''Malón'' (from the

Mapudungun Mapuche (, Mapuche & Spanish: , or Mapudungun; from ' 'land' and ' 'speak, speech') is an Araucanian language related to Huilliche spoken in south-central Chile and west-central Argentina by the Mapuche people (from ''mapu'' 'land' and ''che ...

''maleu,'' to inflict damage to the enemy) is the name given to plunder raids carried out by

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 sh ...

warriors, who rode horses into Spanish, Chilean and Argentine territories from the 17th to the 19th centuries, as well as to their attacks on rival Mapuche factions. Historian

Juan Ignacio Molina Fr. Juan Ignacio Molina (; (June 24, 1740 – September 12, 1829) was a Chilean Jesuit priest, naturalist, historian, translator, geographer, botanist, ornithologist, and linguist. He is usually referred to as Abate Molina (a form of Abbot Moli ...

said the Mapuche considered the malón to be a means of obtaining justice: Leaders such as Lientur used the malón against European colonists: it consisted of a fast surprise attack by a number of mounted Mapuche warriors against the white (''huinca'') populations, ranches, settlements and fortifications 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 ...

and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, with the aim of obtaining horses, cattle, provisions, and captives, often young women. The rapid attack without formal order did not give the targets time to organize a defense, and it left behind a devastated population unable to retaliate or pursue. In Chile, the Spaniards responded with a system of fortifications known as ''La Frontera'', garrisoned by a standing army that patrolled the border along the

Biobío River The Biobío River (also known as Bío Bío or Bio-Bio) is the second largest river in Chile. It originates from Icalma and Galletué lakes in the Andes and flows 380 km to the Gulf of Arauco (in Spanish) on the Pacific Ocean. The major t ...

. In Argentina, where the Mapuche in the 19th century ravaged the southern frontier, the government responded by building wooden outposts and occasionally fortresses, e.g. Fortaleza Protectora Argentina, as well as the

Zanja de Alsina Zanja de Alsina (, '' Alsina's trench'') were a system of trenches and wooden watchtowers (''mangrullos'') built in the central and southern parts of Buenos Aires Province to defend the territories of the federal government against indigenous Mapu ...

. This trench covered hundreds of kilometers across the Pampas to make incursions more difficult, as well as prevent the raiders from driving large numbers of cattle back across the frontier. Ultimately, the Argentine government invaded and conquered the Mapuche in their territory in the

Conquest of the Desert The Conquest of the Desert ( es, Conquista del desierto) was an Argentine military campaign directed mainly by General Julio Argentino Roca in the 1870s with the intention of establishing dominance over the Patagonian Desert, inhabited primaril ...

of the late 1870s. Many Mapuche were killed and thousands more taken prisoner.

References

Sources

Juan Ignatius Molina, "The Geographical, Natural, and Civil History of Chili", Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, London, 1809

Commandante Manuel Prado (1863-1932): ''La guerra al Malón'' (The war against the Malón), 1907
** New edition: Prado, Manuel (2010) ''La guerra al Malón'', Editorial Claridad SA, Buenos Aires, {{DEFAULTSORT:Malon Military history of South America History of Chile Colonial Argentina 19th century in Argentina Mapuche history