Chile and Argentina: The New Spanish-Speaking Empires

By the close of the wars of independence in South America in the 1820s, Spain never did colonize most of Patagonia, the southmost quarter or so of South America. Sure, there was a territorial claim there, and ships from many countries went through the Strait of Magellan, but just like the North American west coast north of California, little was done in the way of settlement. Therefore, apart from the indigenous nations who lived there, most of Patagonia and all of Tierra del Fuego was unclaimed land when Chile and Argentina became independent:

Chile and the United Provinces of Rio de la Plata (Argentina) in 1825 soon after independence. Screenshot from EmperorTigerstar's "The History of South America: Every Year".

In the decades to come, both Chile and Argentina would claim and settle lands stretching all the way to Tierra del Fuego and beyond. If you've read some of my other blog posts, you'll remember that I define an empire as any country that has expanded beyond its original borders. Therefore, both Chile and Argentina would count as empires. Like some other, more powerful empires, Chile and Argentina mainly expanded in one direction. For Russia it was east, and for the United States it was west, but Chile and Argentina expanded south.

Chilean and Argentine expansion happened at a slow pace at first, but little by little the two countries expanded southward until they embarked on their two biggest conquests: Chile's War of the Pacific and Argentina's Conquest of the Desert.

Another screenshot from EmperorTigerstar's video, showing the status of Chile and Argentina before the Pacific War began in 1879.

The War of the Pacific began in 1879 and lasted until 1884. Chile expanded northward rather than southward. What was originally a dispute over a Bolivian tax on Chilean mining companies became a conquest of Bolivia's coastline and some of Peru's. Chile also invaded Peru at other places on the coast, including Lima itself. By the war's end, Bolivia was a landlocked country and Peru was humiliated. Chile did not just expand north during this time, however, as it had to respond to Argentina's rapid expansion southward.

At the same time when the United States was busy fighting wars against indigenous nations such as the Nez Perce and Apache, Argentina got busy fighting wars against indigenous nations such as the Mapuche. Argentina's Conquest of the Desert has resemblance to the "Indian Wars" of North America in other ways, too. Argentine generals employed ruthless tactics in the war just as American generals often did, and the Conquest of the Desert is often criticized as a genocide. Another comparison is that the newly conquered lands were opened for European settlement, and many European immigrants came. In fact, Argentina today has about the same proportion of people descended from Europeans as the United States. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Andes, Chile was steadily conquering lands to the south as well. To avoid direct conflict between Chile and Argentina as they raced towards Tierra del Fuego, the two countries agreed in 1881 to set their border mostly along the Andes Mountains (as it was for the northern part of their border already), except Chile would have the whole Strait of Magellan; Chile already founded Punta Arenas on its shores decades earlier. This is essentially the border today.

In the 1920s through 1940s, Argentina and Chile began to look across the ocean southward (and southeastward for Argentina). The United Kingdom had by then claimed a lot of territory in that direction. It already had the Falkland Islands and South Georgia Island, as well as the South Sandwich Islands and South Shetland Islands more recently. Argentina claimed South Georgia Island in 1927 and the South Sandwich Islands in 1938. As for Chile, it decided to claim the part of Antarctica closest to it in 1940 after Norway claimed a different part the previous year.

Chilean president Gabrial Gonzalez Videla visited Antarctica in the 1940s. Chile, Argentina, and the U.K. all claim the Antarctic Peninsula within their "sectors" which end at the South Pole.

Chilean and then Argentine claims on Antarctica marked a new chapter in not just their history but the whole history of the Spanish-speaking world, for there is no conclusive evidence that Spain ever saw lands south of Tierra del Fuego. Antarctica, and more specifically the South Pole, would also mark the conclusion of Chile's expansion southward, at least in terms of claims. But if Chile stretches its coastline all the way to Alaska, as the joke goes, then Chile has a lot of expansion it could do to the north.

For Argentina, its claim on Antarctica is naturally tied up with its claims on the neighboring British islands. Even in Antarctica, Argentine claims overlapped with British ones. Regardless, Argentina started asserting its own claim to the part of Antarctica closest to South America in the 1940s, which overlaps not just with the British claim but the Chilean one as well. In the decades that followed, Argentina started to contemplate taking the neighboring British islands by force. After all, the United Kingdom was reeling from World War II, and it was also granting most of its colonies independence. Argentina was waiting for a decent chance to strike. Meanwhile, Argentina was also establishing research stations in Antarctica (as were Chile and the U.K.) The first person born in Antarctica, Emilio Palma (in 1978), is an Argentine citizen.

For whatever reason, 1982 is the year Argentina chose to try capturing the Falkland Islands and the other British islands nearby. If Argentina was a great power and the United Kingdom was not, maybe Argentina could have won, but the Falklands War went about as one would expect. After invading the Falkland Islands and South Georgia Island, Argentina was able to briefly occupy both territories. However, once the British Empire sent reinforcements from England and Gibraltar, the Argentine invasion force was soon defeated. I guess Argentina didn't understand that Britannia still ruled the waves, even if the Falkland Islands are much closer to Argentina than England. It took just over two months before the war was over. 

After the end of the Falklands War, little has changed as far as Chilean and Argentine expansion goes. Argentina is in a tough spot for taking the Falkland Islands, not just because the United Kingdom is still a great power with a formidable navy, but also because over 99% of Falklanders voted to stay as a British territory in 2013. (A democratic referendum is rarely that one-sided!) Meanwhile, both Chile and Argentina have established new Antarctic research stations every now and then, with Chile operating a total of 12 right now and Argentina operating 14. All of those are within Chile's and Argentina's claims, but those claims have been on hold since 1959 because of the Antarctic Treaty. Even so, Chile and Argentina both have one research station with civilians living alongside researchers. By comparison, the United Kingdom has 4 research stations (all in its own claim) and no civilian settlements of any kind, so while the United Kingdom has the upper hand in other areas near Argentina, it seems that Argentina and Chile both have a stronger presence in Antarctica.

What does the future hold for these two empires? For now, it seems that not much will change. I'm not aware of any serious independence movements within Argentina or Chile that would make either country lose territory, and it seems also unlikely that Chile or Argentina will gain new territory until the United Kingdom is no longer a great power and until Chile's or Argentina's claim on Antarctica is recognized. As with Patagonia, assuming both Argentina and Chile are allowed to enforce their Antarctic claims, the two countries might have to split their claims to avoid conflict. Maybe they could choose a meridian, or maybe they'll take either side of a mountain range like in Patagonia. What we do know is that the Antarctic Treaty can be revised in 2048, so if it is revised, that could bring some new developments. Either way, it looks like Antarctica is the new frontier that both countries have chosen in their southward expansion.