Page:A history of Chile.djvu/53

 himself in a position to attempt the conquest of Chile, which he supposed might prove an important acquisition to his possessions. Two cavaliers, Pedro Sanchez de Hoz and Carmargo had been sent out by Spain after the death of Almagro to subjugate and take possession of Chile. Pizarro ignored the royal commission held by these men, and, with characteristic assurance, appointed for the undertaking Pedro de Valdivia, his own quartermaster, whom he directed to command the forces destined for Chile and to take De Hoz with him. Valdivia thereupon determined to form a permanent settlement in the new country, and for that purpose arranged that his little army, consisting of two hundred Spaniards and a considerable body of Peruvian auxiliaries, should be accompanied by a number of priests and women; also, that everything requisite for a new settlement should be taken with them.

Crossing the Andes in summer, the cortege arrived without losses upon the northern confines of Chile, where they were met by the natives, who opposed there progress at every turn as they wended their way through Copiapo, Coquimbo, Quillota and Melipilla. These provinces had formerly been under the Inca's domination, but with the fall of Atahualpa had found themselves free. They were not, however, united, and were, therefore, unable to make common cause against the Spaniards, who pushed on, despite constant skirmishes, to the vicinity of the present Santiago. Here the leader determined to make a settlement. It was far enough from Peru, being six hundred miles distant, to render it a difficult matter for his soldiers to desert him and return; the fertility of the surrounding country and the great natural advantages appeared to him to make it a suitable place to