+10

Huascar Battleship Museum

Attractions Museums and Art Galleries Tours Culture & History Tours Theme Tours Sightseeing Tours

Commissioned to build Laird Brothers, Birkenhead, Poplar on Thames, in England, in 1864, according to the design of Captain Cowper Coles of the Royal Navy, under the 'Ericsson' model. His construction contract was signed on August 12, 1864, between Ship Captain José María Salcedo, representing the government of Peru, and the Laird Brothers shipyards.

Its hull was number 321, it was double-bottomed and divided into five watertight compartments, by four iron bulkheads 5/8 'thick, with watertight doors. The bow was reinforced and provided with a ram and the plate-protected deck 2 'thick.

The 300-pound (10 ') guns were advanced loading mounted on a circular rotating tower installed in a creak, designed by Captain Navy Cowper Coles of the Royal Navy.

It had a 4.5 'thick side shell in the center of the ship, which decreased to 2.5' to the bow and stern and extended to 3 '6 'below the water line, at maximum displacement. The armor of the tower was 5 1/2 '.

Launched on water on October 7, 1865. Completed in December 1865. Sailed from England on January 20, 1866, failing to arrive for the War against Spain.

He participated in the intestinal wars of Peru and as a rebel he faced the English ships 'Amesthyst' and 'Sha' in Ilo, when he was shot at a torpedo, which the monitor eluded. It is the brightest ship of the Peruvian Navy in 1879, during the Pacific War, commanded by Admiral Miguel Grau Seminary, distinguished and brave sailor of that nation. On May 21, 1879, the Chilean corvette 'Esmeralda' sank in the Naval Combat of Iquique.

Captured by Chile in the Naval Battle of Angamos, on October 8, 1879, in which his Commander, Admiral Miguel Grau, died.

He operated the rest of the Pacific War under the Chilean flag, standing out in the canyon of Arica and the death of Manuel Thomson Porto Mariño and in the blockade of El Callao. In 1885 four boilers were installed in the Lever, Murphy & Co. shipyards of Caleta de la Barca, (today Caleta Abarca), a steam engine to move the cannon tower, a new propeller designed by Laird Brothers shipyards, He installed a new chimney slightly higher than the original one and the smoke boxes and chimney lugs were renovated. The roof of the entrepuente was renewed and planks were changed on the upper deck. The double bottom and the machines were also repaired.

In 1887, a horizontal two-cylinder steam engine, built by Morrison, was installed to move the artillery tower. Later, during the Civil War of 1891, he participated in the contest on the side of the congressmen. He was part of the Squad until 1897, when he was discharged in Talcahuano by the explosion of a boiler. It was restored as a historical relic in 1934, being painted gray and yellow. Four salute cannons were installed in the ailerons of the bridge and the insignia of the Commander in Chief of the Second Naval Zone is raised, a tradition that has continued to date.

Between 1951 and 1952, thanks to the initiative, perseverance and push of the Commander in Chief of the Second Naval Zone, Rear Admiral Pedro Espina Ritchie, the total restoration of the monitor begins, with the intention of leaving it as it looked in 1878, and that it became a sanctuary in which the Naval Glories of Chile and Peru will be venerated. The work was facilitated by finding numerous objects, furniture, accessories, etc., which were in perfect condition in the Warehouses of the Naval Arsenal of Talcahuano.

To this finding, countless people and institutions from the province of Concepción were added, who cooperated with this restoration work, providing relics, pictures of naval heroes of the Naval Fights of Iquique and Punta Gruesa, the Naval Battle of Angamos and the Arica's cannon. The restoration was carried out always thinking of the glories lived by the Armed Forces of Chile and Peru, this is how the Portraits of Arturo Prat, Miguel Grau and Manuel Thomson, the three Commanders who died on their decks were installed in the House of the Commander.

In what was the Department of Calderas, a portrait gallery and an Oratory duly authorized by the Archbishop of Concepción, Monsignor Alfredo Silva Santiago, are installed, thus giving a special and imperishable spirit of being a place of honor and veneration to those who offered his life for his country, and not a simple war trophy.

On October 8, 1952, commemorative date of the Naval Battle of Angamos, the restoration of the monitor was officially inaugurated, converted into a sanctuary of the Naval Glories of Chile and Peru. Between 1971 and 1972, the Commander in Chief of the Second Naval Zone, Rear Admiral Carlos Chubretovich, decides to undertake the second stage of the restoration.

Between 1971 and 1972, the Commander-in-Chief of the Second Naval Zone, Rear Admiral Carlos Chubretovich, decided to undertake the second stage of the restoration, since the monitor needed urgent repairs on its hull and structure. The work was carried out by Shipyards and Masters of the Navy of Talcahuano and directed personally by its Director, Captain Gerald Wood. The monitor was entered in dry dock and its hull completely refurbished, as well as all its machinery was reconstituted, so that it could be observed by visitors, through original plans obtained in England.

From that date, the monitor continues with a strict maintenance program, which ensures its conservation for many more years, so that it can continue to be not only a relic, but a floating sanctuary to the Naval Glories of Chile and Peru. In 1995, the World Ship Trust awarded the Chilean Navy the 'Maritime Heritage Award' for the excellent restoration of the 'Huáscar' and for the testimony it represents for Chile and Peru.

The monitor is anchored in the Bay of Conception, military port of Talcahuano, in front of the building of the Commander in Chief of the Second Naval Zone. The Commander in Chief of the Second Naval Zone has arranged the following schedule for visiting the general public, to this historic vessel: Tuesday to Sunday from 09.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and from 1.30 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.