''San Telmo'' ("Saint Peter González" or "Saint

Erasmus of Formia Erasmus of Formia, also known as Saint Elmo (died ), was a Christianity, Christian saint and Christian martyrs, martyr. He is venerated as the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain. Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, s ...

") was a Spanish 74-gun

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

, launched in 1788. It sank in 1819, while bringing reinforcements to

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

during the

war of independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...

. Based on the location where it was lost, it has been speculated that survivors may have reached

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

History

In 1819, the ''San Telmo'', commanded by Captain Joaquín de Toledo y Parra, was the flagship of a Spanish naval squadron under Brigadier Rosendo Porlier y Asteguieta bound for

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 ...

, Peru, to reinforce colonial forces there fighting the independence movements in

Spanish America Spanish America refers to the Spanish territories in the Americas during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The term "Spanish America" was specifically used during the territories' Spanish Empire, imperial era between 15th and 19th centur ...

. It was damaged by severe weather in the

Drake Passage The Drake Passage is the body of water between South America's Cape Horn, Chile, Argentina, and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica. It connects the southwestern part of the Atlantic Ocean (Scotia Sea) with the southeastern part of the Pa ...

, south of

Cape Horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

on 2 September 1819, and sank with all 644 people on board.

Legacy

Some remnants and signs of the wreckage were later found by William Smith on

Livingston Island Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetland Islands, South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands north of the ...

in the

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands located in the Drake Passage with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the n ...

, located on the Antarctic

continental shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an islan ...

. If any crew members survived the initial sinking and managed to land there, they would have been the first people to reach the continent. San Telmo Island, off the north coast of Livingston Island, is named after the ship. Prior to the battle that led to the

capture of Valdivia The Capture of Valdivia () was a battle in the Chilean War of Independence between Royalist forces commanded by Colonel Manuel Montoya and Fausto del Hoyo and the Patriot forces under the command of Thomas Cochrane and Jorge Beauchef, held on ...

in February 1820, the patriot force told the Spanish garrison of the Valdivian Fort System they were part of the convoy of ''San Telmo''. Using this tactic they were able to approach the beach at Aguada del Inglés largely undisturbed before their amphibious assault begun.

References

External links

El San Telmo. Una historia sin final.
{{coord, 62, 20, S, 60, 30, W, region:AQ_type:landmark_scale:300000, display=title History of Antarctica Ships of the Spanish Navy Colonial Peru Maritime incidents in 1819 Livingston Island Shipwrecks in the Southern Ocean 1819 in Antarctica 1788 ships Spain and the Antarctic 1819 in the Spanish Empire

History

Legacy

See also

References

External links