Diego de Almagro's expedition to Chile

Diego de Almagro's expedition to Chile (1535–1537) was a major Spanish venture that explored parts of present-day Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile. Although it failed to find the expected riches and gave Chile a bad reputation among Spaniards in Peru, it was the largest army assembled in the Americas at the time. The expedition was supported by Francisco Pizarro, partly to divert Almagro from his claims in Peru. After crossing the Andes into Chile, a scouting party under Gómez de Alvarado reached the Itata River and fought the Battle of Reynogüelén with local Mapuches.