War+of+the+Confederation

= The War of the Confederation =

The War of the Confederation was a war fought between the now extinct Peru-Bolivian Confederation and the aligned Chile, Argentina, and Peruvian dissidents. Peru and the liberated Republic of Bolivia had been very close both governmentally and geographically and multiple attempts to unify them had failed. But, in 1836 because of numerous historical, cultural, ethnic, and economic reasons the Peru-Bolivian Confederation was formed under the rule of Marshal Santa Cruz. This did not go well with other South American powers such as Chile who thought its power was too great because of its size and wealth. The first conflict started when a tariff called the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation was signed between the Peru-Bolivian Confederation and Chile. On February 14th, 1836 the treaty was declared void and the tariff on wheat from Chile rose from 12 cents to 3 pesos a 2400% increase. This was countered by the raising of a tariff on Peruvian sugar. Chile officially declared war after a negotiation to dissolve the Peru-Bolivian Confederation was denied. Chile was soon joined by Argentina who as well did not like the formation of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation. After many battles and the exile of Santa Cruz, General Agustin Gamarra assumed the role of president. On August 25th, 1839 he declared the dissolution of the Confederation. This separated the Confederation into two separate countries, Peru and Bolivia, ending the conflict between the two sides. This stabilized the economy, tariffs, and relations between the sides.

By: Aiden Soprych