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PERU TRAVEL PLANNER
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The Republic
San Martín immediately assumed political control of the
fledgling nation. Under the title Protector of Peru he set about devising a
workable constitution for the new nation - at one point even considering
importing European royalty to establish a new monarchy. A libertarian as well as
a liberator, San Martín declared freedom for slaves' children, abolished Indian
service, and even outlawed the term "Indian". But in practice, with Royalist
troops still controlling large sectors of the sierra, his approach did more to
frighten the establishment than it did to help the slaves and peasants whose
problems remain, even now, deeply rooted in their social and territorial
inheritance.
The development of a relatively stable political system took virtually the rest
of the nineteenth century, although Spanish resistance to independence was
finally extinguished at the battles of Junin and Ayacucho in 1824. By this time,
San Martín had given up the political power game, handing it over to Simón
Bolívar , a man of enormous force with definite tendencies towards megalomania.
Between them, Bolívar and his right-hand man, Sucre, divided Peru in half, with
Sucre first president of the upper sector, renamed Bolivia. Bolívar himself
remained dictator of a vast Andean Confederation - encompassing Colombia,
Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia - until 1826. Within a year of his
withdrawal, however, the Peruvians had torn up his controversial constitution
and voted the liberal General La Mar as president.
On La Mar's heels raced a generation of caudillos, military men, often mestizos
of middle-class origins who had achieved recognition (on either side) in the
battles for independence. The history of the early republic consists almost
entirely of internal disputes between the Creole aristocracy and dictatorial
caudillos. Peru plunged deep into a period of domestic and foreign plot and
counterplot, while the economy and some of the nation's finest natural resources
withered away.
Generals Santa Cruz and Gamarra stand out as two of the most ruthless players in
this high-stakes power game: overthrowing La Mar in 1829, Santa Cruz became
president of Bolivia and Gamarra of Peru. Four years later the liberal Creoles
fought back with the election of General Orbegoso to the presidency. Gamarra,
attempting to oust Orbegoso in a quiet palace coup, was overwhelmed and exiled.
But the liberal constitution of 1834, despite its severe limitations on
presidential power, still proved too much for the army - Orbegoso was overthrown
within six months.
Unable to sit on the sidelines and watch the increasing pandemonium of Peruvian
politics, Santa Cruz invaded Peru from Bolivia and installed himself as
"Protector" in 1837. Very few South Americans were happy with this situation,
least of all Gamarra, who joined with other exiles in Chile to plot revenge.
After fierce fighting, Gamarra defeated Santa Cruz at Yungay, restored himself
as president of Peru for two years, then died in 1841. During the next four
years Peru had six more presidents, none of notable ability.
Ramon Castilla was the first president to bring any real strength to his office.
On his assumption of power in 1845 the country began to develop more positively
on the rising wave of a booming export in guano (birdshit) fertilizer. In 1856,
a new moderate constitution was approved and Castilla began his second term of
office in an atmosphere of growth and hope - there were rail lines to be built
and the Amazon waterways to be opened up. Sugar and cotton became important
exports from coastal plantations and the guano deposits alone yielded a revenue
of $15 million in 1860. Castilla abolished Indian tribute and managed to
emancipate slaves without social-economic disruption by buying them from their
"owners"; guano income proved useful for this compensation.
His successors fared less happily. President Balta (1868-72) oversaw the
construction of most of the rail lines, but overspent so freely on these and a
variety of other public and engineering works that it left the country on the
brink of economic collapse. In the 1872 elections an attempted military coup was
spontaneously crushed by a civilian mob, and Peru's first civilian president -
the laissez-faire capitalist Manuel Pardo - assumed power.
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Published articles and reviews about us
2010
Testimonials
Norman Pedersen
Date:
Sun,18 Jul 2010
Machu Picchu and my entire visit to Peru were
wonderful. A dream come true.
I could not have been happier with everyone I met through your
arrangements.
The tours were very informative and showed me more than I knew
existed in this beautiful place.
All of the accommodations were very comfortable.
The luncheon buffet at the Alhambra was top rate. And the Ferré
Hotel in Lima was also a very good choice.Your personal assistance
throughout was exceptional!
Thank you for everything!
Melinda Hughes
Date:
Tues, 13 Jul 2010
I was one of
the “Joel Williams” party of four who was recently on a Peru Gateway
Travel tour of northern and southern Peru. I had to write so you
would know how satisfied we were with the hotel accommodations, the
tour guides, the restaurants they choose for our lunches and just
everything about the trip.
The hotels we stayed in were well located, clean and convenient in
every way. We have absolutely no complaints!
Our tour covered Peru from the north to the south. It had four
internal flights, so there were many connections, pick ups and
deliveries involved. Peru Gateway Travel made sure we were always
delivered on time to the airports and promptly met and picked up
when we landed. We never had a moments worry.
Since we had many different day tours, we had several different
guides. All were professional and spoke our language well. All were
very knowledgeable and eager to impart that knowledge to us. They
chose great places for our lunches and the cuisine was
unforgettable. We have traveled to many countries but found the food
in Peru to be absolutely wonderful.
I also wanted to mention the drivers who picked us up at all times
of the day and night, drove us to our next destination and the
delivered us safely to our hotels. We never had a driver who was
less than prompt, courteous and most importantly, a skilled and
careful driver.
The sites we saw were the places we chose to see. And they did not
disappoint us. From the desert to the Andes to the Jungle, we
enjoyed it all.
Please feel free to use this email on your website or as a
testimonial. All four of our group would recommend Peru Gateway
Travel to anyone planning a trip to Peru. We were well taken care
of, enjoyed delicious food, saw awesome sights and had a wonderful
time.
Sincerely.
Ajay Chopra
Date:
Fri, 02 Jul 2010
We are back in
Lima. Our trip to Machu Picchu was wonderful, thank you and your
team and the ground staff in Cuzco for all their help and care. A
special thanks to Angella for her help.
We hope to do business with you in the near future.
Best Regards
Saikat.
Date:
Fri, 02 Jul 2010
I just wanted to let you know that we had an amazing
and wonderful trip to your country.
I must state that the people of Peru impressed me very much - they
are so nice!
While I have already filled-up the feedback form, this is just a
personal note to say Thank you.
Do visit India sometime - we have a lot in common.
Regards,
Irina Pascu
Date:
Fri, 25 Jun 2010
I am now back
home but still not believed that the holiday is over. I just
write you to tell you that I had a wonderful time in Peru and to
thanks for
your support. The circuit was very well designed and I had the
opportunity
to visit all the important sites I envisaged and also the Sacred
Valley and
the Altiplano.
I was really impressed by the organization and your people, always
in time
for pick up and interested to offer the necessary information.
Finally I showed to my friends that Peru is not so far and a visit
there
could be a wonderful experience. For me was a dream come true.
Many thanks to you and to your team.
Melissa Polier
Date:
Tues, 22 Jun 2010
My 2 adult children and I recently returned from our
hike to Machu Picchu and I wanted to thank you for all your
assistance. Our trip was great. We very much enjoyed visiting your
beautiful country. I especially want to praise our guide, cook and
porters. They did a terrific job. The food was marvelous and after a
long hike it was definitely something to look forward to. The
porters were very kind and when I needed some assistance at the end
of the 3rd day one of the porters helped me a lot. Our guide was
great. He was very knowledgeable and fun to hike with and he seemed
to really love his job. Again, thanks so much for everything
Read More testimonials »
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