USS Oneota, a coastal monitor

Monitor (warship)

A monitor was a class of relatively small warship which was neither fast nor strongly armoured but carried disproportionately large guns. They were used by some navies from the 1860s until the end of World War II, and saw their final use by the United States Navy during the Vietnam War.The monitors...

 built at Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

, by Alexander Swift & Co., and by the Niles Works, was launched 21 May 1864.

Completed shortly after the end of the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, on 10 June 1865, Oneota was laid up until sold to her builder, Alexander Swift and Co., 13 April 1868, and illegally resold to Peru

Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....

. The selling of the Oneota and her sister-ship violated a treaty the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 had signed with Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. Though the sale was allowed to proceed Swift and Co. had to pay fines that equaled nearly ⅓ of the total sale amount.

BAP Manco Cápac

The monitor served the Peruvian Navy

Peruvian Navy

The Peruvian Navy is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to 200 nautical miles from the Peruvian littoral...

 as Manco Cápac, named after Manco Cápac

Manco Capac

Manco Cápac was the legendary first Sapa Inca of the Kingdom of Cusco and a figure of Inca mythology. There are several versions of his origin story, which connect him to the foundation of Cusco.- Inti legend :In one myth, Manco Cápac was a son of the sun god Inti and Mama Quilla, and brother of...

, the first king of the Kingdom of Cuzco

Cusco Region

Cusco is a region in Peru. It is bordered by the Ucayali Region on the north; the Madre de Dios and Puno regions on the east; the Arequipa Region on the south; and the Apurímac, Ayacucho and Junín regions on the west...

 which would grow into the Inca Empire

Inca Empire

The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...

.

In 1879, disagreements over nitrate-rich lands led Chile

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...

 to go to war

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...

 with Bolivia

Bolivia

Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...

 and Peru. The Chileans opened with a blockade 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...

 on 5 April by the ironclads and along with unarmored warships. On 21 May, the Chileans prepared to attack the Peruvian fleet at Callao

Callao

Callao is the largest and most important port in Peru. The city is coterminous with the Constitutional Province of Callao, the only province of the Callao Region. Callao is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that holds almost...

, but there they found only the monitors Atahualpa

USS Catawba (1864)

USS Catawba was a Canonicus-class monitor built for the American Civil War; but completed too late to see action in that conflict. To help finance the Reconstruction, Catawba was sold to Peru.-Construction and sale:...

 and Manco Cápac; the seagoing ironclads were missing. They turned up at Iquique the same day, scattering the Chilean wooden vessels left on guard there despite poor Peruvian gunnery. During the three day battle at Iquique, the Manco Cápac left Callao for Arica

Arica

Arica is a city in northern Chile. "Arica" may also refer to:Places* Arica and Parinacota Region, Chile* Arica Airport , Chile* Arica, Amazonas, town in Colombia* Rio Aricá-açu, tributary of the Cuiabá River south of Cuiabá, BrazilOther...

 on 3 August, arriving four days later.

On 8 October 1879, the Chilean fleet caught the Peruvian ironclad Huáscar

Huáscar (ship)

Huáscar is a 19th century small armoured turret ship of a type similar to a monitor. She was built in Britain for Peru and played a significant role in the battle of Pacocha and the War of the Pacific against Chile before being captured and commissioned with the Chilean Navy. Today she is one of...

 resulting Battle of Angamos Peninsula

Battle of Angamos

The Battle of Angamos was fought on October 8, 1879, during the naval stage of the War of the Pacific . The Chilean Navy, commanded by Captain Galvarino Riveros and Captain Juan Jose Latorre surrounded and captured the ironclad Huáscar, commanded by Rear Admiral Miguel Grau Seminario, who died in...

. The Huáscar was finally captured after being riddled by Chilean gunnery. Repaired and under Chilean command, on 27 February 1880 the Huáscar attacked the Peruvians at Arica, fighting an inconclusive duel with the Manco Cápac. The Chilean fleet continued to bombard Arica until the army closed in on the city from the rear; the city fell on June 7 after a quick and short battle and the Manco Cápac was scuttled to prevent capture.

Discovery

The sunken hulk still exists and is mostly intact, being discovered in 1960 by divers, these are located three miles west of the mouth of the San Jose river and 15.7 meters deep.

In June 2007 he presented a 35-minute documentary, directed by Miguel Vasquez, Manco Cápac, la última Estela, made with a budget of U.S. $ 10000 for people in Arica (amateur actors) and academics from the University of Tarapacá in Arica, Chile.

External links

• navsource.org: USS Oneota