Manuel Bulnes Pinto
Encyclopedia
Manuel Bulnes Pinto was a Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

an military and political figure.

Bulnes was born in Santiago
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...

, the son of President Manuel Bulnes Prieto
Manuel Bulnes
-Sources:* Juan B. Alberdi, Biografia de general Bulnes...

 and of First Lady Enriqueta Pinto Garmendia
Enriqueta Pinto
Enriqueta Pinto Garmendia was First Lady of Chile and the wife of President Manuel Bulnes.She was born in Santiago, the daughter of President Francisco Antonio Pinto and of former First Lady Luisa Garmendia Aldurralde. She was also the sister of President Aníbal Pinto....

, who in turn was the daughter of President Francisco Antonio Pinto
Francisco Antonio Pinto
Francisco Antonio Pinto y Díaz de la Puente was a Chilean political figure. He was twice President of Chile between 1827 and 1829.-Early life:He was born in Santiago, the son of Joaquín Pinto and Mercedes Díaz de la Puente...

 and sister of future President Anibal Pinto
Aníbal Pinto
Aníbal Pinto Garmendia was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile between 1876 and 1881.-Early life:...

. He studied at the Colegio de los Padres Franceses and later moved to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, where he completed three years of law before returning to Chile.

In 1867, Bulnes joined the Chilean Army
Chilean Army
The Chilean Army is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 45,000-person army is organized into seven divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade....

 as commander of a civic regiment organized and financed by himself. At the head of his regiment, he waged a continuous warfare against the Arucanian Indians in southern Chile, and in 1874 he joined the regular army ranks as a Sergeant major
Sergeant Major
Sergeants major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. In Commonwealth countries, Sergeants Major are usually appointments held by senior non-commissioned officers or warrant officers...

. He married Elena Calvo Cruchaga in 1877.

Manuel Bulnes was elected a deputy for Mulchén in 1879. At the beginning of the War of the Pacific
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific took place in western South America from 1879 through 1883. Chile fought against Bolivia and Peru. Despite cooperation among the three nations in the war against Spain, disputes soon arose over the mineral-rich Peruvian provinces of Tarapaca, Tacna, and Arica, and the...

, he organized a cavalry squadron that they named Escuadrón de Carabineros de Yungay, but the transport Rimac
Rímac
Rímac is a Quechua word, meaning "to talk".It may refer to:* Rímac River, in Peru* Rímac District, one of the districts in the Historical Center of Lima, Peru* RIMAC Arena in San Diego, California, United States...

 where they were traveling to the theater of operations was captured en route by the Peruvian Navy and they were interned as prisoners of war in the city of Tarma
Tarma
Santa Ana de la Ribera de Tarma is a city in Junín Region, Perú. Tarma is the capital city of the Province of Tarma, and is also called the Pearl of the Andes. The city is located at around , at an elevation of around 3000 m...

. Himself and his squadron were later freed via prisoner exchange, and they fought at the battles of Tacna
Tacna
- Rail :Tacna is served by a cross-border standard gauge railway to Arica, Chile.It is also the location of the National Railway Museum of Peru.-Air:Tacna is served by the Crnl. FAP...

, Chorrillos
Chorrillos
Chorrillos is a district of the Lima Province in Peru and part of the city of Lima. It gets its name from the Spanish word for "trickle of water"...

 and Miraflores
Miraflores
Miraflores is the name of several places in Spanish-speaking countries. It is also the name of a battle fought in Peru in 1881. It means "to watch flowers" or "flower's view" from mira and flores .-Places:Europe...

.

After the war, he went in a government commission to Europe, where he was during the Chilean Civil War
Chilean Civil War
The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...

. He supported the congressional side and was rewarded with the promotion to Brigade General. He returned to Chile in 1894, where he became Secretary and later Chief of the Army General Staff. In 1896 he was named Minister of War and Navy
Ministry of National Defense (Chile)
The Ministry of National Defense is the cabinet-level administrative office in charge of "maintaining the independence and sovereignty" of Chile. It is also charged with planning, directing, coordinating, executing, controlling and informing the defense policies formulated by the President of...

 by President Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren was a Chilean political figure. Born in Santiago, he served as President of Chile between 1896 and his death in 1901. Federico Errázuriz was of Basque descent.-Early life:...

. In the short lapse while he held the post (from September 18th to November 26th), he managed to regularized the army lists, giving legal equality to all who had ever served under the colors. He died in Santiago on 1899.

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