Peru was not ready to fight any war. Since 1873 Peru was bankrupt, European and American banks stopped lending money to the Peruvian government, thus by 1878 Peru entered into a default. Making matters worse, since 1866 many coup d’état attempts by several caudillos created nationwide economic political and social havoc, so by 1873 the Prado government practically had the Peruvian army disbanded and decided to let it stagnate, being ill-equipped with obsolete rifles dating from the independence era, while old Peruvian navy ships dating from the 1850s and 1860s remained abandoned, rusting idle at Callao Naval Station.