Argentina, Chile, and the Occupation of Mapuche Territory

Abstract The Mapuche of southern Patagonia have had a profound impact on state formation in Chile and Argentina. Prior to Chilean and Argentine independence, the Mapuche had successfully resisted the advance of both Inca and Spanish expansion through a combination of diplomatic negotiations and martial skill. When Chile and Argentina emerged as independent nation-states in the early 19th century, Mapuche leaders (lonkos) maintained control over vast swaths of territory on both sides of the Andes mountains. In the mid-19th century, leaders like Quilapán and Calfucurá built power via robust trade networks, far-ranging military alliances, interethnic diplomacy, and selective integration into creole borderlands society. Over the course of the 19th century, however, Argentine and Chilean authorities sought to erode the autonomy and authority of Mapuche leaders. The drive to solidify state control over the lands and peoples of Patagonia culminated in the so-called Occupation of Araucanía in Chile (1861–1883) and Conquest of the Desert in Argentina (1878–1885). These military campaigns, which attempted to eradicate Mapuche sovereignty, were celebrated by contemporary state-builders as “triumphs” of modernity and progress. In the wake of these military campaigns, and throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, the Mapuche have faced land dispossession, economic marginalization, and cultural suppression. Still, the Mapuche have continued to assert their identity and rights through various forms of activism and resistance, frequently invoking a continuity of resistance from the pre-Hispanic era into the present day.