Local Memory of a Diplomatic Incident Prior to the War of the Pacific. The Case of Chilean Journalist Manuel Castro Ramos' Death (1874-1876)

Abstract

The death of the journalist Manuel Castro Ramos in May 1875 synthesizes the social, cultural and political complexity that existed in the port of Iquique during the previous decade to the War of the Pacific (1879-1883) and it has been established as an iconic reminder of local memory about this period. This event escalated to the diplomatic spheres of both countries and, later, it was registered in the literature as a conflict of a nationalist nature. However, from a historiographical analysis of primary and secondary sources, it has been possible to reveal other records of the "Castro Ramos case", demonstrating that it was closely related to the internal politics of Peru during the government of Manuel Pardo, especially with the Tarapaca resistance to his policies on the saltpeter industry.