The final stand of seventy seven Chileans high up in the Andes against a Peruvian force seventeen times their size on 9–10 July 1882.
Bias Warning: I lived 6+ years in Chile and I’m married to a Chilean. That being said, objectivity is my goal.
Here we go.
It all starts with mining.
Actually, it starts with messy borders. We’ll come back to mining in just a sec. Hold that thought.
The 19th century is both an exciting and confusing time for South America. On one hand, the proud nations begin to gain their independence from Spain and Portugal (viva sí!), but on the other, fuzzy and vague demarcations of frontiers lead to decades of conflict, shaping the geopolitical maps that we know today.
One of the most disputed territories at this time (and even today) is the Atacama Desert, the driest desert in the world and the northern border of Chile with Peru and Bolivia. And who wants the desert? Well, they all do. Because it’s so freakn rich in minerals. In particular, potassium nitrate, also known as saltpeter, an important component in fertilisers and gunpowder.
…a perfect transition back to mining.
In the 1870s everyone is relatively happy making money in the desert. Entrepreneurs are creaming it and a series of different treaties between Chile and Bolivia keep things clear. It’s Bolivian territory but Chile has tax-free access. But in 1878, Bolivia enforces…
