Government Junta of Chile (1891) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Revolutionary Junta of Iquique (April 13, 1891 - December 26, 1891), was the political structure established to challenge the power of Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

an President José Manuel Balmaceda

José Manuel Balmaceda

José Manuel Emiliano Balmaceda Fernández was the 11th President of Chile from September 18, 1886 to August 29, 1891. Balmaceda was part of the Castilian-Basque aristocracy in Chile...

following the insurrection of the navy that started the Chilean Civil War

Chilean Civil War

The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...

. It ruled the country until Admiral Jorge Montt

Jorge Montt

Jorge Montt Álvarez was vice-admiral of the Chilean Navy and president of Chile from 1891 to 1896.-Early life:...

assumed power as the new President after the defeat of President Balmaceda.

Creation

A conflict had been simmering for a long time between the National Congress

National Congress of Chile

The National Congress is the legislative branch of the government of the Republic of Chile.The National Congress of Chile was founded on July 4, 1811...

and the President

President of Chile

The President of the Republic of Chile is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Chile. The President is responsible of the government and state administration...

over the extent of the constitutional powers of each. In January of 1891, the conflict led to the Chilean Civil War

Chilean Civil War

, that broke out between the presidential and the congressional forces. President José Manuel Balmaceda

José Manuel Balmaceda

José Manuel Emiliano Balmaceda Fernández was the 11th President of Chile from September 18, 1886 to August 29, 1891. Balmaceda was part of the Castilian-Basque aristocracy in Chile...

was supported by the regular army and a small part of the navy. Most of the navy, under the command of captain Jorge Montt

Jorge Montt

Jorge Montt Álvarez was vice-admiral of the Chilean Navy and president of Chile from 1891 to 1896.-Early life:...

, supported Congress. Captain Montt, who also led the congressional forces together with General Emil Korner

Emil Körner

Emil Körner Henze was a scion of Prussian military tradition brought to Chile and Commander-in-chief of the Chilean Army with the rank of Inspector General from 1900 to 1910.-Army modernization plans in Chile:...

, captured the northern provinces and organized a parallel government in the city of Iquique

Iquique

Iquique is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Atacama Desert and the Pampa del Tamarugal. It had a population of 216,419 as of the 2002 census...

. Once there they proceeded to raise and organize an army, which eventually they transported south to fight against the presidential forces.

Members

Position	Name	Background	Notes
President	Jorge Montt Alvarez Jorge Montt Jorge Montt Álvarez was vice-admiral of the Chilean Navy and president of Chile from 1891 to 1896.-Early life:...	Navy Captain
Member	Waldo Silva Algüe	Vice President of the Senate President of the Senate of Chile The President of the Senate of Chile is the highest authority of the Senate of Chile. The position comes after the Ministers of State in the line of succession of the President of Chile in the case of temporary incapacitation or vacancy ....
Member	Ramón Barros Luco Ramón Barros Luco Ramón Barros Luco was President of Chile between 1910 and 1915.Barros Luco was born in 1835 in Santiago, Barros Luco was son of Ramón Luis Barros Fernández and Dolores Luco Fernández de Leiva. He graduated from Law School in 1858...	President of the Chamber of Deputies Chamber of Deputies of Chile The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....

History

The Revolutionary Junta, created on April 13th, had little direct political participation, since almost all its effort was focused on the military effort. Firmly established in Iquique prosecuted the war vigorously, and by the end of April the whole area was in the hands of the "rebels" from the Peruvian border to the outposts of the Balmacedists at Coquimbo and La Serena. The Junta now began the formation of a properly organized army for the next campaign, which, it was believed universally on both sides, would be directed against Coquimbo. The necessary arms and ammunition were arranged for in Europe; they were shipped in a British vessel, and transferred to a Chilean steamer at Fortune Bay, in Tierra del Fuego

Tierra del Fuego

Tierra del Fuego is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of a main island Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego divided between Chile and Argentina with an area of , and a group of smaller islands including Cape...

, close to the Straits of Magellan and the Falkland Islands

Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...

, and thence carried to Iquique, where they were safely disembarked early in July 1891. A force of 10,000 men was now raised by the junta, and preparations were rapidly pushed forward for a move to the south with the object of attacking Valparaiso and Santiago, because in a few months the arrival of the new ships from Europe would reopen the struggle for command of the sea so the Congressional party could no longer aim at a methodical conquest of successive provinces, but was compelled to attempt to crush the dictator at a blow.

After his forces were overcome, Balmaceda fled to the Argentinian embassy where he stayed for one month, then committed suicide

Suicide

Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

rather than surrender to the new government. The Government Junta took control from General Manuel Baquedano

Manuel Baquedano

Manuel Jesús Baquedano González was a Chilean soldier and Chief of Government, who served as Commander-in-chief of the Army during the War of the Pacific. Manuel Baquedano was of Basque descent.-Early life:...

, who had succeeded President Balmaceda in order to avoid the continuance of hostilities, and ruled until new elections were held, that elected Captain Montt as new President.

Creation

Members

History

See also