Qualla: Battle of Abtao https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao en-us © 2026 Bendyline Wed, 08 Jul 2026 02:39:57 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_res/siteimages/rsslogo.png Qualla: Battle of Abtao https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao Battle of Abtao: Introduction https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao/ The shallows did the work the guns could not. On February 7, 1866, two Spanish frigates appeared off the little island of Abtao in the Gulf of Ancud and stopped, unwilling to risk their hulls in the treacherous, shoal-laced channel where a Peruvian-Chilean fleet lay waiting. For two hours the squadrons hurled iron at each other across more than a thousand meters of water—roughly 1,500 rounds from each side—while the allied ships sat protected behind the island like a hand cupped around a flame. The Spanish gunnery was the better of the two. It made no difference. They could not get in.

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]]> Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/6/2/e/f/battle-of-abtao-wp/62ef-battle-of-abtao-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Battle of Abtao: The Long Way South https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao/ The fleet had nearly destroyed itself just getting there. In January 1866, during the Chincha Islands War against Spain, a combined Peruvian-Chilean squadron convoyed south from the port of Ancud toward the shipyards on Abtao, a speck of land at the head of the southern Chiloé Ar...

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]]> Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/6/2/e/f/battle-of-abtao-wp/62ef-battle-of-abtao-the-long-way-south.mp3 0:06 2 full Battle of Abtao: A Trap Made of Water https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao/ Three days later the Spanish came. The frigates Villa de Madrid and Reina Blanca arrived off the inlet but hesitated at the sight of the shoals. When they finally began edging through the widest channel, allied commander Manuel Villar gave the order to fire. His ships—Apurímac, A...

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]]> Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/6/2/e/f/battle-of-abtao-wp/62ef-battle-of-abtao-a-trap-made-of-water.mp3 0:06 3 full Battle of Abtao: Two Hours, Then Silence https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao/ The duel settled into a grinding exchange. The América was struck six times, the Unión three—two of her crewmen killed at their stations—and the Covadonga once. The allied gunners gave back better than the casualty count suggests: the Spanish ships absorbed fourteen hits, most of...

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]]> Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/6/2/e/f/battle-of-abtao-wp/62ef-battle-of-abtao-two-hours-then-silence.mp3 0:06 4 full Battle of Abtao: Comrades, and Then Enemies https://qualla.com/battle-of-abtao/ The most lasting thing about Abtao is not who won but who was there. Aboard the allied ships served two young lieutenants whose names would later become legend across the Pacific: Arturo Prat of Chile and Miguel Grau of Peru. At Abtao they fought on the same side, comrades in a s...

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]]> Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/6/2/e/f/battle-of-abtao-wp/62ef-battle-of-abtao-comrades-and-then-enemies.mp3 0:06 5 full