Huáscar (ironclad)
Huáscar is an ironclad turret ship built in Britain for Peru in the 1860s. Her price was a bit more than £81,000 pounds sterling. She was the flagship of the Peruvian Navy and participated in the Battle of Pacocha and the War of the Pacific of 1879–1883 before being captured and commissioned into the Chilean Navy. Today she is one of the few surviving ships of her type. The ship has been restored and is currently commissioned as a memorial ship. She is named after the 16th-century Inca emperor, Huáscar.
Technical Details
Captain Cowper Coles, about his masterpiece, the Huáscar, wrote:
The British magazine Engineering, July 4, 1879, page 11, on the Peruvian ironclad turret ship Huascar writes:
Historical details
Career (Peru)
Her first years
Huáscar was ordered by the government of Peru from John Laird Sons & Company in 1864 for the war against Spain. Laird House had extensive experience of these advanced ships, designing and building the Laird Rams. She was launched in Birkenhead on 7 October 1865.
Huáscar
Huáscar Inca (Quechua: Waskar Inka, of uncertain meaning, said to be related to his birthplace Huascarpata; 1503–1532) was Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire from 1527 to 1532 AD, succeeding his father Huayna Capac and brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Quito.
The actual events that brought about Huáscar's succession are unclear. Conflicting factions and the fact that the Spanish chroniclers' accounts stemmed from the winners of the ensuing civil war led to conflicting versions of what actually happened. Thus although Huayna Capac named the infant Ninan Cuyochi as his first heir, sources differ as to whether the boy died first, was unacceptable because of an unfavorable divination, or even if Huayna simply forgot that he had named him when asked to confirm the nomination. In any event a second choice was requested and again sources vary. He may have named Huáscar's half-brother Atahualpa who then refused, or named Huáscar himself, or perhaps even the nobles put forward Huáscar. Whatever the truth, the result of Huáscar's accession and the dispute over it before and after led to civil war between Huáscar (made Emperor by a faction based in Cuzco) and Atahualpa (backed by leaders who were based in the north with Huayna).
Huéscar
Huéscar (Latin: Osca) is a municipality of the province of Granada, Spain.
History
When the Iberian Peninsula was conquered by Rome, Osca was a town of the Turdetani, and incorporated into the Roman province of Hispania Baetica. However, purportedly ancient coins from this town are not genuine.
Between 1809 and 1981, Huéscar was at war with Denmark, as a result of the Napoleonic wars over Spain, where Denmark supported the French Empire. This official declaration of war was forgotten until it was discovered by a local historian in 1981, followed by the signing of a peace treaty on 11 November 1981 by the city mayor and the Ambassador of Denmark. Not a single shot was fired during the 172 years of war, and nobody was killed or injured.
Main sights
The main landmark is the Collegiate Church of St. Mary the Major, designed by Diego de Siloé in the 16th century.
Sister cities
Huéscar is twinned with:
Kolding, Denmark, since 1982See also
References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "article name needed". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.
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