The capital Santiago has approximately 4.6 million inhabitants. The landscape is shaped by the Cordilleras of the Andes and the Coastal Cordilleras.
Chile is situated in several distinct climate zones.
The Indian tribe of the Araucana was pushed back in long conflicts over the Biobio, which for a long time formed the boundary between the two peoples. In 1792 an Irish general named O'Higgins in Spanish service succeeded in large scale subjection of the Indians. In the Spanish colonial age, Chile belonged to the viceroyalty of Peru. In 1797 it achieved the status of a Kapitanie with a Spanish governor at its head, independent of Peru. A politically turbulent time followed, whereby 1846 with the re-election of general Bulnes occurred a stabilization as a president.