Bolivia is a landlocked nation. In the 1830s it confederated with Peru freaking out Chile and Argentina. I bet the Chileans were not expecting a naval attack from Bolivia, but it was a time when you could set a bounty and attract foreign privateers. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
Here we have a naval battle scene and a seaman of the Chilean navy. The navy perhaps should have worked harder on their uniforms, this fellow looks more like he might be one of the privateers Chile was fighting. The Chilean Captain was British and the privateer Captain was French, so perhaps they were trying to imply someone from the area was involved in the battle.
Todays stamp is issue A440, a 100 Peso stamp issued by Chile on January 12, 1989, the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Casma. It was a four stamp issue that came out as two stamp pairs depicting battles from the War of Confederation. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 85 cents used.
Robert Simpson was born in England and was a teenage midshipman on the sloop HMS Rose under Lord Cochrane. A port call in Chile saw him jump ship to join the navy of newly independent Chile. It was an opportunity for rapid advancement and by age 21 he was a Captain. An example of how threadbare the operation was can be seen in his command of the American built 18 gun brigantine Araucano. Ordered to sail to California to buy supplies after raiding Spanish commerce off Acapulco, Simpson went ashore to handle transactions. The ship then mutinied under one of Simpson’s also British deputies and sailed around the pacific ocean before ending up as a pirate ship based out of Tahiti. The French authorities there eventually seized the ship and told Chile the ship was theirs if they would come get it. They never came for it.
Simpson returned to Chile after being stranded and given later commands. In the late 1830s, Simpson was commanding a three ship squadron that was trying to blockade the port of Lima during the war with the Confederation of Bolivia and Peru. A bounty of 200,000 Pesos was put on the Chilean squadron. A four small ship force of privateers responded to bounty under former French naval officer Juan Blanchet. We can probably deduce that 200,000 Pesos was more then than now. The Chilean squadron was caught in Casma bay but the bigger Chilean ships got the better of the fighting. The privateers’ flagship was captured and Blanchet killed. The other privateers than hoisted French flags and ran. Unfortunately in running they ran into a real French warship that did not appreciate their French flags and forced the privateer squadron to disband. Simpson was made a Commodore and many years later took Chilean citizenship.
The Chileans eventually also beat the confederation on the ground as well as at sea and the confederation between Peru and Bolivia ended. The leader of the confederation went into a European exile.
Well my drink is empty and I will pour another to toast Commodore Simpson. We can’t know if would have risen so high in the Royal Navy but he did manage to rule the seas, Britannia style, at least in the Bay of Casma. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.