The events of the engagement itself make this an interesting re-fight for the wargamer, especially if the respective commanders are carefully chosen to reflect the correct temperament. The game organiser or umpire may take the role of the commander of the Huascar if he wishes, as much of the interest centres upon the relationship between the two British commanders. Choosing a cautious player to command the Shah and a more aggressive one for the Amethyst should produce interesting results.

PEIROLA'S BRIEFING (HUASCAR)

You have led the mutiny which has turned the turret ship Huascar into a political pirate. After a few weeks of shelling ports and intercepting merchant shipping Up and down the coast of Peru, you find yourself being faced by a couple of British warships. They are both bigger, and better armed than your ship but neither is armoured, therefore you should not lose to them unless you allow them to come too close.

It is unlikely that they, can both be rammed or sufficiently damaged by gunfire, but if either is incapacitated it would be a major victory for your rebels and an embarrassment to the Peruvian government. Failing that, merely surviving until nightfall should allow you to hide amongst the merchant shipping outside the port of Ylo and slip away under the cover of darkness.

Absolute victory will be achieved by destroying a British ship and surviving to tell the tale. A minor victory is available by merely surviving.

ADMIRAL DE HORSEY'S BRIEFING (HMS SHAH)

You believe it is necessary to capture or force the surrender of the turret ship Huascar. Being well armoured in comparison to your two ships, it is likely that it could inflict heavy damage on your forces. Significant loss of life should be avoided at all costs. By keeping the range open you should be able to avoid casualties and prevent the turret ship from ramming you. (Heavy losses, or severe damage to a ship would be disastrous to national prestige in this politically volatile area.) You must also avoid damage to the town of Ylo, and therefore should be careful shooting when the town is behind the Huascar.

You have not been able to have a conference with Captain Chatfield and therefore you should maintain a tight control by signal.

Forcing the pirate to surrender, while keeping both of your ships seaworthy, will constitute a victory.

CAPTAIN CHATFIELD'S BRIEFING (HMS AMETHYST)

After four years cruising in South American waters you now have a highly efficient ship. Your sailing abilities are excellent and your gunnery highly proficient. The opportunity to put these to the test has arisen following the piratical behaviour of the Huascar. Although she is capable of damaging you greatly, and is heavily armoured against you own gunfire, you are confident that you can outsail her and, given the opportunity, board and capture her. Being instrumental in the capture of the Huascar would bring well-deserved recognition to yourself and your crew.

UMPIRE'S NOTES

This small action is excellent for those rules that go into great detail, identifying the location of each hit. At fleet level such rules tend to be unworkable, but for a small ship action they are likely to provide a realistic outcome. The more rapid firing of the Royal Navy should result in the steady deterioration of all unarmoured portions of the Huascar. Meanwhile events seem to justify a severe gunnery penalty on the Huascar, which suffered numerous misfires brought about by damp friction tubes, resulting in her repeatedly losing aim. (Friction tubes are small tubes of metal about 30 mm long and 2 or 3 mm diameter, filled with explosive. They are placed in the vent of the gun and when the gunner's lanyard is pulled they strike, like a match, to ignite the shell's propellant. Unlike a match, they contain enough explosive to blow off a man's hand.) But the real challenge will be between the two British commnders, to see whether one is able to board, while his superior is desperately unwilling to risk casualties.

The action should be fought in coastal waters with a significant risk of the Shah being caught on shallows if careless. The town of Ylo should be represented and possible damage to the town by either British ship should count against them politically.

At right: The Shah fires a broadside at the Huascar which is attempting a ramming run. On the horizon the Amethyst attempts to close.

What if...

For those who might prefer a more conventional wargame, with less involvement of the commanders' personalities, we might speculate what would have happened if the Peruvian navy had met the Huascar in action. The RN logs report that the Peruvian squadron consisted of an ironclad, a monitor, a corvette and a gunboat. These would have been the Independencia, the Atahualpa, the Union and the Pilcomayo. Their details are given in table 2. The Atahualpa was an old US monitor, and due to her slow speed was being towed by other ships. De Horsey wrote in early May: 'The monitor "Atahualpa" appeared quite unseaworthy, being only 8 inches water. I shall not be astonished to hear of an accident to that boat. I understand that the towing hawsers of the monitor carried away, and that in consequence of the heavy swell they had been unable to take her in tow again.'

The Union was a French-built commerce raider destined for the Confederate States but instead sold on to Peru. The Pilcomayo was a barque-rigged boat with a single funnel, built on the Thames. Sources differ as to her armament, and the Conway's description has been given in the table.

THE HUASCAR

This ship was to see more action only two years later, in the war between Chile and Peru. In this war, the small number of ships on either side fought a series of actions, easily playable as a short campaign. A description of these events, and ideas for a larger game, will be the subject of the next article about the Huascar.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

All the World's Fighting Ships 1860 - 1905, Conway Maritime Press, London, 1979
P Riley Memories of a Blue-Jacket, Sampson Low, London (n.d.)
H W Wilson Battleships in Action, Vol. 1, -Sampson Low, London (n.d.)

Captain's Logs

HMS Shah, 14 August 1876 to 19 September 1877, (Public Records Office reference ADM53-11121)
HMS Amethyst, 17 September 1876 to 20 September 1877, (PRO ref. ADM53-10881) Admiralty Pacific C-in-C, 1877. (PRO ref. ADM1-6414)

More IronClad Pirate

Ironclad Pirate Huascar: Historical Overview
Ironclad Pirate Huascar: Ship Specifications
Ironclad Pirate Huascar: Wargaming the Battle
Ironclad Pirate Huascar: Preserved Ship in Chile