Guerra a muerte (English:
War to death) is a term coined by
Benjamín Vicuña MackennaBenjamín Vicuña Mackenna was a Chilean writer, journalist, historian and politician. Vicuña Mackenna was of Irish and Basque descent.-Biography:...
used in
ChileChile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an
historiographyHistoriography is the history of history, the aspect of history and of semiotics that considers how knowledge of the past, either recent or distant, is obtained and transmitted...
to describe the irregular,
no-quarterA victor gives no quarter when the victor shows no clemency or mercy and refuses to spare the life in return for the surrender at discretion of a vanquished opponent.- Details :...
warfare that broke out from 1819 to 1821 during the Chilean War of Independence. After that the royalists had been expelled from all cities and ports north of
Bio-Bio RiverThe Biobío River 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 on the Pacific Ocean....
,
Vicente BenavidesVicente Benavides was a Chilean soldier who fought in the Chilean War of Independence. He initially sided with the patriots but changed sides later to side with the royalists. He then led the resistance during the so called Guerra a muerte...
organized royalist resistance in
La FronteraLa Frontera is name given to a geographical region in Chile, between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers, now part of the administrative regions of Bío-Bío and Araucanía...
with the aid of
MapucheThe Mapuche are the indigenous inhabitants of Central and Southern Chile and Southern Argentina. They were known as Araucanians by the Spaniards. This is now considered pejorative by the people and the term Mapuche is the one most often used by people in conversation...
chiefs. The aid of the Mapuches was vital to the royalists since they had lost control of all cities and ports north of
ValdiviaValdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately 15 km east of the coastal towns of Corral and...
.
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Guerra a muerte (English:
War to death) is a term coined by
Benjamín Vicuña MackennaBenjamín Vicuña Mackenna was a Chilean writer, journalist, historian and politician. Vicuña Mackenna was of Irish and Basque descent.-Biography:...
used in
ChileChile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an
historiographyHistoriography is the history of history, the aspect of history and of semiotics that considers how knowledge of the past, either recent or distant, is obtained and transmitted...
to describe the irregular,
no-quarterA victor gives no quarter when the victor shows no clemency or mercy and refuses to spare the life in return for the surrender at discretion of a vanquished opponent.- Details :...
warfare that broke out from 1819 to 1821 during the Chilean War of Independence. After that the royalists had been expelled from all cities and ports north of
Bio-Bio RiverThe Biobío River 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 on the Pacific Ocean....
,
Vicente BenavidesVicente Benavides was a Chilean soldier who fought in the Chilean War of Independence. He initially sided with the patriots but changed sides later to side with the royalists. He then led the resistance during the so called Guerra a muerte...
organized royalist resistance in
La FronteraLa Frontera is name given to a geographical region in Chile, between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers, now part of the administrative regions of Bío-Bío and Araucanía...
with the aid of
MapucheThe Mapuche are the indigenous inhabitants of Central and Southern Chile and Southern Argentina. They were known as Araucanians by the Spaniards. This is now considered pejorative by the people and the term Mapuche is the one most often used by people in conversation...
chiefs. The aid of the Mapuches was vital to the royalists since they had lost control of all cities and ports north of
ValdiviaValdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately 15 km east of the coastal towns of Corral and...
. Most Mapuches valued the treaties they had with the Spanish authorities, however many other Mapuches regarded the matter with indifference and played both sides against each other. The
Pincheira brothersThe Pincheira brothers was an infamous royalist outlaw group in Chile and Argentina active from 1818 to 1832. The gang fought initially in the Chilean War of Independence as royalist guerrillas during the Guerra a muerte phase. When Vicente Benavides died they eventually became isolated as the...
, a future outlaw group, served Benavides in the Guerra a muerte by defending the Cordillera.
Sources