British and World Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Peru, Spanish Viceroy’s Medal for the Defence of Callao 1819, by A. Davalos, silver, approx. 39mm. diameter, obverse: a fire-ship approaching Spanish warships at anchor, reverse a five-line inscription within a wreath of oak leaves, fitted with ornate suspension, good very fine £100-140

Awarded by the Spanish Viceroy of Peru for the the defence of Callao during March-October 1819. The Peruvian port was blockaded and attacked by naval forces commanded by Lord Cochrane (later the 10th Earl of Dundonald), who, as Vice-Admiral, commanded the Chilean Navy in the war of independence against Spain. The medal shows the Victoria, one of Cochrane’s fire-ships, in the unsuccessful attack on 5 October 1819.