Peru and the British naval station (1808-1839)
Abstract
The
protection of
British interests in the Pacific
was the basic
reason to
detach
a number of
Royal Navy's
vessels to that Ocean during the Nineteenth
Century. There
were several British interests in the area, and an assorted number of
Britons
established
in Spanish America
since the beginning
of the struggle
for
Independence. Amongst them, merchants was perhaps the most
important
and
influential
group, pressing on their government
for
protection to their trade. As
soon as
independence
reached the western coast of
America,
a new space was
created
for British
presence.
First Valparaiso
and afterwards
Callao, British
merchants were soon
firmly
established
in that part of
South America. As had
happened in the Atlantic
coast, their claims
for
protection were attended
by
the
British
government through the Pacific Squadron,
under the flag
of the
Commander-in-Chief
of the South American Station,
until
1837,
when
it
was
raised to a separate Station.
During the period covered
by this research
(1808-1839), Peru
came
through three crucial moments: the Wars
of
Independence, the initial
years as a
republic, and
its
confederation with
Bolivia
under the rule of
Santa Cruz.
Accordingly, the country shifted
from being
ruled
by
a strong authority, as the
viceroy; to became
a
highly
unstable republic,
first because the War
of
Independence itself,
and afterwards
by
reason of
internal disputes
amongst the
military.
British
merchants already established in Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires
and
Valparaiso,
considered
Peruvian
as a very profitable market, and consequently
tried by
every possible way to open
it to foreign trade. Following the
independence, in 1821, this market was officially opened,
but it did
not matched
what
British
merchants expected.
Potential buyers
were too small
in
number and a
reaction
from local
merchants proved efficient enough to maintain a
high taxation
on
foreign
goods.
Even
when
British
merchants reacted against these official
policy, namely
Protectionism, they were unable to obtain a more aggressive
support
from their government.
Other British interests in Peru
were
built
around a
loan
granted
by
a number of
British investors in 1822,
and some
further
investments
on mining.
Even
when this time was a period
in
which
Great Britain
had
achieved a paramount position
in industry,
commerce, naval and several other
fields, its
government maintained
its
policy of
"free hands" towards the new
republics
in America. Consequently, British
consular agents, as well as
British
Captains, devoted their mains efforts to
kept British trade as safe as possible, and
to protect their national
from
abuses committed
by local
authorities.
This thesis aims to study
how
well the Royal Navy, through the Pacific
Squadron
and afterwards the Pacific Station,
protected
British
subjects and
interests in Peru, between 1808
and
1839. The
research
focused in the
effectiveness of that naval presence,
discussing how it
was affected
by local
circumstances, the number of vessels available, the urgencies of transport of
treasure and the limitations
associated to operate without a shore
base.
Type
Thesis, PhD Doctor of Philosophy
Collections
Items in the St Andrews Research Repository are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.