History of Valdivia
according to archaeological discoveries in Monte Verde[1] (less than 200 km south of Valdivia), which would place it about a thousand years before the Clovis culture in North America.
This has challenged the models of migration to the New World and it is possible that the first inhabitants of Valdivia and Chile travelled to America by watercraft and not across a land-bridge in the Bering Strait.
The market in Ainil received shellfish and fish from the coast, legumes from Punucapa, and other foods from San José de la Mariquina; an agricultural zone north east of Valdivia.
The first European to visit Valdivia River's estuary was the Genoese captain Juan Bautista Pastene, who took possession of it in 1544 in the name of the Spanish king, Carlos I.
Following the establishment of the church of Santa María la Blanca in Valdivia, more buildings were constructed, so many that it was considered "the second city in the Kingdom of Chile".
The Dutch governor of the East Indies Hendrik Brouwer, learned about the situation in Valdivia, and decided to establish a base there for further attacks against the Viceroy of Peru.
In spite of his advanced age, Hendrik Brouwer left his post as governor in the East Indies to personally lead the expedition.
The Dutch fleet destroyed the Fort of Carelmapu and the city of Castro before arriving at Corral Bay at the mouth of the Valdivia River.
John Maurice of Nassau while in charge of the Dutch part of Brazil had equipped the expedition and had secretly appointed Elias Herckman as commander if Brouwer died.
[5] Pedro Álvarez de Toledo y Leiva Viceroy of Peru (1639–1648) knew of the strategic importance of Valdivia and decided to repopulate and fortify it once for all.
[5] The contingent in charge of the mission was organized in Peru and consisted of seventeen ships filled with building materials and supplies that astounded contemporaries by its magnitude.
With the Parliament of Las Canoas the local Huilliches became subjects of the Spanish Crown but were allowed to retain their lands and social structure.
By the same time Huilliche lands around Valdivia were slowly overtaken by mestizos and nearby Indians became "reduced" (Spanish: reducidos) it means "pacified" by a combination of military force and conversion into Christianity.
At the time of the first governing junta of Chile in 1810 the Valdivian governor, an Irishman, Albert Alexander Eagar, led the celebration of what was seen as an affirmation of the legitimacy of the Spanish king.
However, Valdivian independentists, such as Camilo Henríquez, saw an opportunity to gain absolute independence from Spain, organized a coup on 1 November 1811, and joined other Chilean cities that were already revolting against the old order.
Cochrane's land-based attack took the Spanish by surprise, avoiding a direct confrontation with the highly defended forts at the entrance to the Valdivia River.
When loyal troops in Valdivia heard the news about the fall of Corral they sacked the city and fled south to reinforce Chiloé, passing by Osorno.
[2] He also stated that "there is not much cleared land near Valdivia"[2] which contrasted with the description made by early Spaniards of large fields and extensive croplands.
One of the most famous immigrants was Carlos Anwandter, an exile from Luckenwalde who arrived to Valdivia in 1850 and in 1858 founded Chile's first German school.
Valdivia prospered with industries, including shipyards, the Hoffmann gristmill, the Rudloff shoe factory, the Anwandter beer company and many more.
Chile's oldest beauty content, "Queen of The Rivers" (Spanish: Reina de Los Ríos) began the same year.
On May 22, 1960, south-central Chile suffered the most powerful earthquake ever recorded, rating 9.5[8] on the Moment magnitude scale, with Valdivia being the most affected city.
Spanish-colonial forts around Valdivia were severely damaged, while soil subsidence destroyed buildings, deepened local rivers, and created wetlands of the Río Cruces y Chorocomayo - a new aquatic park north of the city.
This led to deforestation and substitution of native Valdivian temperate rainforests to plant pines and eucalyptus, but also created new jobs for people with limited education.
