Tacna Province (Chile)

The Tacna Province was a territorial division of Chile that existed between 1884 and 1929. It was ceded by the Treaty of Ancón in 1883 and placed under military administration, and then created on 31 October 1884, incorporating the former Peruvian provinces of Tacna and Arica of the also former Tacna Department, as well as a contested claim over Tarata, and was returned to Peru at midnight on 28 August 1929, under the terms agreed upon in the Treaty of Lima of the same year.

History
The province was first established on October 31, 1883, by a law promulgated by President Domingo Santa María which defined its limits as the Sama River to the north, the Quebrada de Camarones to the south, the Andes mountain range to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. This was under the conditions of the Treaty of Ancón, by means of which Chile achieved dominion over the Tarapacá Department, and possession of the provinces of Tacna and Arica for a decade, after which a plebiscite was to be held in 1894 to determine the region's sovereignty, however, it was never carried out. The provisional legal organization would end up working for 50 years, until 1929. During its early years, resistance was at its peak, with some Peruvian military personnel organizing guerrillas, such as Gregorio Albarracín's, of about a hundred men, which were defeated in battle in 1882, with Albarracín and his son being killed in action.

On December 26, 1908, half of Arica, then in the Province of Tacna, was destroyed by an earthquake. The city, as well as the region, were similarly affected by the much stronger earthquake in Valparaíso that happened just a couple of months prior, as well as its aftershocks.

In 1885 Chile integrated Tarata into the province, becoming in 1911 the Tarata Department, under the pretext that the town was to the east of the Sama river. Peru, however, did not recognize this annexation on the grounds that the territory was completely unaffected by the Treaty of Ancón. Around this time, raids by Peruvian smugglers as well as soldiers took place in the region,    and there were also rumours of war, including unfounded claims of Peru mobilizing troops against the Chilean border, which were denied on more than one occasion. In 1921, however, Chile abolished the department, and in 1925, amid plebiscite-related protests, gave the city back to Peru under the mediation of U.S. President Calvin Coolidge, who enforced the limits agreed upon on the north, which did not include the city. Coolidge showed himself to be in favor of the Peruvian claims on several occasions during the duration of the dispute, more so than other heads of state. Around the same time, a commission, headed by U.S. General John J. Pershing arrived to assist with the planned Tacna-Arica plebiscite, which eventually would never take place. Francisco Tudela y Varela became involved in the issue during his time serving as foreign minister from 1917 to 1918.

On April 23, 1921, measles in epidemic form was reported in the province, as well as neighboring Antofagasta, occurring among troops. At the same time, smallpox was reported present.

Reincorporation to Peru
On June 3, 1929, the Treaty of Lima was signed by then Peruvian Representative Pedro José Rada y Gamio and Chilean Representative Emiliano Figueroa Larrain, leading to the effective return of Tacna to Peru at midnight, on 28 August 1929, creating the Department of Tacna, and Arica being integrated into Tarapacá Province, ending the existence of the Chilean Province of Tacna. The handover had no official ceremony, with some Chilean officials temporarily staying behind to assist Peru regarding the new administration. Nonetheless, the return of the territory was met with celebrations in Peru, with President Augusto B. Leguía overseeing a military parade in Lima, and church bells ringing in celebration. Some Chilean citizens, who had remained in the province after the handover asked to be repatriated.

Administration


The Government of Chile pursued a policy of assimilation known as chileanization, which was met with local resistance, as well as criticism from the Peruvian government, who withdrew their delegations in 1901, and, after re-establishing it in 1905, withdrew it again in 1910 as a response to the closure of Peruvian institutions as well as the expulsion of Peruvians "whose influence would contribute to the maintenance of the Peruvian national spirit." It also appointed several intendants to its Provinces, including Tacna. The intendants of Tacna were based in their headquarters in the city of Tacna and served under the title with the exception of Col. Arrate and Lt. Col. Beytía.

Administrative divisions
The Tacna Province was divided into the following departments, themselves divided into communes:

Notable people

 * Salvador Allende and his family, who lived eight years in the city, from 1909 to 1916. Despite having been born in Santiago, Allende spent his childhood and youth in Tacna, having studied in the Liceo de Tacna.
 * Jorge Basadre, Peruvian historian known for his extensive publications about the independent history of his country.