Kingdom of Chile
Encyclopedia
The General Captaincy of Chile (Capitanía General de Chile) or Gobernacion de Chile, was an administrative territory of the Viceroyalty of Peru
in the Spanish Empire from 1541 to 1818, the year in which it declared itself independent, becoming the Republic of Chile
. It had a number of governors
over its long history and technically one king
, Philip II
, who was not the reigning Spanish king.
as were all the other Spanish possessions in the New World
. Kingdom of Naples
and Kingdom of Sicily
, on the other hand, were possessions of the King of Aragon
, who happened to be the same person, since 1516.
The General Captaincy of Chile was first known as New Extremadura (a name which was subsequently given to a part of Mexico) and then as Indian Flanders (Indian as in Indies, here meaning Americas; Flanders was a Spanish possession, cf. Spanish Flanders
).
The administrative apparatus of the General Captaincy of Chile was subordinate to the Council of the Indies and the Laws of the Indies
, like the other Spanish colonial possessions. The day-to-day work was handled mostly by viceroy
s and governors, who represented the king's will, e.g., in Aragon, Sicily, Mexico or Peru. The areas of the Americas
, which had been the site of complex civilizations or became rich societies were usually referred to by the Spanish as "kingdoms," such as the "New Kingdom of Granada
," the "Kingdom of Mexico
," the "Kingdom of Quito," or the "Kingdom of Guatemala
."
Chile never reached the status of a viceroyalty, and was instead classified as a captaincy general because this was a very warlike territory and thus was ruled by a military and not a nobleman like a viceroy.
The denomination had, nevertheless, a symbolic basis in the historic fact that Philip II was once General Captain of Chile, years before becoming King of Spain
formed the first expedition to explore the territories to the south of the Inca Empire
, which had been granted to him as the Governorship of New Toledo. After Almargo's death, Pedro de Valdivia
solicited and was granted in 1539 the right to explore and conquer the area with Francisco Pizarro
's approval. Valdivia founded the city of Santiago del Nuevo Extremo
and a few months later its cabildo
(municipal council) appointed him governor and Captain General
of New Extremadura on June 11, 1541. Other cities founded during Valdivia's administration were Concepción
in 1550, La Imperial
in 1551, Santa María Magdalena de Villa Rica
and Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia
in 1552, and the following year Los Confines
and Santiago del Estero
on the eastern side of the Andes
. In 1553 Valdivia also founded a series of forts for protection of the settled areas: San Felipe de Araucan
, San Juan Bautista de Purén
and San Diego de Tucapel
. After Valdivia's death that same year, these last forts, Villarica and Concepcion were lost. they were recovered following the war with Lautaro
and Caupolicán
. Following the defeat of the Mapuche by García Hurtado de Mendoza, settlements continued to grow and more cities were founded: Cañete de la Frontera on the site of the former Fort San Diego de Tucapel and Villa de San Mateo de Osorno
in 1558, San Andrés de Angol
in 1560, Ciudad de Mendoza del Nuevo Valle de La Rioja
in 1561, San Luis de Loyola Nueva Medina de Rioseco
and San Juan de la Frontera
in 1562, and Santiago de Castro
in 1567. Martín García Óñez de Loyola
founded a last city south of the Bio Bio River, Santa Cruz de Coya
, in 1595.
revolt was triggered following the news of the battle of Curalaba in on the 23rd of December 1598, where the vice toqui
Pelantaru and his lieutenants Anganamon and Guaiquimilla with three hundred men ambushed and killed the Spanish governor Martín García Óñez de Loyola and nearly all his companions.
Over the next few years the Mapuche were able to destroy or force the abandonment of seven Spanish cities in Mapuche territory: Santa Cruz de Coya
(1599), Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia
(1599), San Andrés de Los Infantes
(1599), La Imperial
(1600), Santa María Magdalena de Villa
Rica
(1602), San Mateo de Osorno
(1602), and San Felipe de Araucan
(1604).
southerward, with only Santiago, La Serena and some transandine cities located north of it, in the 17th century Spanish authority and settlements were bought down south of Bío-Bío Region. The colony went from being a gold exporter with potetentia for expanding to the Strait of Magellan
to being one of the spanish Empires most problematic and poor in natural resouces. The Spanish Empire had to divert silver from Potosí
to finance a standing army in Chile to fight in the Arauco War
. Since the raids of Francis Drake
in Chilean waters more seaborne assaults followed in the 17th century, mostly from Dutch
corsair
s. The Spanish Empires attempst to block the entrance to the Pacific Ocean
by fortifying the Straits of Magellan were abandoned after the discovery of Drake's Passage, focusing then on fortifying the coastals cities of Chile.
(gobernación) during the initial exploration and settlement of the area, but because the local Amerindian peoples demonstrated fierce resistance, a more autonomous, military-based governmental authority was needed. Thus, the governor was given command of the local military and the title of captain general
. This arrangement was seen in many places of the Spanish Empire.
Chile also has the curious distinction of being the one region of the Spanish Empire that technically had a king
, Philip II
who was not the reigning Spanish king. In 1554 the Infante Philip married Queen Mary I of England
, when he was still just the heir to the Spanish throne. In order to bring him up to an equal rank with the Queen, he was named the "King of Chile" by his father, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V
. Additionally he received the Kingdom of Naples
, a possession of the Crown of Aragon
and which came with a claim to the Kingdom of Jerusalem
. Thus the marriage treaty could jointly style the couple as King and Queen in a formula that reflected not only Mary's but also Philip's dominions and claims:
For all practical purposes, the title had no effect on Chile's administration, continuing its practical identity as a gobernación and reino in the Spanish Empire. After Philip became King of Spain in 1556, the title simply merged back to the many held by the Spanish king.
The greatest setback the Spanish settlements suffered was the Disaster of Curalaba
in 1598, which nearly wiped them out. All cities south of the Biobío River with the exception of Castro were destroyed. The river became La Frontera
the de facto border between Spanish and Native areas for the next century. (See Arauco War
.)
s (American born Spaniards) enjoyed privileges like the ownership
of encomienda
s (Indian labour jurisdictions) and were allowed to have some public charges like corregidor
or alférez
. Mestizo
s made up initially a small group but came with time to make up the bulk of Chilean societybeing more numerous than indigenous peoples. Mestizos were not a homogeneous group and were judged by appearance than by ancestry. Indians enjoyed the lowest prestige among societal groups in colonial Chile, many of them were used as cheap labour in encomienda but their numbers decreased over time due to diseases and mestization. Pehuenche
's, Huilliche
s and Mapuches living south of La Frontera
were not part of the colonial society since they were outside the de facto
borders of Chile. Black slaves made up a minority of the population in colonial Chile and had a special status due to their high cost of import and maintenance. Black slaves were often used as housekeeper
s and other posts of confidence. Peninsulares, Spaniards born in Spain, were a rather small group in late colonial times, some of them came as government officials and some other as merchants. Their role in high government positions in Chile led to resentment among local criollos. Mixing of different groups was not uncommon although marriage
between members of the different groups was not common.
During late colonial times new migration pulses took off leading to large numbers of Basque people
settling in Chile mingling with landowning criollos, forming a new upper class
. Scholar Louis Thayer Ojeda estimates that during the 17th and 18th centuries fully 45% of all immigrants in Chile
were Basques.
Viceroyalty of Peru
Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru was a Spanish colonial administrative district that originally contained most of Spanish-ruled South America, governed from the capital of Lima...
in the Spanish Empire from 1541 to 1818, the year in which it declared itself independent, becoming the Republic of Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. It had a number of governors
Royal Governor of Chile
The Royal Governor of Chile ruled over the Spanish colonial administrative district known as the Kingdom of Chile. This district was also called the Captaincy General of Chile, and as a result the Royal Governor also held the title of a Captain General...
over its long history and technically one king
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
, Philip II
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
, who was not the reigning Spanish king.
Name
The General Captaincy of Chile was a personal possession of the King of CastileCrown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
as were all the other Spanish possessions in the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
. Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
and Kingdom of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
, on the other hand, were possessions of the King of Aragon
Kingdom of Aragon
The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain...
, who happened to be the same person, since 1516.
The General Captaincy of Chile was first known as New Extremadura (a name which was subsequently given to a part of Mexico) and then as Indian Flanders (Indian as in Indies, here meaning Americas; Flanders was a Spanish possession, cf. Spanish Flanders
Southern Netherlands
Southern Netherlands were a part of the Low Countries controlled by Spain , Austria and annexed by France...
).
The administrative apparatus of the General Captaincy of Chile was subordinate to the Council of the Indies and the Laws of the Indies
Laws of the Indies
The Laws of the Indies are the entire body of laws issued by the Spanish Crown for its American and Philippine possessions of its empire. They regulated social, political and economic life in these areas...
, like the other Spanish colonial possessions. The day-to-day work was handled mostly by viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
s and governors, who represented the king's will, e.g., in Aragon, Sicily, Mexico or Peru. The areas of the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, which had been the site of complex civilizations or became rich societies were usually referred to by the Spanish as "kingdoms," such as the "New Kingdom of Granada
New Kingdom of Granada
The New Kingdom of Granada was the name given to a group of 16th century Spanish colonial provinces in northern South America governed by the president of the Audiencia of Bogotá, an area corresponding mainly to modern day Colombia and parts of Venezuela. Originally part of the Viceroyalty of...
," the "Kingdom of Mexico
Real Audiencia of Mexico
The Royal Audience of Mexico was the highest tribunal of the Spanish crown in the Kingdom of New Spain or the Kingdom of Mexico...
," the "Kingdom of Quito," or the "Kingdom of Guatemala
Captaincy General of Guatemala
The Captaincy General of Guatemala , also known as the Kingdom of Guatemala , was an administrative division in Spanish America which covered much of Central America, including what are now the nations of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, and the Mexican state of Chiapas...
."
Chile never reached the status of a viceroyalty, and was instead classified as a captaincy general because this was a very warlike territory and thus was ruled by a military and not a nobleman like a viceroy.
The denomination had, nevertheless, a symbolic basis in the historic fact that Philip II was once General Captain of Chile, years before becoming King of Spain
Exploration and conquest
In 1536 Diego de AlmagroDiego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro, , also known as El Adelantado and El Viejo , was a Spanish conquistador and a companion and later rival of Francisco Pizarro. He participated in the Spanish conquest of Peru and is credited as the first European discoverer of Chile.Almagro lost his left eye battling with coastal...
formed the first expedition to explore the territories to the south of the Inca Empire
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...
, which had been granted to him as the Governorship of New Toledo. After Almargo's death, Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva was a Spanish conquistador and the first royal governor of Chile. After serving with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in 1534, where he served as lieutenant under Francisco Pizarro in Peru, acting as his second in command...
solicited and was granted in 1539 the right to explore and conquer the area with Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
's approval. Valdivia founded the city of Santiago del Nuevo Extremo
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
and a few months later its cabildo
Cabildo (council)
For a discussion of the contemporary Spanish and Latin American cabildo, see Ayuntamiento.A cabildo or ayuntamiento was a former Spanish, colonial administrative council that governed a municipality. Cabildos were sometimes appointed, sometimes elected, but were considered to be representative of...
(municipal council) appointed him governor and Captain General
Captaincy
A captaincy is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. Each was governed by a captain general.-In the Portuguese Empire:...
of New Extremadura on June 11, 1541. Other cities founded during Valdivia's administration were Concepción
Concepción, Chile
Concepción is a city in Chile, capital of Concepción Province and of the Biobío Region or Region VIII. Greater Concepción is the second-largest conurbation in the country, with 889,725 inhabitants...
in 1550, La Imperial
La Imperial, Chile
La Imperial or Ciudad Imperial was a city founded by Pedro de Valdivia on April 16, 1552 and named in honor of the Emperor Charles V. It was abandoned on April 5, 1600 and destroyed as a result of the Mapuche Uprising of 1598 during the War of Arauco. The ruins were called Antigua Imperial...
in 1551, Santa María Magdalena de Villa Rica
Villarrica, Chile
Villarrica is a city and commune in southern Chile located on the western shore of Villarrica Lake in the Province of Cautín, Araucanía Region south of Santiago and close to the Villarrica Volcano ski center to the south east. Residents of Villarrica are known as Villarriquences.Tourism, grain and...
and Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia
Valdivia, Chile
Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...
in 1552, and the following year Los Confines
Angol
Angol is a commune and capital city of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It is located at the foot of the Nahuelbuta Range and next to the Vergara River, that permitted communications by small boats to the Bío-Bío River and Concepción. This strategic position explains...
and Santiago del Estero
Santiago del Estero
Santiago del Estero is the capital of Santiago del Estero Province in northern Argentina. It has a population of 244,733 inhabitants, making it the twelfth largest city in the country, with a surface area of 2,116 km². It lies on the Dulce River and on National Route 9, at a distance of...
on the eastern side of the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. In 1553 Valdivia also founded a series of forts for protection of the settled areas: San Felipe de Araucan
Arauco, Chile
Arauco is a city and commune in Chile, located in Arauco Province in the Biobio Region. The meaning of Arauco means Chalky Water in Mapudungun. The region was a Moluche aillarehue...
, San Juan Bautista de Purén
Purén
Purén is a city and commune in Malleco Province of Araucanía Region, Chile. It is located in the west base of the Nahuelbuta mountain range . The economical activity of Purén is based in forest exploitation and agriculture...
and San Diego de Tucapel
Tucapel
Tucapel is a town and commune in the Arauco Province, Biobío Region, Chile. It was once a region of Araucanía named for the Tucapel River. The name of the region derived from the rehue and aillarehue of the Moluche people of the area between the Lebu and the Lleulleu Rivers, who were famed for...
. After Valdivia's death that same year, these last forts, Villarica and Concepcion were lost. they were recovered following the war with Lautaro
Lautaro
Lautaro was a Mapuche military leader and protagonist of the War of Arauco in Chile. He defeated and exterminated the Spanish forces of Governor Pedro de Valdivia and was almost able to expel them from the area when he was killed in battle.-Early life:...
and Caupolicán
Caupolican
Caupolicán was a Toqui, the military leader of the Mapuche people of Chile, that commanded their army during the first Mapuche rising against the Spanish conquistadors from 1553 to 1558....
. Following the defeat of the Mapuche by García Hurtado de Mendoza, settlements continued to grow and more cities were founded: Cañete de la Frontera on the site of the former Fort San Diego de Tucapel and Villa de San Mateo de Osorno
Osorno, Chile
Osorno is a city and commune in southern Chile and capital of Osorno Province in the Los Lagos Region. It had a population of 145,475, as of the 2002 census...
in 1558, San Andrés de Angol
Angol
Angol is a commune and capital city of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It is located at the foot of the Nahuelbuta Range and next to the Vergara River, that permitted communications by small boats to the Bío-Bío River and Concepción. This strategic position explains...
in 1560, Ciudad de Mendoza del Nuevo Valle de La Rioja
Mendoza, Argentina
Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...
in 1561, San Luis de Loyola Nueva Medina de Rioseco
San Luis, Argentina
-External links:* * *...
and San Juan de la Frontera
San Juan, Argentina
San Juan is the capital city of the Argentine province of San Juan in the Cuyo region, located in the Tulúm Valley, west of the San Juan River, at above mean sea level, with a population of around 112,000 as per the ....
in 1562, and Santiago de Castro
Castro, Chile
Castro is a city and commune in the Chilean island of Chiloé Island. Castro is the capital of the Chiloé Province in the Los Lagos Region. It is Chile's third oldest city in continued existence...
in 1567. Martín García Óñez de Loyola
Martín García Óñez de Loyola
Don Martín García Óñez de Loyola was a Spanish Basque soldier and Royal Governor of Chile.-Early life:...
founded a last city south of the Bio Bio River, Santa Cruz de Coya
Santa Cruz de Coya
Santa Cruz de Coya was a city established by the governor of Chile Martín García Oñez de Loyola on the site of the fort of Santa Cruz de Oñez, in 1595. It was named for his wife Beatriz Clara Coya, a member of the royal Incan house...
, in 1595.
Collapse of southern Chile
A MapucheMapuche
The Mapuche are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina. They constitute a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who shared a common social, religious and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage. Their influence extended...
revolt was triggered following the news of the battle of Curalaba in on the 23rd of December 1598, where the vice toqui
Toqui
Toqui is a title conferred by the Mapuche to those who are chosen as their leaders during times of war. The toqui is chosen in an assembly or parliament of the chieftains of the various clans or confederation of clans , allied during the war in question...
Pelantaru and his lieutenants Anganamon and Guaiquimilla with three hundred men ambushed and killed the Spanish governor Martín García Óñez de Loyola and nearly all his companions.
Over the next few years the Mapuche were able to destroy or force the abandonment of seven Spanish cities in Mapuche territory: Santa Cruz de Coya
Santa Cruz de Coya
Santa Cruz de Coya was a city established by the governor of Chile Martín García Oñez de Loyola on the site of the fort of Santa Cruz de Oñez, in 1595. It was named for his wife Beatriz Clara Coya, a member of the royal Incan house...
(1599), Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia
Valdivia, Chile
Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...
(1599), San Andrés de Los Infantes
Angol
Angol is a commune and capital city of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It is located at the foot of the Nahuelbuta Range and next to the Vergara River, that permitted communications by small boats to the Bío-Bío River and Concepción. This strategic position explains...
(1599), La Imperial
La Imperial, Chile
La Imperial or Ciudad Imperial was a city founded by Pedro de Valdivia on April 16, 1552 and named in honor of the Emperor Charles V. It was abandoned on April 5, 1600 and destroyed as a result of the Mapuche Uprising of 1598 during the War of Arauco. The ruins were called Antigua Imperial...
(1600), Santa María Magdalena de Villa
Rica
Villarrica, Chile
Villarrica is a city and commune in southern Chile located on the western shore of Villarrica Lake in the Province of Cautín, Araucanía Region south of Santiago and close to the Villarrica Volcano ski center to the south east. Residents of Villarrica are known as Villarriquences.Tourism, grain and...
(1602), San Mateo de Osorno
Osorno, Chile
Osorno is a city and commune in southern Chile and capital of Osorno Province in the Los Lagos Region. It had a population of 145,475, as of the 2002 census...
(1602), and San Felipe de Araucan
Arauco, Chile
Arauco is a city and commune in Chile, located in Arauco Province in the Biobio Region. The meaning of Arauco means Chalky Water in Mapudungun. The region was a Moluche aillarehue...
(1604).
17th century
In the 17th century the Spanish colony of Chile saw a rearrangement of it population centra. While in the 16th century most the cities founded by the Spanish were located from Bio-BioBío-Bío
Biobío or Bío-Bío may refer to several places in Chile:* Biobío River, the second longest river in Chile and the southern frontier of the Kingdom of ChileAdministrative divisions:* Biobío Region, eighth region of Chile...
southerward, with only Santiago, La Serena and some transandine cities located north of it, in the 17th century Spanish authority and settlements were bought down south of Bío-Bío Region. The colony went from being a gold exporter with potetentia for expanding to the Strait of Magellan
Strait of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
to being one of the spanish Empires most problematic and poor in natural resouces. The Spanish Empire had to divert silver from Potosí
Potosí
Potosí is a city and the capital of the department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world by elevation at a nominal . and it was the location of the Spanish colonial mint, now the National Mint of Bolivia...
to finance a standing army in Chile to fight in the Arauco War
Arauco War
The Arauco War was a conflict between colonial Spaniards and the Mapuche people in what is now the Araucanía and Biobío regions of modern Chile...
. Since the raids of Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
in Chilean waters more seaborne assaults followed in the 17th century, mostly from Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
corsair
Corsair
Corsairs were privateers, authorized to conduct raids on shipping of a nation at war with France, on behalf of the French Crown. Seized vessels and cargo were sold at auction, with the corsair captain entitled to a portion of the proceeds...
s. The Spanish Empires attempst to block the entrance to the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
by fortifying the Straits of Magellan were abandoned after the discovery of Drake's Passage, focusing then on fortifying the coastals cities of Chile.
Government
As noted, the area had been designated a governorshipGovernorate
A governorate is an administrative division of a country. It is headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states, provinces, or colonies, the term governorate is often used in translation from non-English-speaking administrations.The...
(gobernación) during the initial exploration and settlement of the area, but because the local Amerindian peoples demonstrated fierce resistance, a more autonomous, military-based governmental authority was needed. Thus, the governor was given command of the local military and the title of captain general
Captain General
Captain general is a high military rank and a gubernatorial title.-History:This term Captain General started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of commander in chief of an army in the field, probably the first usage of the term General in military settings...
. This arrangement was seen in many places of the Spanish Empire.
Chile also has the curious distinction of being the one region of the Spanish Empire that technically had a king
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
, Philip II
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
who was not the reigning Spanish king. In 1554 the Infante Philip married Queen Mary I of England
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
, when he was still just the heir to the Spanish throne. In order to bring him up to an equal rank with the Queen, he was named the "King of Chile" by his father, Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
. Additionally he received the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
, a possession of the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
and which came with a claim to the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Kingdom of Jerusalem
The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Catholic kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. The kingdom lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, was destroyed by the Mamluks, but its history is divided into two distinct periods....
. Thus the marriage treaty could jointly style the couple as King and Queen in a formula that reflected not only Mary's but also Philip's dominions and claims:
Philip and Mary, by the grace of God, King and Queen of England, France, Naples, Jerusalem, Chile and Ireland, Defenders of the Faith, Princes of Spain and Sicily, Archdukes of Austria, Dukes of Milan, Burgundy and Brabant, Counts of Habsburg, Flanders and Tyrol.
For all practical purposes, the title had no effect on Chile's administration, continuing its practical identity as a gobernación and reino in the Spanish Empire. After Philip became King of Spain in 1556, the title simply merged back to the many held by the Spanish king.
The greatest setback the Spanish settlements suffered was the Disaster of Curalaba
Disaster of Curalaba
The Disaster of Curalaba is the name given to a battle between Spanish conquerors led by Martín García Óñez de Loyola and Mapuche people led by Pelantaru on a place called Curalaba , in southern Chile...
in 1598, which nearly wiped them out. All cities south of the Biobío River with the exception of Castro were destroyed. The river became La Frontera
La Frontera (geographical region)
La Frontera is name given to a geographical region in Chile, between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers, now part of the administrative regions of Bío-Bío and Araucanía...
the de facto border between Spanish and Native areas for the next century. (See Arauco War
Arauco War
The Arauco War was a conflict between colonial Spaniards and the Mapuche people in what is now the Araucanía and Biobío regions of modern Chile...
.)
Society
The Chilean colonial society was based on an informal caste system. Local of criolloCriollo people
The Criollo class ranked below that of the Iberian Peninsulares, the high-born permanent residence colonists born in Spain. But Criollos were higher status/rank than all other castes—people of mixed descent, Amerindians, and enslaved Africans...
s (American born Spaniards) enjoyed privileges like the ownership
Ownership
Ownership is the state or fact of exclusive rights and control over property, which may be an object, land/real estate or intellectual property. Ownership involves multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different parties. The concept of ownership has...
of encomienda
Encomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
s (Indian labour jurisdictions) and were allowed to have some public charges like corregidor
Corregidor
Corregidor Island, locally called Isla ng Corregidor, is a lofty island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in southwestern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Due to this location, Corregidor was fortified with several coastal artillery and ammunition magazines to defend the entrance of...
or alférez
Alférez
Alférez is a junior officer rank also used in Spain, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. The variant Alferes is used in Portugal and was formerly also used in Brazil. A naval variant, Frigate Alférez, is used in Spain, Dominican Republic and Peru. "Alférez" is often translated as ensign...
. Mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
s made up initially a small group but came with time to make up the bulk of Chilean societybeing more numerous than indigenous peoples. Mestizos were not a homogeneous group and were judged by appearance than by ancestry. Indians enjoyed the lowest prestige among societal groups in colonial Chile, many of them were used as cheap labour in encomienda but their numbers decreased over time due to diseases and mestization. Pehuenche
Pehuenche
Pehuenches are an indigenous people that are part of the Mapuche peoples and live in the Andes in south central Chile and Argentina. Their name derives from their habit of harvesting of piñones, the seeds of the Araucaria araucana or pehuén...
's, Huilliche
Huilliche
The Huilliche is an ethnic group of Chile, belonging to the Mapuche culture. They live in mountain valleys in an area south of Toltén River and on Chiloé Archipelago...
s and Mapuches living south of La Frontera
La Frontera
La Frontera is a municipality in Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It has a population of 203....
were not part of the colonial society since they were outside the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
borders of Chile. Black slaves made up a minority of the population in colonial Chile and had a special status due to their high cost of import and maintenance. Black slaves were often used as housekeeper
Housekeeper
Housekeeper may refer to:* Housekeeper , a woman heading up domestic maintenance* Maid, a female with various domestic duties* Janitor, a person responsible for institutional maintenance* A person engaged in housekeeping...
s and other posts of confidence. Peninsulares, Spaniards born in Spain, were a rather small group in late colonial times, some of them came as government officials and some other as merchants. Their role in high government positions in Chile led to resentment among local criollos. Mixing of different groups was not uncommon although marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
between members of the different groups was not common.
During late colonial times new migration pulses took off leading to large numbers of Basque people
Basque people
The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
settling in Chile mingling with landowning criollos, forming a new upper class
Upper class
In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...
. Scholar Louis Thayer Ojeda estimates that during the 17th and 18th centuries fully 45% of all immigrants in Chile
History of Chile
The territory of Chile has been populated since at least 2,000 BC. By the 16th century, Spanish conquistadors began to subdue and colonize the region of present-day Chile, and the territory became a colony from 1540 to 1818, when it gained independence from Spain...
were Basques.