Corral (Chile)

- 39.862222222222 - 73.443055555556Koordinaten: 39 ° 52 ' S, 73 ° 27 ' W

Corral is a town in the south of the South American Andean state of Chile and is going on in the Región de Ríos about 15 kilometers west of Valdivia directly on the Pacific Ocean. In 2005 it had 5300 inhabitants.

History

The city was founded in 1547, still under the name of Santa María la Blanca de Valdivia. The area around Corral was expanded into a heavily fortified bay. Overall, the Spanish built 17 forts around Valdivia and Corral. The area was subjected to frequent attacks of English pirates. The important fortresses were Castillo San Sebastian de Corral, Pura y Limpia Castillo de la Concepción de Manfort de Lemus ( Fuerte Niebla ) and Castillo San Pedro de Alcantara on the island Mancera.

On 3 and 4 February 1820 came here to a battle between Spaniards and Chileans. The area was still partially occupied by the Chilean independence in 1818 by Spain.

On May 22, 1960 Corral was taken by the strongest measured earthquake in the world the Great Chile Earthquake. It had a magnitude of 9.5 on the Richter scale. Corral was flooded by a large tsunami.

Geography

Corral is located south of Valdivia and the island Mancera at the mouth of the Valdivia River. To the east is the municipality of Los Lagos and the south, the municipality of La Unión.

Tourism

Tourism is one of the main sources of income of the city. The main attraction is the fort Castillo San Sebastian de Corral. The Valdivia River and the coast with its many small islands are more tourist destinations. The eight acre island Huapi can be visited by boat.