The means and trade transportation in the Republican Peru : The technique history and social history ; Les moyens et les métiers des transports dans le Pérou républicain : entre histoire technique et histoire sociale

Abstract

After the country independence proclaimed in 1821 and the first decades of political anarchy and instability, Peruvian governing leaders set themselves to building a modern state. Through this process, they aimed at building public facilities, diversifying means of communication and especially in adopting and implementing the new technologies created by the Industrial Revolution (railroads and steam engines) now affordable to exploit the guano deposits. Besides its rich subsoil raw material that underpinned the colonial economy, Peru has a less lenient topography because of its geographical contrasts combining deserts, mountains, and forests. This study suggests doing a historical review of the Republican Peru transportation means by examining the various mechanisms set up by political authorities to connect the country to the world, and by examining the existing situation of the communication networks back in the colonial era. The thesis defines not only the types of trades and transportation developed in different regions of Peru, but also examines the transition from traditional means of transportation (walking, mules, horses, and carriages) and modernity represented by steam engines traction. The interaction issue of these new technologies along with artisanal and traditional peasant economy is raised by comparing several administrative sets or those derived from travelogues. ; Après l'indépendance proclamée en 1821 et les premières décennies d'anarchie politique, les gouvernants péruviens se fixèrent comme objectif la construction d'un État moderne. Cette démarche passait par la construction d'infrastructures, la diversification des moyens de communication et surtout l'adoption des nouvelles technologies de la Révolution industrielle (chemin de fer et navigation à vapeur) devenues financièrement accessibles par l'exploitation des gisements de guano. Outre son sous-sol riche en matières premières sur lesquelles reposait l'économie coloniale, le Pérou possède une topographie moins clémente de par ses ...