Due to the rough terrain and few transport methods it was imperative to have control of the ports in order to have a good supply source in the region.

The rest of the fleet was formed by the corvettes O'Higgins, Chacabuco, Abtao, and Esmeralda, the gunboat Magallanes, and the schooner Covadonga.

The rest of the fleet was completed by the corvette Unión, the gunboat Pilcomayo, and the coastal monitors Atahualpa and Manco Cápac, purchased from the United States at the end of the Civil War.

Due to their successes, the Huáscar, and her captain Miguel Grau Seminario, became the primary target for the Chilean navy.

In September 1879, the decision was made to launch a land invasion of Peru with the intention of sectioning off Callao and Arica.

The navy was split into two parts, under the control of Admiral Galvarino Riveros Cárdenas, and planned to blockade Callao and Arica.

By eliminating the most formidable Peruvian ship and Admiral Grau, the Chilean gained control of the sea, which they would retain for the remainder of the conflict.

[8] The blockade of Arica was conducted by the Chilean navy's ships Cochrane, Covadonga, and an unnamed armed transport, all three having arrived by December 7, 1879.

Lima was captured by Chilean land forces on December 17, 1880, and when the Peruvian navy got word of this, they scuttled all the ships that were still in Callao's port.