Army of the Andes

Army of the Andes
The Army of the Andes leaving the Plumerillo camp, Museo Histórico Nacional, Buenos Aires.
Active	1816–1817
Allegiance	United Provinces of the Río de la Plata
Type	Army
Engagements	Spanish American wars of independence
Commanders
Supreme commander	José de San Martín
General commander	Bernardo O'Higgins
Insignia
Identification symbol

The Army of the Andes (Spanish: Ejército de los Andes) was a military force created by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (Argentina) and mustered by general José de San Martín in his campaign to free Chile from the Spanish Empire. In 1817, it crossed the Andes Mountains from the Argentine province of Cuyo (his staging point being the current-day province of Mendoza, Argentina), and succeeded in its objective by dislodging the Spanish from the country.

The exact number of the army varies between different sources; some have put the number as low as 3500, while others have it being as high as 6000 men.^[1] The army consisted of Argentines and Chileans, and included some 1200 auxiliaries to help in provisioning and supply, as well as a complement of artillery. The Congress of Tucumán endorsed San Martín's proposal to form an army to fight the royalists in Chile,^[2] and between August 1814 and February 1817, San Martín trained his troops to prepare them for their ordeal.^[3] While the army was made up of a less than experienced military force, San Martín intended to lead, with regular discipline and equipment, a proper army and not a "motley crew" into battle.^[4]

For the crossing of the mountains, the Army was divided into two main columns, the first, commanded by Captain General^[5] San Martín and supported by Brigadier Major^[5] Miguel Estanislao Soler and Brigadier^[5] Bernardo O'Higgins, would take the Los Patos Pass and the second, commanded by Colonel^[5] Juan Gregorio de las Heras, would take the Uspallata Pass, which at its highest reaches some twelve thousand feet above sea level.^[3] Because this second pass was more negotiable, the artillery was taken in the second column.

These two divisions were the main body of the Army, but there were smaller detachments sent to the north and south as flanking wings. The smaller division to the north was composed of some 130 infantry as well as a group of Chilean expatriates, and was under the command of Juan Manuel Cabot. To the south was a group under the command of the Chilean Ramón Freire Serrano.

After their 25-day journey across the Andes, the Army of the Andes successfully met royalist forces in the Battle of Chacabuco.^[6] After the victory, they entered Santiago de Chile, where San Martin was unanimously elected Supreme Director but by his own resolve, as well as from instructions received from Buenos Aires, the general declined. After his refusal, O'Higgins was finally elected. Under Argentine officers, the Chilean army resurrected and San Martín was designated commander of the "United Army", which was an army that combined the forces of the Army of the Andes and Chilean troops. This new army fought the counterattack of royalist Army of Osorio at battles of Cancha Rayada and Maipú.