 Chapter 25 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre, translated by William Pilling. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain, recording by Piotr Natter. Chapter 25, Peru, 1820. Peru was the first of the American colonies in which, at the era of the conquest, the spirit of rebellion against the mother country broke out. During the colonial epoch the mixed races frequently rebelled against their Spanish masters, at the end of the 18th century, Tupac Amaru, who came of the old, royal race of the Incas, made an attempt to restore the kingdom of his forefathers. But these insurrections had no root in the soil. They were but the convulsive efforts of a conquered race reduced to slavery. When they were quelled, the country remained at peace for many long years. Peru, like one of the tracts of the perennial calm upon the ocean, felt nothing of the currents which ebbed and flowed around her. She was isolated from the world. The movements which convulsed America in 1809 and 1810 were hardly felt there. The instinct of nationality, which is the germ of independence, was not entirely wanting. But there was no cohesion among the masses of the people, whose inertness presented a dead weight against the progress of the revolutionary idea. Peru was at the conquest truly an imperial colony, embracing all the Spanish possessions in South America, from Cape Horn to the equator. The word Peru became synonymous with wealth. After the creation of device royalties of New Grenada and La Plata, that of Peru still stretched over a vast area extending 25 degrees south of the equator and from the Pacific to the frontiers of Brazil, while its central position gave it a paramount influence over all its neighbors. Lima was the capital of this imperial colony. This city stands not far from the sea in a beautiful valley at the foot of the western Cordillera, where rain never falls and where the thunder is heard to roll and the lightning is seen to flash but once a century. A transparent veil of clouds tempers the fiery rains of the sun, while the moist southern breeze imparts a softness to the atmosphere which has its reflex in the temperament of the people. Lima rivaled Mexico in wealth and was the seat of a vice regal court with its privileges, its pumps, and its innervating vices. It was also surrounded with walls and kayak with its castles and batteries was but the port of the great city. She had also an official church, a corrupt clergy and an inquisition, but the only one which had burned heretics in America. Three-fifths of her population, like that of the ancient Rome, was composed of slaves, freedmen, and tributary Indians with a passion for bullfights they had learned from the Spaniards and for chicha, which they inherited from the Incas. Translators note, an intoxicating drink made from maize. End of note. Her women were celebrated for beauty and grace and she was the natal city of the patron saint of America, Santa Rosa de Lima, among whose relics are shown the dice with which she played with her divine spouse. Situated in the tropic of Capricorn, Peru has every climate known in the world, ranging from the torrid zone at the sea level to the eternal snow of her Cordillera. The creoles of Peru were by nature intelligent and cultivated science and the arts. The Mercurio Peruano, published in the 18th century, was the first periodical printed in South America. The University of Lima was as famous in America as that of Salamanca in Spain. The skill of her physicians was renowned all over the continent. Peru was also the center of the royalist reaction. For ten years she had held the revolution in check. Thus it was when the emancipating armies from the north and from the south closed in upon her in the year 1820. She was the cartridge of San Martín. At the outbreak of the revolution, Peru proper had a population of about a million and a half and Upper Peru had nearly half a million. Of these the indigenous races formed about half, mixed races a fifth, Negro slaves about 50,000 and Spaniards hardly a seventh, the remainder being creoles, the descendants of Europeans born in America. The north and the south were two separate countries which looked with jealousy one on the other even for many years after they became one nation. The highlands of the interior and the lowlands of the coast were also two entirely different regions. The inhabitants of the lowlands were innervated by the climate but the mixed races which inhabited the hills were very athletic and made excellent infantry. Spaniards and creoles dwelt in cities on the coast or infertile valleys among the mountains. The indigenous races who were serfs were almost entirely confined to the hills. The mixed races and free Negroes formed the working classes of the cities. The farms were cultivated by African slaves. The Peruvians were thus a people who had no cohesion among them and were easily dominated by the powerful military clique which ruled the colony while their passive inertness was a formidable barrier to the spread of revolutionary ideas among them. In 1810 General Abascal was viceroy of Peru. He was already old but was possessed of great talents both political and military. He was one in whom prudence was blended with decision and with perseverance. The flames of insurrection blazed around him but he showed a bold front to the storm and made Peru the citadel of the colonial power. If it had been possible to conquer the revolution he would have conquered it as it was he greatly retarded his progress. To counteract the contagion of the revolutionary spirit he inspired the Peruvians with a spirit of devoted loyalty to the mother country and to her exiled king. On the basis of the few Spanish troops he had with him he raised a native army recruited in the highlands and officered by Peruvians. Their own generals led them to victory till the struggle from being a revolt against the domination of Spain assumed the aspect of a civil war in which Americans fought against Americans in defense of American ideas. Thus Abascal quelled the rebellion in Quito stemmed the tide of Argentine invasion and reconquered Chile. He was then reinforced by troops from Spain led by generals who had proved their skill in the war of the peninsula. The revolution was crushed wherever it had broken out save only in the upper provinces and in a part of Venezuela. In 1817 the passage of the Andes by San Martin put a stop to his success. Chacabuco and Maipo turned the tide of victory against him and the royalist reaction was shut up in the highlands of Peru when the principle of loyalty to the flag of Spain had taken deep root in the hearts of the people. Meantime Abascal had retired from the scene full of years and of glory and left Pethuela, the hero of Upper Peru as viceroy in his place. In 1816 General José de la Serna had arrived from Spain with reinforcements and with a commission as general in chief of the armies of Upper Peru. He was an experienced soldier but was characterized by a moderation which made him at times irresolute. In politics he professed liberal principles and even acquired a great ascendancy over the army introducing a new influence which later on had very important effects. Although Peru was the center of the royalist reaction nevertheless the American sentiment of independence was still latent within her but the want of cohesion among the various races which formed her people rendered her helpless to work out her own destiny. All nations have passed through these periods of importance and the new Granada under much better conditions would never have redeemed themselves without Argentine and Colombian intervention. The revolutionary movements of the year 1809 found an echo in Lima and a young lawyer named Mateo Silva fell a victim to his patriotic ardor dying in the casemates of Callao after six years of imprisonment. In 1810 another conspiracy was discovered and was also crushed but the progress of liberal opinion in Spain had its effects in Peru. From the mother country came liberty of the press in 1811 and in 1812 the establishment of Cabildos was decreed by the Regency of Spain when Peruvians for the first time made use of the right of election. But when the Spanish constitution fell in 1814 liberty of speech fell with it in the capital of Peru. In 1811, 1812 and 1813 various insurrectionary movements fomented by Argentine emissaries broke out in Upper Peru but were promptly crushed with great severity. In 1814 a much more formidable insurrection broke out in Cusco the ancient capital of the Incas in which the clergy took a prominent part. In August a junta was formed under the auspices of the Cabildos General Pumacawa, a pure Indian being named President and Jose Angulo, Captain General. The new government erected two gibets in the principal square as a sign of their authority devised a flag, raised an army, cast small cannon and dispatched emissaries to enter into alliance with the Argentine provinces. Their first operations were crowned with success. Arequipa fell into their hands and in expedition to the east captured the city of La Paz but their hordes of half-naked Indians armed with pikes and slings were totally routed in two battles with great slaughter by troops from Lima supported by militia. General Ramirez being detached from the army of operations in Salta with 1200 men and four guns speedily retook La Paz and Arequipa and in March 1815 marched against the insurgents under Pumacawa 20,000 strong with 32 guns cut them to pieces and put an end to the insurrection. The head of Pumacawa was stuck on a post in the great square of Cusco Angulo and other leaders were shot. From that time the Patriots of Peru thought no more of achieving liberty by their own efforts but they continued their propaganda among the people by means of secret societies which had their headquarters in Lima. In 1817 these societies opened communications with San Martin who responded to their overtures by sending Torres on a special mission to Lima as is recorded in Chapter 17. Torres in his secret interview received very valuable information from the Patriot leaders concerning the plans of the viceroy and the forces at his disposal and concerted with them the means of regular communication. The subsequent appearance of the Chilean squadron on the coast and the proclamations of Ahiggins, San Martin and Cochrane greatly raised their hopes and information furnished by them was of great service to the admiral in his operations. He was accompanied by Alvarez Honte who acted as intermediary between him and the Patriots of Peru and was the bearer of special instructions to them from San Martin who directed them to make no insurrectionary movements until he was in a position to support them when local outbreaks might be of service in distracting the attention of the enemy. San Martin also sent off to Peru three young officers of his who were Peruvians by birth one of whom betrayed his trust and caused the arrest of several of the Patriots but the other two fulfilled their mission with great skill so that even in the army the revolutionary spirit made great progress. Colonel Gamarra who was in command of troops drawn from Upper Peru was discovered by a secret correspondence with Belgrano but the viceroy dared not prosecute him from fear of arousing a mutiny among his men. Pethuela was fully alive to the dangers of his position and wrote earnestly to Spain for support. At the same time he instructed his successor in command of the army of Upper Peru to advance into Argentine territory. La Serna was driven back by Martin Guémez and his cauchos but in this campaign saw such evidence of the superior quality of his troops that he thought it necessary to took precautions against possible disloyalty among them. He accordingly put an end to their independent organization and drafted them into his Spanish regiments. A measure which was eventually productive of great evil to the royalist cause. The American officers were all stone royalists but the Spanish officers were more or less infected with the new ideas. Thus the morale of the army of Upper Peru became greatly deteriorated. A part of it was soon after withdrawn to Lower Peru to reinforce the army there in preparation for meeting the threatened invasion from Chile upon which La Serna alleging that he had held his commission direct from the king and had the right to dispose of his troops as he chose threw up his command. Olanieta, a Peruvian and an ardent royalist was appointed to succeed him and La Serna retired to Lima. The royalist army was at this time led by many distinguished officers, among them being Camba, the historian and Valdeth who was held by Americans to be the most skillful and the most noble of their adversaries. The army which held Lima was more than 8000 strong, that of Upper Peru was more than 7000. The total force including the touched garrisons consisted of 23000 men against whom San Martín matched himself with 4000 men in the last struggle for the independence of America. End of Chapter 25 Chapter 26 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre translated by William Pilling. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Piotr Natter Chapter 26 the Expedition to Peru, 1820 From Valparaiso on the 22nd of July 1820 when on the eve of sailing on his daring enterprise San Martín addressed a proclamation to his fellow countrymen in justification of his refusal to enter into their civil discourse, showing how the intervention of his army could only have added to their miseries, prophesizing that when tired of anarchy they would seek refuge in oppression and concluding Whatever be my lot in the campaign of Peru, I shall prove that ever since I returned to my native land her independence had occupied my every thought and that I have never had other ambition than to merit the hatred of the ungrateful and the esteem of the virtues. Later on he wrote to the Cabildo of Buenos Aires announcing the departure of the expedition and declaring that from the moment a central authority is established the army of the Andes will hold itself subject to its orders. The expedition took the name of Deliberating Army of Peru. It consisted of six battalions of infantry and two regiments of cavalry in all 4,430 officers and men of which more than half belonged to the army of the Andes with 31 guns, two fighters and two mortars and also spare arms and equipment for 15,000 men. General Las Eras was chief of the staff having with him Arenales and Luturiaga. Guido also went with his friend the general in chief as aid the camp with the rank of Colmille. The squadron consisted of eight ships of war mounting 247 guns victualed for six months and carrying 1600 seamen and mariners of whom 600 were foreigners, chiefly English, also of 16 transports with four months provisions for the troops and 11 gunboats. The military chest contained 180,392 dollars in coin and in letters of credits. On the 20th of August the expedition sailed from Valparaiso, Cochrane leading the way in the Ohiggins San Martin and his staff bringing up the rare in the San Martin. The Chilean congress had drawn up most implicit instructions for San Martin for the regulation of his policy in establishing an independent government of Peru. Ohiggins had issued a proclamation to the Peruvian people telling them that the object of the expedition was simply to liberate them from Spanish domination and that they should be perfectly free to adopt any form of government they thought best. He knew also that in the face of a foe greatly superior in strength no general could afford to tie himself down to one fixed line of conduct. He therefore never delivered these instructions to San Martin, but left him perfectly free to carry out his own plan as he might deem it best. To Cochrane his instructions were very explicit absolute obedience in everything to the orders of the commander in chief. San Martin had thought of landing in the south of Peru and affecting a junction with Belgrano. Recent events rendered this impossible. His object now was to avoid coming into contact with the royalist forces and to prevent their concentration while he won over the people to act in concert with him and arranged a combined plan of action with Bolivar who was now master of new Granada. With these ends in view he affected a landing at Pisco, after a pleasant voyage of 18 days, with the idea of drawing the attention of the enemy to the south and away from the real base of his operations which he proposed establishing in the northernmost province of Trujillo. Cochrane tried in vain to persuade him to land near to Callao and march at once upon Lima. The beach of Pisco is a long stretch of sand, lying at the foot of the Cordillera, about 160 miles south of Lima. In it the sea has cut out the bay of Paracas, 7 miles to the north of which stands the town of Pisco, close to fertile valleys running up between spurs from the great mountain range. The first division under Las Elas disembarked in the bay on the 8th of September and the same evening occupied the town without resistance. On the 13th the whole army was on shore and encamped in the valley of Chincha while scouting parties scoured the country. The viceroy had scattered his forces all along the coast from Guayaquil to Areca at the touchment of 500 infantry 100 horse and two guns under Colonel Quimper was stationed at Pisco but fled precipitately when the squadron anchored in the bay. On landing San Martin issued a proclamation Quote Remember that you are calm not to conquer but to liberate the people the Peruvians are our brothers He denounced the most severe penalties on any found plundering or maltreating the inhabitants and also issued a proclamation to the Peruvians telling them that the new constitution established in Spain had in no way changed her colonial system. Quote The invaders drew plentiful supplies from the surrounding country mounted their cavalry and recruited their infantry with 600 slaves giving freedom to all who would join their ranks. Pethuela very much against his will but in obedience to orders received from the home government was at the start of the war of the Peruvians the home government was at this time preparing for the public swearing of the new constitution when on the 11th of September he received news of the landing at Pisco. He at once sent a squadron of militia to reinforce Quimper and stationed Col Nelcamba with 2000 horse on the high road from Lima to Pisco and in accordance with his instructions proposed peace to San Martin on condition that Chile should send representatives to the Spanish Cortés to arrange their differences. Similar proposals he also sent off to the United Provinces by this measure he recognized Chile and the United Provinces as belligerent powers but without directly acknowledging their independence. San Martin appointed Guido and García Lederillo commissioners to treat with those of the Viceroy who were the Count Villar de Fuente and Captain late commander of the María Isabel. These commissioners met at the town of Miraflores 7 miles from Lima and at once arranged an armistice. The Chilean commissioners declined to accept the Spanish constitution and rejected the proposal to send Chilean deputies to the Cortés on which the royalist commissioners proposed that the invading army should return to Chile and that everything should remain in status quo whilst Chilean representatives went to Spain and there arranged matters with the home government. The others acceded to the proposition that Chile should send representatives to Spain but proposed that the army should occupy the provinces of Potosí, Cochabamba, Chiquisaca and La Paz, considered to be the Argentine section of Upper Peru. That the Spanish garrison of Chiloé should be included in the armistice and that in case Bolívar should conclude a similar armistice with Morillo, the viceroy of Peru should not reinforce the garrison of Quito. Neither party would consent to any modification of the terms proposed by them so that conference came to an end on the 1st of October. In a private interview with the viceroy the Chilean commissioners had insisted upon the independence of Peru as a preliminary step to any arrangement but had expressed their willingness to accept a prince of the royal house of Spain as monarch of Spanish America. The viceroy and his commissioners threw the blame of the rapture of the negotiations upon San Martin which accusation he answered in a dignified address to the Peruvian people. The armistice came to an end on the 5th of October and on the same day Alenales left the encampment in the valley of Chincha at the head of a strong detachment of the Patriot army for the Highlands, while San Martin masked the movement by manoeuvring the rest of his army on the road to Lima. On the 24th of October San Martin issued a decree establishing the flag and the escuchillon of the new Republic of Peru the flag white and scarlet the escuchillon a sun rising over mountains with a trunk we'll see at their feet. On the following day he re-embarked his army and sailed off for the north apparently leaving Alenales behind him but in reality going off to meet him. Cochrane in his memoirs severely criticizes the disembarkation and delay at Pisco but Camba, who was better able to judge speaks of this measure as the first step in the destruction of the military power of Peru. The same opinion was expressed by Pethuela in his report to government. Cochrane seems to have been anxious to conquer the country. The object of San Martin was to revolutionize it by winning the confidence of the Peruvian people and so securing their concurrence in founding a republic of their own which concurrence as yet only a minority of them was prepared to give. End of chapter 26 Chapter 27 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre translated by William Pilling recording is in the public domain recording by Pieternatter Chapter 27, the opening of the campaign 1820 to 1821 The generalissima of the Liberating Army of Peru had two campaigns before him one military, of which he carried the plants in his own head the other political, the secret ramifications of which were in his own hands The first described a circle one half of which was drawn along the coast by the kills of Cochrane ships, the other half was drawn through the highlands of Peru by the feet of the flying column under Arenales these two halves separated at Pisco to reunite in the north enclosing Lima between them The second was more complicated the idea was to raise into activity the moral force of public opinion staring up a spirit of insurrection among the Peruvian people without the aid of which his military force was inadequate to the task before him From Pisco he floated the country of proclamations and organized secret agencies in Lima and throughout the interior On the 29th of October the squadron sighted the island of San Lorenzo and passing it entered the Bay of Cayao sailing in regular order beyond the range of the batteries a glorious pageant The ships of war came first with their crews at quarters and the guns ran out They came the long line of transports their decks crowded with troops in all the varied uniforms of the liberating army including those of the division left behind under Arenales The walls of the city and the hides behind were crowded with spectators One of these spectators who had described the scene says the liberating expedition and the capital of Peru were on mutual exhibition A part of the squadron remained to blockade Cayao The rest with the transports sailed on to the Bay of Ancon 22 miles to the north of Lima 200 infantry and 40 of the Grenadiers under Captain Bransum landed under command of Major Reyes a Peruvian with the object of occupying the village of Chiang Kai and collecting horses and provisions The royalist army encamped it as Napuccio 6 miles from Lima sent against them a column of 600 men on Alvaldez upon which Reyes retired Bransum who brought up the rare with his 40 horsemen turned upon the enemy as they passed a narrow defile and charged with such impetuosity that he drove their cavalry back in confusion upon the infantry and gained time for Reyes to make good his retreat with all the cattle he had collected Meantime two important events had occurred Guayaquil had pronounced in favor of the revolution had cut out the frigate Esmeralda from under the guns of Cayao The province of Guayaquil once a dependency of Peru now formed part of the Vice Royalty of New Granada being attached to the district governed by Captain General of Quito but from the exigencies of the moment was for a time under the rule of the Vice Royal of Peru The port of Guayaquil was the arsenal of Spain on the Pacific and Cayao being blockaded was now the last refuge of the navy by Cochrane and was garrisoned by a strong battalion of Spanish infantry Quito had remained quiet since the outbreak of 1809 but the advance of Bolivar on the north the invasion of Peru by San Martín and the victories of Cochrane on the Pacific aroused a dangerous excitement among the people On the 9th of October a part of the garrison of Guayaquil rose in arms and was supported by the people The province joined the movement both independent, appointed a junta and placed itself under the protection of San Martín and Bolivar Melchior Aimeric, an experienced officer was at this time Captain General of Quito and had 5000 men under his command exclusive of the garrison of Guayaquil The active spirit of Cochrane found nothing more to do upon the ocean The Spanish fleet was reduced to three frigates the Prueba, the Venganza and the Desmeralda The two first after bringing from the southern ports a division of the army of Aperperu had taken refuge at Guayaquil Cochrane boldly determined to capture the other frigate by cutting her and some smaller vessels out from under the fire of the 250 guns mounted on the batteries of Kayao A feat which would increase his renown and might induce San Martín to adopt more active operations against Lima for the admiral had no sympathy for his delatory proceedings He informed San Martín of his intention and the Generalissimo accepted the idea with enthusiasm Anchored near to the Esmeralda were the Corvette Sebastiana two Briggs, two Schooners and three armed merchant vessels with a semicircular line of 20 gunboats all shut in by a boom through which there was only one narrow entrance Cochrane asked for volunteers the whole of his crew offered themselves From them he selected 160 seamen and 80 marines three days he employed in preparing 14 boats and in instructing the men On the night of the 4th of November the flotilla assembled alongside the flagship and the lee of the island of San Lorenzo where they could not be seen from shore On the 5th the three other vessels of the blockading squadron were sent for a cruise outside The Spaniards thinking the blockade was raised celebrated the occasion of a banquet on the Esmeralda After sundown Amid complete silence an address from the admiral was passed round the boats The moment of glory is approaching I hope that the Chileans will fight as they have been accustomed to do and that the English will act as they have ever done at home and abroad Men and officers were all dressed in white Cochrane himself wearing a blue band around his arm 14 boats pulled with muffled oars silently away in two parallel lines one led by Captain Crosby the other by Captain Gays Cochrane went himself in another boat ahead of the rest The British frigate Hyperion and the United States frigate Macedonia lay at anchor outside the boom As the boats passed by the lattership her officers in low voices wished the cruise good luck but an officer of the Hyperion as he saw them was put under arrest for Cochrane was not popular with the commanders of British ships whatever sympathies he might have among the men The last boat of the flotilla remained alongside the Macedonia and Cochrane knowing nothing of the desertion went on followed by only 13 ships It was very dark when at midnight they reached the passage through the boom It was guarded by a gunboat Cochrane pistol in hand threatening instant death to any man who spoke The crew surrendered and the boats rode on unperceived straight for the Esmeralda where Captain Coyg and his officers after their banquet were playing cards in the cabin Cochrane leaping into the chains was the first on board but was knocked back into the boat by a sentry on the poop In a moment he was up again followed by his crew the sentry fired but was immediately cut down she's ours shouted Cochrane to the other boats and then hailed the tops which were already occupied by men previously told off for the purpose The sails of the ship were at his orders but the deck was yet held by the Spanish marines who had seized their arms on hearing the shots fired by the sentry Cochrane with the boats led by Crosby had boarded on the starboard quarter now guys and his division boarded on the portside the two parties met on the quarter deck guys and Cochrane shaking hands in the enthusiasm of the moment from the forecastle the marines opened fire upon them Cochrane was shot through the tie seating himself on a gun he bound up the wound with his handkerchief and ordered a charge on the enemy twice the assailants were beaten back and guys was wounded but again he let on the borders and the crew of the Esmeralda were either forced overboard or driven below the hatches one roared from the castle of Real Felipe a gunboat opened fire on the frigate by which Captain Coyg was severely wounded and one Chilean and two English seamen were killed the other ships beat to quarters guys who was now in command saw the imprudence of attempting any further captures he ordered the cables to be cut the sails were set and the Esmeralda sailed away in the hands of her captors the ships and the shore batteries opened a heavy fire upon her some of the shot passing over the Hyperion and Macedonia these vessels hung out the distinguishing lights this contingency Cochrane had foreseen immediately similar lights were displayed on the Esmeralda and at half past two she anchored off the island of San Lorenzo the boats followed her with two gunboats in tow which they captured as she sailed off the loss of the expedition was eleven killed and thirty wounded the Spaniards lost about one hundred and sixty men killed or drowned and two hundred prisoners the royalists on shore accused the neutral ships of complicity in this shameful defeat more especially the men of the Macedonia whose sympathy for the cause of South American independence was well known next day when one of her boats was sent ashore as usual for provisions the crew was barbarously massacred by the infuriated populace Cochrane sent a flag of truce on shore proposing an exchange of prisoners to which the Viceroy exceeded about two hundred Chileans and Argentines who had languished for years in the casemates of Cayao thus recovered their liberty the Esmeralda was renamed the Valdivia in honour of Cochrane's victory of the year before the moral effects of the capture of the Esmeralda were very great but from a political point of view the revolution in Guayaquil was of yet more importance still San Martin turned a deaf ear to the councils of Cochrane who advised an immediate advance upon Lima and on the ninth the convoy weighed anchor at Ancon and sailed to the port of Guachio which lies ninety miles to the north of Cayao on the tenth the disembarkation commenced and Daub, the French engineer threw up three redouts to secure the place he also improvised a moor to facilitate communication with the squadron the army marched inland and on the seventeenth encamped in the beautiful valley of Guara which is well watered and abounds in trees and was reputed healthy but fevers were endemical along the coast in the summer and desintery in the autumn this valley is seven miles broad by fifty two miles in length and is intersected by a river of the same name which flows from the Cordillera to the sea this river is fordable at several points in his strong positions for defense against superior forces of which San Martin took advantage and established himself solidly on his bank ready to act either on the defensive or on the offensive as occasion might require in his front stretched a sandy desert while one of his flanks rested on Guachio and the other on the Sierra in this position he held Lima in check cut off all communication between the northern provinces and the capital and either advance or retreat at his pleasure and was ready to effect a junction with Arenales when he should make his appearance Bethuela occupied the entrenched camp at Asnapugia with nearly seven thousand men he had sent off a small division against Arenales and now threw out a vanguard of about two thousand men to keep watch over the movements of San Martin with this vanguard was the battalion of Numanthia the men of which were for the most part natives of Venezuela and the officers were all Americans the emissaries of San Martin had been actively at work with this battalion and both officers and men now only waited for an opportunity to join the army of the patriots San Martin determined to give them this opportunity the cavalry being now well mounted he detached Alvarado with seven hundred horse against the enemy's vanguard Alvarado marched away along the coast on the 24th of November and Pringles in advance with 18 grenadiers escorted to the messenger who carried a missive to inform the disaffected regiment of the approach of the patriot cavalry and was charged to concert measures with them for their evasion Pringles had strict orders not to fight on any account but after marching all night he found himself at daybreak on the 27th close to the entire vanguard in front was an advance party of a squadron of dragoons led by Valdez upon them he charged impetuously with his 18 men that was beaten back finding his retreat cut off by another squadron he attempted to cut his way through it but lost three men killed and 11 wounded seeing escape was impossible he then plunged into the sea with such of his men as could follow him but when Valdez galloped forward promising quarter he surrendered the 15 prisoners were paraded in triumph through the streets of Lima where the account of the skirmish excited great enthusiasm they were afterwards exchanged and Pringles was tried by court marshal he was centered for disobedience to orders but both he and his companions received a batch of honor bearing the words glory to the vanquished in Chiang Kai the skirmish with Pringles disclosed to Valdez the proximity of the patriot cavalry on which he retired from the coast into the valley of Chiang Kai placing the Nomancia battalion on guard in the pass Alvarado found his way into the valley by another pass but his men and horses were so fatigued by the rapid march that he was forced to withdraw to a neighboring farm in search of rest and forage on the 1st of December he again came up with the enemy who retreated through a rugged defile the Nomancia battalion being left seven miles to the rear of the main body on the 3rd this battalion took advantage of its position to join the patriot column and molested a welcome contingent of 650 bayonets San Martin declared that quote the battalion belongs to the army of Colombia but shall remain incorporated with the army of Peru till the close of the war end quote he showed his confidence in his new troops by confiding the flag of the liberating army to their care these events encouraged the spirit of insurrection throughout Peru which extended even to the ranks of the army hardly a day passed without some desertion being reported on the 8th of December 38 officers and a cadet fled from Lima and the leaders began to lose confidence in each other some of the principal citizens of Lima presented an address to the viceroy urging upon him the necessity of an honorable capitulation with San Martin he was greatly blamed for the untoward progress of the war but was in reality powerless his authority being undermined by a conspiracy which existed in the army to saplant him by La Serna on the 29th of November San Martin drove the royalists out of the populace department of Wailas which lay in his rare the people to the number of 70,000 swore the independence of Peru immediately after which the whole of the northern provinces pronounced spontaneously in favor of the revolution these were the producing provinces of Peru and the chief source of the wealth of the viceroyalty they were almost entirely included in the intendency of Trujillo and had a mixed population of some 300,000 souls a Peruvian general known as the Marquis of Torre Tagle was at that time governor of Trujillo and had been in secret correspondence with San Martin since he landed at Pisco on the 24th of December Torre Tagle convened an open Cabildo at Trujillo when after showing the hopelessness of resistance to the superior force of San Martin he advised submission the royalists headed by the bishop stoutly opposed the proposition he answered their arguments by shutting them up in prison and on the 29th raised the banner invented at Pisco and with the mass of the people swore to maintain the independence of Peru. In memory of this event Trujillo bears to this day the name of Departamento de la Libertad Torre Tagle then called upon the city of Pura to join the movement. This city was garrisoned by a royalist battalion and the people were unarmed but the attitude of the patriot leaders was so determined that the soldiery disbanded in this way the whole of the north of Peru from Chiangkai to Guayaquil fell into the hands of the patriots and San Martin secured a safe base of operations from which he could draw supplies and horses and which gave him at once a reinforcement of 430 infantry and 200 cavalry. On the 5th of January 1821 San Martin advanced with his whole army to Retes seeking a junction with Arenales La Serna who was now in command of the royalist army with Canterac as chief of the staff and immediately prepared to attack him in a most disadvantageous position but lost so many days in these preparations in consequence of the inefficient state of the army that the friends of San Martin in Lima had time to advise him of his danger. Meantime he was joined by Arenales and at once retired to his former position in the valley of Oara. The opportunity thus lost greatly increased the unpopularity of the viceroy with the army. The effects of the relocate of Cayao by Cochrane began now to be severely felt in Lima and were greatly aggravated by the operations of bands of guerillas which San Martin had organized among the country people. An Argentine from Salta named Villar who had been a prisoner in the casemates of Cayao was the commander of these guerillas. They infested all the roads leading to the capital and frequently destroyed small detached parties of troops or outposts of the royalist army. From Oara San Martin decreed a quote provisional regulation end quote by which the territory occupied by the patriots was divided into four departments each under a president who had under him governments of districts while a court of appeal was established at Trujillo. This was the first attempt at constitutional administration in Peru and prepared the way for a national government. In three months San Martin had achieved success as great as the winning of a pitched battle could have given him a result which amplifies falsifies the accusations of inactivity or timidity which have been brought against him. For these successes were gained by an army of 4,000 men opposed to one of 23,000. End of chapter 27 Chapter 28 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolomé Mitre translated by William Pilling This Librivox recording is in the public domain. Recording by Pietro Natter the first campaign in the Highlands 1820 to 1821 Peru may be looked upon as a conglomeration of mountains enclosed within a sort of triangle whose base on the third degree of south latitude measures about 800 miles from which it extends southward for about 1500 miles to the southern frontier of Upper Peru on the 18th degree of south latitude where the width of the triangle is reduced to about 60 miles This territory comprises three zones the coast zone, the Highland zone and the mountain zone Along the shores of the Pacific Ocean lies a belt of sand never more than 60 miles in width cut by 23 rivers which flow from the highlands to the sea through fertile valleys separated by deserts of sandhills to and fro by the winds on which sandhills there is no sign of vegetation neither are there birds in the air nor reptiles on the earth a far-stretching series of deserts on which rain never falls This is the region now in part occupied by San Martín and his army On the east of this tierra caliente rises abruptly the western range of the Andes Further still to the east stretches the huge line of the Trucal de Lera Between these ranges there lies in Upper Peru a vast table land but in Lower Peru the intervening space is intersected by numerous valleys and by the Andean lakes which are sometimes as much as 16,000 feet above the level of the sea Under the Viceroy's Lower Peru was divided into 8 intendencias The most northern of these was that of Trujillo which was also the largest in extent and by geographical position formed a distinct country Those of Lima and Arequipa extended along the coast Those of Cusco and Puno lay further inland to the south bordering upon Upper Peru while in the center lay the intendencias of Juanca Velica Huamanga and Tarma These three form the highlands of Peru and are intersected in every direction by foaming torrents possible only by suspension bridges hanging from cables of raw hide Note For a description of a similar bridge in Chile see Journal of Captain Basil Hall Quote These strong sustaining cords are six in number three at each side of the bridge and hang in flat curves one above another The short vertical lines supporting the roadway being so disposed as to distribute the weight equally The main or suspending ropes are firmly secured to the angles of the rock on the one side at the height of 30 feet from the stream The main or suspending ropes are firmly secured to the angles of the rock on the one side at the height of 30 feet from the stream But the opposite bank being low it has been found necessary to correct the consequent inclination in some degree by carrying the ropes over a high wooden framework and attaching them afterwards to trees and to posts driven into the bank The clear span from the frame or pier on one side to the face of the rock on the other is 123 feet The materials being very elastic which waved up and down with our weight and vibrated from side to side in so alarming a manner that at the recommendation of the guide we dismounted and drove our horses one by one before us But it must be owned neither man nor horse appeared much at ease during the passage End quote End of footnote The only roads from the coast into this region pass by deep gorges through the coast range of the Corvillera and wind round the higher mountains along the edge of precipices ever ascending till they reached the table land lying between the range and the main Cordillera General Arenales had already distinguished himself in Mountain Warfare as is set forth in chapter 5 and was thus selected by San Martín at Pisco to command the flying column which was to make its way through the highlands and rejoin the main army in the north which went by sea The chief object of this expedition was to spread the revolutionary propaganda through the interior of the country but it would also distract the attention of the enemy and possibly prevent the concentration of his forces at Lima The column consisted of two battalions of infantry under Major de Hessa and Colonel Aldunate one squadron of cavalry under Major Lavalle and two guns Colonel Rojas was chief of the staff On the night of the 5th of October Arenales marched in a south-easterly direction upon Ica where Colonel Quimper was stationed with 800 men At his approach two companies of infantry passed over to him and Quimper hastily retreated along the coast He was pursued by Rojas with 250 men and overtaken at the village of Nazca The patriot cavalry led by Lavalle charged at once and taking the royalists by surprise but early routed them with a loss of 41 killed and 86 prisoners On the following day the 16th of October Lieutenant Suarez with 30 light horse captured the baggage so that the first force detached from the army of Lima against the expedition was totally destroyed The movements of Arenales were so well masked by the maneuvers of the main army that the viceroy knew nothing of them until the 30th of October and then allowed several days to pass before he sent off reinforcements into the menaced district Thus Arenales ascended the mountain passes unopposed and on the 31st of October occupied the city of Huamanga after a march of 255 miles in 10 days Here he gave his troops some rest but sent out the detachments under Lavalle and Rojas who routed several parties of the enemy very superior in number and captured the city of Tarma so that by the 21st of November he was in complete possession of the valley of Hawcha which is watered by the Rio Grande After arming the militia and giving some political organization to the liberated districts he marched on Pasco which O'Reilly had occupied with a division of 1000 men sent from Lima On the morning on the 6th of December during heavy fall of snow he occupied a hill in front of the town but separated from it by a small lake and by marshes O'Reilly on perceiving him drew up his men in front of the town but the patriot infantry led by Aldunate and the Hessa advanced resolutely under fire of the artillery and drove them back into the town at the point of the bayonet where they dispersed while Lavalle wading through the marshes charged the enemy's cavalry and put them to flight The trophies of the smart action 43 prisoners including General O'Reilly and Colonel Santa Cruz a regimental flag and two guns but the most important effect of the victory was to open the road for communication with San Martín Etuara Arenales had left a strong rearguard at Ica under two officers named Bermudez and Aldao who being attacked by very superior forces were compelled to follow the main body up the mountain passes on Caio and were much harassed on their way by hordes of Indians lingers meantime the Spanish general Ricardo who was on the march from Arequipa to Lima with a detachment of the reserve heard of the doings of Arenales and ascended from the coast into the highlands where he was joined by a reinforcement from Cusco and having collected 1300 men marched upon Huamanga here he was met by a horde of Indians who had broken out in insurrection and having got possession of some guns and a few muskets opened fire upon him from the high ground in front of their city he had no great difficulty in defeating them and gave no quarter the fugitives being joined by other parties of insurgents then occupied the village of Kangayo with about 4000 men Riccafort marched against them with 400 infantry and 200 horse and again routed them to December, killing a thousand of them without losing one man the village was sucked and burned Riccafort then returned to Huamanga and then learning then Bermudeth and Aldao had put themselves at the head of the insurgents of Wangayo, marched against them with his whole force dispersed the raw Indian levies captured the town and sucked it Aldao who with a small body of horse had greatly distinguished himself in this affair to Haoha where quarrelling with Bermudeth he put himself at the head of the insurrection in conjunction with Otero and Argentine who had been appointed governor by the patriots then learning that Arenales had marched to the coast he retreated to Reyes but afterwards hearing that Riccafort had withdrawn his force from the highlands and gone to Lima he returned, reoccupied Wangayo and raised an army of 5000 Indians to which he gave some rough sort of military organization Arenales rejoined the main army on the 8th of January 1821 after a triumphant march of 840 miles through the center of the enemy's territory with a hostile army on each side of him End of Chapter 28 Chapter 29 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre, translated by William Pilling the box recording is in the public domain recording by Pieternater the armistice of Punciauca 1821 at the commencement of the year 1821 the royalist cause appeared completely lost in Peru Pethuela at a council of general officers declared without reserve quote the impossibility of continuing the defense of the country end quote this speaks highly for the political and military talents of San Martín who in four short months had achieved this result that the Spanish leaders abandoned by the mother country should raise up the fallen standard of the king and with resources drawn from the country itself should maintain the struggle for yet another four years speaks quite as highly for their talents and energy when Badajoz was besieged by the French in 1811 Colnel Menaccio who was the San Martín's first chief was in command of the garrison he died and in a council of war then held one officer only voted for holding out the city surrendered the following year the regency with the approval of the Cortes declared that in such a case quote if one officer voted for resistance even though he was a subaltern the garrison should not capitulate and the said officer should take the command end quote the Spanish forces in Peru maintained that this decision gave them the right to refuse to surrender the liberal ideas brought by later reinforcements from Spain while they weakened political authority strengthened the power of the military element the ill concerted measures adopted by device Roy to meet invasion the timid prosecution of the war and the successes of the patriots deepened the antagonism of the different parties into which the royals camp was divided the idea of treachery on the part of device Roy became general it was believed that he contemplated a shameful capitulation before adopting extreme measures the liberal leaders headed by Lacerna and Valdez prevailed upon Pethuela to create a quote end quote which worked like a fifth wheel in a coach and the inactivity of device Roy on the occasion when San Martín advanced Tourettes precipitated matters it was resolved to depose him on the night of the 28th of January 1821 Lacerna withdrew from the encampment at Asnapukyo the next day Katerac and Valdez paraded the army and the officers being convened to a council of war summoned device Roy to lay down the supreme command in four hours quote as the only means of preventing disturbances and preserving Peru to Spain end quote Pethuela resigned and the power fell into the hands of the Spanish constitutionalists who were thus forced in defense of the rights of the mother country to fight in the cause of an absolute king against their own principles as upheld by the patriots of America the first act of Lacerna now Vice Roy was to invite San Martín to send commissioners to a conference and for the purpose of putting an end to the disputes between Spaniards and Americans San Martín joyfully exceeded and named Guido and Alvarado representatives of the Patriot cause Lacerna on his side appointed colonels Valdez and Loriga the commissioners met at a farmhouse near Retes when the Spanish officers presented a modification of the proposals of Mira Flores on the basis of the acceptance of the Spanish constitution the others declined to negotiate on any other terms than the recognition of the independence of Peru Alvarado then asked Loriga to walk out with him leaving the other two to discuss the question the Spanish officer accepted the invitation and during their promenade informed Alvarado that they thought of abandoning Lima and retiring to the more healthy highlands where with abandoned supplies they could easily beat off any attack of the Patriots this information was the only immediate result of the conference but it gave rise to further negotiations on the basis of the establishment of the independent monarchy of Peru the change of Weisroys in no way improved the position of the royalists on the contrary fresh disasters befell the army of Lima and the new general fell into the same chaos as his predecessor the scarcity of provisions became worse in the city and yellow fever broke out in the army while the arrival of a royal commissioner from Spain prevented La Serna from taking any decided step the condition of the Patriot army at Juara was not much better it also suffered greatly from fever so that barely a thousand men were fit for a service San Martín himself fell ill the ideas cut off supplies from Lima and expeditions along the coast or in the highlands kept the enemy in continual alarm on the 25th of March the envoy from the new government of Spain a naval officer named Abreu arrived at Juara where he was well received four days he remained there holding long conversations with San Martín for whom he conceived a great admiration at his instigation La Serna attempted to negotiate privately with San Martín but San Martín replied that he would listen to nothing which was not proposed officially and about the same time sent a column of his sickly troops commanded by Miller to act under Cochrane's orders against Cayao and another under Arenales into the highlands then leaving a strong rare guard in charge of the hospitals and Park Etuara he embarked the rest of his troops in transports and dropped down the coast to Ancon whence his cavalry, aided by Guerrillas scoured the country and shut up the royalists within a small triangle formed by the encampment at Asnapuquio, Lima and Cayao and there awaited the opening of a formal negotiation after the liberal movement in Spain in 1820 the revolutionists of South America were no longer spoken of as rebels or insurgents but were recognized by the home government as belligerents and were now invited by King Ferdinand by a proclamation to treat for peace with their brethren of the old country quote as their equals end quote but they were offered only the constitution of 1812 which they had already rejected by declaring themselves independent and were threatened with forcible compulsion in case of refusal this olive branch of peace wafted across the seas only supplied fresh fuel to the flames of war and voice from Spain bearing this message of peace had reached the northern part of the continent in December 1820 during an armistice between Bolivar and Murillo they had persuaded Bolivar to send Colombian commissioners to Spain but in April 1821 before anything could be known as to their prospects for success hostilities recommend and there were no further attempts at negotiation to Mexico also the same message was sent a message apparently one of peace and conciliation which when looked into was seen to mean submission or war and to which in Mexico as elsewhere answer was given in one formula independence or war when in 1820 the war broke out in Spain the revolution in Mexico was crushed General Vicente Guerrero with a handful of men alone upheld the flag of insurrection in the rough country to the south in Mexico the movement was chiefly the work of the indigenous element of the population and assumed the character of a rising of the Peralitaria against the superior classes thus arousing a spirit of resistance in the country itself in the words of the royalist troops for its suppression but amid this discord of opinions a sentiment for independence was latent in the hearts of all so that the defeat of the insurrection combined with the liberal movement in Spain to bring about a pacific evolution the proclamation of a liberal regime in the mother country produced in Mexico a split among the various parties who had upheld the colonial system while Spaniards became absolutists or constitutionalists the natives became republicans or monarchists Apodaca was at that time viceroy he put himself at the head of a reaction and is said to have been incited there too by the king who fearful of the fate of Luis the 16th proposed withdrawing from Europe to Mexico there to reign with absolute power free from the trammels of a constitution this reaction could not triumph without the aid of the native monarchists among the creoles who had served in the royalist ranks and had distinguished himself by cruelties to his own countrymen was a man named Agustin Iturbide then 37 years of age unscrupulous in the pursuit of wealth of life either dissolute or aesthetic as best served his interests and with some natural talent he was possessed by a secret ambition in which race patriotism had a place his sleep was broken by envious dreams of the laurels gained by Bolivar and San Martin and though lacking the great qualities of either of them he aspired to be the liberator of Central America this was the man selected by Apodaca to aid his plans of reaction by leading the natives to support his policy he appointed him commandant general of the south and sent him with a division of native troops to stamp out the embers of insurrection kept alive by Guerrero Iturbide soon came to an understanding with Guerrero and threw off the mask on the 24th of February 1820 in the town of Iguala 127 miles from the city of Mexico Iturbide published a document known to history as the plan of Iguala in it he proclaimed the independence of Mexico and at the same time hoisted a flag symbolic of the new revolution a tricolor white, red and green white signifying religious purity red signifying friendship with Spain and green signifying the hope of emancipation the plan was in three parts from which it took the name of the plan of the three guarantees a name which was also applied to the army which upheld it the first part stipulated the establishment of the Catholic religion to the exclusion of every other the second part declared Mexico an independent state under a monarchical government tempered by a constitution the third part stipulated the union of Americans and Europeans King Ferdinand was recognized as emperor of Mexico if he would come and swear to the constitution and after him his brothers in natural succession in default of whom Congress should name a prince the royal houses of Europe further the equality of all the races indigenous, African and European was proclaimed without other distinction between them than that given by individual merit or virtue the leaders of the insurrection with Guerrero abjuring for the moment their republican principles placed themselves under the orders of Iturbide for the sake of national independence the Creoles who had opposed the revolution gave in their adhesion to the new plan the clergy adopted it in hatred of the reforms of the Spanish liberals the Spanish absolutists in hatred of the constitution and the constitutionalists for the sake of peace the whole country pronounced in favor of the plan of Iguala the royalists conquered without fighting held only the capital the port of Veracruz and the fortress of San Juan de Ulua in July 1821 Iturbide was acclaimed liberator of the country by this means a solution was found for the dilemma, submission or independence and war the bond with the mother country was untied, but was not broken thus it was understood by Odo Noho the successor to Apodaca who subscribed to the plan of Iguala by treaty in August 1821 in Brazil about this time took place an evolution similar to the plan proposed by Iturbide while in Colombia the armistice was broken and in Peru negotiations based on ideas similar to those enunciated in the plan of Iguala came to an end we have nothing more to do with the history of Mexico suffice it that the Spanish government rejected the treaty signed by Odo Noho that Mexico was lost forever to Spain, that Iturbide seated himself on the vacant throne and was crowned emperor only to be deposed soon afterwards and banished on attempting to recover his dignity he was shot the negotiations initiated confidentially by the viceroy of Peru were more formally carried forward by an official invitation from him La Serna appointed Don Manuel de Yano Inajera and Don Mariano Galdiano both of whom were Americans as colleagues to Abreu San Martin appointed Guido and José Ignacio de la Rosa formerly governor of San Juan to represent the patriots the farmhouse of Punciauca 15 miles from Lima was made the meeting place of the commissioners neither party made any preliminary stipulation both professed to be anxious for peace and union the royalist commissioners were instructed to propose the acceptance of the Spanish constitution with some concessions in detail in accordance with the spirit of the proclamation of King Ferdinand those of the patriots were instructed by San Martin to reject the Spanish constitution as a bond of union and to insist upon the recognition of the independence of Chile of the provinces of River Plate and of Peru without consenting to any armistice except on this basis in case it were proposed that the patriots should send commissioners to Spain to treat of this matter they were to demand to carry the evacuation of Lima and were to refuse to enter into any treaty for the conduct of the war which had been spoken of as it had up to then been carried on in accordance with the laws of nations the royalist commissioners opened the discussion by presenting a note on the 4th of May 1821 stating that in regard to the suggestion made by San Martin at Miraflores that independence should be secured by the establishment of a monarchy as sovereign from the Royal House of Spain they had no power to make any such arrangement and recommended the adoption of the Spanish constitution since it was a proof of the liberal sentiments of the Spanish government and of their desire for reconciliation further they proposed an armistice while commissioners were sent by both parties to Spain as had been done by Bolivar in Colombia to this the Patriot commissioners replied on the day following that no negotiations could be entertained except on the basis of the recognition of independence but in view of the inability of the Spanish commanders to make this recognition they were willing to consent to a suspension of arms with some guarantee and that they hoped no further mention would be made of the Spanish constitution the very name being obnoxious to the liberties of the new world to this no answer was given but an armistice of 16 months was proposed by the royalist commissioners then the Patriots demanded that the fortifications of Cajal should be handed over to them intact as a guarantee to be delivered up if hostilities should again break out and their note concluded as follows If Don José de San Martín be determined to achieve the independence of America by arms or by negotiation he is no less desirous of uniting this part of the new world to the mother country by those bonds of friendship and commerce which would redound to the prosperity of both To the surprise of the Patriot commissioners themselves the viceroy acceded to the terms of the proposed armistice only stipulating that he should withdraw 12 heavy guns from Cajal It then became easy to arrange the terms of a provisional armistice of 20 days during which it was stipulated that La Serna and San Martín accompanied by their respective commissioners should meet on the 23rd of May Neither party seems to have acted in good faith on this occasion La Serna had written on the 4th of April to his generals in the highlands that he did not believe that the negotiation would lead to any result and instructed them to occupy advantageous positions which they might hold during a possible suspension of hostilities San Martín afterwards declared a confidential letter to O'Higgins that the division of Arenales required a rest after passing through the highlands and that he himself had 1200 sick he knew very well that Arogan Spain would never admit a recognition of independence which was forced upon her On the 2nd of June the interview between San Martín and La Serna took place at Punciauca The two leaders met very cordially with expressions of mutual esteem San Martín proposed the appointment of a regency for the independent government of Peru until the arrival of a prince of the Royal House of Spain The set regency to consist of La Serna as president with two colleagues one named by the royalists the other by the patriots and offered to go himself to Spain as a commissioner to arrange matters with the home government Abreu expressed himself warmly in favor of the proposition and the viceroy appeared willing to accept it but desired to consult the various corporations of the viceroyalty before concluding so important an arrangement and promised an answer in two days They then discussed informally the mode in which the troops of both armies should unite in a public square of Lima to solemnize the declaration of the independence of Peru To the interview succeeded a banquet at which the most friendly toasts exchanged In all this the policy of San Martín was fundamentally wrong He had no authority to make any such proposition It was not in accordance with the principles for which he fought and the applause with which it was received by the monarchists of the Holy Alliance implies its condemnation by the republicans of America La Serna was more clear-sighted Instead of consulting the corporations he consulted his officers who, without absolutely rejecting the proposition declined to accept it immediately as it was indirect contravention of their orders which forbade them to treat on the basis of colonial independence On this La Serna sent Valdez and Camba to arrange if possible with San Martín for a suspension of hostilities until he had time to consult the home government On the refusal of San Martín to listen to this proposal the commissioners again met at Miraflores and as neither party was ready to resume hostilities the armistice was prolonged for 12 days and San Martín consented to relax the blockade of Lima so as to permit the entrance of supplies sufficient for the daily wants of the citizens as he did not make war upon the people This measure greatly increased the power of the partisans of the patriot cause in the capital and they prevailed upon the Cabildo to make a representation to the viceroy in favor of peace to which representation he paid no attention and it produced great irritation in the army At this time San Martín received a visit from Captain Basil Hall of the British Navy who in his journal has given a very graphic account of the policy of the great general Note how far his professions were sincere or if sincere his plans were wise it is now very difficult to say they certainly appeared to many people very judicious at the time and they were uniformly followed by the success which he anticipated On the 25th of June I had an interview with General San Martín on board a little schooner anchored in Cayao roads there was little at first sight in his appearance to engage attention but when he rose up and began to speak his great superiority over every other person I had seen in South America was sufficiently apparent he received us in a very homely style on the deck of his vessel dressed in a surdo coat and a large fur cup seated at the table made of a few loose planks laid along the top of two empty casks Several persons came on board privately from Lima to discuss the state of affairs upon which occasion his views and feelings were distinctly stated and I saw nothing in his conduct afterwards to cast a doubt upon the sincerity with which he then spoke the contest in Peru he said was not of an ordinary description nor a war of conquest and glory but entirely of opinion it was a war of new and liberal principles against prejudice bigotry and tyranny people ask why I don't march to Lima at once so I might and instantly would where it's suitable to my views which it is not I do not want military renown I have no ambition to be the conqueror of Peru I want solely to liberate the country from oppression of what use would Lima be to me if the inhabitants were hostile in political sentiment how could the cause of independence be advanced by my holding Lima or even the whole country in military possession far different are my views I wish to have all men thinking with me and do not choose to advance a step beyond the march of public opinion I have been gaining day by day fresh allies in the hearts of the people the only certain allies in such a war public opinion is an engine newly introduced into this country the Spaniards who are utterly incapable of directing it have prohibited its use but they shall now experience its strength and importance when all was quiet in the capital I went to Cayao and hearing that San Martín was in the roads waited on him on board his yacht I found him possessed of correct information as to all that was passing but he seemed in no hurry to enter the city and appeared above all things anxious to avoid any appearance of acting the part of a conqueror for the last ten years said he I have been increasingly employed against the Spaniards or rather in favor of this country for I am not against anyone who is not hostile to the cause of independence all I wish is that this country should be managed by itself and by itself alone as to the manner in which it is to be governed that belongs not at all to me I propose simply to give the people the means of declaring themselves independent and of establishing a suitable form of government after which I shall consider I have done enough and leave them journal of Captain Basil Hall and note during the rest of the armistice the commissioners kept up appearances by still continuing to meet while both parties actively prepared for the resumption of hostilities La Serna detached Canterac with the most healthy of his troops to occupy it one cavelica thus to be ready to meet the advance of Arenales into the Highlands. San Martin returned with all his army to Wacho. On the 4th of July the armistice having run out La Serna publicly announced his determination to abandon Lima and delegated the supreme authority to the Marquis of Montemira he left a garrison of 2,000 men in the fortifications of Cayao, 1,000 sick in the hospitals and on the morning of the 6th he marched off with barely 2,000 men to occupy the valley of Canete the city was panic struck the leading Spaniards fled with their families to Cayao the women rushed to the monasteries San Martin hastened to reassure the people by a letter to the Archbishop and faithful to his declared policy made no attempt to occupy the city a deputation of the inhabitants waited upon him asking his protection whereupon he ordered the guerillas of whom they were most afraid from the neighborhood and surrounded the city with a cordon of regular troops placing them under the orders of the civil governor still the citizens could not believe that he was acting in good faith till an order from the governor to a regiment of cavalry which had encamped a mile and a half from the city to retire to a great distance was at once obeyed when confidence was restored and at the invitation of the authorities at sundown on the 9th a division of the army entered the city amid the shouts of the populace the next day after sundown San Martin accompanied only by an aid to the camp rode quietly through the streets of the city to the palace of the viceroy's where the citizens thronged to give him welcome and the members of the cabildo heredly convened presented him with an address he soon wearied of their enthusiastic protestations of regard and remounting his horse at half past ten he rode out to the village of Mirones half way to Kayao where he had established the headquarters of his army as a preliminary step to laying siege to the fortress on the 11th he issued various proclamations to the citizens and the royal arms were torn down from over the doors of the public offices the escuchion of Peru being put in their place with the inscription Lima Independiente Martin also issued a proclamation to the inhabitants of the liberated departments calling them to arms and promising with their assistance to finish the campaign in 40 days but he took no active measures in furtherance of this project apparently he attached too much importance to the possession of Lima for with the exception of Trujillo the country had as yet made no effort to second him and remained passively watching the course of events the viceroy with his dispirited army was allowed to retreat almost unmolested though his loss by desertion was very great Canteraque was already securely established in the highlands San Martin here repeated the mistake he was guilty of after Chacabuca again he showed want of energy in following up a victory he attached too much importance to the success which had so far attended his political combinations and of Chapter 29 Chapter 30 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre translated by William Pilling this Librivox recording is in the public domain recording by Piotr Natar the second campaign in the highlands 1821 when Arenales rejoined the main army Etuara and Rica Fort descended by the mountain passes to Lima, Aldao and his Indian hordes were left in possession of the greater part of the highlands opposed only by a division under Carratala who held one Cavalica and one Manga Aldao had given his Indians some sort of organization styling the cavalry the mounted grenadiers of Peru and the infantry the loyalists of Peru under which names they figured as the two first Peruvian regiments on the master role of the liberating army San Martin had small faith in such troops nevertheless as a step towards forming a native army he appointed Colonel Gamarra a Peruvian commander general of the highlands and in February sent him with a number of officers of all ranks to take the command about the same time Rica Fort returned to Juan Cavalica and one of the first measures of Lacerna after he became King of Laceroy was to send Valdes with 1200 men to support him the united forces of the royalists numbered 2500 men but on advancing against Aldao they found that the suspension bridges over the Rio Grande had been cut by the Indians nevertheless they found a place at which they could forge the stream and easily put to flight the raw levies opposed to them before they could reach Gamarra they had retreated from Jauja and Pasco with 600 of Aldao's men by the pass of Oyuna where his men dispersed Carratala remained watching the pass while Valdes and Rica Fort returned by Canta to Lima but were so harassed on the march by the Vidal's guerrillas that an entire company of light infantry were taken prisoners and Rica Fort badly wounded was carried into Lima on a stretcher it was then that Arenales marched from Juara on his second expedition to the Highlands the purpose of this expedition was to hasten the evacuation of Lima and to occupy such positions as would prevent the royalists from re-establishing themselves in the Highlands then to open communications at Ica with another expedition which was sent along the coast southward under Miller for the first of these purposes guarding the passes from Lima were instructed to obey all orders received from Arenales in case of disaster Arenales was instructed to retire on the reserve stationed at Vailas the division of Arenales consisted of 2200 men the column under Miller of 600 thus San Martin was left with about 3000 sick and convalescent in front of the royalist army of 7000 the troops sent with Arenales worn out by the epidemic fevers of the coast were more like specters than men so that the first movements of the expedition were very slow the Cordillera was crossed by the Oyon Pass on the 6th of May the heights were covered with snow and the cold was intense Alda with the remnants of his division led the van Pasco was occupied on the 11th and Carratala retired precipitately Tarma and Hawcha were taken on the 20th and 23rd and Carratala continuing to retreat the valley of Wankayo lay open to the patriots on the 25th Arenales now prepared for a vigorous attack upon Carratala when advice reached him of the signing of the Armistice of Punciałka which put a stop to operations for the present retired to Hawcha and employed himself in reorganizing his force now swelled by recruiting to over 4000 men Arenales was a peculiar character austere and subtle his military ideas were as conspicuous for foresight as for audacity while his every act was inspired by a sense of justice and duty he was very strict with his subordinates who both feared and respected him he went about attended only by an orderly had only one spare charger and one baggage mule he himself saddled and unsuddled his horse and shot him also himself he mended his own boots and uniform and was so careless of dress that San Martin at times had his valise replenished for him unknown to him on the march he carried his own provisions in his saddlebag a cheese and a piece of cold beef San Martin styled him mi compañero and was more familiar with him than anyone else he responded by exact obedience to orders but did not scruple to criticize them whenever he thought proper from Howe Ha Arenales wrote San Martin earnestly impressing upon him the advisability of transferring his whole force to the highlands leaving Lima to be watched by the fleet but at the conclusion of the armistice he resumed operations by marching against Canterac who had passed the Cordillera when on the 12th of July he received a despatch from San Martin ordering him to retire on Pasco or on Lima if menaced by the enemy Arenales saw clearly that this movement would entail the destruction of his division he had heard of the evacuation of Lima but knew nothing of the movements of La Serna in his perplexity he called a council of war at which it was decided to retire to one Cairo this movement was the salvation of Canterac who had lost so heavily on the march from Lima that he reached Wancavelica with only 1500 starving men La Serna marching on Howe Ha found the passes occupied by the mountaineers who rolled great rocks down the mountain slopes upon his troops so that after heavy loss he was forced to retreat after throwing several guns into the river then following the route previously taken by Canterac he joined him on the 4th of August the united force numbering barely 4000 men of whom many were sick at Wancaio Arenales found that Vidal and his guerillas had withdrawn to Lima on which he continued his retreat to Howe Ha thence he wrote again to San Martin showing him how the occupation of Lima would be as disastrous to the patriot as it had been to the royalist army but in obedience to orders continued his retreat losing hundreds of his new recruits by desertion again he wrote to San Martin proposing a new plan of campaign which would compensate for the loss of the highlands the answer he received was an order to continue his retreat to Lima the division entered the capital in triumph on the day set apart for the celebration of the independence of Peru which by these mistaken measures was virtually postponed for another 4 years and of Chapter 30 Chapter 31 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre translated by William Pilling this Librivox recording is in the public domain recording by Piotr Natter the expedition to the south 1821 Cochrane having failed to persuade San Martin to undertake active operations against Lima and not content with the role imposed upon him of simply blockading Kayao set his fertile brain to work to devise some means of capturing these fortifications San Martin entered hurtly into his plans and by means of his secret agents opened communications with some of the subordinate officers of the fortress and placed Miller with 550 men under the orders of the admiral Nails made in Lima for the purpose were distributed among the conspirators who were to spike the guns when an attack was made on the northern forts a part of the garrison was bought over and false keys were made to open the gates but the viceroy who seemed to be quite as well served by his spies as San Martin was by his took measures to circumvent these plans so nothing was attempted Cochrane then proposed with a small force of infantry moving rapidly by sea from place to place to wear out the royalist army by continual marchings to and fro and San Martin had last resolved to send an expedition to the south to cooperate with the movements of Arenales in the highlands 600 picked infantry and 800 horse under Miller were placed at the disposal of Cochrane for this purpose on the 22nd of March Miller and his troops landed at Pisco and took possession of the town of Chincha under protection of the guns of San Martin, O'Higgins and Valdivia an attack on an advanced party by Colonel Loriga being beaten off by Captain Videla on the same day an insurrectionary movement took place in Cusco headed by Colonel Lavine an Argentine, formerly an ardent royalist but at this time under arrest in that city on account of an abortive conspiracy at Arequipa the insurrection was put down all the insurgents including Lavine being killed leaving Miller at Chincha the admiral then sailed off to Cerro Azul but being unable to effect a landing on account of the heavy sea he wrote to San Martin again advising an attack on Lima and later on asked for a further reinforcement of infantry for an attack on Cerro Azul which was the key to the provinces of the south San Martin could spare no more men where upon he wrote O'Higgins asking for a contingent which would enable Miller to penetrate into Upper Peru San Martin also wrote in support of the suggestion but the Chilean government replied that they could do no more which was the simple truth meantime the Spaniards at Pisco and their adherents suffered heavily from forced contributions to the great discredit of the expedition the viceroy on hearing of the landing at Pisco dispatched a division under Camba to watch the movements of the Patriots Inland from Pisco lay two beautiful valleys the Chincha Alta and the Chincha Baja Camba encamped in the first of these valleys while Miller moved up from the town and encamped in the second for a month the two parties set watching each the other doing nothing then an enemy more to be feared than either came down on both of them the endemic fever of the coast and an egg both those beautiful valleys became hospitals where officers and men lay prostrate Cochrane's idea of wearing out the royalist army by fruitless marchings to and fro was by no means easy of accomplishment yet still he persevered on the 22nd of April the expedition was re-embarked Miller being carried on board while most of his men were barely able to hold their muskets Cochrane then sailed away for Areca where there was a six gun battery and a garrison of 300 men after a fruitless cannonade 250 men were landed higher up the coast in two divisions one of which led by Miller marched on the city of Tacna while major solar of the grenadiers marched with the other upon Areca which is the port of Tacna Areca was evacuated by the enemy on his approach and solar starting in pursuit captured as a string of mules on the road to Lima which were laden with $120,000 in species effects to the value of $300,000 the property of Spaniards resident in Lima were also confiscated in the town and shipped on board the San Martin Miller was received with enthusiasm at Tacna and was joined by many volunteers the garrisons of both the city the port passed over to him and were embodied in a new battalion styled the Loyalists of Peru Cochrane presented the new core with a flag a golden sun on a blue background one of the volunteers was a Peruvian named Landa a man of gigantic stature and well acquainted with the country who had served in the ranks of the royalists to the service which he subsequently rendered to the patriots much of the success of the expedition may be attributed another of the volunteers was Col. Porto Carrero also a Peruvian who was one of the secret agents of San Martin Miller had now 900 men under his orders of whom 400 were drilled troops and determined to enter upon a formal campaign rumor had greatly exaggerated the number of his forces and all the country about was in a ferment General Ramirez during the colonization at Puno directed several detached corps to concentrate on the river Ilo under Col. Santos Laera to resist the invasion Miller who was kept well informed by Porto Carrero and Landa started to prevent this concentration of the royalists he reached the river Samba on the 20th of May and at midnight after a forced march of 18 hours across a desert reached the Ilo opposite to the village of Mirave where Laera was encamped an advanced picket gave the alarm but two Englishmen named Hill and Hun with 20 men forded the river and drew off the attention of the enemy while Miller and the bulk of his force crossed un molested in the darkness at daybreak Miller attacked the village and carried it after a sharp struggle in which young Welsh Cochrane's physician who accompanied the expedition as a volunteer was killed hardly had the last fugitives of Laera's party disappeared when Col. Rivera came in sight with another detachment from Puno mounted on mules a few rockets put them to flight the same afternoon Miller started in pursuit and on the 24th reached the city of Moquegua where Porto Carrero was the beauty governor who at once passed over to him the remains of Laera's force were taken and made prisoners by Soler and on the 26th Miller overtook Rivera and either killed or made prisoners nearly all his party in 15 days from landing Miller with his small force had put more than a thousand of the enemy or the combat and Cochrane wrote to San Martín telling him that in 8 days more they would have Arequipa Laera having met in his flight with other parties on the march to join him now turned upon Miller and tried to cut off his retreat but Miller reached Tacna in safety and was there met by the news of the armistice of Punciauca during the suspension of hostilities Miller employed his time in drilling his raw troops while Ramírez collected 2000 men to oppose him Cochrane returned to Cayao leaving only three small transports at Areca which very soon followed him Miller left to himself was at the expiration of the armistice compelled to retreat to Areca where he seized four merchant vessels and embarked with those of his partisans who were most seriously compromised leaving his sick to the care of Laera who, grateful for the kindness shown by Miller to his prisoners gave them every possible attention a great contrast to the general procedure of the royalist leaders Miller now raised to the rank of Colnell sailed from Areca on the 22nd of July and being unable by reason of the heavy sea to land near Islaí for an attempt on Arequipa turned north and landed at Pisco after destroying a royalist force under Santaya he established himself at Ica and assumed command of the district as a diversion this expedition was more successful than could have been expected from the small force employed thanks to the brilliant qualities displayed by Miller in separate command greater results might have been achieved by the employment of a larger force but without reinforcements from Chile that could only have been accomplished at the expense of more important objects this campaign concluded with a disaster the San Martin already laden with booty had in defiance of the armistice seized a cargo of wheat at Moyendo and went to the bottom when discharging at Torreos a fate ominous of that which was soon to overtake her great namesake End of chapter 31 Chapter 32 of the Emancipation of South America by Bartolome Mitre translated by William Pilling this LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Piotr Natter Peru Independent 1821 on the 6th of July 1821 the Patriots entered Lima on the 24th of June was fought the Battle of Carabobo the Waterloo of the Royalists of Columbia San Martin's plan of a continental campaign was on the point of realization he from the south and Bolivar from the north converged to a common center the only troops which now upheld the standard of the king were those which still held the inhabitants of Peru the province of Quito and one isolated fortress soon about to surrender on the ocean only three vessels the remnant of the naval power of Spain crushed by Cochrane on the Pacific wandered to and fro like phantom ships the definitive triumph was but a question of time never before was plan on so vast a scale carried out with such mathematical precision a plan nevertheless sketched out in accordance with the designs of inevitable fate as was said by the first captain of the age and as was recorded by an American thinker quote all the great captains who have undertaken great imprises have carried them out in conformity with the rules of art adapting the force employed to the obstacle to be overcome knowing that events are not the work of chance but obey those laws which rule the destinies of man end quote when the two liberators of South America violated these laws one straying from the path the other blinded by ambition both fell one deliberately as he found himself wanting in strength to complete his mission the other cast down by the irresistible forces which he had arrayed against himself the emancipation of America was no longer in question the independence of Peru was assured whatever might be the errors of man or the vicissitudes of the struggle but this though clear to the superior minds which presided over the scene was not perceived by those more immediately concerned this was more especially the case in Peru where the idea of the revolution had as yet taken no deep root that spirit of nationality which would secure the triumph at any cost was not yet aroused San Martin sought to awaken this spirit by a solemn declaration of independence the position of San Martin was complex before America he stood as a liberator he was the arbiter of the destinies of Peru he was a general of two republics who had confided their arms to his care and as a great leader he was responsible to his conscience as he entered the quote city of the kings and quote in triumph he was at the apogee of his glory but as Rothschild the banker said it requires 10 times more skill and prudence to keep a fortune than to make one San Martin wrote to O'Higgins quote at last by patience we have compelled the enemy to abandon the capital of the pitharros at last our labors are crowned by seeing the independence of America secure Peru is free I now see before me the end of my public life and watch how I can leave this heavy charge in safe hands so that I may retire into some quiet corner and live as a man should live end quote his public declarations were also grave and moderate but the exaggerated importance he gave to the possession of Lima led him to abandon the highlands where lay the decision of the question and showed that to some extent his judgment was warped by success at the time of the occupation of Lima San Martin published in his camp a bulletin written by Monte Aguda which is a declaration of political principles and gives a reason for the policy which he pursued treating of the war as almost at an end he offers a restricted liberty for the establishment of order but makes no profession of political faith national independence being the only point which is definitely established on the 14th of July San Martin convened a meeting of the principal citizens of Lima nominated by the Cabildo at this meeting the following resolution was carried quote the general will is decided for the independence of Peru of Spanish domination or of that of any other foreign power end quote which declaration was sanctioned by the applause of the people on the 28th of July the independence of Peru was solemnly proclaimed with imposing ceremony in the great square of Lima San Martin displaying the new flag of Peru amid the roar of canon and the acclamations of the people who as the procession passed through the main streets of the city showered flowers and perfumes upon it Cochrane who looked on from a balcony of the vice regal palace was singled out for a special ovation by the populace medals commemorative of the occasion were afterwards distributed among the people San Martin sent back to Chile the flags captured at Rancagua and to Buenos Aires five flags and two Spanish standards as trophies of the victories of the united army while these pompous ceremonies went on the siege of Cayao was vigorously prosecuted by las eras who repulsed several sorties of the garrison but as he had no siege drain he could not venture an assault Cochrane offered to lend guns from the fleet but as the garrison had only provisions for two months more reliance was placed on a strict blockade the garrison seeing their situation desperate resolved to scuttle their ships and commenced by the Corvette San Sebastiano on which Cochrane wrote again to San Martin urging an immediate assault then perceiving a gap in the boom which surrounded the remaining ships he on the night of the 24th of July sent eight boats under Captain Crosby who cut out from under the batteries the 34 gun Corvette Resolution to smaller vessels and sundry boats without any loss on his part. On the 14th of August las eras made an attempt to capture the fortress by surprise he had noticed that the gates of the castle Real Felipe was frequently left open and the drawbridge is lowered the distance from his line to the walls was about 3000 yards which cavalry could cross at a gallop in 10 or 12 minutes a body of horse supported by infantry made a sudden rush from Bea Vista the center of his line, but in spite of their speed the enemy perceived them in time to raise the bridge leading to the inner fortifications the cavalry galloped through the streets of the town, sabered stragglers and made several prisoners among the latter being the wounded General Rikafot. On the same day Cochrane made overtures to the governor Lamar very unworthy of his Hein renown he had an idea that silver bullion to the value of 30 million of dollars was stored up in Cayao besides much property belonging to the wealthy Spaniards of Lima he proposed that Lamar should surrender the fortress to him and give him up one third the treasure engaging in return to furnished ships in which he and any he chose to take with him might escape with the rest of the treasure Cochrane states in his memoirs that he required the money to pay his cruise and denies that he had any ulterior objective but he himself acknowledges that if he had gained possession of the forts he would have forced San Martin to keep his promise to leave the Peruvians free to choose their own government the logical sequence of the declaration of independence was the establishment of a national government in Peru but it was of prime necessity that the new government should not only govern but should carry on the war there was great difficulty in organizing any such government as there was no social nucleus round which the heterogeneous population might gather and Peru had not one citizen who possessed either prestige or moral authority a deputation from the Cabir do of Lima waited upon San Martin praying him to take the reins of government in his own hands he answered somewhat enigmatically that circumstances had already given him the supreme power and he should keep it so long as he considered it necessary for the public welfare the Lautaro Lodge in which the majority were officers of the united army then addressed him to the same effect declaring that the public safety required him to place himself at the head of an administration on the 3rd of august 1821 he issued a decree whereby he gave himself the title of protector of Peru uniting in his own person the supreme administrative authority both military and political no one in the world except Cromwell had ever taken upon himself this title with this authority America alarmed thought he had done so from ambition and saw in him a future despot but she thought wrong, a dictatorship was necessary and in taking it he ensured the speedy loss of all his power the protector named Dr. Unanue a Peruvian of great reputed wisdom but of no experience his minister of finance García Del Rio minister of foreign affairs and Monte Agudo minister of war and marine Riva Aguero was named president of the department of Lima and Las Elas took command of the army Lacerna on receiving official notification of this step wrote to San Martín telling him with some irony that he thought the title of liberator suited him better than that of protector and that the people who had so spontaneously sworn to uphold the independence of Peru would just as readily swear to uphold the new Spanish constitution O'Higgins enthusiastically approved of it the only means of caring the great work they had both at heart to a successful termination the first official act as a protector was to issue a decree against the Spaniards drawn up by Monte Agudo and showing evidence of his intemperate spirit but it was also in accordance with the calculating spirit of San Martín on leaving Valparaiso San Martín had published a proclamation to quote the spanish Europeans resident in Peru declaring that he wished to behave generously to them providing they made no opposition to the independence of the country during the negotiations at Mira Flores and Punciauca he had endeavored to propitiate the Spanish civilians but when hostilities had again broken out and he was master of Lima this planetary behavior of the Spanish residents made him resolve to crush them he now declared the independence and properties of all Spaniards who would live in peace and swear the independence of the country should be respected that those who would not trust to his promise should ask for passports and should leave the country with their movable goods but that those who submitted to the government and secretly worked against it would be prosecuted with the utmost rigor of the law and their estates confiscated and wound up by saying no what passes in the most secret corners of your houses tremble if you abuse my indulgence let this be the last time that I have to remind you that your destiny is irrevocable and you must submit to it end quote public safety in no way justified such rigor which was a violation of promises given but there was more in this decree than excessive severity and in temperance of language it formed part of a financial plan war is war and the independence of South America was in great part paid for by Spanish fortunes rested from their owners by forced loans and by confiscations it was now the turn of the Spaniards of Peru to contribute their share San Martin had made use of this system in Mendoza he had recommended it in Chile sentimental characters do not lead great causes to victory in the struggle of life all the same the measure was unjustifiable in the absence of any overt act on the part of the Spaniards one result of this new system of persecution was the banishment of the Archbishop of Lima a man of eminent piety and 80 years of age who though a royalist had aided San Martin in quieting the city on his arrival he had authorized with his presence the municipal council declared the country independent he had assisted at the Tadeum which celebrated the declaration most of the Peruvian clergy were ardent patriots but not so the high dignitaries of the church San Martin took advantage of a mere pretext to send him his passport and an order to leave the country in 24 hours on the 4th of September 1821 when San Martin was protector of Peru in the apogee of his power his old enemy Jose Miguel Carrera died cursing him in Mendoza associated with Artigas Ramirez, Bustos and others of the Gaucho chieftains of the Argentine provinces Carrera had distinguished himself among them for rancorous hatred of Buenos Aires unfortunate in all his enterprises he was at length captured and shot as a bandit at the same bench where his brothers had perished before him end of chapter 32