The Patriotic Leagues (Spanish: ''Ligas patrióticas'') were nationalistic political groups in Argentina and Chile active from the 1910s to the 1930s. The Patriotic Leagues were characterized by actions against foreigners

Peruvians Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian ...

Tacna Tacna is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland from the Pacific Ocean and in the valley of ...

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the capita ...

, and

Tarapacá San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, also known simply as Tarapacá, is a town in the region of the same name in Chile. History The town has likely been inhabited since the 12th century, when it formed part of the Inca trail. When Spanish explorer Diego ...

were technically not foreigners and opposition towards

labour movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...

s. They were often constituted as paramilitary groups or

secret societies A secret society is a club or an organization whose activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence a ...

In Argentina

The

Argentine Patriotic League The Argentine Patriotic League ( es, Liga Patriótica Argentina) was a '' Nacionalista'' paramilitary group, officially created in Buenos Aires on January 16, 1919, during the Tragic week events. Presided over by Manuel Carlés, a professor a ...

(''Liga Patriótica Argentina'') was a '' Nacionalista'' paramilitary group, officially created in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

on January 16, 1919, during the Tragic week events. Presided over by Manuel Carlés, a professor at the Military College and the '' Escuela Superior de Guerra'', it also counted among its members the deputy Santiago G. O'Farrell (1861-1926). The League was merged into the

Argentine Civic Legion The Nationalist Liberation Alliance (Spanish: ''Alianza Libertadora Nacionalista'', ALN), originally known as the Argentine Civic Legion (''Legión Cívica Argentina'', LCA) from 1931 to 1937,Rodney P. Carlisle (general editor). ''The Encyclopedia ...

in 1931.Patrick Frank. ''Los Artistas del Pueblo: prints and workers' culture in Buenos Aires, 1917-1935''. University of New Mexico Press, 2006. Pp. 206.

In Chile

In Chile the Patriotic Leagues appeared in 1910. Even if they appeared in several Chilean cities they concentrated their activity in the provinces of

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. After the Spanish American wars ...

and

, those that were annexed during the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...

(1879-1883). In these places the Patriotic Leagues launched attacks against

Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest in th ...

newspapers, societies and citizens contributing to the Chilenization of Tacna, Arica and Tarapacá. The passivity of the Chilean authorities of

Iquique Iquique () is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the Atacama Desert. It has a population of 191, ...

helped the Patriotic Leagues to achieve their principal goal: to frighten the Tarapacán families of Peruvian origin.González, Maldonado y McGee 1993 The situation was particularly problematic in

and

, where a plebiscite was to determine their national future as either under the rule of Chile or Peru. The plebiscite in the end was never held, and the solution between both South American countries was achieved through the Tacna–Arica compromise.

Notes

References

{{reflist Far-right politics in Argentina Far-right politics in Chile 20th century in Argentina 20th century in Chile Paramilitary organisations based in Argentina Ethnic cleansing in the Americas Paramilitary organisations based in Chile

In Argentina

In Chile

See also

Notes

References