Clemente de Lantaño
Encyclopedia
Clemente de Lantaño Pino (b. ca. 1774, Chillán
, d. in Chillán) was a royalist military officer during the Chilean War of Independence. Later, during the Spanish reconquest, he changed sides and fought for independence against the royalist forces.
Before the beginning of the war, Lantaño was simply a well-connected large estate owner of Ñuble Province
. In 1814 Spanish Brigadier Gabino Gaínza
put him in command of one of his main guerrilla columns, with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
He participated in the Battle of El Roble
, the Battle of Membrillar
and the Disaster of Rancagua
, among other military actions. But the capture in 1814 of the Carrera brothers, José Miguel
and Luis
, was what made him famous within the army.
After the Battle of Maipú
in 1818, he continued fighting with the royalists on the south shore of the Río Bío-Bío
until he accompanied Colonel Juan Francisco Sánchez in the exhausting retreat to Valdivia
in 1819. From there he went on to Peru by sea in order to continue serving the royalist cause.
In Peru he was welcomed by Viceroy Joaquín de la Pezuela
. In 1821, before the arrival of the rebel forces of José de San Martín
, the viceroy ordered him to prepare the defense of the Department of Ancash
. Against the forces that he organized in Huaraz
, the rebels sent troops from Supe under the command of Colonel Enrique Compino. The attackers surprised the city. Lantaño was taken prisoner and sent back to Chile.
Bernardo O'Higgins
, who knew him before the revolution (because both were powerful neighbors in the same province), offered to recognize his rank if he joined the patriot army. Lantaño, apparently convinced of the hopelessness of the royalist cause, accepted the offer.
He was commissioned the same year to mediate with the royal governor of Chiloé, Antonio de Quintanilla. Lantaño proposed in the name of the government of Santiago the incorporation of the archipelago of the recently created Chilean Republic, trying to convince Quintanilla of the inevitable defeat of Spanish arms in Chile. The mission, however, was unsuccessful, because Quintanilla did not accept Lantaño's view of the situation.
Returning to the territory held by the rebels, he fought in the Guerra a muerte
(War to the Death, or the final phase of the Chilean War of Independence), together with Captain Manuel Bulnes
. In 1821 he negotiated the surrender of the royalist camp at Quilapalo. In 1823 he led a punitive expedition
against the guerrillas of the Pincheira brothers in the mountains of Ñuble.
Chillán
Chillán is a city in the Biobío Region of Chile located about south of the country's capital, Santiago, near the geographical center of the country. It is the capital of Ñuble Province and, with a population of approximately 170,000 people , the most populated urban center of this province...
, d. in Chillán) was a royalist military officer during the Chilean War of Independence. Later, during the Spanish reconquest, he changed sides and fought for independence against the royalist forces.
Before the beginning of the war, Lantaño was simply a well-connected large estate owner of Ñuble Province
Ñuble Province
Ñuble Province is one of four provinces of the Chilean region of Biobío . It spans an area of and is administratively constituted by 21 communes. It has a population of 441,604 inhabitants. Its capital is the city of Chillán.-History:...
. In 1814 Spanish Brigadier Gabino Gaínza
Gabino Gaínza
Gabino or Gavino Gaínza y Fernández de Medrano was a Spanish military officer and politician in Spain's American colonies. During the Latin American wars of independence, he initially fought on the royalist side, in Chile...
put him in command of one of his main guerrilla columns, with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
He participated in the Battle of El Roble
Battle of El Roble
The Battle of El Roble was fought on the Itata river, 17 October 1813, between the Chilean patriot general José Miguel Carrera and Spanish royalist forces under the command ofClemente Lantaño and de Luis Urrejola...
, the Battle of Membrillar
Battle of Membrillar
The battle of Membrillar occurred on 20 March 1814, during the War of Chilean Independence.- Background :Prior to the fall of Talca in early March, Juan Mackenna had been positioned along the Itata river with a small division of patriot troops, whilst Bernardo O'Higgins had remained with the main...
and the Disaster of Rancagua
Disaster of Rancagua
The Battle of Rancagua, also known as the Disaster of Rancagua occurred in October 1814 when the Spanish under Mariano Osorio defeated rebel Chilean forces....
, among other military actions. But the capture in 1814 of the Carrera brothers, José Miguel
José Miguel Carrera
José Miguel Carrera Verdugo was a Chilean general, member of the prominent Carrera family, and considered one of the founders of independent Chile. Carrera was the most important leader of the Chilean War of Independence during the period of the Patria Vieja...
and Luis
Luis Carrera
Colonel Luis Florentino Juan Manuel Silvestre de los Dolores de la Carrera y Verdugo was a Chilean military officer who fought in the Chilean War of Independence. Together with his brothers José Miguel and Juan José, they were some of most important leaders of Chilean struggle for independence...
, was what made him famous within the army.
After the Battle of Maipú
Battle of Maipú
The Battle of Maipú was a battle fought near Santiago, Chile on April 5, 1818 between South American rebels and Spanish royalists, during the Chilean War of Independence...
in 1818, he continued fighting with the royalists on the south shore of the Río Bío-Bío
Bío-Bío River
The Biobío River is the second largest river in Chile. It originates from Icalma and Galletué lakes in the Andes and flows 380 km to the Gulf of Arauco on the Pacific Ocean....
until he accompanied Colonel Juan Francisco Sánchez in the exhausting retreat to Valdivia
Valdivia, Chile
Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...
in 1819. From there he went on to Peru by sea in order to continue serving the royalist cause.
In Peru he was welcomed by Viceroy Joaquín de la Pezuela
Joaquín de la Pezuela
Joaquín de la Pezuela Griñán y Sánchez Muñoz de Velasco, 1st marquis of Viluma was a Spanish military officer and viceroy of Peru during the War of Independence.-Background:...
. In 1821, before the arrival of the rebel forces of José de San Martín
José de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
, the viceroy ordered him to prepare the defense of the Department of Ancash
Ancash Region
Ancash is a region in northern Peru. It is bordered by the La Libertad region on the north, the Huánuco and Pasco regions on the east, the Lima region on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital is the city of Huaraz, and its largest city and port is Chimbote...
. Against the forces that he organized in Huaraz
Huaraz
Huaraz is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the Departmento de Ancash and the seat of government of the Provincia de Huaraz . The urban agglomerations population is distributed over the districts of Huaraz and Independencia. It was estimated in 2007 to exceed 120,000...
, the rebels sent troops from Supe under the command of Colonel Enrique Compino. The attackers surprised the city. Lantaño was taken prisoner and sent back to Chile.
Bernardo O'Higgins
Bernardo O'Higgins
Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme was a Chilean independence leader who, together with José de San Martín, freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. Although he was the second Supreme Director of Chile , he is considered one of Chile's founding fathers, as he was the first holder...
, who knew him before the revolution (because both were powerful neighbors in the same province), offered to recognize his rank if he joined the patriot army. Lantaño, apparently convinced of the hopelessness of the royalist cause, accepted the offer.
He was commissioned the same year to mediate with the royal governor of Chiloé, Antonio de Quintanilla. Lantaño proposed in the name of the government of Santiago the incorporation of the archipelago of the recently created Chilean Republic, trying to convince Quintanilla of the inevitable defeat of Spanish arms in Chile. The mission, however, was unsuccessful, because Quintanilla did not accept Lantaño's view of the situation.
Returning to the territory held by the rebels, he fought in the Guerra a muerte
Guerra a muerte
Guerra a muerte is a term coined by Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna used in Chilean historiography to describe the irregular, no-quarter warfare that broke out from 1819 to 1821 during the Chilean War of Independence...
(War to the Death, or the final phase of the Chilean War of Independence), together with Captain Manuel Bulnes
Manuel Bulnes
-Sources:* Juan B. Alberdi, Biografia de general Bulnes...
. In 1821 he negotiated the surrender of the royalist camp at Quilapalo. In 1823 he led a punitive expedition
Punitive expedition
A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a state or any group of persons outside the borders of the punishing state. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong behavior, but may be also be a covered revenge...
against the guerrillas of the Pincheira brothers in the mountains of Ñuble.