Loreto (Spanish pronunciation:[loˈɾeto]) is adepartment of Peru. Covering almost one-third of Peru's territory, it is Peru's largest and northernmost department, occupying a large part ofthe country's portion of theAmazon rainforest. Slightly smaller thanJapan orGermany, it is also one of the most sparsely populated regions due to its remote location in the region. Its capital isIquitos.
The territory of Maynas was first incorporated into Peru as part of theDepartment of La Libertad until 1825. On November 21, 1832, theDepartment of Amazonas was created, which included the province. This subdivision was granted autonomy through by a law issued byRamón Castilla on March 10, 1853, and was ultimately elevated to a department on September 7, 1866.
The first settlers in the region expanded through the various eastern slopes of theAndes. Many of theseethnic groups settled in the Purús, Turúa and Yaraví river basins, receiving names different from those of their lineage.
It is hard to determine the number ofindigenous peoples in the region when the first European explorers and missionaries arrived. Numbers given by chroniclers indicate that within the first century of contact, 100,000natives were baptized. Presumably, when theSpanish arrived, the total population was almost 300,000. Later on, however, the natives were afflicted with diseases such assmallpox,malaria, andyellow fever, due to contact with the Spaniards.
It is argued that upon thearrival of the Spanish in America, various exogenous diseases—such asmalaria—spread throughout theAmazon rainforest and the rest of the continent, decimating the indigenous population or at least significantly reducing it. During this period,Francisco de Orellana arrived in the area, departing from the city ofGuayaquil on February 4, 1541. After reachingQuito, he reorganized his expedition and advanced into the jungle, navigating theNapo River to its mouth, where he discovered theAmazon River in 1542.[1]
TheSpanish Crown failed to impose its dominion in the region as it did in theAndes. The territory was part of theViceroyalty of Peru from its inception, then became part of theViceroyalty of New Granada for a period under ten years, before returning to the Viceroyalty of Peru. During its time inGran Colombia, it was unable to establishde facto control from Quito; evenJesuit,Dominican andFranciscan missionaries departed to evangelize the various ethnic groups from the city ofMoyobamba, which belonged to theRoyal Audiencia of Lima. During these years, they contributed by opening travel routes and cutting down distances between Indian and Spanish settlements. This ecclesiastical presence was also the only significant Spanish presence in the Amazonian lowlands at that time and even until the founding of the republic. When the missions fell, a long period of relative national neglect followed, encompassing most of the 19th century. What would becomeIquitos was founded in the 1750s.
Following the establishment of a Peruvian state in 1821, what would later become the department of Loreto was central to two territorial disputes:one involving Colombia, which ended in 1934, andanother one involving Ecuador, which ended in 1999. Maynas seceded from Spain following a21-month military campaign that concluded in 1823.[3]
"Department of Quijos and Maynas" redirects here. For other uses of the term, seeMaynas.
TheDepartment of Quijos and Maynas (Spanish:Departamento de Quijos y Maynas)[a] was established through a Supreme Decree on April 26, 1822.[2][4][6] Prior to its creation, its territory had been administered by thedepartment of Trujillo. Its capital wasMoyobamba.[7] It was the site of a pro-Royalist sublevation following its establishment in 1822, which ultimately failed as Moyobamba was again occupied by troops of thePeruvian Army headed byJosé Nicolás Arriola [es] on September 25.[5] Shortly after the rebellion was suppressed, its first governor was named.[5]
Maynas was administered with ambiguity and without a clear political demarcation due to the confusion caused by theuti possidetis agreement of 1810.[5] In Republican Peru, the name simply referred to an area mentioned by Torre Tagle's decree that mentioned a population of 15,000 people which allegedly had produced adeputy to represent them at thefirst Congress of the country.[5] During its existence, it was administered by a total of two governors:[5]
Its territory was reincorporated into the department of Trujillo in 1825.[5][4][6] At the time, Carlos del Castillo had been appointed as deputy representing the province within the department inCongress.[5]
In 1828, the territorial dispute over the territory led to afull-scale war between Peru andColombia.[8] This had been preceded by the official visit ofJoaquín Mosquera in 1822, where he requested that Peru return Maynas to Colombia. On July 25, 1824, theCongress of Gran Colombia passed a territorial division law, intending to include the Canton of Quijos within the province of Pichincha in the department of Quito, according to its boundaries at the time of the creation of the Viceroyalty of New Granada. It also intended to incorporate the provinces ofJaén de Bracamoros and Maynas into thedepartment of Azuay.
On November 1, 1832, the territory made up of the provinces of Chachapoyas and Maynas were separated from the department of La Libertad to form thedepartment of Amazonas, whose prefecture headquarters was established in the city ofChachapoyas. The province of Maynas was separated from the prefecture of Amazonas on March 10, 1853. On April 15, it was renamed theProvincia Fluvial de Loreto and, on July 7, 1857, Moyobamba was made the capital of Loreto province.[6] In 1961, it was made a Maritime and Military Government (Spanish:Departamento Marítimo y Militar).
On September 7. 1866, the department was created, with its capital in Moyobamba. During the late 19th century, therubber boom led to a 25-year period of prosperity, as the area was the centre of worldwide interest at the time. The city ofIquitos prospered as one of the most important centres of latex export at the expense of the department's capital,Moyobamba. Additionally, the feeling of abandonment by the Peruvian government, as well as threats from neighbouring countries had contributed to the development of a feeling of disconnect from the rest of Peru among the local population.[9][10][11] During the electoral campaign during the1895 Peruvian presidential election, candidateNicolás de Piérola had expressed his support in implanting thefederalist system in the country. However, after becoming the president, Piérola had supported the centralist system instead.[9] These events eventually led to the localsrevolting against the government in 1896.
TheFederal State of Loreto (Spanish:Estado Federal de Loreto) was the unrecognised government body proclaimed byinsurrect locals, withIquitos as its capital.[9][10] Its goal was to gain more autonomy for the region as well as to reform Peru into afederal state. The proclamation was made on May 2, 1896, by colonel Ricardo Seminario y Aramburú and soldier Mariano José Madueño. On May 8, the state had signed a provisional constitution, which stated that it was an integral part of Peru, subject to its constitution. By June 2, the movement had spread to the cities ofYurimaguas andMoyobamba. Following that, political organizations and public offices were established in those cities.[9][10][11]
Loretan insurrects in 1896.
News about the proclamation reachedLima on May 18, 1896. The information came fromRio de Janeiro, being relayed throughPará. Piérola ordered the rerouting of three expeditions to counterattack the insurgents. The two of them were land campaigns. One—led by army colonels Eduardo Jessup and Emilio Vizcarra[12][13]—travelled fromChiclayo toCajamarca, following the river to reach Moyobamba. Another one travelled by railway and then by boat on the Pichis River. The third expedition of 292 men, had traveled on board of the gunboatConstitución, crossing theStrait of Magellan and then entering theAmazon River on 29 June. The last expedition didn't arrive on time. The insurgent forces lacked local support and were defeated by the land expeditions on July 10, 1896.[13] On July 16, it had been reported in Lima that the leaders of the rebellion had fled the country.[9][10][11]
Following the insurrection, colonel Vizcarra was appointed as the prefect of the department.[14] Its capital was Moyobamba.[15] He slowly began to adapt the local pro-regional views that had led to the insurrection.[16] In 1897, theDepartment of San Martín was created, with Iquitos becoming Loreto's new political capital.
TheJungle Nation (Spanish:Nación Selvática), also known as theJungle Republic (Spanish:República Selvática), was proclaimed by colonel Vizcarra on May 22, 1899, who then acquired the title of the Supreme Leader.[16] His political campaign had been financed by businessman Juan Jiménez Pimentel. In response, PresidentEduardo López de Romaña ordered colonel Teobaldo Gutiérrez to siege the southern territory of the self-proclaimed state.[16] The reaction of the neighbouring countries ofBrazil,Colombia, andEcuador, was indifferent.[17]
On February 27, 1900, while on a tour across Loretan cities to appoint new authorities, Vizcarra got involved in a civil revolt at the main square inMoyobamba in response to the abuse carried out by his militias against the local population. During the fighting, the supreme leader was lethally hit with a rock in the head, by a woman with the surname Tapullima. Following his death, the state had fallen a few days later and has been reincorporated into Peru.[14]
TheThird Federal State of Loreto was proclaimed in 1921 as a federated state within Peru by Army captainGuillermo Cervantes Vásquez. The proclation was a response to the region's perceived neglect by the government, in both trade and itsintent of ceding cerritory to Colombia. Cervantes had previously participated in aconflict against Colombia in 1911.[18] The provisional government, headed in Iquitos, soon expanded its control to Amazonas and San Martín.[19]
On its second day of existence, after it withdrew twenty-thousandPeruvian pounds, the rebel authorities authorized the distribution of provisional banknotes made out of cardboard used by locals as currency.[20][21][22] Martial law and a curfew were declared, and local ports were ordered shut, with local trade and navigation being tightly controlled.[22] The revolution was quickly accepted by the local population, but was met negatively by PresidentAugusto B. Leguía, who sent a few troops to the area, and shut down trade to the region.[21][22] The local guerrillas' military inferiority soon became apparent, and by early 1922, a famished Iquitos had been occupied by Peruvian troops headed by captain Genaro Matos, while Cervantes had escaped on January 9, seeking refuge in theEcuadorian jungle and with his army soon becoming little more than an insurgent force.[21][22]
The rubber boom ended during the early 20th century. During this period,atrocities were committed against local Natives.
In late 1932, a civilian takeover of the port ofLeticia in response to the 1922 border agreement led to anundeclared war between Colombia and Peru. Similarly, Ecuadorian claims over the region led to afull-scale war in 1941.
In 1964, the Peruvian governmentbombed Matsés communities in Loreto due to clashes with anti-government protestors belonging to the community.
Loreto's large territory comprises parts of the high and low jungle, and is largely covered with thickvegetation.
This territory has wide river flood plains, which are covered with rainwater and are usually swamped in summer. In these flood areas there are elevated sectors calledrestingas, which always remain above water, even in times of the greatest swellings. There are numerouslagoons known ascochas andtipishcas, surrounded by marshy areas with abundant grass vegetation.
Numerous rivers cross Loreto's territory, all of which are part of the Amazonian hydrographical system. Most of them are navigable. The main river crossing the region is theAmazon, one of the world's most important rivers. Its numerous curves are always changing and sometimes make for a difficult journey. The width between banks of the Amazon sometimes measures a staggering 4 km (2.5 mi). TheYavari River runs from Peru to Brazil, thePutumayo River serves as part of the border with Colombia, and theUcayali andMarañón rivers penetrate Loreto after going through thePongo de Manseriche.
The weather is warm and humid with an average temperature of 17 °C (63 °F) to 20 °C (68 °F) during the months of June and July, and up to a high of 36 °C (97 °F) from December through March.
The averagehumidity level is 84%, with strong rain all year round.
The region is divided into eight provinces (provincias, singular:provincia), which are composed of 53 districts (distritos, singular:distrito). The provinces, with their capitals in parentheses, are:
According to the2007 Peru Census, the mother tongue of most of the residents wasSpanish (92.51%). The following table shows the mother tongue of the people of the Loreto Region by province:[27]
First week of January. Anniversary of Iquitos. Week-long festivities to celebrate the founding of the city.
Third week of February. Carnivals.
June 24.Fiesta de San Juan. The local people go to the Nanay and Amazonas river banks, taking with them the traditional juanes, cooked on the eve. In front of the waters, they merrily drink and dance.
First two weeks of August. A farm, livestock and crafts fair takes place in the small town ofSanta Clara de Nanay, located 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) from the city of Iquitos.
September 7.Señora de la Natividad. Date in which theTamshiyacu people, in the province ofMaynas, honor their patron.
December 8.Fiesta de la Purísima, celebrated in the district ofPunchana, located 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from Iquitos
The typical dishes in Loreto are very similar to those of other places in the Amazon region.Motelo orturtle meat soup andjuanes (rice tamales with chicken or fish) are typical Loretan dishes. Vendors in the local markets offer fried or steamedmonkey orlizard meat considered delicious according to the local people.
Other typical dishes includececina (dried and smoked pork),tacacho (coal cooked bananas, pork, and chopped onions),chonta salad,palometa (fish soup), carachama (fish) andpaiche (a large fish). Among desserts there is a refreshingaguaje ice cream.
To drink, they servemasato (a beer made ofcassava) or natural fruit juices such as aguaje,maracuyá (passion fruit), andcocona (Solanum sessiliflorum).
^In addition to this name, used in 1822,[4] it was also known as theGovernorate of Maynas (Spanish:Gobernación de Maynas).[5] In 1824, it was called theProvince of Maynas (Spanish:Provincia de Maynas),[5]
^La frontera de la antigua Colombia con el Perú: contribución al estudio de la cuestión de límites entre el último y el Ecuador (in Spanish). Sucesores de Rivadeneyra. 1906. p. 260.
^abcdeFrederica Barclay Rey de Castro,El Estado Federal de Loreto, 1896. Centralismo, descentralización y federalismo en el Perú, a fines del siglo XIX. ISBN 978-9972-623-61-5.
^abcdJames B. Minahan,Encyclopedia of Stateless Nations: Ethnic and National Groups around the World, 2nd Edition, p. 248.
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