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The Hero and His Legacy.

On 16 May, the Fleet left for El Callao, planning to surprise the Peruvian ships, but simultaneously, that very same day, the peruvian ships, monitor "Huáscar", the ironclad frigate "Independencia", and the transports "Oroya" and "Chalaco" sailed from El Callao for Arica, in order to bring in reinforcement, armament, munition and supplies. Both fleets passed by without sighting each other.

Once in Arica, Captain Miguel Grau, Captain of "Huáscar", learned that there were only two chilean ships blockading Iquique, whose inferiority was immense if compared with the "Huáscar" and the "Independencia"; and that a convoy carrying 2,500 Chilean troops had left Valparaiso for Antofagasta. His plan was then to sink the Chilean ships, end the blockade of Iquique, and attack the convoy to seize the ships, troops, armament, and supplies. His secondary objective was to destroy the water hauling machine at Antofagasta, in order to put an end to the water supply for the troops quartered there.

In the early hours of the 21 May 1879, the two peruvian ships made their arrival at the bay of Iquique, the monitor "Huáscar" and the ironclad frigate "Independencia", that engaged the chilean corvette "Esmeralda" and the schooner "Covadonga" at the Naval Combat of Iquique, and the Naval Combat of Punta Gruesa, respectively.

None of such combats will be narrated in this biography, as they are described separately under their names in section Antecedentes Históricos/Acciones Navales, but some of the relevant actions will be pointed out to explain and justify the patriotic zeal that has been generated by Arturo Prat, the outstanding Navy Officer and hero.

Though the potential was rather different, Arturo Prat instead of assuming the correct logical standpoint; that is, that victory was not possible, and therefore, the best possible action was to surrender, choose the hardest course of action, and that was to defy death and engage in combat without surrendering.

His words to the crew before the combat were the following:

"Men, the combat is difficult, but courage! and come! Our flag has never surrendered before the enemy, and I expect this will not be the case for this to happen. As for myself, I can assure you that this flag will wave as long as I live, and if I die my officers will know how to fulfill their duty".

Such words are like a message from beyond the grave, and they have passed from generation to generation as the invaluable sign of "be victorious or die" among the Chilean traditions. They are engraved in all the steering wheels of Chilean warships, and have been honored by the other Armed Services.

Prat's daring boarding of the monitor "Huáscar", and his death on the deck of the enemy ship, reinforced his crew's decision to combat until death, although outnumbered and with a gap that got wider from moment to moment. His daring motivated Lieutenant Ignacio Serrano and twelve sailors, who tried to board the monitor for a second time. It was also the example for Midshipman Ernesto Riquelme, who while the "Esmeralda" sunk and water was reaching his feet, fired a last shot, that would not change things, pero implied that the chileans would die fighting.

In Iquique Chile lost an old ship, but it was the beginning of the victory to be achieved in the War of the Pacific, because the death of Prat and one hundred and thirty nine men, created such a mistique that inspired men to do great sacrifices for their Motherland. So it was ratified at the Naval Combat of Angamos, the attack and seizure of Pisagua, the battle of Tarapacá, the battle of Campo de la Alianza, the seizure of the Arica hillock, the battles of Chorrillos and Miraflores, and the combat of La Concepción.

Chile is more than right to revere Prat and his comrades, who pointed the way to victory and whose example inspires the current generations, and will continue to do so with the future ones.

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