ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how the huge earthquake that desolated the city of Lima and the port of El Callao in 1746 shaped the interpretation of Philip V's death; and, vice versa, how the kings passing gave new meaning to the events suffered months earlier. It focuses on Cuzco, to analyze the way in which Lima's destruction, Philip V's death, and Ferdinand VI's coronation gave the city an unexpected opportunity to reclaim its old political centrality, and helped foster its ambitions to become once again the capital of Peru. It concerns on Lima to address how, in light of these events and to avoid challenges to its hegemonic position, the identity of the city was re-codified during the celebrations for Ferdinand VI's ascension to the throne. Finally, it describes these ceremonies became vehicles for a reflection on the future of an empire that, while hoping it could once again rise from its ashes, was increasingly being seen as marked by its ephemerality.
