Policarpo Toro Hurtado (born in

Melipilla Melipilla (Mapudungun for "four Pillans") is a Chilean commune and capital city of the province of the same name, located in the Santiago Metropolitan Region southwest of the nation's capital. The commune spans an area of . Demographics Acco ...

, Chile on February 6, 1851 – died 1921 in

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

) was a Chilean naval officer. He enlisted in the

Chilean Navy The Chilean Navy ( es, Armada de Chile) is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso. History Origins and the War ...

in 1871 and visited

Easter Island Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its nearl ...

in 1875. From 1877 to 1879, he joined the English Navy as a second lieutenant. In 1879, as the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...

started, he asked to return to Chile and participated in several actions. In 1883, he visited Easter Island a second time and elaborated in a document the economic advantages to Chile in acquiring the island. With government approval, he visited the island in 1887. After a year of negotiations with the islanders under

Atamu Tekena Atamu Tekena or Atamu te Kena, full name Atamu Maurata Te Kena ʻAo Tahi (c. 1850 – August 1892) was the penultimate ‘Ariki or King of Rapa Nui (i.e. Easter Island) from 1883 until his death. He was appointed as the ruler in 1883 by the Fre ...

, on September 9, 1888, he took possession of the island on behalf of Chile. In 1891, he refused to participate in naval actions against

José Manuel Balmaceda José Manuel Emiliano Balmaceda Fernández (; July 19, 1840 – September 19, 1891) served as the 10th President of Chile from September 18, 1886, to August 29, 1891. Balmaceda was part of the Castilian-Basque aristocracy in Chile. While he was ...

's government in the

1891 Chilean Civil War The Chilean Civil War of 1891 (also known as Revolution of 1891) was a civil war in Chile fought between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the President, José Manuel Balmaceda from 16 January 1891 to 18 September 1891. The wa ...

and was separated from the Army. In 1893, in the general amnesty enacted by the new government, he was pensioned. He died in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

in 1921.

Sources

*https://web.archive.org/web/20080211103355/http://www.armada.cl/site/tradicion_historia/historia/biografias/235ptoro.htm *http://www.icarito.cl//medio/articulo/0,0,38035857_172985981_182488343_1,00.html *https://web.archive.org/web/20080228212905/http://www.ligamar.cl/revis5/69.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Toro, Policarpo 1851 births 1921 deaths Chilean Navy officers Chilean Navy personnel of the War of the Pacific 19th-century Chilean Navy personnel