Day 142 - The Battle of Pari

The Battle of the Pari

This year, 2016, marks the 200^th anniversary of one of the bloodiest battles in the quest for independence in the Americas.  November 21, 1816 the forces of Ignacio Warnes, with his army from Argentina marched on Santa Cruz.  So today is the 200th anniversary of that important battle.

The other day I had the pleasure of dining with a group of Bolivian teachers from my school.  One man, José, teaches the Guarani language and Bolivian history.  I was telling him that a plaza near my house had just finished a mural depicting the Battle of Pari.  That led him to tell me about the battle.  I knew so little about it.  Actually I knew two facts.  It took place in 1816 and it was near the River Pirai.

Statue of Ignacio Warnes in the Plaza 24 de Septiembre

The history of independence of Spanish America is long and complicated.  Napoleon invaded Spain and set up his brother as king.  A rebel government fought against him in Southern Spain and that government tried to keep the vast colonies that stretched from the southern tip of South America to California, Colorado, and Texas in the north.  Brazil broke away from Portugal at this time.  Haiti broke away from France.  Following the lead of the newly independent United States, Spanish America revolted.  The problem was that Spain had kept their colonies separate, so they could never be united, even when they all desired independence.  Where would the capital be?  Havana?  Mexico City?  Buenos Aires? Lima?  The region is vastly different from place to place.  It could never be united and is why it is fragmented into two dozen countries today.

By 1816 the rebel forces were being pushed out of what is now Bolivia.  Warnes was sent north from Argentina to defeat the royalists.  He was a military man through and through.  His troops were well-organized and well-disciplined.  He could get them to march through rough forest or difficult mountainous terrain with ease.  And thus, he ended up at the gates of Santa Cruz de la Sierra in November 2016 with 1200 rebel fighters.

General Aguilera, who had just defeated Cochabamba at the Battle of Viluma, was sent to stop Warnes’ advance.  Many of his troops were veterans of the war with Napoleon.  So they had fought against, and defeated, the most powerful military machine of their time.  A force of 1600 men, including 500 cavalry and 2 artillery, were dispatched to defeat the rebels.

For seven hours, they fought on the plains outside of Santa Cruz.  As I am driving with José, he says, “This is the very spot the battle took place.”

“Do you mean here, where our car is at this moment?”

“Yes, this is where the battle took place.”

That sent a chill down my spine.  El Pari was a wide meadow stretching from the outskirts of Santa Cruz to the River Pirai.  Today it is prime real estate along the Fourth Ring.

It turned out to be the bloodiest battle out of all the battles of the American revolutions.  The American Revolution that created the United States saw 4000 total deaths.  The Battle of Pari saw over 2000 deaths.  Only a few hundred walked away from the battle alive.

Warnes was defeated.  On the battle field, he was declared an enemy and traitor to Spain.  He was beheaded.  Laughing in glee, the royalist troops who survived, only 200 in number, rode back into Santa Cruz with his head on a spike, where it was mounted for all to see what happens to enemies of the King of Spain in the Plaza Principal.

In the middle of the night, while one girl flirted with the troops to keep their eyes of the enemy’s head, another girl stole Warnes’ head.  She hid it in her home, not revealing she had it until after Bolivia won its independence a decade later.

I once lived on Calle Pari in Santa Cruz.  When it crosses Rene Moreno it changes its name to Warnes.  I never knew there was a connection between the two.  Today I realize Warnes died in the Battle of El Pari. 

Today, you can visit the Plaza 24 de Septiembre, the plaza that I talk about so often, and see a beautiful statue of Colonel Warnes.  Before tonight I saw a lovely statue and enjoyed he pigeons and flowering trees.  Now I will always go to the statue of Ignacio Warnes, understanding why it stands in the middle of this plaza.  He fought to free this people.  Two hundred years later, he is appreciated by me, someone who honors men who die for the freedom of others. 

So this is for you, Ignacio Warnes!