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 historical usage of Araucanía. The term was coined during the period when the region was the frontier of the Captaincy General of Chile, then a part of the Spanish Empire and later the Republic of Chile, with the Mapuche 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, 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 and its city Santa Cruz de Coya, 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 Francisco de Quiñónez.

17th century

In 1601 Alonso de Ribera built

Fort Talcahuano 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'' ...

to defend remaining Spanish settlements near Concepción and

Fort Lonquén 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'' ...

on the Lonquén River to secure estancias that provided food to the army. In 1602 Ribera rebuilt the small Fort Colcura 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 to establish a fort Valdivia 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 and Fort San Pedro 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 politic ...

. He rebuilt San Felipe de Araucan and Santa Margarita de Austria on the coast between the aillarehues of Arauco and Tucapel and a fort at Tucapel and Paicavi on the Paicavi River. Also in the same year to the east along the Bio Bio River facing the aillarehues of Catirai and Purén, 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 San Francisco de Borja is a town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin ...

. The refugees from the abandoned city of Osorno under captain Francisco Hernández founded

Fort Calbuco Calbuco is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Calbuco. Administratively Calbuco belongs to the Llanquihue Province of Los Lagos Region. The origin of the city was the Spanish Fort Calbuco founded in 1603, an ...

on a channel between the Reloncaví Sound 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 but it was abandoned soon after the ambush of most of its garrison. In 1607 García de Ramón rebuilt Fort Purén 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 of Catirai he soon dismantled the later. In 1611

Luis Merlo de la Fuente Luis Merlo de la Fuente Ruiz de Beteta was a Spanish colonial official who briefly served as the Royal Governor of Chile, in 1610–11. Biography He was born in Valdepeñas, Spain to Luis Merlo de la Fuente and Maria Ruiz de Betena. He went ...

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 Fort Virhuenco was a Spanish fort located in what is now Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It was first established by Alonso de Ribera in 1613 as part of his system of frontier forts. It was located in the valley of Virhuén southeast of t ...

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 rebuilt the fort of Yumbel the same year it was destroyed. He also built fort San Cristóbal de La Paz 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 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 Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

. 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 Valdivia,

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 Boroa in 1649. In 1657 Pedro Porter Casanate 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 Alonso de Cordova y Figueroa (? - August 9, 1698) Spanish soldier born in Concepción, Chile, son of Alonso de Figueroa y Córdoba and father of the historian Pedro de Cordova y Figueroa. He served as lieutenant, captain of infantry and of cavalry ...

built

Fort Tolpán Fort Tolpán was built in 1657, by order of governor Pedro Porter Casanate by captain Alonso de Cordova y Figueroa on the Tolpán or Trolpán River. The Tolpán River was the name at that time for what is now the lower part of the Renaico River and ...

at the confluence of the Renaico and Vergara Rivers. In 1661 Governor Porter Casanate built fort ''

San Miguel Arcángel de 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 Lot ...

'' near modern

Lota Lota may refer to: Places *Lota (crater), a crater on Mars *Lota, Chile, a city and commune in Chile *Lota, Punjab, village in Pakistan *Lota, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia **Lota railway station, a station on the Cleveland line **Lo ...

and a fort at Talcamávida. In 1662 Ángel de Peredo 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 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 Fort de la Encarnación on the Repocura River was built in 1666 by a team overseen by Juan Ignacio de la Carrera and the orders of the Royal Governor of Chile Francisco de Meneses Brito. It was destroyed during a Mapuche rising in 1694 and rebuil ...

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 Gabriel Cano de Aponte (or Gabriel Cano y Aponte) was a Spanish soldier who served as Royal Governor of Chile from 1717 to 1733. His administration was the longest of all Colonial Governors and the second longest in the history of Chile after the ...

rebuilt forts Nacimiento, Santa Juana de Guadalcázar and Santo Tomás de Colhué. He transferred from Arauco Province 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 founded fort 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 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 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 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'' ...

on the Duqueco River. 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, ''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) History of Araucanía Region History of Biobío Region Marches (country subdivision)

Forts and settlements of La Frontera

17th century

18th century

See also

Sources