Battle of Callao The Battle of Callao ( in Spanish , called " Combate del Dos de Mayo " mainly in South America ) occurred on May 2 , 1866 between a Spanish fleet under the command of Admiral Casto Méndez Núñez and the fortified battery emplacements of the Peruvian port city of Callao during the Chincha Islands War . The Spanish fleet bombarded the port of Callao ( or El Callao ) , and eventually withdrew without any notable damage to the city structures , according to the Peruvian and American sources ; or after having silenced almost all the guns of the coastal defenses , according to the Spanish accounts and French observers . Background . President Juan Antonio Pezet assumed the presidency of Peru in April 1863 , at a time when Spain was making efforts to recover some prestige by recovering ( or humiliating ) its lost colonies in America . Spain began its campaign by seizing the Chincha Islands , which were rich in guano , and demanding indemnity as recompense for the murder of two Spanish citizens in Lambayeque . Vacillating , President Pezet began removing vast quantities of Peru ' s guano deposits to give to Spain when Spanish ships threatened Callao and the neighboring coastline . Pezet believed that Peru ’ s naval forces were much too weak to challenge the Spanish fleet . In November 1865 , at a moment of nationalism , Colonel Mariano Ignacio Prado seized power from Pezet after a coup , and organized an effective defense against Spanish aggression that culminated with the Battle of Callao . After the indecisive Battle of Abtao in February 1866 , Méndez Núñez decided to take punitive action against South American ports , his first target being the undefended Chilean port of Valparaíso . The neutral British and American naval commanders in Chilean waters were unable to prevent this action , and the Spanish bombarded the town and destroyed the Chilean merchant fleet . Méndez Núñez continued afterward for Spain by attacking a strong port and went with his fleet towards the well - defended Peruvian port of Callao . The battle , starting on May 2 , was characterized by arduous , long - range combat with ironclads utilized by both sides . Observing the combat were American , British and French ships . Battle . The Spaniards arrived at Callao , on April 25 , with 7 warships and 7 auxiliary ships carrying 252 guns , most of them ( 126 pieces ) 68 - pounder cannons . The Spanish ships included the ironclad " Numancia " and the steam frigates " Reina Blanca " , " Resolución " , " Berenguela " , " Villa de Madrid " , " Almansa " and the corvette " Vencedora " . A V - Shaped formation characterized the Spanish fleet , with the smaller ships on the back . Essentially , this was the most formidable fleet that had assembled up to that point in the waters of the American Pacific Ocean . Prior to the battle , Peruvian president Mariano Ignacio Prado rallied and mobilized the military and the townspeople against Spain . The strong forts and batteries of the stronghold at Callao , which had once repelled Sir Francis Drake and John Hawkins , were reinforced with 5 heavy British - made 22 - ton Blakely guns . Moreover , four Armstrong gun s were placed in two armoured turrets , " Junín " and " La Merced " , both protected with a 10 cm thick iron belt . The Armstrong and the Blakely guns were the most potent cannons of the time , and they were a national pride for Peru . In total , the Peruvians had 52 guns and 13 additional guns mounted on the warships " Colon " , " Tumbes " , and " Sachaca " . Also , Peru had two locally built ironclads : The Confederate - style casemated ram ironclad " Loa " and the monitor " Victoria " , as well as infantry and cavalry . The Spanish fleet , forming a V - shaped line of attack , enter into the bay at 10 : 00 hours , and formed two lines of battle : In the north , the ironclad " Numancia " and the frigates " Almansa " y " Resolución " , while the frigates " Villa de Madrid " , " Berenguela " and " Reina Blanca " moved south . The rest of the fleet , including the corvette " Vencedora , " remained back near the island of San Lorenzo . The " Numancia " , one of the largest ships to have ever existed at the time , went forward in order to begin the attack . At 11 : 50 hours , the ironclad " Numancia " opened fire on the defenses . The Peruvian fort " Santa Rosa " fired back soon after . No shot hit the Spanish warships , so the guns had to be recalibrated ; a loss of time that could have been avoided if the Peruvian artillery had begun firing over the Spanish ships while they were taking up positions . When the batteries resumed their fire , a shot hit the " Numancia " injuring the Spanish Admiral Méndez Nuñez . The ship , however , suffered no damage thanks to its armor . The " Cañón del Pueblo " , a 500 - pound Blakely gun , became unusable as the heavy recoil made it derail . The Spanish frigate " Villa de Madrid " , meantime , was hit by a Blakely 450 - pound projectile , which inflicted 35 casualties and destroyed her boilers . The ship had to be towed out of the battle by the corvette " Vencedora " , while she fired over 200 shots on the Peruvian forts during the maneuver . The " Berenguela " , pierced side - to - side at the waterline by an Armstrong 300 - pound projectile , was also forced to retreat . She had silenced all the Armstrong guns from the " Junín " armoured turret . Also , the frigate " Almansa " was hit by another shot at 14 : 30 , resulting in the deaths of 13 crewman and causing an explosion of her powder room , thus forcing her to retreat . Half an hour later , having made the necessary repairs , she returned to her position and resumed the action against the Peruvians . By this time , there was heavy fire from both sides . A Spanish shot from the " Blanca " hit the armored turret " La Merced " , destroying it and killing or injuring 93 men , including Peruvian Secretary of Defense José Gálvez and colonels Cornelio Borda and Enrique Montes . " Chacabuco " battery was also affected , losing several cannons and a great number of its volunteer crew , as well as " Santa Rosa " and " Pinchicha " forts . In the first one was wounded Ship ' s captain Muñón , and the second one lost 2 cannons . In adittion , " Maipú " and " Independencia " batteries had been completely silenced . The Peruvian sustained then heavy casualties , as many of the 3 , 000 infantry and cavalry troops present during the battle had been entrenched outside the forts to prevent an alleged Spanish attempt of landing , suffering the gunfire of the " Numancia " , the " Almansa " , the " Resolución " and the " Vencedora " . At 16 : 00 , having been repelled the small Peruvian fleet under Lizardo Montero , which approached the Spanish twice , only 12 or 14 of Santa Rosa fort guns responded yet to the Spanish fire . One of their shots hit the " Blanca " , killing 8 men and injuring Captain Topete . At 17 : 00 , nevertheless , " Santa Rosa ' s " guns had reduced to three . The badly wounded Admiral Méndez Núñez ordered then to his fleet suspend the fire . The Spanish crews climbed to the rigging of their ships and shouted " " Long live the queen " " . The battle was finished . Aftermath . On the Spanish side the bombardment was seen as a victory . According to Admiral Méndez Nuñez ' s version , almost all of the coastal batteries were silenced during the engagement and only three guns of Santa Rosa ’ s fort continued firing when the Spanish fleet decided to retreat . He also reported that those last shots were fired without ammunition . This was confirmed by the Captain of the French corvette " Venus " , who was present during the battle . Shortly after , a French newspaper published the following new : On early June the news of the victory were celebrated in Spain with great festivities , whose benefits went to the widows and orphans of those who were killed in combat . Méndez Núñez was awarded with the Grand Cross of the Royal and Distinguished Order of Carlos III and was promoted to Lieutenant General . The commanding officers of the ships involved on the combat were also promoted and their crews received double pay . In honor to them , on 20 July 1866 , before the Battle of Lissa , the Austrian Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff harangued his crews shouting " “ Let ' s imitate the Spanish at Callao ! ” " On the other hand , the Peruvians celebrated the battle as a victory , claiming that they had stopped the Spanish from trying to re - colonize South America . That was an exaggerated idea , for even though the attack might have simply been a way for Spain to regain some prestige , the Spanish invasion of the Chincha Islands and attempts to meddle with other South American countries seem to show a Spanish intention of regaining South America . In a private letter dated on May 3 , 1866 ; an American eyewitness , T . H . Nelson , wrote : " " The damages caused to Callao are barely noticeable . The [ Peruvian ] batteries occupied the [ Spanish ] squad so much that there was no time to bombard the city . " In fact , after the battle , the hyped up and surprising situation was so big that American and British troops witnessing the battle joined the cheers of " Viva el Perú ! " " A couple of months later , the famed ships of the War of the Pacific , " Huascar " and " Independencia " , were added to the Peruvian fleet . While the war still remained without a peace settlement , the Peruvians contemplated the idea of invading the Philippines to ward off the Spanish ships that were in the area . The nation hired Commodore John Randolph Tucker , who had outshone himself in the American Civil War fighting for the Confederate States of America . Nonetheless , various Peruvian officers felt insulted at such a decision since they felt that they had shown they were just as capable as any other officers to lead and win a naval battle . At the end , the idea was abandoned , but Tucker found another important job in the Peruvian Amazon . This event , along with the fear of a Spanish attack from the Atlantic due the presence in South American waters of the Spanish frigates " Blanca " , " Resolución " , " Villa de Madrid " , " Almansa " , " Concepción " and " Navas de Tolosa " along with the capture on August 22 of the unassigned Chilean corvette " Tornado " by the Spanish frigate " Gerona " prevented the expedition against the Philippines . The Spanish expedition in the Pacific officially ended in 1868 , but the peace was not signed until 1879 .