Chincha Islands War The Chincha Islands War ( , the name changing depending on the nationality of the author ) was a series of coastal and naval battles between Spain and its former colonies of Peru and Chile from 1864 to 1866 . The conflict began with Spain ' s seizure of the guano - rich Chincha Islands in one of a series of attempts by Spain , under Isabella II , to reassert its influence over its former South American colonies . The war saw the use of ironclads , including the Spanish ship " Numancia " , the first ironclad to circumnavigate the world . Background . Military expenditure greatly increased during Isabella ' s reign , and as a consequence , Spain rose to a position as the world ' s fourth naval power . Spain engaged in colonial adventures in the 1850s and 1860s in regions as disparate as Morocco , Indochina , Mexico , and the Dominican Republic ( which it briefly reoccupied ) . At the end of 1862 , Spain sent a scientific expedition to South American waters , with the covert purpose of reinforcing the financial and legal claims of Spanish citizens residing in the Americas . The expedition was under the command of Admiral Luis Hernández Pinzón – a direct descendant of the Pinzón brothers who had accompanied Christopher Columbus on his voyage that resulted in the modern European discovery of America . Pinzón ' s squadron was composed of three warships : the twin steam frigates " Triunfo " and " Resolución " and the schooner " Virgen de Covadonga " . The Spanish ships arrived at the port of Valparaiso , Chile on April 18 , 1863 . Spain had recognized Chilean independence since the 1840s , and the nations had maintained diplomatic relations . The expedition was cordially received , and the Admiral exchanged visits with local authorities . The vessels left Chile in July amicably and moved on to Peru . Even though Spain had never recognized Peruvian independence ( declared in 1821 ) , the squadron received a friendly welcome at the port of Callao . They stayed in port for a few weeks and then sailed , bound for San Francisco , California . Talambó incident . On August 4 , 1863 , an incident took place at the Talambó hacienda , in Lambayeque , Peru . The details are fragmentary ; however , the episode involved a fight that broke out between two Spaniard residents and 40 local citizens . As a result , one Spaniard died and four others were injured . When news of the incident reached Admiral Pinzón , he returned with his fleet to Peru on November 13 and demanded that the government issue an apology and reparations be made to the affected Spanish nationals . In response , the Peruvians took the position that the episode was an internal police matter better handled by the Peruvian justice system and that no apology was due . At this juncture , the Spanish government in Madrid decided to also demand payment of Peruvian debts stemming from the War of Independence , and it sent deputy Eusebio de Salazar y Mazaredo to settle the issue directly with the Peruvian authorities . Salazar arrived in March 1864 , bearing the title of Royal Commissary . This was a deliberate insult to the government of Peru , because a Commissary is a colonial functionary , rather than an ambassador ( the normal level of diplomatic contact during consultations between independent states ) . The snub doomed negotiations with the Peruvian minister of Foreign Affairs , Juan A . Ribeyro , to failure . Chincha islands occupation . On April 14 , 1864 , in retaliation for Peru ' s refusal to pay an indemnity , the Spanish fleet seized the lightly defended Chincha Islands . The islands were the principal source for Peruvian guano resources . The Spanish placed the islands ' Peruvian governor Ramón Valle Riestra under arrest aboard the " Resolución " , occupied the islands with 400 marines , and raised the Spanish flag . Spain considered these islands an important bargaining tool , as they were a major Peruvian economic asset and produced almost 60 % of the government ' s annual revenue . The Spanish squadron also blockaded principal Peruvian ports , disrupting commerce and fostering a high level of resentment throughout Latin America . Spain expected little resistance from Peru , believing its military capabilities to be negligible . A proposal to exchange the islands for British - held Gibraltar was even entertained for a time . During this blockade , the Spanish lost the " Triunfo " after it was destroyed by an accidental fire . The recently named Spanish Prime Minister , Ramón María Narváez disapproved of the unilateral actions taken by Admiral Pinzón and replaced him with Vice Admiral Juan Manuel Pareja , formerly Minister of the Navy . Admiral Pareja had been born in Peru , and his father , Brigadier Antonio Pareja , had died in Chile in 1813 while fighting for Spain during the Chilean War of Independence . Narváez ' s conciliatory opinion soon changed , and he dispatched another four warships to reinforce the Pacific fleet . Admiral Pareja arrived in Peru in December 1864 and immediately opened negotiations with General Manuel Ignacio de Vivanco , the special representative of Peruvian President Juan Antonio Pezet . The Vivanco - Pareja Treaty was signed on January 27 , 1865 on board the frigate " Villa de Madrid " . Peruvian popular opinion considered the treaty as detrimental to Peru ' s national honor . When the Peruvian Congress refused to ratify it , a general uprising followed and the government of General Pezet fell on November 7 . War with Chile . In the meantime , anti - Spanish sentiments in several South American countries ( including Bolivia , Chile and Ecuador ) increased . It was obvious to most observers that Spain had no intention of retaking its former colonies . However , Peru and its neighbors still remained wary of any moves that might foreshadow an attempt to reestablish the Spanish Empire . Given the climate of suspicion , no one was surprised when the Spanish gunboat " Vencedora " stopped at a Chilean port for coal and President José Joaquín Pérez declared that coal was a war supply that could not be sold to a belligerent nation . From the Spanish point of view , the Chilean coaling embargo was taken as proof that Chile no longer was neutral . This was reinforced after two Peruvian steamers left the port of Valparaiso bearing weapons and Chilean volunteers bound for Peru . Vice Admiral José Manuel Pareja consequently took a hard line and demanded sanctions against Chile that were even heavier than those imposed upon Peru . He then detached four wooden ships from his squadron and dispatched them to Chile , while the " Numancia " and the " Covadonga " remained to guard Callao . Admiral Pareja arrived at Valparaiso on September 17 , 1865 aboard his flagship the " Villa de Madrid " . He demanded that the Spanish flag be given a 21 - gun salute . He deliberately presented his demand on the day before Chilean Independence Day ( September 18 ) . Under the circumstances , the Chileans refused , and war was declared a week later on September 24 . The newly named Spanish Prime Minister Leopoldo O ' Donnell ( who had replaced Narvaéz ) ordered Admiral Pareja to withdraw , but the Spanish admiral chose to ignore the direct order . As he had no troops with which to attempt a landing , he decided to impose a blockade of the main Chilean ports . This action was unenforceable , since a blockade of Chile ' s of coastline would have required a fleet several times larger than what Pareja had at his disposal . The blockade of the port of Valparaiso , however , caused such great economic damage to both Chilean and foreign interests , that the navies of the United States and the United Kingdom , which remained neutral , nevertheless issued a formal protest . Naval battle of Papudo . Even before Chile and Peru were formally allied , Spain had suffered a humiliating naval defeat at the Naval Battle of Papudo on November 26 , 1865 . During this engagement , the Chilean corvette " Esmeralda " captured the Spanish schooner " Covadonga " , taking the crew prisoner and seizing the Admiral ' s war correspondence . This humiliation was too much for Admiral Pareja , and he committed suicide two days later aboard his flagship . Following the Admiral ' s death , the general command of the Spanish fleet in the Pacific was assumed by Commodore Casto Méndez Núñez , who quickly received a promotion to rear admiral . War with Peru , Ecuador and Bolivia . On November 7 , 1865 , due to his unwillingness to declare war on Spain and vilification arising from his signing of the Vivanco - Pareja Treaty , Peruvian President Juan Antonio Pezet was forced out of office . He was replaced by his vice president , General Pedro Diez Canseco . General Diez Canseco also tried to avoid war with Spain , and that similarly led to his downfall only 20 days later . On November 26 , General Mariano Ignacio Prado , leader of the nationalist movement , deposed Canseco . The new government immediately declared its solidarity with Chile and its intention to declare war on Spain and to restore Peru ' s national honor . Chile and Peru formally signed an alliance against Spain on December 5 , 1865 . The Peruvian Congress ratified this alliance on January 12 , and two days later ( January 14 , 1866 ) , Peru finally declared war on Spain . Chile ' s navy was weak , almost non - existent . To reinforce its Chilean ally , a Peruvian squadron under the command of Captain Lizardo Montero was immediately dispatched to the south . Among the ships in the squadron were the steam frigates " Amazonas " and " Apurímac " . Ecuador joined the alliance on January 30 , 1866 by declaring war on Spain that same day . Bolivia , under the command of General Mariano Melgarejo , also declared war on March 22 , 1866 . These moves resulted in all the ports on South America ' s Pacific coast becoming closed to the Spanish fleet . Argentina and Brazil refused to join the alliance , as they were embroiled in a war with Paraguay . Naval battle of Abtao . Spain ' s Admiral Mendez Núñez sent two of his most powerful ships south to destroy the combined Chilean - Peruvian fleet . The allied squadron had been placed under the command of Peruvian Captain Manuel Villar and had taken refuge at Abtao , a well protected inlet near the gulf of Chiloé in southern Chile . The Spanish squadron appeared at the entrance of the inlet on February 7 , 1866 , but the Spanish did not enter as they did not want to risk their ironclads running aground in the shallows . A cannonade lasting several hours was exchanged with little effect . In spite of being at anchor , without steam , and with some ships with their engines undergoing overhaul , the Allies mounted an energetic fight . The " Covadonga " , under the command of Lieutenant Manuel Thomson , managed to fire over an island and scored several hits on the frigate " Blanca " . The battle ended indecisively without further developments . Reluctant to enter shallow waters and realizing that a long range gun duel served no purpose but to waste ammunition , the Spanish commanders withdrew . Williams and the " Esmeralda " were not at the anchorage on the day of the battle . The commodore had sailed to Ancud for coaling . On its way back to Valparaiso , the Spanish squadron captured a Chilean steamboat ( the " Paquete del Maule " ) that was transporting sailors to crew the new Peruvian ironclads Huáscar and Independencia . Bombardment of Valparaiso . The Spanish could not attack land forces , and they had been frustrated in attempts to engage the allied squadron at sea . The Spanish ships were isolated , short of supplies and losing hope of victory . When the Chilean government ordered that all vessels communicating with the Spanish fleet should be barred from Chilean ports , Admiral Mendez Núñez decided to take punitive actions against the allied ports . The Spanish fleet shelled and burned the town and port of Valparaiso on March 31 , and destroyed Chile ' s merchant fleet . All told , thirty - three vessels were burned or sunk . The damage to the Chilean merchant marine was catastrophic . Twelve years later , the total tonnage under the Chilean flag was still less than half of what it had been in 1865 . Battle of Callao . Admiral Mendez Núñez , displeased at having to resort to destroying defenseless targets such as Valparaiso and with the inconclusive result at Abtao , decided to change tactics and attack a heavily defended port . As a result , the Admiral set sail for the Peruvian port city of Callao . The Battle of Callao took place on May 2 . After the battle , both sides claimed victory . Peruvian defenders claimed that they had halted the Spanish from regaining their lost authority and prestige in South America , prevented them from enforcing their demands upon Peru and to have forced the withdrawal of the Spanish fleet ( technically correct , since Peruvian cannons fired the last shots in the battle ) . The Spanish claimed to have visited punishment upon its former colony . Spanish guns had managed to cause only limited damage to defenses , and most of the cannons and artillery ( as well as buildings within El Callao itself ) survived the battle intact . Aftermath . Whether the suspicions of a Spanish scheme to recapture its former colonies had any basis in fact is unknown . Many in South America saw Spain ' s meddling in Latin America and its occupation of the Chincha Islands as proof of a long - range Spanish plot to reassert its influence over its previous colonial territories . The force sent by Spain , on the other hand , amounted to a mere squadron of ships with negligible capabilities for landing forces , and the intention may have only been to seize the islands for their valuable fertiliser resources as reparations and to regain some of Spain ' s lost prestige . Regardless of the reason behind the conflict , Spain found it impossible to hold their positions . With all ports south of Colombia closed to them for coaling and provisioning , the Spanish fleet withdrew from patrolling the South American coastline , vacated the Chincha Islands and returned to Spain via the Philippines , completing a circumnavigation of the globe in order to do so . Order of battle . Spain . General Commanders Steam - schooners Steamboats Sail transports Peru . General Commanders Screw - frigates Steam - schooners Steamboats Ironclad monitors Chile . General Commanders corvette Steam - schooners Transports vapors