anelo restored in the 1850s. It is one of two remaining Spanish towers in Valdivia used to defend the city and one of the few remaining colonial structures
Pedro �lvarez de Toledo y Leiva Viceroy of Peru (1639�1648) knew of the strategic importance of Valdivia and decided to repopulate and fortify it once for all. He financed partly the expedition to repopulate Valdivia with his own capital.[] The contingent in charge of the mission was organized in Peru and consisted of seventeen ships filled with building materials and supplies that astounded contemporaries by its magnitude.[] The local government of Chile could not secure Valdivia as it was engaged in continuous war with the Mapuches and was deeply dependent on the Real Situado, an annual payment of silver from Potos� to finance the army of Chile. The Valdivia enclave was placed directly under the control of the Viceroyalty of Peru that administered Valdivia from its repopulation in 1645 until 1740.[] Corral, located on the river entrance to Valdivia, became one of the most fortified bay at the time,[] with 17 forts. During this time it was several times proposed to move the city of Valdivia to Mancera Island. Valdivia's original site, downtown of modern Valdivia was repopulated in 1684.
From the 18th century onwards Valdivia was used as a base for colonization of southern Chile. This was partly fuelled by rumours about a fabulous city called Trapananda, Lin Lin or City of the Caesars (Spanish: Ciudad de los C�sares) that was situated in the unexplored lands of Patagonia. An expedition from Valdivia searching for this city founded R�o Bueno in 1777. In 1784 the Governors of Chile and Chilo� were ordered to establish a Camino Real from Valdivia to Chacao Channel in order to connect Ancud with Valdivia by a land road. This led to the celebration of the treaty of R�o Bueno with local Huilliches in 1789. But by 1792 the Huilleches rebelled and planned to assault Valdivia. In 1793 the Parliament of Las
