Manuel Elías Bonnemaison Torres (

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

, March 27, 1862 – February 17, 1961) was a Peruvian sailor and ambassador. He was the last survivor of the

battle of Angamos The Battle of Angamos () was a naval encounter of the War of the Pacific fought between the navies of Chile and Perú at Punta Angamos, on 8 October 1879. The battle was the culminating point of a naval campaign that lasted about five months i ...

Early life

Manuel Elías Bonnemaison Torres was the son of Gumercinda Torres and Juan Elías Bonnemaison, an engineer. He married Paulina Tarnassi, having children.

Military career

He was a student at the Naval School, where he studied until obtaining the rank of

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

in 1879. He participated in the naval campaign of the War of the Pacific. Embarked in the Huáscar, as an aspiring navy, he attended all the Huáscar raids up to the Naval Combat of Angamos. After Angamos, he remained a prisoner in Chile until January 1880. Returning to active service, he embarked on the

capture of the steamer Rímac Capture may refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Capture", a song by Simon Townshend * Capture (band), an Australian electronicore band previously known as Capture the Crown * ''Capture'' (TV series), a reality show Television episodes * "Chapter ...

, assisting in the bombing of

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists ...

and commanding the launches "Amo", "Urcos" and "Independencia". When the defense of Lima began, he was transferred to "El Pino" Hill, as head of the southern battery, attending the

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 ...

Diplomatic career

Years after the war, he studied engineering in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and served in the Peruvian legation in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. From 1904 to 1921 he was consul general in Buenos Aires and in 1929 minister plenipotentiary in China and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. From June 2, 1925 to August 9, 1929, he was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in La Paz. In 1945 he was consul general second class in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. In the last years of his life he was honored as the last survivor of Angamos, and due to him being a witness of the battle, he was considered as a primary source, although details were later found to be erroneous. He inaugurated the monument to his superior,

Miguel Grau Miguel María Grau Seminario (27 July 1834 – 8 October 1879) was a Peruvian Navy officer and politician best known for his actions during the War of the Pacific. He was nicknamed "Gentleman of the Seas" for his kind and chivalrous treatment ...

, in the square named after him in the centre of Lima.

References

{{reflist 1862 births 1961 deaths Diplomats from Lima Military personnel from Lima Ambassadors of Peru to China Ambassadors of Peru to Japan Ambassadors of Peru to Bolivia Peruvian military personnel of the War of the Pacific

Early life

Military career

Diplomatic career

See also

References