José de San Martín The navy sailed from Chile on 20 August 1820. It was composed of eight warships, eleven gunboats, 247 cannons and a crew of 1,600, most of them Chileans. There were 12 frigates, and a brig with the 4,000 soldiers of the Army of the Andes. San Martín was the leader of the military expedition. They landed in Paracas, 200 km to the south of Lima, on 7 September, and occupied the nearby city of Pisco, which was abandoned by the royalists. Peruvian viceroy Joaquín de la Pezuela had instructions from Spain to negotiate with the patriots. Under an armistice the
Army of the North of the Royalist forces in Upper Peru. On 12 May Orozco commanding a force of 4,000 men advanced to Jujuy, and on 28 May occupied the city, then on 31 May occupied Salta. On 2 June the royalist forces defeated the patriots at Chamical (southwest of the city of Salta). At the battle of Las Cañas lieutenant colonel Rojas was killed but the force of 400 royalists was defeated. On 8 June there was a new independentist victory at Cuesta de la Pedrera (southeast of Salta), dispersing 2,000 royalists who retreated to Jujuy. At the battle of Yala another royalist