Tarapacá was a Department of

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, which existed between 1878 and 1884, when it was unconditionally ceded to

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

after the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

under the Treaty of Ancón.

History

The department was located in southern Peru, near the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. It was limited to the north by the

Arica Province Arica Province () is one of two provinces of Chile's northernmost region, Arica y Parinacota. The province is bordered on the north by the Tacna Province of Peru, on the south by the Tamarugal Province in the Tarapacá Region, on the east the ...

within Moquegua Department, in the south and east by

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. The curaca (tribal chief) of the coastal region in Tarapacá of the Kingdom of Chucuito was Felipe Lucaya, until the Spanish conquest. In 1600, parcels Lluta, Arica, Azapa, Tarapacá were handed over to Pedro Mesia Cordova, who then handed over the valleys of Tácana and Sama. In 1612 Pope Paolo V authorizes the establishment of the Diocese of Arequipa in which were seven jurisdictions including the district of San Marcos Arica comprising the regions of Tacna, Tarata, Sama, Ilabaya, Locumba, Putina and Tarapacá. By 1777 the village 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 ca ...

was composed of Ilo, Tacna, Arica, Iquique, Pica, Ilabaya, Tarata, Codpa. In 1837, the

Peru–Bolivian Confederation The Peru–Bolivian Confederation () was a short-lived state that existed in South America between 1836 and 1839. The country was a loose confederation made up of three states: North Peru and South Peru—states that arose from the division of th ...

established the within South Peru, separating the provinces of Tacna and Tarapacá from the "Departamento de la Ley" (i.e.

Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara language, Aymara and ), also known by its nicknames of ''Ciudad Blanca'' (Spanish for "White City") and ''León del Sur'' (Spanish for "South's Lion"), is a city in Peru and the capital of the eponymous Arequipa (province), ...

). In 1841, under Agustín Gamarra's second government a

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

between

and

took place. Gamarra was seeking to annex the former

Upper Peru Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to th ...

to Lower Peru, but was defeated at the Battle of Ingavi in 1841 by General José Ballivián. Ballivián's troops occupied Puno, Moquegua, Tacna and Tarapacá, until Peruvian José María Lavaysen's troops from Sama defeated the invading army. In Locumba, Colonel Manuel de Mendiburu also organized forces, as well as Justo Arias Aragüez in 1842. In 1868, Tarapacá Province was separated from the

department of Moquegua Moquegua () is a department and region in southern Peru that extends from the coast to the highlands. Its capital is the city of Moquegua, which is among the main Peruvian cities for its high rates of GDP and national education. Geography The ...

under the name of "Litoral Province" on December 1. On August 17, 1878, the Department of Tarapacá was established, replacing the Litoral Province of the same name. After the

, the territory was occupied by Chile, and the Treaty of Ancón was signed on October 20, 1883. The territory was formally integrated into Chile on October 31, 1884.

Administrative divisions

Tarapacá was divided into two provinces:

References

External links

''En la Memoria y en la Historia''
a paper reflecting on the cultural and historical loss that Peru suffered with the territorial loss of Arica, Iquique and Tarapacá. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarapaca Department (Peru) Former subdivisions of Peru Tarapacá

History

Administrative divisions

See also

References

External links