Nicolás de Piérola Takes Charge in the Field

Possibly around November 18th, 1880, Paul Boyton dispatched an officer to meet with the Peruvian dictator, Nicolás de Piérola. Paul wanted to take his torpedo crew down to Pisco where he expected the Chileans would attempt to land troops. Piérola reportedly responded "Impatience is a bad counselor. Wait for orders." Meanwhile, the Chilean General, Jose A. Villagran, landed at Curayaco and then seized Chilca.

Piérola left the government in Lima to Senor La Puerta and took command of the army in the field, his headquarters located in Chorrillos. Piérola would soon realize the results of his year's preparation for war. Theodorus Mason, an American observer, said that Piérola was not wanting in zeal or in personal courage.

Piérola's troops numbered 20,000 combatants, with half of them native Indians without any military education, and the other half volunteers answering a patriotic call. The Chileans on the other hand were describe as an organized body of men led mostly by foreign officers, well drilled and disciplined.

The Peruvian army lacked suitable equipment, partly because of the blockade of Callao. Clothed poorly, many wore homemade sandals of raw leather. With the Peruvian Navy decimated or captured, the army could not move swiftly by sea.

The Peruvians resorted to making their own cannons, designed by Grieve, an engineer. They carried rifles from Europe and the United States...Remington’s, Peabody-Martinis, Evans, and Winchester rifles, often rusted and badly oiled. The better-equipped cavalry rode poor quality mounts. The artillery units struggled with obsolete or recently manufactured and untested guns. The military defeats in the south created poor morale and rumors circulated that the army would not fight or would flee.

Refugees flooded out of Lima, a city with poor defenses. Only a few redoubts armed with heavy guns, and a few batteries located on the hills to the south of the city afforded any protection.

Resources
Mason, Theodorus B. M. 1885. The War of the Pacific Coast of South America Between Chile and the Allied Republics of Peru and Bolivia. 1879-'81. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.