Visita a una baldada: el encuentro paiteño de Manuela Sáenz y Ricardo Palma

The way in which two prominent figures in the history of Peru and Ecuador, Manuela Sáenz Aizpuru and Ricardo Palma Soriano, became related is a transcendental matter that cannot go unnoticed in the exhaustive study of the work of Palma. It seems that it all began with a simple and curious courtesy visit that he made to that wasteland in her poor house in the Piuran port of Paita in 1856. This meeting would serve especially to Palma as a pretext for the creation of some flavorous traditions in which he made known various aspects of the genius and figure of the one who was considered an outstanding patriotic woman in Peru during the period of Independence of San Martín; and later, a celebrity often loathed forbeing the favorite of the Liberator Simón Bolívar. The life of this woman is intense and is marked since childhood by the harshness of the disaffects, which turned her into a rebellious and determined young woman who would not fear anything or anyone in the future. As she entered maturity, however, she came to know the luxury, glamour and glory that come with power. When his beloved hero died, the revenge of Bolivar’s enemies caught up with her. This resulted in a prolonged political exile, aggravated by abandonment, illness and poverty. Its vital trajectory makes it worthy of adorning the gallery of significant women of Hispanic American history that go beyond the first half of the nineteenth century.ResumenLa forma como llegan a vincularse dos personajes de relieve en la historia del Perú y el Ecuador, como son Manuela Sáenz Aizpuru y Ricardo Palma Soriano, es un asunto de trascendencia que no puede pasar inadvertido en el estudio exhaustivo de la obra palmina. Todo comenzó, al parecer, con una simple y curiosa visita de cortesía que éste le hiciera a aquella baldada en su paupérrima casa del puerto piurano de Paita, allá por el año de 1856. Dicho encuentro serviría especialmente a Palma de pretexto para la creación de algunas sabrosas tradiciones en las que dio a conocer diversos aspectos del genio y figura de quien fue considerada una destacada patriota en el Perú durante el periodo sanmartiniano de laIndependencia; y, más tarde, una celebridad, muchas veces aborrecida, por ser la favorita del Libertador Simón Bolívar. La vida de esta mujer es intensa, y está signada desde la infancia por la dureza de los desafectos, que la convirtieron en una joven rebelde y decidida que no temería en el futuro a nada ni a nadie. Al entrar en la madurez, llegó, sin embargo, a conocer el lujo, el glamur y la gloria que vienen con el poder. Muerto su héroe amado, la venganza de los enemigos de Bolívar la alcanzó, lo que se tradujo en un prolongado destierro político, agravado por el abandono, la enfermedad y la pobreza. Su trayectoria vital la hace digna de engalanar la galería de mujeres significativas de la historia hispanoamericana querebasan la primera mitad del siglo XIX.Palabras clave: Manuela Sáenz, José de San Martín, Simón Bolívar, James Thorne, Independencia del Perú, El Libertador, La Libertadora. AbstractThe way in which two prominent figures in the history of Peru and Ecuador, Manuela Sáenz Aizpuru and Ricardo Palma Soriano, became related is a transcendental matter that cannot go unnoticed in the exhaustive study of the work of Palma. It seems that it all began with a simple and curious courtesy visit that he made to that wasteland in her poor house in the Piuran port of Paita in 1856. This meeting would serve especially to Palma as a pretext for the creation of some flavorous traditions in which he made known various aspects of the genius and figure of the one who was considered an outstanding patriotic woman in Peru during the period of Independence of San Martín; and later, a celebrity often loathed forbeing the favorite of the Liberator Simón Bolívar. The life of this woman is intense and is marked since childhood by the harshness of the disaffects, which turned her into a rebellious and determined young woman who would not fear anything or anyone in the future. As she entered maturity, however, she came to know the luxury, glamour, and glory that come with power. When his beloved hero died, the revenge of Bolivar’s enemies caught up with her. This resulted in a prolonged political exile, aggravated by abandonment, illness, and poverty. Its vital trajectory makes it worthy of adorning the gallery of significant women of Hispanic American history that go beyond the first half of the nineteenth century.Keywords: Manuela Sáenz, José de San Martín, Simón Bolívar, James Thorne, Independence of Peru, The Liberator