sergeant Second sergeant is typically a non-commissioned officer rank, used in many countries. Singapore Second Sergeant is a Specialist (Singapore), specialist rank in the Singapore Armed Forces. Second sergeants are rank above Third sergeant, third ser ...

in August and

first sergeant First sergeant is typically a senior non-commissioned officer rank, used in many countries. Singapore First sergeant is a Specialist (Singapore), specialist in the Singapore Armed Forces. First sergeants are the most senior of the junior spe ...

in November of the same year. He was promoted to

junior lieutenant Junior lieutenant is a junior officer rank in several countries, comparable to Sub-lieutenant. Germany In East Germany's National People's Army, the rank of () was introduced in 1956 and used until German reunification in 1990. Eastern Europe ...

in 1854, and retired from

active duty Active duty, in contrast to reserve duty, is a full-time occupation as part of a military force. Indian The Indian Armed Forces are considered to be one of the largest active service forces in the world, with almost 1.42 million Active Standin ...

in 1855, rejoining in 1856. On 11 January 1858, he received his

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

's office, climbing ranks in the military hierarchy since then: in 1858 he was a graduated captain, in 1862 an effective captain, in 1862 graduated major, effective major in 1865, graduated lieutenant colonel in 1865, in 1867 an effective lieutenant colonel and in 1868 a graduated

. He served under Torrico, Echenique,

Castilla Castile, Castille or Castilla may refer to: Places Spain *Castile (historical region), a vaguely defined historical region of Spain covering most of Castile and León, all of the Community of Madrid and most of Castilla–La Mancha *Kingdom of ...

and Balta. Gutiérrez, who was in command of Battalion "Ayacucho" No. 4 (formerly Column "Paucarpata" No. 2), stationed at Santa Catalina barracks, had a very minor role in the coup d'état headed by his three brothers. Initially given refuge by a friendly family, he attempted to flee to the port of

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists ...

, but was later imprisoned and put on trial. Through an amnesty law he was released eight months later. Gutiérrez participated in the defence of Arequipa during 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 ...

. In 1880, he was ordered by

Nicolás de Piérola José Nicolás Baltasar Fernández de Piérola y Villena (known as "''El Califa''" ("The Caliph"); January 5, 1839 – June 23, 1913) was a Peruvian politician and Minister of Finance of Peru, Minister of Finance who served as the 23rd (1879 ...

to organise the Battalion "Peruvian Legion" (''Legión Peruana''), whose command he assumed until July, which formed part of the Vanguard Division headed by . Despite having the authorisation to march towards

Tacna Tacna, officially known as San Pedro de Tacna, is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland f ...

to assist the army stationed there, the division reached

Moquegua Moquegua (, founded by the Spanish colonists as Villa de Santa Catalina de Guadalcázar del Valle de Moquegua) is a city in southern Peru, located in the Department of Moquegua, of which it is the capital. It is also capital of Mariscal Nieto Prov ...

and returned to Arequipa.

Death

Gutiérrez later moved to Arequipa, where he died of

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

in 1904.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gutierrez, Marcelino 1829 births 1904 deaths People from Castilla province Peruvian people of Spanish descent Peruvian people of Galician descent Peruvian military personnel of the War of the Pacific

Early life

Military career

Death

See also

References

Bibliography