Indigenous groups inhabited central and southern Chile for several thousands of years, living in mixed pastoralist and settled communities, ending with the Inca ruling the north of the country for nearly a century prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. The Captaincy General of Chile was founded by the Spanish in 1541, lasting until Chile declared its independence in 1810. The subsequent struggle became tied to other South American independence conflicts, with a decisive victory over the Spanish not being achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879-83), Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia to win its current northernmost regions. By the 1880s, the Chilean central government cemented its control over the central and southern regions inhabited by Mapuche Indigenous peoples. Between 1891 and 1973, a series of elected governments succeeded each other until the three-year-old Marxist government of Salvador Allende was overthrown in 1973 by a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet, who ruled until a democratically elected president was inaugurated in 1990. Economic reforms, maintained consistently since the 1980s, contributed to steady growth, reduced poverty rates by over half, and helped secure the country’s commitment to democratic and representative government. Chile has increasingly assumed regional and international leadership roles befitting its status as a stable, democratic nation.

Economy

Export-driven economy; leading copper producer; though hit by COVID-19, fairly quick rebound from increased liquidity and rapid vaccine rollouts; decreasing poverty but still lingering inequality; public debt rising but still manageable; recent political violence has had negative economic consequences

Population

The population is 18,549,457 (2023 est.) which consist of White and non-Indigenous 88.9%, Mapuche 9.1%, Aymara 0.7%, other Indigenous groups 1% (includes Rapa Nui, Likan Antai, Quechua, Colla, Diaguita, Kawesqar, Yagan or Yamana), unspecified 0.3% (2012 est.)

African slaves were first brought to the Spanish colony that is now Chile in 1536. After crossing the Atlantic Ocean from Africa, two overland routes trafficked many enslaved Africans to the colony: one crossing west from the northern coast of South America, and another traveling north from Buenos Aires over the Pampas and the Andes. Many slaves did not survive the difficult journey in captivity. The port of Valparaíso was also utilized in the slave trade for maritime transport of captives.

Given that the type of economic activity in colonial times, for climatic reasons, was never any large tropical plantations (cotton, sugar and tobacco, among others), Europeans did not see the need to import a large contingent of black slaves, like that of the Caribbean. Another reason was that, as a result of the Arauco War, indigenous Mapuche people were stolen from their lands, which in turn were exported to Peru, at a much cheaper price than that of a black slave. Although no economic benefits led to any large importation of African slaves to Chile, roughly around 6,000 Africans were transported directly to Chile where they went into mainly domestic service as a means of status for colonists and as a work force in the mining of gold in Arica. By 1590 Afro-Chileans made up 20,000 people, but by the time of emancipation made up only 4,000 in 1823.

The black or Afro-descendant population of present-day Arica was considerable during the colonial era. The city was founded in 1570 and belonged to the Viceroyalty of Peru and between 1824 and 1880, to the Republic of Peru. This last year was annexed to Chile, after it won the Pacific War. The city received this large number of slaves because its territory was optimal for the cultivation of cotton and sugar cane in the Azapa Valley. Most of the slaves who arrived came from the West Indies or the African continent, especially from the areas of present-day Congo and Angola. In addition, after the discovery of the silver mines of Potosí, Arica became the main port of disembarkation of the slaves who were taken there.

During that time, the Spaniards did not live mostly in Arica, as the anopheles, a species of mosquito present in the Azapa Valley, transmitted the deadly disease of malaria. Black Africans or their descendants settled in Arica were less susceptible to tropical diseases. In 1793, the book Guía del Perú was published, which reported on the ethnic composition of the inhabitants of the “Partido de Arica”.

Once Spanish presence in Valdivia was reestablished in 1645, authorities had convicts from all-over the Viceroyalty of Peru construct the Valdivian Fort System. The convicts, many of whom were Afro-Peruvians, became soldier-settlers once they had served their term. Close contacts with indigenous Mapuche meant many soldiers were bilingual in Spanish and Mapudungun. A 1749 census in Valdivia shows that Afro-descendants had a strong presence in the area. Although most Afro-Peruvians came as convicts, Chilean slaves who arrived at the ports of Coquimbo and Valparaiso were two or three times more expensive. During the 18th century, Valparaíso was an important port for the slavery business. According to the Oro Negro Foundation, 2,180 slaves were sent to the port of El Callao in 1783.