Corral, Chile
| Corral | ||||||
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| Town and Commune | ||||||
View of Corral from the hills
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| Coordinates (town): 39°52′S 73°26′W / 39.867°S 73.433°WCoordinates: 39°52′S 73°26′W / 39.867°S 73.433°W | ||||||
| Country | Chile | |||||
| Region | Los Ríos | |||||
| Province | Valdivia | |||||
| Founded | 1894 | |||||
| Government | ||||||
| • Type | Municipality | |||||
| • Alcalde | Gaston Peréz González (ILE) | |||||
| Area | ||||||
| • Total | 766.7 km2 (296.0 sq mi) | |||||
| Elevation | 61 m (200 ft) | |||||
| Population (2012 Census) | ||||||
| • Total | 5,084 | |||||
| • Density | 6.6/km2 (17/sq mi) | |||||
| • Urban | 3,670 | |||||
| • Rural | 1,793 | |||||
| Demonym(s) | Corraleño | |||||
| Sex | ||||||
| • Men | 2,864 | |||||
| • Women | 2,599 | |||||
| Time zone | CLT (UTC−04:00) | |||||
| • Summer (DST) | CLST (UTC−03:00) | |||||
| Area code(s) | 56 + 63 | |||||
| Climate | Cfb | |||||
| Website | Municipality of Corral | |||||
Corral is a town, commune and sea port in Los Ríos Region, Chile. It is located south of Corral Bay. Corral is best known for the forts of Corral Bay, a system of defensive batteries and forts made to protect Valdivia during colonial times. Corral was the headquarters of the system. Economic activities in Corral revolve around forestry, aquaculture, fishing, port services and both heritage and eco tourism.
The settlement of Corral grew out from the headquarters of the forts of Corral Bay that were built in 1645 to protect the city of Valdivia. By that time Spanish ships sailed through Valdivia River all the way to Valdivia but Corral soon took over the role of receiving major ships. With the Spanish king's Decree of Free Trade of 1778 cities in Spanish America were allowed to have direct commerce with Spain, which greatly stimulated commerce in Corral that benefited from trade routes across Cape Horn. During the Chilean Independence War Corral and Valdivia functioned together with Chiloé as a prominent royalist strongholds. In 1820 Thomas Cochrane, commanding the newly created Chilean Navy, took Corral and Valdivia by an amphibious attack. From the times of Chile's independence until the early 20th century Corral gained prominence as an important port for traffic between the Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean, as Chilean port were declared open to ships sailing under any state flag. After being incorporated into Chile the forts in Corral fell gradually into disuse. Since late colonial times Corral became not only the main port of entrance to the interior of Valdivia but also of Osorno that was founded in 1796.
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