Lynch Expedition

Beginning on 4 September 1880 and continuing for two months,[1] Lynch sailed north from Arica, and over the course of his raids, he captured resources and destroyed 4.7 million US dollars worth of Peruvian property.

This raid, he argued, would keep the fighting edge and the morale of the soldiers high, put pressure on Piérola to divert his forces from the south, collect taxes for Chile, and hopefully convince the Peruvian upper class to abandon the war.

[4] The expedition started on 4 September 1880, when Lynch and 2,600 men[5] of the 1st Line Regiment and the Batallones Colchagua and Talca boarded the Itata and the Copiapó at Arica.

[11] After leaving Chimbote, having occupied it until the 18th,[9] Lynch sent 400 men to the town of Sepa to intercept a wagon train of munitions, from which they destroyed 200,000 rounds of ammunition.

Some Chinese were assigned to Arturo Villaroel's special engineer unit, which helped defuse mines and open wells.

Lynch was portrayed as a liberator of slaves by Chilean media, which gleefully depicted the release and rage of the Chinese against Peru.

[12] In total, Lynch destroyed 4.7 million US dollars worth of Peruvian property, and took for Chile resources such as food and materials.