What is Destruction of the Seven Cities?

The Destruction of the Seven Cities is a term used in Chilean historiography to refer to the destruction or abandonment of seven major Spanish outposts in southern Chile around 1600 caused by the Mapuche and Huilliche uprising of 1598. The Destruction of the Seven Cities is in traditional historiography the defining event that marks the end of the Conquest period and the beginning of the proper colonial period.

The Destruction of the Seven Cities had a long-lasting impact for the history of Mapuche and the history of Chile. Colonial Spanish–Mapuche relations became shaped by these events which meant among other things the development of a Spanish–Mapuche frontier.