Cadeguala
Encyclopedia
Cadeguala or Cadiguala was a Mapuche
toqui
elected in 1585 following the death in battle of the previous toqui Nangoniel
. Cadeguala was a noted warrior and the first Mapuche toqui known to have used cavalry
successfully in battle. He was killed in a duel with the garrison commander of the Spanish
fort at Purén
in 1586.
While very young he entered the Mapuche army as a private, although he was a nobleman, and gradually won promotion to the grade of general. The toqui, Cayancaru
, gave him command of a strong army to attack the city of Angol
, which he did without success, but then marched to the city of Arauco
, besieged and entered it. Afterward he intended to attack Fort Trinidad
, this fortress commanding the passage from Bio-bio River
, but a body of Spanish troops under Francisco Hernandez came out and defeated Cadeguala, who lost an arm and was otherwise severely wounded. This forced him to retire to the mountains. He was followed thither by the lieutenant-governor of Chili, who attempted an ambush, only to be discovered, defeated, and killed, with 50 of his men, 14 November 1586. On the same day Cadeguala was elected toqui by acclamation.
Following his election, Cadeguala began operations against the Spanish and then attacked Angol breaking into the city with the aid of sympathetic Indians that set fires within the town. However the arrival of the governor Alonso de Sotomayor
inspired a counterattack by the residents that had fled to the citadel driving the Mapuche back out of the town. Deprived of success there he followed with a siege of the Spanish fort at Purén the following year with 4,000 warriors. After driving off a relief force led by Governor Sotomayor with his 150 lancers he offered the garrison a chance to withdraw or join his army which was refused by all but one. He next challenged the commander of the fort, Alonso García de Ramón
, to single combat to decide the fate of the fortress. The two leaders fought on horseback with lances, and Cadeguala fell, killed by his opponent's weapon in the first tilt. Even when dying, the Mapuche warrior would not admit defeat, and tried in vain to mount his horse again. His army raised the siege but after electing Guanoalca
as toqui returned to successfully drive the poorly supplied Spanish from Purén.
Mapuche
The Mapuche are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina. They constitute a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who shared a common social, religious and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage. Their influence extended...
toqui
Toqui
Toqui is a title conferred by the Mapuche to those who are chosen as their leaders during times of war. The toqui is chosen in an assembly or parliament of the chieftains of the various clans or confederation of clans , allied during the war in question...
elected in 1585 following the death in battle of the previous toqui Nangoniel
Nangoniel
Nangoniel was the Mapuche Toqui in 1585, and son of the previous toqui Cayancaru. He was the first Toqui to use cavalry with the Mapuche army.Following the failure of his siege of Arauco, Cayancura, retired, leaving the command of the army to his son Nangoniel. He collected some infantry, and a...
. Cadeguala was a noted warrior and the first Mapuche toqui known to have used cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
successfully in battle. He was killed in a duel with the garrison commander of the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
fort at Purén
Purén
Purén is a city and commune in Malleco Province of Araucanía Region, Chile. It is located in the west base of the Nahuelbuta mountain range . The economical activity of Purén is based in forest exploitation and agriculture...
in 1586.
While very young he entered the Mapuche army as a private, although he was a nobleman, and gradually won promotion to the grade of general. The toqui, Cayancaru
Cayancaru
Cayancura or Cayeucura, a Mapuche native to the region of Marigüenu, chosen as toqui in 1584, to replace the captured Paineñamcu. His one great operation was an attempted siege of the fort at Arauco that failed, leading to his abdication of his office in favor of his son Nangoniel in 1585.-...
, gave him command of a strong army to attack the city of Angol
Angol
Angol is a commune and capital city of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It is located at the foot of the Nahuelbuta Range and next to the Vergara River, that permitted communications by small boats to the Bío-Bío River and Concepción. This strategic position explains...
, which he did without success, but then marched to the city of Arauco
Arauco, Chile
Arauco is a city and commune in Chile, located in Arauco Province in the Biobio Region. The meaning of Arauco means Chalky Water in Mapudungun. The region was a Moluche aillarehue...
, besieged and entered it. Afterward he intended to attack Fort Trinidad
Santísima Trinidad (fort)
Santísima Trinidad or Most Holy Trinity was a fortress in the Kingdom of Chile that existed on the north shore of the Bio-Bio River in what is now the Biobío Province. It was built directly across the river from Fort Espíritu Santo by the Royal Governor of Chile Alonso de Sotomayor in 1585...
, this fortress commanding the passage from Bio-bio River
Bío-Bío River
The Biobío River is the second largest river in Chile. It originates from Icalma and Galletué lakes in the Andes and flows 380 km to the Gulf of Arauco on the Pacific Ocean....
, but a body of Spanish troops under Francisco Hernandez came out and defeated Cadeguala, who lost an arm and was otherwise severely wounded. This forced him to retire to the mountains. He was followed thither by the lieutenant-governor of Chili, who attempted an ambush, only to be discovered, defeated, and killed, with 50 of his men, 14 November 1586. On the same day Cadeguala was elected toqui by acclamation.
Following his election, Cadeguala began operations against the Spanish and then attacked Angol breaking into the city with the aid of sympathetic Indians that set fires within the town. However the arrival of the governor Alonso de Sotomayor
Alonso de Sotomayor
Alonso de Sotomayor y Valmediano was a Spanish conquistador from Extremadura, and a Royal Governor of Chile.-Early life:He was born in Trujillo, in the province of Extremadura, the son of Gutiérrez de Sotomayor e Hinojosa and Beatriz de Valmediano...
inspired a counterattack by the residents that had fled to the citadel driving the Mapuche back out of the town. Deprived of success there he followed with a siege of the Spanish fort at Purén the following year with 4,000 warriors. After driving off a relief force led by Governor Sotomayor with his 150 lancers he offered the garrison a chance to withdraw or join his army which was refused by all but one. He next challenged the commander of the fort, Alonso García de Ramón
Alonso García de Ramón
Alonso García de Ramón was a Spanish soldier and twice Royal Governor of Chile: first temporarily from July of 1600 to February of 1601, and then from March of 1605 to August of 1610. He was born in Cuenca, Spain in 1552....
, to single combat to decide the fate of the fortress. The two leaders fought on horseback with lances, and Cadeguala fell, killed by his opponent's weapon in the first tilt. Even when dying, the Mapuche warrior would not admit defeat, and tried in vain to mount his horse again. His army raised the siege but after electing Guanoalca
Guanoalca
Guanoalca was the Mapuche Toqui elected in 1586 following the death in battle of the previous toqui Cadeguala, killed in a duel with the garrison commander of the Spanish fort at Puren in 1586...
as toqui returned to successfully drive the poorly supplied Spanish from Purén.
Sources
- Pedro Mariño de LoberaPedro Mariño de LoberaPedro Mariño de Lobera was a Spanish conquistador and chronicler of the Arauco War in the Kingdom of Chile.-Biography:A professional soldier who served in the war between Spain and France, he went to the Americas in 1545. Mariño joined the forces of Pedro de La Gasca in Havana, Cuba, when he...
, Crónica del Reino de Chile , escrita por el capitán Pedro Mariño de Lobera....reducido a nuevo método y estilo por el Padre Bartolomé de Escobar. Edición digital a partir de Crónicas del Reino de Chile Madrid, Atlas, 1960, pp. 227-562, (Biblioteca de Autores Españoles ; 569-575). Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes Capítulo XXXV - Diego de RosalesDiego de RosalesDiego de Rosales was a Spanish chronicler and author of Historia General del Reino de Chile.He studied in his hometown, where he also joined the Society of Jesus. He came to Chile in the year 1629, without having taken his last vows still being sent to the residence that the Jesuits had in Arauco...
, “Historia General del Reino de Chile”, Flandes Indiano, 3 tomos. Valparaíso 1877 - 1878.- Historia general de el Reyno de Chile: Flandes Indiano Vol. 2 Capítulos LII, LIII, LIV.
- Coleccíon de historiadores de Chile, Tomo XV, Imprenta del Ferrocarril, Santiago, 1899
- Gomez de Vidaurre, HlSTORlA GEOGRÁFlCA, NATURAL Y CIVIL DEL REINO DE CHILE, Tomo II, pg. 161-163. (1535 - 1764)
- Juan Ignacio de Molina, The Geographical, Natural, and Civil History of Chili, Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, Paternoster-Row, London, 1809, Chapter IV
- Robert Kerr, A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Published 1824 pg. 338-340
- José Ignacio Víctor Eyzaguirre, Historia eclesiastica: Politica y literaria de Chile, IMPRENTA DEL COMERCIO, VALPARAISO, June 1830 List of Toquis, pg. 162-163, 498-500.
- Anson Uriel Hancock, A History of Chile, Chicago, C. H. Sergel and Company, 1893