volume 2, book 1, 3-4.

CHILE: A. D. 1568. The Audiencia established.

See AUDIENCIAS.

{413}

CHILE: A. D. 1810-1818. The achievement of independence. San Martin, the Liberator.

"Chili first threw off the Spanish yoke in September, 1810 [on the pretext of fidelity to the Bourbon king dethroned by Napoleon], but the national independence was not fully established till April 1818. During the intermediate period, the dissensions of the different parties; their disputes as to the form of government and the law of election; with other distracting causes, arising out of the ambition of turbulent individuals, and the inexperience of the whole nation in political affairs; so materially retarded the union of the country, that the Spaniards, by sending expeditions from Peru, were enabled, in 1814, to regain their lost authority in Chili. Meanwhile the Government of Buenos Ayres, the independence of which had been established in 1810 [see ARGENTINE REPUBLIC: A. D. 1806-1820], naturally dreaded that the Spaniards would not long be confined to the western side of the Andes; but would speedily make a descent upon the provinces of the River Plate, of which Buenos Ayres is the capital. In order to guard against this formidable danger, they bravely resolved themselves to become the invaders, and by great exertions equipped an army of 4,000 men. The command of this force was given to General Don José de San Martin, a native of the town of Yapeyu in Paraguay; a man greatly beloved by all ranks, and held in such high estimation by the people, that to his personal exertions the formation of this army is chiefly due. With these troops San Martin entered Chili by a pass over the Andes heretofore deemed inaccessible, and on the 12th of February, 1817, attacked and completely defeated the royal army at Chacabuco. The Chilians, thus freed from the immediate presence of the enemy, elected General O'Higgins [see PERU: A. D. 1550-1816] as Director; and he, in 1818, offered the Chilians a constitution, and nominated five senators to administer the affairs of the country. This meritorious officer, an Irishman by descent, though born in Chili, has ever since [1825] remained at the head of the government. It was originally proposed to elect General San Martin as Director; but this he steadily refused, proposing his companion in arms, O'Higgins, in his stead. The remnant of the Spanish army took refuge in Talcuhuana, a fortified sea-port near Conception, on the southern frontier of Chili. Vigorous measures were taken to reduce this place, but, in the beginning of 1818, the Viceroy of Peru, by draining that province of its best troops, sent off a body of 5,000 men under General Osorio, who succeeded in joining the Spaniards shut up in Talcuhuana. Thus reinforced, the Royal army, amounting in all to 8,000, drove back the Chilians, marched on the capital, and gained other considerable advantages; particularly in a night attack at Talca, on the 19th of March 1818, where the Royalists almost entirely dispersed the Patriot forces. San Martin, however, who, after the battle of Chacabuco, had been named Commander-in-chief of the united armies of Chili and Buenos Ayres," rallied his army and equipped it anew so quickly that, "on the 5th of April, only 17 days after his defeat, he engaged, and, after an obstinate and sanguinary conflict, completely routed the Spanish army on the plains of Maypo. From that day Chili may date her complete independence; for although a small portion of the Spanish troops endeavoured to make a stand at Conception, they were soon driven out and the country left in the free possession of the Patriots. Having now time to breathe, the Chilian Government, aided by that of Buenos Ayres, determined to attack the Royalists in their turn, by sending an armament against Peru [see PERU; A. D. 1820-1826]--a great and bold measure, originating with San Martin."

_Capt. B. Hall, Extracts from a Journal, volume 1, chapter 1._

ALSO IN: _J. Miller, Memoirs of General Miller, chapter 4-7 (volume 1)._

_T. Sutcliffe, Sixteen Years in Chili and Peru chapter 2-4._

_Gen. B. Mitre, The Emancipation of S. America: History of an Martin._

CHILE: A. D. 1820-1826. Operations in Peru.

See PERU: A. D. 1820-1826.

CHILE: A. D. 1833-1884. A successful oligarchy and its constitution. The war with Peru and Bolivia.

"After the perfection of its national independence, the Chilean government soon passed into the permanent control of civilians, 'while the other governments of the west coast remained prizes for military chieftains.' Its present constitution was framed in 1833, and though it is only half a century old 'it is the oldest written national constitution in force in all the world except our own, unless the Magna Charta of England be included in the category.' The political history of Chile during the fifty years of its life has been that of a well ordered commonwealth, but one of a most unusual and interesting sort. Its government has never been forcibly overthrown, and only one serious attempt at revolution has been made. Chile is in name and in an important sense a republic, and yet its government is an oligarchy. Suffrage is restricted to those male citizens who are registered, who are twenty-five years old if unmarried and twenty-one if married, and who can read and write; and there is also a stringent property qualification. The consequence is that the privilege of voting is confined to an aristocracy: in 1876, the total number of ballots thrown for president was only 46,114 in a population of about two and a quarter millions. The president of Chile has immense powers of nomination and appointment, and when he is a man of vigorous will he tyrannically sways public policy, and can almost always dictate the name of his successor. The government has thus become practically vested in a comparatively small number of leading Chilean families. There is no such thing as 'public opinion' in the sense in which we use the phrase, and the newspapers, though ably conducted, do not attempt, as they do not desire, to change the existing order of things. 'History,' says Mr. Browne, 'does not furnish an example of a more powerful political "machine" under the title of republic; nor, I am bound to say, one which has been more ably directed so far as concerns the aggrandizement of the country, or more honestly administered so far as concerns pecuniary corruption.' The population of Chile doubled between 1843 and 1875; the quantity of land brought under tillage was quadrupled; ... more than 1,000 miles of railroad were built; a foreign export trade of $31,695,039 was reported in 1878; and two powerful iron-clads, which were destined to playa most important part in Chilean affairs, were built in England. Meanwhile, the constitution was officially interpreted so as to guarantee religious toleration, and the political power of the Roman Catholic priesthood diminished. Almost everything good, except home manufactures and popular education, flourished. The development of the nation in these years was on a wonderful scale for a South American state, and the contrast between Chile and Peru was peculiarly striking. ... Early in 1879 began the great series of events which were to make the fortune of Chile. We use the word 'great,' in its low, superficial sense, and without the attribution of any moral significance to the adjective. {414} The aggressor in the war between Chile and Peru was inspired by the most purely selfish motives, and it remains to be seen whether the just gods will not win in the long run, even though the game of their antagonists be played with heavily plated iron-clads. ... At the date last mentioned Chile was suffering, like many other nations, from a general depression in business pursuits. Its people were in no serious trouble, but as a government it was in a bad way. ... The means to keep up a sinking fund for the foreign debt had failed, and the Chilean five per cents were quoted in London at sixty-four. 'A political cloud also was darkening again in the north, in the renewal of something like a confederation between Peru and Bolivia.' In this state of things the governing oligarchy of Chile decided, rather suddenly, Mr. Browne thinks, upon a scheme which was sure to result either in splendid prosperity or absolute ruin, and which contemplated nothing less than a war of conquest against Peru and Bolivia, with a view to seizing the most valuable territory of the former country. There is a certain strip of land bordering upon the Pacific and about 400 miles long, of which the northern three quarters belonged to Peru and Bolivia, the remaining one quarter to Chile. Upon this land a heavy rain never falls, and often years pass in which the soil does not feel a shower. ... Its money value is immense. 'From this region the world derives almost its whole supply of nitrates--chiefly saltpetre--and of iodine;' its mountains, also, are rich in metals, and great deposits of guano are found in the highlands bordering the sea. The nitrate-bearing country is a plain, from fifty to eighty miles wide, the nitrate lying in layers just below a thin sheet of impacted stones, gravel, and sand. The export of saltpetre from this region was valued in 1882 at nearly $30,000,000, and the worth of the Peruvian section, which is much the largest and most productive, is estimated, for government purposes, at a capital of $600,000,000. Chile was, naturally, well aware of the wealth which lay so close to her own doors, and to possess herself thereof, and thus to rehabilitate her national fortunes, she addressed herself to war. The occasion for war was easily found. Bolivia was first attacked, a difficulty which arose at her port of Antofagasta, with respect to her enforcement of a tax upon some nitrate works carried on by a Chilean company, affording a good pretext; and when Peru attempted intervention her envoy was confronted with Chile's knowledge of a secret treaty between Peru and Bolivia, and war was formally declared by Chile upon Peru, April 5, 1879. This war lasted, with some breathing spaces, for almost exactly five years. At the outset the two belligerent powers--Bolivia being soon practically out of the contest--seemed to be about equal in ships, soldiers, and resources; but the supremacy which Chile soon gained upon the seas substantially determined the war in her favor. Each nation owned two powerful iron-clads, and six months were employed in settling the question of naval superiority. ... On the 21st of May, 1879, the Peruvian fleet attacked and almost destroyed the Chilean wooden frigates which were blockading Iquique; but in chasing a Chilean corvette the larger Peruvian iron-clad--the Independencia--ran too near the shore, and was fatally wrecked. 'So Peru lost one of her knights. The game she played with the other--the Huascar--was admirable, but a losing one;' and on the 8th of October of the same year the Huascar was attacked by the Chilean fleet, which included two iron-clads, and was finally captured' after a desperate resistance.'... From this moment the Peruvian coast was at Chile's mercy: the Chilean arms prevailed in every pitched battle, at San Francisco [November 16, 1879], at Tacna [May 26, 1880], at Arica [June 7, 1880]; and finally, on the 17th of January, 1881, after a series of actions which resembled in some of their details the engagements that preceded our capture of the city of Mexico [ending in what is known as the Battle of Miraflores], the victorious army of Chile took possession of Lima, the capital of Peru. ... The results of the war have thus far exceeded the wildest hopes of Chile. She has taken absolute possession of the whole nitrate region, has cut Bolivia off from the sea, and achieved the permanent dissolution of the Peru-Bolivian confederation. As a consequence, her foreign trade has doubled, the revenue of her government has been trebled, and the public debt greatly reduced. The Chilean bonds, which were sold at 64 in London in January, 1879, and fell to 60 in March of that year, at the announcement of the war, were quoted at 95 in January, 1884."

_The Growing Power of the Republic of Chile (Atlantic Monthly, July, 1884)._

ALSO IN: _H. Birkedal, The late War in South America (Overland Monthly, January, February, and March, 1884)._

_C. R. Markham, The War between Peru and Chile._

_R. N. Boyd, Chile, chapter 16-17._

_Message of the President of the U. S., transmitting Papers relating to the War in South America, January 26, 1882._

_T. W. Knox, Decisive Battles since Waterloo; chapter 23._

See, also, PERU: A. D. 1826-1876.

CHILE: A. D. 1885-1891. The presidency and dictatorship of Balmaceda. His conflict with the Congress. Civil war.

"Save in the one struggle in which the parties resorted to arms, the political development of Chili was free from civil disturbances, and the ruling class was distinguished among the Spanish-American nations not only for wealth and education, but for its talent for government and love of constitutional liberty. The republic was called 'the England of South America,' and it was a common boast that in Chili a pronunciamiento or a revolution was impossible. The spirit of modern Liberalism became more prevalent, ... As the Liberal party became all-powerful it split into factions, divided by questions of principle and by struggles for leadership and office. ... The patronage of the Chilian President is enormous, embracing not only the general civil service, but local officials, except in the municipalities, and all appointments in the army and navy and in the telegraph and railroad services and the giving out of contracts. The President has always been able to select his successor, and has exercised this power, usually in harmony with the wishes of influential statesmen, sometimes calling a conference of party chiefs to decide on a candidate. In the course of time the more advanced wing of the Liberals grew more numerous than the Moderates. The most radical section had its nucleus in a Reform Club in Santiago, composed of young university men, of whom Balmaceda was the finest orator. Entering Congress in 1868, he took a leading part in debates. ... {415} In 1885 he was the most popular man in the country; but his claim to the presidential succession was contested by various other aspirants--older politicians and leaders of factions striving for supremacy in Congress. He was elected by an overwhelming majority, and as President enjoyed an unexampled degree of popularity. For two or three years the politicians who had been his party associates worked in harmony with his ideas. ... At the flood of the democratic tide he was the most popular man in South America. But when the old territorial families saw the seats in Congress and the posts in the civil service that had been their prerogative filled by new men, and fortunes made by upstarts where all chances had been at their disposal, then a reaction set in, corruption was scented, and Moderate Liberals, joining hands with the Nationalists and the reviving Conservative party, formed an opposition of respectable strength. In the earlier part of his administration Balmaceda had the co-operation of the Nationalists, who were represented in the Cabinet. In the last two years of his term, when the time drew near for selecting his successor, defection and revolt and the rivalries of aspirants for the succession threw the party into disorder and angered its hitherto unquestioned leader. ... In January, 1890, the Opposition were strong enough to place their candidate in the chair when the House of Representatives organized. The ministry resigned, and a conflict between the Executive and legislative branches of the Government was openly begun when the President appointed a Cabinet of his own selection. ... This ministry had to face an overwhelming majority against the President, which treated him as a dictator and began to pass hostile laws and resolutions that were vetoed, and refused to consider the measures that he recommended. The ministers were cited before the Chambers and questioned about the manner of their appointment. They either declined to answer, or answered in a way that increased the animosity of Congress, which finally passed a vote of censure, in obedience to which, as was usual, the Cabinet resigned. Then Balmaceda appointed a ministry in open defiance of Congress, with Sanfuentes at its head, the man who was already spoken of as his selected candidate for the presidency. He prepared for the struggle that he invited by removing the chiefs of the administration of the departments and replacing them with men devoted to himself and his policy, and making changes in the police, the militia, and, to some extent, in the army and navy commands. The press denounced him as a dictator, and indignation meetings were held in every town. Balmaceda and his supporters pretended to be not only the champions of the people against the aristocracy, but of the principle of Chili for the Chilians."

_Appleton's Annual Cyclop., 1891, pages 123-124._

"The conflict between President Balmaceda and Congress ripened into revolution. On January 1, 1891, the Opposition members of the Senate and House of Deputies met, and signed an Act declaring that the President was unworthy of his post, and that he was no longer head of the State nor President of the Republic, as he had violated the Constitution. On January 7 the navy declared in favour of the Legislature, and against Balmaceda. The President denounced the navy as traitors, abolished all the laws of the country, declared himself Dictator, and proclaimed martial law. It was a reign of terror. The Opposition recruited an army in the Island of Santa Maria under General Urrutia and Commander Canto. On February 14 a severe fight took place with the Government troops in Iquique, and the Congressional army took possession of Pisagua. In April, President Balmaceda ... delivered a long message, denouncing the navy. ... The contest continued, and April 7, Arica, in the province of Tarapaca, was taken by the revolutionists. Some naval fights occurred later, and the iron-clad Blanco Encalada was blown up by the Dictator's torpedo cruisers. Finally, on August 21, General Canto landed at Concon, ten miles north of Valparaiso. Balmaceda's forces attacked immediately and were routed, losing 3,500 killed and wounded. The Congress army lost 600. On the 28th a decisive battle was fought at Placilla, near Valparaiso. The Dictator had 12,000 troops, and the opposing army 10,000. Balmaceda's forces were completely routed after five hours' hard fighting, with a loss of 1,500 men. Santiago formally surrendered, and the triumph of the Congress party was complete. A Junta, headed by Señor Jorge Montt, took charge of affairs at Valparaiso August 30. Balmaceda, who had taken refuge at the Argentine Legation in Santiago, was not able to make his escape, and to avoid capture, trial, and punishment, committed suicide, September 20, by shooting himself. On the 19th November Admiral Jorge Montt was chosen by the Electoral College, at Santiago, President of Chili, and on December 26 he was installed with great ceremony and general rejoicings."

_Annual Register, 1891, page 420._

CHILIARCHS.

Captains of thousands, in the army of the Vandals.

_T. Hodgkin, Italy and her Invaders, book 3, chapter 2._

CHILLIANWALLAH, Battle of (1849).

See INDIA: A. D. 1845-1849.

CHILPERIC I.,

King of the Franks (Neustria), A. D. 561-584.

Chilperic II., King of the Franks, A. D. 715-720.

CHILTERN HUNDREDS, Applying for the Stewardship of the.

A seat in the British House of Commons "cannot be resigned, nor can a man who has once formally taken his seat for one constituency throw it up and contest another. Either a disqualification must be incurred, or the House must declare the seat vacant." The necessary disqualification can be incurred by accepting an office of profit under the Crown,--within certain official categories. "Certain old offices of nominal value in the gift of the Treasury are now granted, as of course, to members who wish to resign their seats in order to be quit of Parliamentary duties or to contest another constituency. These offices are the Stewardship of the Chiltern Hundreds [Crown property in Buckinghamshire], of the manors of East Hendred, Northstead, or Hempholme, and the escheatorship of Munster. The office is resigned as soon as it has operated to vacate the seat and sever the tie between the member and his constituents."

_Sir W. R. Anson, Law and Custom of the Const.,