Summary
A detailed account of the conflictive relationship that evolved between the Chilean lower classes and the elite during the war of Independence (1810-1822). Using a wide range of documents, the author demonstrates that the deep schism which divided the social body during the nineteenth century had its roots in those early days of the Republic. He examines both the forced recruitment of peasants and inquilinos from the haciendas and their subsequent dessertion from the warring armies. Neither patriots nor monarchists, the lower classes showed their determination to remain outside the civil war. Thus, they became an important third party in the conflict, under the guise of montoneros and bandits, and continued fighting against the national authorities well after the War of Independence had ended.