Battle of Aluminé

Battle of Aluminé, known in Spanish as Combate de la Laguna de Aluminé, was a battle between the Argentine army troops under the command of Major Juan Díaz against a coalition of troops of the Chilean army, and warriors of Cacique Queupo.[1] It was an unequal combat that occurred on February 17, 1883 on the banks of the Aluminé Lake, when two officers and sixteen Argentine soldiers were ambushed by a party of Chilean soldiers, and a hundred Mapuche warriors.[2]

Battle of Aluminé
Part of Conquest of the Desert
view of the Aluminé lake
Date February 17, 1883 Location Aluminé, Neuquén Result Argentine Army victory
Belligerents
Argentine Army	Chilean Army Mapuche tribes
Commanders and leaders
Juan G. Diaz Cárlos Wappers	Domingo A. Rodríguez Cacique Queupo Cacique Paineo Cacique Nahuel
Units involved
2° Regimiento de Caballería de línea del Ejército	Guarnición del Fortín Liencurá
Strength
2 officers and 16 soldiers	42 Chilean soldiers, 150 Mapuche warriors
Casualties and losses
3, dead	7, dead

The ambush took place after part of the troops of the 2nd Line Regiment of the Argentine Army left, who, under the command of Lieutenants Saturnino Canaveri and Manuel Sontag, had left around the morning and afternoon of February 16 in pursuit of the main chieftains.[3] The fight culminated in a heroic victory for the Argentine army, who, in numerical inferiority, were able to defeat the Chilean and Mapuche troops.[4]

The Argentine army had three casualties in its ranks, in addition to the loss of all its horses and mules. After the skirmish, Major Díaz ordered the collection of various supplies from the enemy, including six Martin Henry rifles, belonging to the Chilean army.[5]