Indians, bandits, and the state: Chile's path toward national identity (1819--1833

This dissertation studies the formation of the Chilean state from 1819 to 1833 in the context of its southern frontier. Most historians believe that the formation of Chile's national state and resulting political and institutional stability and relative peace were different from other Spanish colonies because Chile developed a strong, centralized state early in the nineteenth century. Missing, however, is any substantial analysis of the state's struggles with subaltern groups on its southern frontier. This dissertation studies the state formation process in Chile from three perspectives: the state, the bandit Pincheira brothers, and the Pchuenche Indians, their allies. For twelve years (1819--1832) the Pincheiras and the Pehuenches waged a guerrilla war against the Chilean state to further their own political agendas against state encroachment and annexation. In the process, these subalterns played a crucial role in determining the state's future as a nation by deeply influencing the model Chile's leaders chose to further the state-building process, a model formalized in the 1833 Constitution. This constitution effectively became Chile's national charter until 1924. This dissertation argues that the model Chile's leaders utilized was a result of the conflicts they experienced on their southern frontier. Studying the complex relationship among subaltern peoples on the frontier is crucial for understanding Chile's unique path toward nationhood in the early part of the nineteenth century and its subsequent political and institutional stability. I believe my research will be a valuable contribution to the expanding literature on state formation and frontiers.