Wreckage of San José facts for kids

The wreckage of San José in 1651 was a very important event in Colonial Chile. A Spanish ship named San José crashed, and local Cuncos took its valuable cargo and attacked the survivors. This caused a lot of trouble between the Spanish and the Cuncos. It led to more fighting later, like the Battle of Río Bueno and the Mapuche uprising of 1655.

Why Valdivia Was Important

The Spanish city of Valdivia was rebuilt in 1645. This happened after the Dutch tried to set up their own settlement there in 1643. By 1651, Valdivia was not just a city. It was a strong military base.

Protecting the Coast

Soldiers at Valdivia were building many forts. These forts were part of the Valdivian Fort System. Their job was to protect the area. They wanted to stop the Dutch or any other country from trying to take Valdivia again.

Funding the Military

The soldiers in Valdivia were paid with something called the Real Situado. This was a yearly payment of silver. It was used to make the military stronger in Chile, which was often at war. Valdivia was surrounded by Mapuche lands. Because of this, the only way to reach the Spanish settlement was by sea.

Peace Agreements

In January 1651, the Spanish and Mapuches held a meeting. This meeting was called the Parliament of Boroa. They agreed to keep the peace, which was very fragile. Earlier peace agreements had been made at the parliaments of Quilín in 1641 and 1647.

The Shipwreck and What Happened Next

On March 26, 1651, the Spanish ship San José was sailing towards Valdivia. Strong storms pushed the ship onto the coast. This area was home to the Cuncos, a Mapuche group from the south.

Shipwreck and Looting

The ship got stuck on the shore. Most of the crew managed to survive the crash. However, nearby Cuncos attacked them and took the ship's valuable cargo. This cargo included the payment for the soldiers in Valdivia. People believe the shipwreck happened at a place called Punta Galera.

Spanish Efforts to Recover Cargo

Later, a Spanish group left Chiloé to go to the wreck site. Captain Gaspar de Alvarado led this group. Divers from the expedition tried to get back the cargo they thought was still in the ship. But their attempts were not very successful.

Debate Over Punishment

Governor Acuña Cabrera first wanted to send soldiers to punish the Cuncos. But Jesuit priests, Diego de Rosales and Juan de Moscoso, convinced him not to. They said only a few Cuncos were responsible for the attacks. They also warned that new fighting would ruin the peace made at Boroa.

The Cuncos were a group from the far south. They had not been part of the Spanish-Mapuche peace meetings. Still, starting new fights was seen as bad for the peace with other Mapuche groups further north.

Punitive Expeditions

Eventually, the Spanish did send soldiers to fight the Cuncos. One group came from Valdivia, and another from Carelmapu.

Valdivia's Expedition Fails

The Governor of Valdivia, Diego González Montero, led his soldiers south. But he soon found that the local groups he expected to help him did not care. They even gave him false information. His soldiers ran out of supplies and had to go back to Valdivia. While González Montero was away, Huilliches living near the coast killed twelve Spanish people.

Carelmapu's Expedition

Both Spanish groups were supposed to meet at the Bueno River. But the failure of the Valdivia group stopped this. The group from Carelmapu was led by Captain Ignacio Carrera Yturgoyen. They went north near the ruins of Osorno. There, some Huilliches met them. These Huilliches handed over three "caciques" (leaders). They claimed these leaders were responsible for the attacks.

The Spanish and the local Huilliches talked about the good things about peace. Then, the Spanish soldiers from Carelmapu executed the three leaders. After that, they returned south. Spanish soldiers in Concepción, which was the main military city in Chile, were not happy with these results. Some people thought they wanted more war for their own benefit.