The Marusia massacre ( es, Masacre de Marusia) (March, 1925) was the response of the

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 ...

an government under president

Arturo Alessandri Arturo Fortunato Alessandri Palma (; December 20, 1868 – August 24, 1950) was a Chilean political figure and reformer who served thrice as president of Chile, first from 1920 to 1924, then from March to October 1925, and finally from 1932 to 1 ...

to a

strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

by the workers of a

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrat ...

mine leading to over 500 dead, over ninety percent being strikers or their family members.

Background

The nitrate ''oficina'' (saltpeter mine) of Marusia was located in the foothills of the Andes in the región de Tarapacá, about 4 miles northwest of the town of

Huara Huara is a Chilean town and commune in Tamarugal Province, Tarapacá Region. It is located or ( by road) northeast of Iquique. The village is crossed by the Pan-American Highway and is the crossing point for the road that goes to Oruro in Bolivi ...

. Its monthly production was 865 tons of salt. In March 1925, the mine workers went on strike to demand higher pay, a shorter workday, and better working conditions. While the negotiations were taking place between the company executives and the worker's representatives, the British engineer who ran the mine, a man much hated because of his habit of whipping his workers, was found dead near the mine. A Bolivian engineer was accused of the crime and executed without due process by decision of the company owners.

Events

The union, under the leadership of Domingo Soto, was afraid of reprisals, and especially of another

massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

like the one that had happened only a few years before in San Gregorio, so they decided to take several preventive measures. They contacted the other mines, and proposed to blow up the railroad tracks in order to prevent the arrival of strikebreakers. The government, upon being apprised of the unrest, responded by sending forty soldiers under the command of captain

Gilberto Troncoso Gilberto is the Iberian and Italian version of the originally Norman-French given name ''Gilbert (given name), Gilbert'', used in Italian language, Italian, Portuguese language, Portuguese and Spanish language, Spanish languages. In Galician langu ...

, known as the "''Hyena of San Gregorio''" for his violent behaviour. The women of Marusia organized themselves under the leadership of

Selva Saavedra Selva () is a coastal Comarques of Catalonia, comarque (county) in Catalonia, Spain, located between the mountain range known as the Serralada Transversal or Puigsacalm and the Costa Brava (part of the Mediterranean coast). Unusually, it is divid ...

, and decided to resist the advance of the troops. When the soldiers arrived, they entered the town shooting. A group of workers responded by throwing

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...

sticks at them, killing several soldiers and seizing their guns. Then the workers mounted a counteroffensive, taking over the explosives depot of the mine and cutting the telegraphic wires. Captain Troncoso was forced to retreat. The miners proceeded to arm the whole town (about 2,400 people). In an open assembly, the union leaders proposed to negotiate their surrender, while some miners advocated calling upon the help of the workers from other mines. In the end, a motion by Soto that the town priest be asked to mediate was adopted. The army reinforcements arrived in the form of a 300-man battalion under the command of Colonel Pedro Schultz. They attacked the town in the middle of the night and machine-gunned everyone in sight. Hundreds died, including women and children — the exact number was never properly established. A group of workers were able to mount a hasty defense, throwing dynamite sticks at the advancing troops, and they managed to kill 36 soldiers and to injure 64. The surviving miners escaped with their families into the high mountains. This put an end to the immediate strike, but the conflict flared again less than two months later, and led to the

La Coruña massacre LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

Popular culture

The film titled ''

Letters from Marusia ''Letters from Marusia'' ( es, Actas de Marusia) is a 1975 Mexican film directed by Chilean filmmaker Miguel Littín. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was also entered into the 1976 Cannes Film Festival. Th ...

'' is based on a

Patricio Manns Iván Patricio Eugenio Manns de Folliot (3 August 1937 – 25 September 2021) was a Chilean singer, composer, author, poet, novelist, essayist, play writer and journalist. He is known for his 1965 song " Arriba en la Cordillera". Life and car ...

novel (1974) inspired by these events.

References

External links

Military interventions in Chilean politics

Movie ''Actas de Marusia'' (1976), based on the event
{{coord missing, Chile Conflicts in 1925 Massacres in 1925 March 1925 events Social history of Chile History of labour relations in Chile Protest-related deaths Massacres in Chile 1925 in Chile Mass murder in 1925 1925 labor disputes and strikes Political violence in Chile Miners' labor disputes

Background

Events

Popular culture

See also

References

External links