The Tacna–Arica compromise or Treaty of Lima was a series of documents that settled the

territorial dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession (law), possession or control of territories (land, maritime territory, water or airspace) between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial ...

of both

Tacna Tacna, officially known as San Pedro de Tacna, is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland f ...

and

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the ca ...

provinces of

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

respectively. According to the Treaty, the Tacna-Arica Territory was divided between both countries; Tacna being awarded to Peru, with Chile retaining sovereignty over Arica. Chile also agreed to pay up to

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

6 million (about £1.23 million; equivalent to $ million in ) in compensation to Peru. The treaty was signed on 3 June 1929 in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

by then-Peruvian Representative

Pedro José Rada y Gamio Pedro José Rada y Gamio (15 August 1873 – 25 May 1938) was a Peruvian politician in the early 20th century. He served as the President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1921 to 1922. He was the mayor of Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 ...

and Chilean Representative Emiliano Figueroa Larrain.

Background

The controversy was a direct aftermath of the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

, a confrontation of

against

and

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

. Chile won the war and conquered the Peruvian territories of

Tarapacá San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, also known simply as Tarapacá, is a town in the region of the same name in Chile. History The town has likely been inhabited since the 12th century, when it formed part of the Inca trail. When Spanish explorer Diego ...

, Tacna and Arica. The defeated Peruvian government was forced to sign the

Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the War of the Paci ...

in 1883. According to this treaty, Tarapacá was annexed to Chile, and a plebiscite was meant to take place in 1893, 10 years after the signing of the treaty. The plebiscite, however, never took place, as both countries had conflicting points of view and did not reach an agreement. Chile began a campaign known as Chilenization in 1909. Peru followed in 1911 with the recalling of its

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

and a break of diplomatic relations. In 1922, Chile and Peru agreed to arbitrate the dispute with the President of the United States. U.S. President

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...

appointed, in 1925, the first U.S. arbitrator, General

John J. Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was an American army general, educator, and founder of the Pershing Rifles. He served as the commander of the American Expeditionary For ...

; General

William Lassiter William Lassiter (September 29, 1867 – March 29, 1959) was a career officer in the United States Army. He was a veteran of the Spanish–American War, occupation of Veracruz, World War I, and the occupation of the Rhineland and attained the rank ...

followed in 1926. Neither negotiator was able to break the deadlock. US Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg suggested direct negotiations in Washington, D.C. in 1928. It was these negotiations that led to the Treaty of Lima.

Treaty

The deal that was finally reached allowed Peru to reacquire Tacna while Chile kept Arica. Chile had also to make some concessions such as building a Peruvian-administered wharf in Arica and pay a six million-

dollar Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...

indemnification, among other provisions. In 1999, Chile and Peru at last agreed to fully implement the Treaty of Lima, providing Peru with access to port facilities in

.Dominguez, Jorge ''et al.'' (2003) ''Boundary Disputes in Latin America'' United States Institute of Peace, Washington, D.C.
page 33

Notes

References

* Coolidge, Calvin (1925) ''In the matter of the arbitration between the Republic of Chile and the Republic of Peru, with respect to the unfulfilled provisions of the treaty of peace of October 20, 1883, under the Protocol and Supplementary act signed at Washington July 20, 1922. Opinion and award of the arbitrator'' Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., * Dennis, William Jefferson (1931) ''Tacna and Arica: an account of the Chile-Peru boundary dispute and of the arbitrations by the United States'' Yale University Press, New Haven, ; reprinted in 1967 by Archon Books, Hamden, Connecticut, * Egaña, Rafael (1900) ''The Tacna and Arica question. Historical antecedents.--Diplomatic action. Present state of the affair'' (translated from the Spanish edition by Edwin C. Reed) Barcelona Printing Office, Santiago, Chile, * González Miranda, Sergio (2006) ''Arica y la triple frontera: integración y conflicto entre Bolivia, Perú y Chile'' Aríbalo, Iquique, Chile, , in Spanish * Jane, Lionel Cecil (1930) "The question of Tacna-Arica ..." ''Transactions of the Grotius Society'' 15: pp. 93–119 * Krieg, William L. (1974) ''Legacy of the War of the Pacific'' External Research Program, United States Department of State, Washington, D.C., * Skuban, William E. (2007) ''Lines in the sand: nationalism and identity on the Peruvian-Chilean frontier'' University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico, * Wilson, Joe F. (1979) ''The United States, Chile and Peru in the Tacna and Arica plebiscite'' University Press of America, Washington, D.C., * Yepes, Ernesto (1999) ''Un plebiscito imposible: Tacna y Arica, 1925-1926'' Ediciones Análisis, Lima, Peru, , in Spanish {{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Lima Arbitration cases Chile–Peru relations Territorial disputes of Peru Territorial disputes of Chile Lima (1929) History of the foreign relations of Chile Presidential Republic (1925–1973) War of the Pacific 1929 in Chile 1929 in Peru Lima (1929) 1920s in Lima Chile–Peru border Lima (1929) June 1929 pt:Tratado de Lima