Manuel Baquedano
General-in-Chief, Chilean Army
"To Lima, and let nothing stop us."
Biography
The soldier who conquered Peru on land, Manuel Baquedano rose to command Chile's army after the naval victory at Angamos opened the coast to invasion. A cavalryman by training and an aggressive, straightforward commander, he won the war's decisive land battles — smashing the allied army at Tacna, storming the Morro de Arica, and driving through the fortified lines of Chorrillos and Miraflores to capture Lima itself in January 1881. His campaigns, though often bloody frontal affairs, delivered total victory, and he returned to Chile a national hero. He later served briefly as provisional president during the 1891 civil war. His mounted statue stands at the centre of Santiago, and the plaza around it — long the symbolic heart of the capital — bears his name.
Did you know?
Plaza Baquedano in Santiago, built around his equestrian statue, remains the traditional gathering place for the city's celebrations and protests to this day.
Key Battles
Battle of Tacna (Alto de la Alianza)
Chile victoryMay 26, 1880 · 7,000 total casualties
Tacna shattered the last major allied field army and effectively knocked Bolivia out of the war for good — after this defeat Bolivia never again fielded an army, and the conflict became a war between Chile and Peru alone.
Battle of Arica (Morro de Arica)
Chile victoryJune 7, 1880 · 3,000 total casualties
The fall of Arica completed Chile's conquest of the southern Peruvian coast and its nitrate wealth. Bolognesi's defiant stand made him Peru's national military hero, the counterpart to Chile's Prat.
Battle of Chorrillos
Chile victoryJanuary 13, 1881 · 11,000 total casualties
Chorrillos broke the main Peruvian defence of Lima; the destruction and looting that followed left lasting bitterness. Only the Miraflores lines now stood between Chile and the capital.
Battle of Miraflores
Chile victoryJanuary 15, 1881 · 6,000 total casualties
The fall of Lima was the climax of the war, but not its end: rather than surrender, Peruvian patriots under Cáceres carried on a two-year guerrilla resistance in the mountains against the Chilean occupation.
Life Journey
Timeline
January 1, 1823
🌅 Birth
Born in Santiago
May 1880
⚔️ Battle
Wins the decisive battle of Tacna
January 1881
⚔️ Battle
Captures Lima
September 30, 1897
✝️ Death
Dies in Santiago