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Chilean Army
Ejército de Chile
Chilean Army emblem
Active	1603, 1810[1] – present
Country	Chile
Type	Army
Role	Land warfare
Size	50,000 (9,200 conscripts) [2]
Part of	Ministry of National Defense (Chile)
General HQ	Santiago
Patron	Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Motto(s)	Siempre vencedor, jamás vencido ("Always Victorious, Never Defeated")
Colors	Red, Grey
March	Los viejos estandartes ("Old Banners")
Anniversaries	September 19th (Army Day)
Engagements	War of Arauco Chilean War of Independence Freedom Expedition of Perú Chilean Civil War of 1829–30 War of the Confederation 1851 Chilean Revolution Revolution of 1859 Chincha Islands War Occupation of Araucanía War of the Pacific 1891 Chilean Civil War Itata incident Chilean naval mutiny of 1931 1973 Chilean coup d'état Beagle conflict 2004 Haitian coup d'état
Website	http://www.ejercito.cl/
Commanders
Current commander	Gen. Ricardo Martínez
Notable commanders	Bernardo O'Higgins, José Miguel Carrera, Manuel Bulnes, Manuel Baquedano, Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, Augusto Pinochet
Insignia
Flag of the Chilean Army chief
Fin flash

The Chilean Army (Spanish: Ejército de Chile) is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 50,000 army (9,200 of which are conscripts)^[2] is organized into six divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade.

In recent years, and after several major re-equipment programs, the Chilean Army has become one of the most technologically advanced and professional armies in America.^[3][4]

The Chilean Army is mostly supplied with equipment from Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United States, Israel, France, and Spain.

History

Colonial warfare

19th century

Independence War

The National Army of Chile was created on December 2, 1810, by order of the First National Government Junta.^[5] The army was actively involved in the Independence War, which was fought against royalist troops in battles such as Yerbas Buenas, San Carlos, Quechereguas, Rancagua, Chacabuco and Maipú. During this period, national figures such as José Miguel Carrera, Bernardo O'Higgins and Argentinian General José de San Martín commanded the army toward definitive victory over the Spanish forces, ultimately achieving independence for the country. The Army's first commander-in-chief was José Miguel Carrera.
After obtaining independence from Spain, the newly formed Republic reorganized its military structure by creating the Military Academy of Chile, which was founded by General O'Higgins in 1817.

Guardia Nacional

Diego Portales set up a civil militia, the Guardia Nacional, to end one of the worst stages of militarism in Chilean history. The militia was created in 1825 Portales developed this parallel army to compensate the army's might.^[6] The Chilean Conscription Law of 1900 marked the beginning of the end of the Guardia Nacional.^[7]

War of the Confederation

Occupation of Araucanía

War of the Pacific

Military emulation 1885–1914

Noncommissioned Officers' School during on 19 September 2014

During the War of the Pacific, many high-ranking officers won valuable insights into the state of the army and became aware that the army required rebuilding. Losses, material destruction, and organizational flaws regarding strategic planning and officer training, were noted by officers like Emilio Sotomayor and Patricio Lynch, who approached President Santa María arguing the need of good schools and technical departments for the military. Other factor that supported the emulation, the deliberate systematic imitation of the military technology, organisation, and doctrine of one country by another^{[Notes 1]} was the danger of war with Argentina. The emulation was backed by a broad coalition of civil and military leaders.

Chile hired a French military training mission in 1858,^[8]:129 and the Chilean legation in Berlin was instructed to find a training mission during the War of the Pacific in 1881. But large-scale emulation of the Prussian Army began in 1886 with the appointment of Captain Emil Körner, a graduate of the renowned Kriegsakademie in Berlin. Also appointed were 36 Prussian officers to train officer cadets in the Chilean Military Academy. The training occurred in three phases; the first took place from 1885 to 1891 during the presidency of Domingo Santa María, the second was the post-civil-war phase, and the third was the 1906 reorganization.^[8]:128-

The emulation was focused in armaments, conscription, officer recruitment and instruction, and general staff organization as well as military doctrine (adopted 1906). It was extended also into military logistics and medical services, promotions, retirement, salary regulation and even uniforms (adopted 1904), marching styles, helmets, parades, and military music.

Armaments: Prior to 1883, the army was equipped with a variety of rifles, mostly French and Belgian origin. From 1892 to 1902, the Chilean-Argentine Arms Race, marked the peak of Chilean arms purchase. 100,000 Mauser rifles and new Krupp artillery was bought for 3,000,000 DM in 1893, 2,000,000 DM in 1895 and 15,000,000 DM in 1898. Ammunition factories and small arms manufacturing plants were established.^[8]:134

Conscription: Like others armies in South America, Chile had had a small army of long-term service officers and soldiers. In 1900 Chile became the first country in Latin America to enforce a system of compulsory military service, whereby training, initially five to eighteen months (Germany: three years), took place in zones of divisional organization in order to create a solid military structure that could be easily doubled with well-trained and combat-ready reserve forces. Budgetary restrictions prevented the full impact of the law: the service fell disproportionately on the lower classes, no more than 20% of the contingent was incorporated annually, and former conscripts were not retrained periodically.^[8]:137

Officer education and training: The beginning of the German mission were dedicated almost exclusively to the organization and implementation of a standardized, technically oriented military education with the essence of Moltke's German military system of continuous study of artillery, infantry, cartography, history, topography, logistics, tactics, etc., for a modern, professional and technically trained officer corps. In 1886, the "Academia de Guerra" (War Academy) was founded "to elevate the level of technical and scientific instruction of army officers, in order that they be able, in case of war, to utilize the advantages of new methods of combat and new armaments." The best alumni were candidates for general staff service. By the mid-1890s Körner organized the courses for a Noncommissioned Officers' School (Escuela de Suboficiales y Clases).^[8]:139

During the 1891 Chilean Civil War Körner was removed from duty by José Manuel Balmaceda. He and his followers set sail north to join the Congressional forces in Iquique. He became chief architect of the new army and, though Estanislao del Canto formally was commander-in-chief, Körner led the rebel forces in the major clashes of the civil war.^[8]:145

Chile had had a General Staff during the War of the Pacific.^[9] Körner turned his attention to a permanent institution in 1893-94 that should replace the old "Inspector General del Ejército", but with control over military affairs in peacetime and wartime. It had four sections: Instruction and Discipline, Military Schools, Scientific Works (strategic and operational planning), and Administration.^[8]:147-

20th century

Milicia Republicana

The Guardia Republicana or Milicia Republicana was created after the fall of the Socialist Republic of Chile in order to prevent another Coup d'Etat. On May 7, 20,000 militiamen marched past President Arturo Alessandri in the streets of Santiago. In Las Mercedes' plot, 1933, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, Pedro Vignola called "to resist the Milicia Republicana by any means" and he was forced to retire from his post.^[10] In 1936, the militia was disbanded.^[10][11]

U.S. Influence

During the decades previous to the coup, the Chilean Army became influenced by the United States' anti-communist ideology in the context of various cooperation programs including the US Army School of the Americas.^[12]

The Army under Pinochet

Chilean soldiers burning communist books after the coup d'état 1973)

On 11 September 1973, in a watershed event of the Cold War and the history of Chile, president Salvador Allende was overthrown in a coup d’état by the Armed Forces. Paul W. Drake and Ivan Jaksic state in The Struggle for Democracy in Chile:

The armed forces killed, imprisoned, tortured, and exiled thousands of Chileans. The military suppressed, dismantled, and purged not only political parties but also publication, unions, schools, and other bastions of the democratic opposition. Even such privileged constituencies as university professors and students encountered serious limitations on their traditional ability to voice opinions of national, or even institutional relevance. ... The military regime viewed such activities [of the Catholic Church] with distrust, if not hostility. It launched a campaign of harassment against the Catholic Church ...

Once the military had demobilized the polity and society, the regime began implanting its vision of a new order. It set out to replace not only democratic with authoritarian politics but also statist with market-driven economics.^[13]

The Army, with now Captain General Augusto Pinochet, leader of the coup, as Commander-in-chief of both the Army and the Armed Forces, led the national mobilization effort in 1978 as the Beagle conflict began to hit the country. The Army was on full alert status during the duration of the crisis.

Patricio Aylwin became elected President of the Republic on December 14, 1989. Although Chile had officially become a democracy, the Chilean military remained highly powerful during the presidency of Aylwin, and the Constitution, amended by Pinochet's regime, ensured the continued influence of Pinochet and his commanders.

21st century

As a result of tensions with neighbors during the conflict-prone 1970s and early 1980s, the Chilean Army refined existing strategic concepts and eventually formulated a plan to restructure its forces. Though wars were avoided, the threats from the 1970s and 1980s encouraged the army to address more effectively its major defense disadvantage: lack of strategic depth. Thus in the early 1980s it looked outward for a model of army organization that would best advance defensive capabilities by restructuring forces into smaller, more mobile units instead of traditional divisions. The resulting Plan Alcázar envisions three military zones in Chile, with the bulk of forces concentrated in the north, and reinforces the center and south. The plan was implemented in stages, starting in 1994. Thus Alcázar, based on threat scenarios of the past, is one of the most durable "lessons" of the past.^{[clarification needed]} Even with the resolution of almost all remaining territorial disputes, the restructuring agenda continued, reinforcing a conflict-based mindset in the army.^[14]

Peacekeeping

Organization

Structure of the Chilean Army in 2014 (click on image to enlarge)

Order Of Battle

Army General Headquarters, in Santiago.

Land Operations Command, headquartered in Concepcion.

• 
  1st Army Division: Regions II and III, with headquarters in Antofagasta.


• 
  2nd Motorized Division: Regions IV, V, VI, VII and Santiago Metropolitan Region with headquarters in Santiago de Chile.


• 
  3rd Mountain Division: Serving Regions VIII, IX, XIV, and X with headquarters in Valdivia.


• 
  4th Army Division: Region XI with headquarters in Coyhaique.


• 
  5th Army Division: Serving Region XII with headquarters in Punta Arenas.


• 
  6th Army Division: Serving Regions I and XV, with headquarters in Iquique.


• 
  Army Aviation Brigade: with headquarters in Rancagua (Brigada de Aviación del Ejército). It is the Army's aviation force, composed of 4 battalions and a logistics company.


• 
  Special Operations Brigade "Lautaro": with headquarters in Peldehue (Brigada de Operaciones Especiales "Lautaro"). It is the Army's special forces brigade, named after one of Chile's national heroes.

Training and Doctrine Command (Comando de Institutos y Doctrina)

• 
  Army Schools' Division (División Escuelas)


• 
  Army Education Division (División de Educación)


• 
  Army Doctrine Division (División de Doctrina)

Force's Support Command (Comando de Apoyo de la Fuerza)

• 
  Logistics Division, with headquarters in Santiago (División Logística del Ejército)


• Engineers Command


• Telecommunications Command


• Infrastructure Command


• Military Industry and Engineering Command

Army Independent Commands

• 
  General Garrison Command in Santiago, serving the Santiago Metropolitan Region, reports directly to Army Headquarters


• 
  Medical Command in Santiago


• Administration Command

Army General Staff (Estado Mayor General del Ejército)

• Chilean Military Mission to Washington


• Directorate of Intelligence


• Directorate of Operations


• Finance Directorate


• Logistics Directorate

Military Equipment

The Chilean Army has acquired a number of new systems with the goal of having a completely modernized, and largely mechanized army by 2015. The military has also modified the operational structure, creating armoured brigades throughout the entire territory and a new special operations brigade, while preserving the current divisional scheme.

Firearms

Weapon	Caliber	Origin	Notes
Pistols and Submachine Guns
FAMAE FN-750	9×19mm NATO	Chile	Main pistol. Locally produced version of the CZ-75.
Beretta Px4	9x19mm NATO / .40 S&W / .45 ACP	Italy	Special forces
HK MP5	9×19mm NATO	Germany
FAMAE SAF	9×19mm NATO	Chile	Standard issue submachine gun. Locally designed variation on the SG 540.
FAMAE SAF-200	9×19mm NATO	Chile	Tactical variation of the regular SAF
Assault Rifles and Carbines
M4 carbine	5.56×45mm NATO	United States	Special Forces
M16
SG 540-1M		Switzerland
Galil ACE		Israel	Standard issue rifle, replacing SIG 540.
Sniper Rifles
FAMAE FD-200	7.62×51mm NATO	Chile	Locally produced version of the SG 540 modified as a sniper rifle
Barrett M82A1M	12.7×99mm NATO	United States
PGM 338	.338 Lapua Magnum (8.6x70mm)	France
SIG Sauer SSG 3000	7.62×51mm NATO	Switzerland
Machine Guns
FN MINIMI	5.56×45mm NATO	Belgium	Light machine gun
MG3	7.62×51mm NATO	Germany	General-purpose machine gun
M60E4	7.62×51mm NATO	United States	General-purpose machine gun
FN M2HB-QCB	12.7×99mm NATO	United States	Heavy Machine Gun
Grenade Launchers
M203	40×46 mm	United States	Designed to be attached to a rifle
Milkor MGL	40×53 mm	South Africa	Grenade launcher
Mk 19 Mod 3	40×53mm	United States	Automatic grenade launcher

Infantry Support Weapons

Quantity	Weapon	Origin	Notes
Anti-tank Guided Missile Launchers
2,700	Spike	Israel	MR/LR/ER missiles
Anti-tank Recoilless Rifles
	Carl Gustaf M2 Recoilless Rifle	Sweden	84 mm
	M40 recoilless rifle	United States	106 mm / some of them are mounted on vehicles
	M67 recoilless rifle	United States	90 mm
Anti-tank Weapons
	AT4	Sweden	84 mm

Armour

Quantity	Type	Origin	Notes	Photo
Tanks
200	Leopard 2A4CHL	Germany	120 mm gun. May be upgraded to 2A5CHL in the near future.
100	Leopard 1V	Germany  Netherlands	105 mm gun
Infantry Fighting Vehicles
280 [15]	Marder 1A3	Germany
319	AIFV-B/YPR-765	Belgium  Netherlands	Some equipped with Spike LR missiles
Armored personnel carrier
427	M113A1/A2	United States
404	MOWAG Piranha	Chile	Built under license in Chile by FAMAE, in various configurations.
Armored Wheeled Vehicles
500+	HMMWV	United States
180	Land Rover Defender	United Kingdom
400+	AIL Storm	Israel
230	Toqui A-2	Chile
Self-propelled Artillery
8	LAR-160	Israel
1	RAYO FAMAE	Chile
1	SLM FAMAE	Chile
24	M109A5	United States	24 requested in 2011, 12 delivered in 2012 and 12 more in 2015[16]
24	M109 KAWEST	United States   Switzerland	Bought in 2004
24-36	Soltam M-71	Israel	Bought in 1982
74	M101 howitzer	United States
54	OTO Melara Mod 56	Italy

Aircraft

Quantity[17]	Aircraft	Origin	Service versions
Fixed Wing
2	C-212 Aviocar	Spain	C-212-300 Aviocar
3	CN-235	Spain	CN-235 M-100
3	Cessna 208 Caravan	United States	Cessna 208B Grand Caravan
1	Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign	United States	Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign
Helicopters
4	Aerospatiale SA 330 Puma	France	Aerospatiale SA-330L Puma
12	Eurocopter AS532 Cougar	France	Eurocopter AS-532AL Mk-1 Cougar
4	Eurocopter AS350	France	Eurocopter AS-350B3 Ecureuil
1	Eurocopter AS355	France	Eurocopter AS-355N Ecureuil 2
9	McDonnell Douglas MD 500 Defender	United States	McDonnell Douglas MDD-369FF Defender
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
6+	BlueBird SpyLite	Israel	[18]

Personnel

In 2013, there were 3,900 officers, 17,300 NCOs, 3,600 professional soldiers, and 9,200 conscript soldiers. In military schools, 2,400 students. Civilian employees, 8,400.^[2]

Military ranks

Officers

Equivalent NATO code	OF-10		OF-9		OF-8		OF-7		OF-6		OF-5		OF-4		OF-3		OF-2		OF-1						OF(D) and student officer
Chile (Edit)	No equivalent
			General de Ejército		General de División		General de Brigada		Brigadier		Coronel		Teniente Coronel		Mayor		Capitán		Teniente			Subteniente			Alférez

Enlisted

Equivalent NATO Code	OR-9						OR-8		OR-7		OR-6						OR-5						OR-4				OR-3		OR-2						OR-1
Chile (Edit)											No equivalent																								No insignia
	Suboficial Mayor						Suboficial		Sargento Primero								Sargento Segundo						Cabo Primero				Cabo Segundo		Soldado Primero						Soldado Segundo

Drill and traditions

The Chilean Army is famous for its elaborate drill, exhibited in large scale during the Día de las Glorias Navales on 21 May and the Parada Militar de Chile (Great Military Parade of Chile) on 19 September. The early armed forces adopted many Prussian military traditions, and it was during this period that the Chilean military had many of its most famous victories. As a result, the drill features many 19th and early 20th century Prussian and German patterns.

Participating soldiers wear stahlhelm and pickelhaube helmets and march in unaltered stechschritt. Marching music consists of Central European marches, alongside several local compositions. Each Parada Militar on 19 September ends with a playing of Preußens Gloria (played in 2007–2017), Preussischer Präsentiermarsch (first played in 2018) and Los viejos estandartes by a mounted band playing in the German tradition.

Pickelhaubes have been worn by the Military School and since recently by the 1st Cavalry Regiment and the 1st Artillery Regiment, and the stahlhelm only by the NCO School.

This is also the cases on parades held on 18 September, Independence Day, in the local level, whenever Army units take part.

Given the long list of battles fought by the Army, the following wear on parade historical dress uniforms from these times, but not march in the German manner:

• 1st Infantry Regiment "Buin" - Grenadier uniform of the 1st Infantry Battalion "Chilean Grenadiers"


• 6th Reinforced Regimient "Chacabuco" - War of the Pacific French-styled uniform worn by the 4th Company, in recognition of its heroic final stand in the Battle of La Concepcion
  


• 4th Motorized Infantry Brigade "Rancagua" - War of the Pacific French-styled uniform worn by the Historical Company, similar to those worn by the regiment during the 1880 Battle of Arica
  

Commanders-in-chief

See also

• Chilean Navy


• Chilean Air Force

Notes

References

Bibliography

• 
  Resende-Santos, Joao (2007). Neorealism, States, and the Modern Mass Army. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 86948 - 5.
  


• 
  Bawden, John R (2016). The Pinochet Generation: The Chilean Military in the Twentieth Century. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press. ISBN 978-0817319281.
  

External links

• 
  Official Chilean Army site (in Spanish)
  


• 
  Ranks of Chilean Army site, Chilean Army website: Chilean Army, archived from the original on 28 August 2010, retrieved 28 August 2010
  


• Latin American Light Weapons National Inventories