Roberto Silva Renard
Encyclopedia
Roberto Silva Renard was a Chile
an military and political figure who served in the War of the Pacific
and the Chilean Civil War
. He is mostly remembered as the military chief that carried out the Santa María of Iquique School massacre in 1907, where more than 2,000 striking saltpeter
miners, along with their wives and children, were killed.
. During that war he fought at the battles of Tacna
, Chorrillos
and Miraflores
After the war, Silva Renard was sent to study artillery in Europa, and served as an adjunct in the German Army for five years. During the Chilean Civil War
, he was one of the few army officers to join the congressional army, with the rank of major
, and fought with distinction at the battles of Concón and Placilla. After the war, he was rewarded with a promotion to Lieutenant Colonel.
. These workers had been fired upon by army soldiers sent to force them back to work. He absolved the soldiers from any misconduct, claiming that the real guilty party had been the workers by promoting disorders.
On September 17, 1904 he was in charge of the troops that put down another (unrelated) strike at the Chile nitrate works. As a consequence of his intervention, 13 workers died and another 32 were injured.
. By the time that the march arrived peacefully to La Moneda presidential palace, it had swelled to more than 40,000 people. The original intention of the organizers was to ask for an audience and hand a petition to president German Riesco
, but the people started to grow impatient and when the President did not appear (he was not at the palace that day, being sick at home) this was the spark that started the violence. The police tried to disperse them, but they fought back and tried to storm the presidential palace. The police responded by shooting at the crowd, and riots ensued.
After the mob failed in their initial attack, they spread through the city. The violence lasted for almost a week, in what was called the meat riots or the "red week". The rioters looted stores and businesses, killing anyone who looked upper class. The police was overwhelmed and quite powerless (and in some cases, even passively supporting the rioters.) The army was called in, but it was away from the city, on military maneuvers. It only managed to arrived on October 24, under the command of Lt. Colonel Silva Renard, who immediately imposed martial law upon the city. The riots lasted until October 27, and between 200 and 250 people were killed over this period, while more than 500 were injured while the financial losses were staggering.
broke out in Tarapacá Province. This was the start of the 18 Pence Strike , the name referring to the size of the wage being demanded by the nitrate miners. On December 16, thousands of striking workers arrived at the provincial capital, the port city of Iquique
, in support of the nitrate miners' demands and with the aim of prodding the authorities to act. Previous entreaties to the government, in particular petitions presented by delegations in 1901, 1903, and 1904, had been fruitless.
The national government in Santiago sent extra regiments by land and sea to reinforce the two regiments stationed in Iquique. President Pedro Montt
appointed General Silva Renard to handle the situation. Silva Renard, under confidential orders from the minister of the Interior
, Rafael Sotomayor
, was ordered to use all necessary means to force the miners to dissolve and return to work.
More and more worker contingents joined the strike by the day. It has been estimated that by December 21 the strikers in Iquique numbered ten to twelve thousand. Soon after the journeys to Iquique began, this great conglomeration of workers met at the Manuel Montt plaza and at the Santa María School, asking the government to mediate between them and the bosses of the foreign (English) nitrate firms to resolve their demands. For their part, the bosses refused to negotiate until the workers went back to work.
The arrival at the port December 19 of the titular intendant, Carlos Eastman Quiroga, of General Silva Renard, chief of the First Military Zone of the Chilean Army, and of Colonel Sinforoso Ledesma was cheered by the workers because a nitrate miners' petition to the government nearly two years earlier, under the previous president, had received an encouraging response, although the demands had not been satisfied. But the interior ministry felt no solidarity with the demands of the strikers. The ministry relayed orders to the strikers to leave the plaza and the school and gather at the horse racing track, where they were to board trains and return to work. They refused, sensing that if they went back to work, their requests would be ignored.
In the face of the growing tension between the groups, on December 20, 1907 the strikers' representatives held a meeting with Intendant Eastman. Simultaneously, a decree published in the press announced the declaration of a state of siege, which entailed the suspension of constitutional rights. While the meeting with Intendant Eastman was taking place in the "Buenaventura nitrate works", a group of workers and their families tried to leave the spot, but troops opened fire on them by the railroad tracks and kept shooting. As a result, six workers died and the rest of the group was wounded.
The funerals of the slain workers were held the next day, December 21, 1907. Immediately at their conclusion, all workers were ordered to leave the school premises and vicinity and relocate to the Club Hípico (horsetrack). The workers refused to go, fearing they might be bombarded by the guns of warships which were lined up alongside the road they would have to travel. At 2:30 in the afternoon, General Silva Renard told the leaders of the workers' committee that if the strikers did not start heading back to work within one hour, the troops would open fire on them. The workers' leaders refused to go, and only a small group of strikers left the plaza.
At the hour indicated by Silva Renard, he ordered the soldiers to shoot the workers' leaders, who were on the school's roof, and they fell dead with the first volley. Elías Lafferte, who witnessed the events, tells:
The multitude, desperate and trying to escape, surged toward the soldiers, and were fired upon with rifles and machine guns. After a period of firing from the Manuel Montt plaza, the troops stormed the school grounds with machine guns, firing into the school's playgrounds and classrooms, killing in a frenzy without regard to the women and children screaming for mercy. The survivors of the massacre were brought at saber point to the Club Hípico, whence they were sent back to work, where they were subjected to a reign of terror.
arrived in Chile from Argentina
decided to revenge himself. Ramón finally took action seven years later and bought a dagger and some strychnine
.
He found General Silva Renard walking alone to his office, on December 14, 1914, and stabbed him seven times on his back and head. The General started shouting “Murderer! Murderer!” and several passersby came to his help. Ramón, in turn, stopped the attack and tried to run away, only to be captured by an off-duty prison guard. When Ramón saw himself surrounded and all escapes blocked, he drank the bottle of strychnine he was carrying, but vomited most of it and was unharmed. Once in custody, Ramón vehemently denied other parties' involvement in the assassination, while the worker's organizations held public campaigns to raise money for his defense. He was eventually sentenced to five years in prison.
Silva Renard lived his last days in Viña del Mar
where he died in 1920. His remains were buried with full honors at the General Cemetery of Santiago. He was honored post-mortem by giving his name to the Artillery Regiment Nº 3 stationed in Concepción
. In 2007, his name was removed as part of the 100th anniversary remembrance events of the Santa María School massacres.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an military and political figure who served in the War of the Pacific
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific took place in western South America from 1879 through 1883. Chile fought against Bolivia and Peru. Despite cooperation among the three nations in the war against Spain, disputes soon arose over the mineral-rich Peruvian provinces of Tarapaca, Tacna, and Arica, and the...
and the Chilean Civil War
Chilean Civil War
The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...
. He is mostly remembered as the military chief that carried out the Santa María of Iquique School massacre in 1907, where more than 2,000 striking saltpeter
Sodium nitrate
Sodium nitrate is the chemical compound with the formula NaNO3. This salt, also known as Chile saltpeter or Peru saltpeter to distinguish it from ordinary saltpeter, potassium nitrate, is a white solid which is very soluble in water...
miners, along with their wives and children, were killed.
Early career
Silva Renard began his military career in 1879, when he joined the artillery corps at the beginning of the War of the PacificWar of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific took place in western South America from 1879 through 1883. Chile fought against Bolivia and Peru. Despite cooperation among the three nations in the war against Spain, disputes soon arose over the mineral-rich Peruvian provinces of Tarapaca, Tacna, and Arica, and the...
. During that war he fought at the battles of Tacna
Battle of Tacna
The Battle of Tacna, also known as the Battle of Alliance Heights , effectively destroyed the Peru-Bolivian alliance against Chile, forged by a secret treaty between both countries signed on 1873...
, Chorrillos
Battle of Chorrillos
The Battle of Chorrillos, also known as the Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos, was the first of the two battles of the Lima Campaign during the War of the Pacific, and was fought on January 13, 1881. This battle is really a group of a smaller, yet fierce confrontations at the defensive strongholds...
and Miraflores
Battle of Miraflores
The Battle of Miraflores occurred on January 15, 1881 in the Miraflores District of Lima, Peru. It was an important battle during the War of the Pacific that was fought between Chile and the forces of Peru. The Chilean army led by Gen. Manuel Baquedano defeated the army commanded by Nicolás de...
After the war, Silva Renard was sent to study artillery in Europa, and served as an adjunct in the German Army for five years. During the Chilean Civil War
Chilean Civil War
The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...
, he was one of the few army officers to join the congressional army, with the rank of major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
, and fought with distinction at the battles of Concón and Placilla. After the war, he was rewarded with a promotion to Lieutenant Colonel.
Political participation
Silva Renard was a firm believer in the absolute power of the central government. In 1903, Silva Renard was the military attorney in charge of the investigation into the deaths and injuries of striking workers at the port of ValparaísoValparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
. These workers had been fired upon by army soldiers sent to force them back to work. He absolved the soldiers from any misconduct, claiming that the real guilty party had been the workers by promoting disorders.
On September 17, 1904 he was in charge of the troops that put down another (unrelated) strike at the Chile nitrate works. As a consequence of his intervention, 13 workers died and another 32 were injured.
Meat riots
A march to protest against the high price of meat took place on October 22, 1905 in SantiagoSantiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
. By the time that the march arrived peacefully to La Moneda presidential palace, it had swelled to more than 40,000 people. The original intention of the organizers was to ask for an audience and hand a petition to president German Riesco
Germán Riesco
Germán Riesco Errázuriz was a Chilean political figure, and he served as President of Chile between 1901 and 1906.-Early life:...
, but the people started to grow impatient and when the President did not appear (he was not at the palace that day, being sick at home) this was the spark that started the violence. The police tried to disperse them, but they fought back and tried to storm the presidential palace. The police responded by shooting at the crowd, and riots ensued.
After the mob failed in their initial attack, they spread through the city. The violence lasted for almost a week, in what was called the meat riots or the "red week". The rioters looted stores and businesses, killing anyone who looked upper class. The police was overwhelmed and quite powerless (and in some cases, even passively supporting the rioters.) The army was called in, but it was away from the city, on military maneuvers. It only managed to arrived on October 24, under the command of Lt. Colonel Silva Renard, who immediately imposed martial law upon the city. The riots lasted until October 27, and between 200 and 250 people were killed over this period, while more than 500 were injured while the financial losses were staggering.
Santa María of Iquique School massacre
On December 10, 1907, a general strikeGeneral strike
A general strike is a strike action by a critical mass of the labour force in a city, region, or country. While a general strike can be for political goals, economic goals, or both, it tends to gain its momentum from the ideological or class sympathies of the participants...
broke out in Tarapacá Province. This was the start of the 18 Pence Strike , the name referring to the size of the wage being demanded by the nitrate miners. On December 16, thousands of striking workers arrived at the provincial capital, the port city of Iquique
Iquique
Iquique is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Atacama Desert and the Pampa del Tamarugal. It had a population of 216,419 as of the 2002 census...
, in support of the nitrate miners' demands and with the aim of prodding the authorities to act. Previous entreaties to the government, in particular petitions presented by delegations in 1901, 1903, and 1904, had been fruitless.
The national government in Santiago sent extra regiments by land and sea to reinforce the two regiments stationed in Iquique. President Pedro Montt
Pedro Montt
Pedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910...
appointed General Silva Renard to handle the situation. Silva Renard, under confidential orders from the minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior (Chile)
The Ministry of the Interior and Public Security is the cabinet-level administrative office in charge of "maintaining public order, security and social peace" within Chile. It is also charged with planning, directing, coordinating, executing, controlling, and informing the domestic policies...
, Rafael Sotomayor
Rafael Sotomayor Gaete
Rafael Segundo Sotomayor Gaete was a Chilean politician and several times minister.He was born in Cauquenes, the son of Rafael Sotomayor Baeza and of Pabla del Carmen Gaete Ruiz. He studied at the Instituto Nacional and later graduated as a lawyer from the Universidad de Chile on January 7, 1871...
, was ordered to use all necessary means to force the miners to dissolve and return to work.
More and more worker contingents joined the strike by the day. It has been estimated that by December 21 the strikers in Iquique numbered ten to twelve thousand. Soon after the journeys to Iquique began, this great conglomeration of workers met at the Manuel Montt plaza and at the Santa María School, asking the government to mediate between them and the bosses of the foreign (English) nitrate firms to resolve their demands. For their part, the bosses refused to negotiate until the workers went back to work.
The arrival at the port December 19 of the titular intendant, Carlos Eastman Quiroga, of General Silva Renard, chief of the First Military Zone of the Chilean Army, and of Colonel Sinforoso Ledesma was cheered by the workers because a nitrate miners' petition to the government nearly two years earlier, under the previous president, had received an encouraging response, although the demands had not been satisfied. But the interior ministry felt no solidarity with the demands of the strikers. The ministry relayed orders to the strikers to leave the plaza and the school and gather at the horse racing track, where they were to board trains and return to work. They refused, sensing that if they went back to work, their requests would be ignored.
In the face of the growing tension between the groups, on December 20, 1907 the strikers' representatives held a meeting with Intendant Eastman. Simultaneously, a decree published in the press announced the declaration of a state of siege, which entailed the suspension of constitutional rights. While the meeting with Intendant Eastman was taking place in the "Buenaventura nitrate works", a group of workers and their families tried to leave the spot, but troops opened fire on them by the railroad tracks and kept shooting. As a result, six workers died and the rest of the group was wounded.
At the hour indicated by Silva Renard, he ordered the soldiers to shoot the workers' leaders, who were on the school's roof, and they fell dead with the first volley. Elías Lafferte, who witnessed the events, tells:
The multitude, desperate and trying to escape, surged toward the soldiers, and were fired upon with rifles and machine guns. After a period of firing from the Manuel Montt plaza, the troops stormed the school grounds with machine guns, firing into the school's playgrounds and classrooms, killing in a frenzy without regard to the women and children screaming for mercy. The survivors of the massacre were brought at saber point to the Club Hípico, whence they were sent back to work, where they were subjected to a reign of terror.
Assassination attempt
Among the dead at the Santa María massacre was Manuel Vaca, a Spanish immigrant worker. His half-brother, Antonio RamónAntonio Ramón
Antonio Ramón Ramón was a Spanish anarchist. He was born in the town of Molvizar, in Granada, Spain.-Santa María of Iquique School massacre:The bloodiest massacre in Chile’s history occurred on December 21, 1907...
arrived in Chile from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
decided to revenge himself. Ramón finally took action seven years later and bought a dagger and some strychnine
Strychnine
Strychnine is a highly toxic , colorless crystalline alkaloid used as a pesticide, particularly for killing small vertebrates such as birds and rodents. Strychnine causes muscular convulsions and eventually death through asphyxia or sheer exhaustion...
.
He found General Silva Renard walking alone to his office, on December 14, 1914, and stabbed him seven times on his back and head. The General started shouting “Murderer! Murderer!” and several passersby came to his help. Ramón, in turn, stopped the attack and tried to run away, only to be captured by an off-duty prison guard. When Ramón saw himself surrounded and all escapes blocked, he drank the bottle of strychnine he was carrying, but vomited most of it and was unharmed. Once in custody, Ramón vehemently denied other parties' involvement in the assassination, while the worker's organizations held public campaigns to raise money for his defense. He was eventually sentenced to five years in prison.
Aftermath
General Silva Renard survived the attack, but suffered permanent effects from the injuries: he lost all movement on half of his face, became blind, and was mostly an invalid until his death in 1920. Ramón was released in 1919 and all track of him was lost after that time.Silva Renard lived his last days in Viña del Mar
Viña del Mar
Viña del Mar , is a city and commune on central Chile's Pacific coast. Its long stretches of white sandy beaches are a major attraction for national and international tourists. The city is Chile's main tourist attraction. Known as "La Ciudad Jardín" , Viña del Mar is a Chilean Municipality located...
where he died in 1920. His remains were buried with full honors at the General Cemetery of Santiago. He was honored post-mortem by giving his name to the Artillery Regiment Nº 3 stationed in Concepción
Concepción, Chile
Concepción is a city in Chile, capital of Concepción Province and of the Biobío Region or Region VIII. Greater Concepción is the second-largest conurbation in the country, with 889,725 inhabitants...
. In 2007, his name was removed as part of the 100th anniversary remembrance events of the Santa María School massacres.
See also
- Pedro MonttPedro MonttPedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910...
- Rafael Sotomayor GaeteRafael Sotomayor GaeteRafael Segundo Sotomayor Gaete was a Chilean politician and several times minister.He was born in Cauquenes, the son of Rafael Sotomayor Baeza and of Pabla del Carmen Gaete Ruiz. He studied at the Instituto Nacional and later graduated as a lawyer from the Universidad de Chile on January 7, 1871...
- Meat riotsMeat riotsThe Meat riots in Santiago, Chile in October 1905 were the earliest and one of the biggest riots to take place in Chile.-Background:The price of meat was kept artificially high by the government, by means of the combination of a special tariff applied to cattle imports from Argentina, in order to...
- Santa María de Iquique Massacre