La Frontera is a name used in

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

to refer to the region around the Bío Bío River, or to the whole area between there and the

Toltén River Toltén River is a river located in the La Araucanía Region of Chile. It rises at Villarrica Lake, close to the city of the same name. Its major tributary is the Allipén River. From its confluence with the Allipén, the river follows a braided ...

. The use of this latter definition is largely coterminous with the historical usage of Araucanía. The term was coined during the period when the region was the frontier of the

Captaincy General of Chile The Captaincy General of Chile (''Capitanía General de Chile'' ) or Governorate of Chile (known colloquially and unofficially as the Kingdom of Chile), was a territory of the Spanish Empire from 1541 to 1817 that was, for most of its existenc ...

, then a part of the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

and later the

Republic of Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, with the

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who sha ...

people inhabiting the Araucanía following their revolt in 1598. Subsequently, the Spanish Empire established a system of forts between the Bío Bío River and the

Itata River The Itata River flows in the Ñuble Region, southern Chile. Until the Conquest of Chile, the Itata was the natural limit between the Mapuche, located to the south, and Picunche, to the north. See also *Itata *List of rivers in Chile This list o ...

, as well as some within the Araucanía. This system continued through the 18th century and into the 19th century.

Forts and settlements of La Frontera

The first fortress rebuilt following the 1599 destruction of the forts in

Catirai Catirai or Catiray is the region of the Moluche Aillarehue of Catiray in old Araucanía. It is now the Santa Juana commune of the Concepción Province and the Nacimiento commune of the Bío Bío Province of the Bío Bío Region, of Chile. It ...

and its city

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. The Mapuc ...

, the cities of Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia, San Andrés de Los Infantes and San Bartolomé de Chillán y Gamboa, was the reconstruction of the city of Chillán by the interim

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Francisco de Quiñónez Francisco de Quiñónez (? - ? Leon †); Spanish soldier who was appointed as governor of Chile for thirteen months, between May 1599 and June 1600. When he became governor of Chile, Quiñónez was a veteran soldier. He had served, in 1559, in t ...

17th century

In 1601

Alonso de Ribera Alonso de Ribera y Zambrano (; 1560 – March 9, 1617) was a Spanish soldier and twice Spanish royal governor of Chile (1601–1605 and 1612–1617). Early life Born in Úbeda, he was the illegitimate son of Hidalgo and Captain Jorge de Ribera Za ...

built Fort Talcahuano to defend remaining Spanish settlements near Concepción and Fort Lonquén on the

Lonquén River The Lonquén River is in the Ñuble Region in the southern part of Central Chile. It forms at the confluence of the ''esteros'' Pichimávida and Colomávida that originate in the mountains in the east of the province. Its course lies from north to ...

to secure estancias that provided food to the army. In 1602 Ribera rebuilt the small

Fort Colcura Fort Colcura was a small fort that was the first Spanish settlement that existed in the commune of Lota, Chile. It was on a small height on the edge of the Bay of Arauco, a little more than two kilometers to the southeast of the modern city of Lo ...

and Fort Guanaraque and built a new fort, Santa Fe near the confluence of the Bio Bio and Vergara Rivers. On the coast Ribera sent captain

Francisco Hernández Ortiz Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

to establish a fort

Valdivia Valdivia (; Mapuche: Ainil) 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 R ...

on the site of the ruined city but it had to be abandoned by the starving remnant of its garrison after a terrible two-year siege. In 1603 Ribera built

Fort Chepe Fort Chepe was a fort established in 1603 by Governor Alonso de Ribera on Cerro de Chepe (Chepe Hill) west of Concepcion, Chile on the north bank of the Bio Bio River. It was built for defense of the crossing of the Bio Bio River at this point ...

and

Fort San Pedro Fort San Pedro ( es, Fuerte de San Pedro) is a military defense structure in Cebu, Philippines, built by the Spanish under the command of Miguel López de Legazpi, first governor of the Captaincy General of the Philippines. It is located in ...

to cover the crossing at the mouth of the

Bio Bio River Bio or BIO may refer to: Computing * bio(4), a pseudo-device driver in RAID controller management interface in OpenBSD and NetBSD * Block I/O, a concept in computer data storage Politics * Julius Maada Bio (born 1964), Sierra Leonean politicia ...

. He rebuilt San Felipe de Araucan and Santa Margarita de Austria on the coast between the

aillarehue Aillarehue or Ayllarehue (from the Mapudungun: ayllarewe/ayjarewe: "nine rehues"); a confederation of rehues or family-based units (lof) that dominated a region or province. It was the old administrative and territorial division of the Mapuche, H ...

s of Arauco and Tucapel and a fort at

Tucapel Tucapel is a List of towns in Chile, town and Communes of Chile, commune in the Bío Bío Province, Bío Bío Region, Chile. It was once a region of Araucanía (historic region), Araucanía named for the Tucapel River. The name of the region deri ...

and Paicavi on the Paicavi River. Also in the same year to the east along the Bio Bio River facing the aillarehues of

and

Purén Purén is a city (2002 pop. 12,868) and commune in Malleco Province of La Araucanía Region, Chile. It is located in the west base of the Nahuelbuta mountain range (650 km. south of Santiago). The economical activity of Purén is based in fo ...

, he rebuilt Santa Lucia de Yumbel and built the forts of Nuestra Señora de la Buena Esperanza,

San Rosendo San Rosendo () is a Chilean city and commune in Bío Bío Province, Bío Bío Region. The city of San Rosendo lies on the gentle slopes of a hill overlooking the confluence of the rivers Bío Bío and Laja, which respectively bound the city ...

Nuestra de Senora de Halle ''Nuestra'' is the debut studio album of the Venezuelan rock band La Vida Bohème, released in August 2010. Recorded and produced by Rudy Pagliuca, it is a free download on the website of the record label All of the Above. The album was nominated ...

, Nacimiento de Nuestro Señor and San Francisco de Borja. The refugees from the abandoned city of Osorno under captain Francisco Hernández founded Fort Calbuco on a channel between the

Reloncaví Sound Reloncaví Sound or ''Seno de Reloncaví'' is a body of water immediately south of Puerto Montt, a port city in the Los Lagos Region of Chile. It is the place where the Chilean Central Valley meets the Pacific Ocean. The Calbuco Archipelago com ...

and the

Gulf of Ancud 250px, Map of the Sea of Chiloé and nearby roads. The Gulf of Ancud is seen in the centre of the upper half. Gulf of Ancud ( es, Golfo de Ancud) is a large body of water separating the Chiloé Island from the mainland of Chile. It is located nort ...

. In 1606,

Alonso García de Ramón Alonso García de Ramón (c. 1552 – August 5, 1610) was a Spanish soldier and twice Royal Governor of Chile: first temporarily from July 1600 to February 1601, and then from March 1605 to August 1610. He was born in Cuenca, Spain in 155 ...

built Fort

San Ignacio de la Redención San Ignacio de la Redención was a fort established in 1606 by Alonso García de Ramón, Royal Governor of Chile, in a plain, located in the region of Boroa on the north bank of the Cautín River. In forty days he constructed a large fort, surrounde ...

near

Boroa Boroa, is a town in Araucanía, Chile on the shores of Cautín River. The region near the town south of the Cautin River between the Boroa and Quepe Rivers was the Moluche aillarehue of Boroa. The site of the town was founded as a Spanish fort '' ...

but it was abandoned soon after the ambush of most of its garrison. In 1607 García de Ramón rebuilt Fort

and

San Jerónimo de Millapoa San Jerónimo de Millapoa was a fort founded by Alonso de Sotomayor in 1585. It dominated the small valleys of the eastern slopes of the Nahuelbuta Range of Catirai, in the upper part of the Culenco River, in the mountainous area 25 kilometers sou ...

but as a result of a peace agreement with the

Moluche The Moluche ("people from where the sun sets" or "people from the west") or Nguluche are an indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous people of Chile. Their language was a dialect of Mapudungun, a Mapuche language. At the beginning of the Con ...

of Catirai he soon dismantled the later. In 1611 Luis Merlo de la Fuente built fort '' San Luis de Angol'' a little to the south of the old city of Angol. In 1613 Alonso de Ribera built Fort Virguenco in the upper part of the

Rehue River A rehue (Mapudungun spelling rewe) or kemukemu is a type of pillar-like sacred altar used by the Mapuche of Chile in many of their ceremonies. Altar/Axis mundi The ''rehue'' is a carved tree trunk set in the ground, surrounded by a hedge o ...

and rebuilt the fort at Puren again. In 1621,

Cristóbal de la Cerda y Sotomayor Cristóbal de la Cerda y Sotomayor, (México 1585? – † ? ); Spanish oidor, lawyer of the Real Audiencia of Chile. After the death of governor Lope de Ulloa y Lemos Lope de Ulloa y Lemos (1572? in Galicia – December 8, 1620 in Concepcion ...

rebuilt the fort of Yumbel the same year it was destroyed. He also built fort

San Cristóbal de La Paz San Cristóbal de La Paz was a fortress in Chile that was established in 1621 by Governor Cristóbal de la Cerda y Sotomayor. It was located five or six kilometers to the southwest of Yumbel on the west shore of the Claro River to the north of it ...

and fortified the town around the fort San Bartolomé de Chillán. In 1622,

Pedro Osores de Ulloa Pedro Osores de Ulloa (Saa, Vigo, 1554 – Concepcion, Chile, September 18, 1624) was Royal Governor of Chile from November 1621 to September 1624. He replaced Cristóbal de la Cerda y Sotomayor. On his death bed Osores appointed his brother-i ...

built Fort Negrete. 8 March 1626,

Luis Fernandez de Cordova Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...

established Santa Juana de Guadalcazar. In 1637,

Francisco Laso de la Vega Francisco Laso de la Vega y Alvarado (1568–1640) was a Spanish soldier who served as Royal Governor of Chile from December 1629 to May 1639. Victor fought in many battles against the Mapuche in the Arauco War. He was born in Secadura, Canta ...

established fort '' San Francisco de la Vega'' near the ruined site of the city of Angol, abandoning fort ''San Luis de Angol''. In 1641, all the Spanish forts south of the Bio Bio were abandoned under the terms of the Peace of Quilín. In 1647,

Martín de Mujica y Buitrón Martin de Mujica y Buitrón, (also known as Martin de Mogica or Muxica) was a Spanish Basque military man who was named by king Philip IV of Spain, to be Captain General and Royal Governor of Chile, besides president of its Real Audiencia A '' ...

as a result of the

Parliament of Quilín (1647) In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

was able to reestablish forts at

Santa Juana Santa Juana is a city and commune of the Concepción Province in the Bío Bío Region of Chile. It lies south and west of the Biobío River in the valley of Catirai and is 48 kilometers from Concepción, Chile. History The Mapuche originall ...

in 1648, and at

in 1649. In 1657

Pedro Porter Casanate Admiral Pedro Porter y Casanate (April 30, 1611 – February 27, 1662) was a Spanish sailor, soldier, explorer of California and Royal Governor of Chile from 1656 to 1662. Early life Porter was born in Zaragoza, the second son of Juan Porter and E ...

restored the city of San Bartolomé de Chillán following its destruction at the beginning of the

Mapuche Insurrection of 1655 The Mapuche uprising of 1655 ( es, alzamiento mapuche de 1655 or ) was a series of coordinated Mapuche attacks against Spanish settlements and forts in colonial Chile. It was the worst military crisis in Chile in decades, and contemporaries even ...

. He also built forts San Rafael de Coelemu and San Fabián de Conueo northeast of Concepcion. Meanwhile, captain Alonso de Cordova y Figueroa built Fort Tolpán at the confluence of the

Renaico Renaico () is a city and commune forming part of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. The city is located on the south bank of the Renaico River. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Ins ...

and

Vergara River Vergara River is a river located in the Intermediate Depression of Chile. The river rises at the junction of the Malleco and Rehue rivers, close to the city of Angol.

s. In 1661 Governor Porter Casanate built fort '' San Miguel Arcángel de Colcura'' near modern Lota and a fort at

Talcamávida Talcamávida is a town in the commune of Hualqui in the Biobío Region of Chile. It is located on the north bank of the Bio Bio River across from Santa Juana on the opposite shore. It occupied a plain along the river from the Pacific Ocean that i ...

. In 1662

Ángel de Peredo Ángel de Peredo (born 1623 in Queveda, Cantabria, Spain) was a Knight of the Order of Santiago. He was the President of the Royal Audiencia of Santiago, Real Audiencia of Chile and then temporary Royal Governor of Chile from May 1662 to February ...

established a new city of

Santa Maria de Guadalupe The Royal Monastery of Saint Mary of Guadalupe ( es, Real Monasterio de Santa María de Guadalupe) is a Roman Catholic monastic establishment built during the 14th century located in Guadalupe, in Extremadura, Spain. It is located at the foot of ...

and repopulated Arauco lost in 1655. In 1663 Paredo rebuilt fort San Cristóbal de La Paz. In 1665

Francisco de Meneses Brito Francisco de Meneses Brito (died 1672) was Royal Governor of Chile between 1664 and 1667. Biography Born in Cádiz in 1615, was the son of Alonso de Meneses and Catalina Corbalán de Castilla. His wife was Catalina Bravo, daughter of Francisc ...

established fort San Carlos de Virhuenco on the upper

and rebuilt forts Nacimiento de Nuestro Señor and Puren. In 1666 Meneses built fort Santa Fe and Fort de la Encarnación in Repucura. He also rebuilt San Carlos de Austria de Yumbel. In 1693

Tomás Marín de Poveda Tomás may refer to: * Tomás (given name) * Tomás (surname) Tomás is a Spanish and Portuguese surname, equivalent of ''Thomas''. It may refer to: * Antonio Tomás (born 1985), professional Spanish footballer * Belarmino Tomás (1892–1950), ...

rebuilt fort Buena Esperanza de Rere. In 1694 Marín de Poveda restored Fort de la Encarnación and a Mission in Repucura. In 1695 Marín de Poveda built fort Santo Tomás de Colhué.

18th century

In 1724 Gabriel Cano de Aponte rebuilt forts Nacimiento, Santa Juana de Guadalcázar and Santo Tomás de Colhué. He transferred from

Arauco Province Arauco Province ( es, Provincia de Arauco) is one of four provinces of the Chilean region of Bío Bío. It spans a coastal area of just south of the mouth of the Biobío River, the traditional demarcation between the nation's major natural regio ...

the garrison and inhabitants of Plaza de San Diego de Tucapel to the bank of the Laja River near the Andes where a new fort of the same name was built. In 1739,

José Antonio Manso de Velasco José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...

founded

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

Nuestra Señora de Los Ángeles. In 1749 fort Nacimiento was moved to the present site of the modern town of Nacimiento. In 1756,

Manuel de Amat y Juniet Manuel de Amat y Junyent, OSJ, OM ( ca, Manuel d'Amat i de Junyent) (March 1707 – February 14, 1782) was a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator. He was the Royal Governor of the Captaincy General of Chile from December 28, 1755 ...

founded fort Santa Bárbara and established the towns of San Rafael de Talcamavida and San Juan Bautista de Gualqui In 1757 Amat y Juniet made Nacimiento a town. In 1764

Antonio de Guill y Gonzaga Antonio de Guill y Gonzaga (died August 24, 1768) was a Spanish colonial administrator who served as Royal Governor of Panama and Royal Governor of Chile. Arauco War Governor Guill y Gonzaga celebrated the " Parliament of Nacimiento" with the Map ...

established Fort Repucura and a mission at Repucura once again. In 1777, the then military engineer Ambrosio O' Higgins, constructed for

Agustín de Jáuregui y Aldecoa Agustín is a Spanish given name and sometimes a surname. It is related to Augustín. People with the name include: Given name * Agustín (footballer), Spanish footballer * Agustín Calleri (born 1976), Argentine tennis player * Agustín Cár ...

, a fort San Agustín de Mesamávida. In 1788 Governor Ambrosio O'Higgins built Fort Príncipe Carlos on the

Duqueco River Duqueco River, Río Duqueco, is a river of the Biobío Region of Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, o ...

. In 1792 the forces of Governor Ambrosio O'Higgins under

Tomás de Figueroa Tomás de Figueroa y Caravaca (1747 – 1811) was a Spanish soldier. He was active in the military outpost of Valdivia and later in Santiago as a royalist during the early phase of the Chilean Independence War, Chilean struggle for independence ...

took possession of the site of the city of Osorno ruined in 1602, and constructed a fort there. O'Higgins reestablished it as a city in 1796.

Sources

Diego de Rosales Diego de Rosales (Madrid, 1601 - Santiago, 1677) was a Spanish chronicler and author of ''Historia General del Reino de Chile''. He studied in his hometown, where he also joined the Society of Jesus. He came to Chile in the year 1629, without ha ...

, ''Historia General del Reino de Chile, Flandes Indiano'', 3 tomos. Valparaíso 1877–1878. *
Historia general de el Reyno de Chile: Flandes Indiano Vol. 2 Libro V La Ruina de las Siete Ciudades
*

Crescente Errázuriz 300px, Monsignor Crescente Errázuriz Valdivieso. Monsignor Crescente Errázuriz Valdivieso (November 18, 1839 – July 5, 1931) was a Chilean Dominican friar, Roman Catholic archbishop of Santiago, professor, writer and historian. Crescente Errá ...

''Seis años de la historia de Chile: 23 de diciembre de 1598- 9 de abril de 1605: memoria histórica''
Impr. Nacional, Sanitiago de Chile, 1881.
''Atlas de Historia de Chile''
Editorial Universitaria, pp. 54–55
Francisco Solano Asta-Buruaga y Cienfuegos, ''Diccionario geográfico de la República de Chile''
D. Appleton y Compania, Nueva York, 1899 {{Coord, 34, 41, S, 71, 02, W, display=title, region:CL_type:landmark_source:GNS-enwiki Geography of Araucanía Region Geography of Biobío Region Geography of Chile History of Chile

La Frontera (geographical region) La Frontera is a name used in Chile to refer to the region around the Bío Bío River, or to the whole area between there and the Toltén River. The use of this latter definition is largely coterminous with the Araucanía (historic region), histo ...

History of Araucanía Region History of Biobío Region Marches (country subdivision)