It's often stated that a key reason Latin America never unified to any real degree after independence was the rough terrain and poor infrastructure. Large nations like (Gran) Colombia broke apart (and could have broken apart further).
So how many nations can we get on Chilean territory? Being so long and narrow and full of very rough terrain (vast deserts, high mountains/volcanoes, temperate rainforests, etc.), it could be a natural candidate for Balkanization.
The solution could be an early conquest of the Mapuche, no later than the late 18th century. Either conquered by Spain, or instead conquered by another power, like the Dutch who had interests in the Chiloe/Valdivia region. Or even the British at a later date. If the Mapuche are conquered early, then is a nation uniting all of modern Chile impossible? This would enable successful colonialism of that region and thus later potential for Balkanization.
What I'm thinking is we could get at least three nations on Chilean territory, with one based in Santiago, one at Valdivia/Chiloe, and one stretching south to Tierra del Fuego. Throw in maybe some Easter Island territory that probably won't be independent. Any better plausible post-colonial options? Can any of these nations manage to do better than OTL Chile?
So how many nations can we get on Chilean territory? Being so long and narrow and full of very rough terrain (vast deserts, high mountains/volcanoes, temperate rainforests, etc.), it could be a natural candidate for Balkanization.
The solution could be an early conquest of the Mapuche, no later than the late 18th century. Either conquered by Spain, or instead conquered by another power, like the Dutch who had interests in the Chiloe/Valdivia region. Or even the British at a later date. If the Mapuche are conquered early, then is a nation uniting all of modern Chile impossible? This would enable successful colonialism of that region and thus later potential for Balkanization.
What I'm thinking is we could get at least three nations on Chilean territory, with one based in Santiago, one at Valdivia/Chiloe, and one stretching south to Tierra del Fuego. Throw in maybe some Easter Island territory that probably won't be independent. Any better plausible post-colonial options? Can any of these nations manage to do better than OTL Chile?