Toqui in the context of Anganamón

The Mapuche (/məˈpuːtʃi/ mə-POO-chee, Mapuche and Spanish: [maˈputʃe]), also known as Araucanians, are a group of Indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who share a common social, religious, and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage as Mapudungun speakers. Their homelands once extended from Choapa Valley to the Chiloé Archipelago and later spread eastward to Puelmapu, a land comprising part of the Argentine pampa and Patagonia. Today the collective group makes up over 80% of the Indigenous peoples in Chile and about 9% of the total Chilean population .The Mapuche are concentrated in the Araucanía region. Many have migrated from rural areas to the cities of Santiago and Buenos Aires for economic opportunities. More than 92% of the Mapuches are from Chile.

The Mapuche traditional economy is based on agriculture; their traditional social organization consists of extended families, under the direction of a lonko or chief. In times of war, the Mapuche would unite in larger groupings and elect a toki (meaning "axe" or "axe-bearer") to lead them. Mapuche material culture is known for its textiles and silverwork.

A lonko or lonco (from Mapudungun longko, literally "head"), is a chief of several Mapuche communities. These were often ulmen, the wealthier men in the lof. In wartime, lonkos of the various local rehue or the larger aillarehue would gather in a koyag or parliament and would elect a toqui to lead the warriors in battle. Lonco sometimes forms part of geographical names such as the city of Loncoche (English: "head of an important person").

Pelantaro or Pelantarú (Spanish: [pelanˈtaɾo]; from Mapudungun: pelontraru, lit. 'Shining Caracara') was one of the vice toquis of Paillamachu, the toqui or military leader of the Mapuche people during the Mapuche uprising in 1598. Pelantaro and his lieutenants Anganamon and Guaiquimilla were credited with the death of the second Spanish Governor of Chile, Martín García Óñez de Loyola, during the Battle of Curalaba on December 21, 1598.

This provoked a general rising of the Mapuche and the other indigenous people associated with them. They succeeded in destroying all of the Spanish settlements south of the Bio-bio River and some to the north of it (Santa Cruz de Oñez and San Bartolomé de Chillán in 1599). After this actions, the following Governor, Alonso de Ribera, fixed a border and took the suggestions of the Jesuit Luis de Valdivia to fight a defensive war.

Ulmen is a Mapudungun word meaning "rich man". In Mapuche society, the wealthy men were usually the loncos and would often be the influential leaders of their rehue and aillarehue. If skilled in war, like the military leader Caupolicán, they were sometimes elected toqui.

Lautaro (Anglicized as 'Levtaru') (Mapudungun: Lef-Traru "swift hawk") (Spanish pronunciation: [lawˈtaɾo]; c. 1534 – April 29, 1557) was a young Mapuche toqui known for leading the indigenous resistance against Spanish conquest in Chile and developing the tactics that would continue to be employed by the Mapuche during the long-running Arauco War. Levtaru was captured by Spanish forces in his early youth, and he spent his teenage years as a personal servant of chief conquistador Pedro de Valdivia. He graduated from servant to stableman; in this job he saw that their horses weren't godlike creatures like his people thought (the biggest animal they knew was the llama). He escaped in 1551 and told his people that the conquistadores and their horses were just mortals and they could defeat them. Back among his people he was declared Toqui and led Mapuche warriors into a series of victories against the Spanish, culminating in the Battle of Tucapel in December 1553, where Pedro of Valdivia was killed. The outbreak of a typhus plague, a drought and a famine prevented the Mapuche from taking further actions to expel the Spanish in 1554 and 1555. Between 1556 and 1557, a small group of Mapuche commanded by Levtaru attempted to reach Santiago to liberate the whole of Central Chile from Spanish rule. Levtaru's attempts ended in 1557 when he was killed in an ambush by the Spanish.

Today, Levtaru is revered among Mapuche and non-Mapuche Chileans for his resistance against foreign conquest, servitude and cruelty.

Lemucaguin a native of Andalicán was the successor to Turcupichun as toqui of the Moluche Butalmapu north of the Biobío River in 1558. He organized a detachment of arquebusiers from weapons captured in the Battle of Marihueñu. He continued the war against García Hurtado de Mendoza after the executions of Caupolican and Turcupichun. Establishing pucaras at Quiapo and other locations to block Spanish access to the Arauco region. He was the first toqui to use firearms and artillery in the Battle of Quiapo However he was killed in this battle and was replaced by Illangulién. The later historian, Juan Ignacio Molina, calls the toqui that led at Quiapo Caupolicán the younger, son the executed toqui Caupolican

Nangoniel was the Mapuche Toqui in 1585, and son of the previous toqui Cayancaru. He was the first Toqui to use cavalry with the Mapuche army.

Following the failure of his siege of Arauco, Cayancura, retired, leaving the command of the army to his son Nangoniel. He collected some infantry, and a hundred and fifty horse, which from then on began to be part of Mapuche armies. Nangoniel returned to invest the Arauco fortress again, and with his cavalry it became so closely invested, that the Spaniards were unable to supply it and were forced to evacuate it. Following this success he moved against the fort of Santísima Trinidad which protected the passage of Spanish supplies via the Bio-bio River but clashed with a division of Spanish troops, under Francisco Hernández, where he lost an arm and had other dangerous wounds. He retreated to a neighbouring mountain, where he was ambushed by a Spanish force and slain with 50 of his soldiers. The same day Cadeguala was proclaimed Toqui by the Mapuche army.

Cadeguala or Cadiguala was a Mapuche toqui elected in 1585 following the death in battle of the previous toqui Nangoniel. Cadeguala was a noted warrior and the first Mapuche toqui known to have used cavalry successfully in battle. He was killed in a duel with the garrison commander of the Spanish fort at Purén in 1586.

While very young he entered the Mapuche army as a private, although he was a nobleman, and gradually won promotion to the grade of general. The toqui, Cayancaru, gave him command of a strong army to attack the city of Angol, which he did without success, but then marched to the city of Arauco, besieged and entered it. Afterward he intended to attack Fort Trinidad, this fortress commanding the passage from Bio-bio River, but a body of Spanish troops under Francisco Hernandez came out and defeated Cadeguala, who lost an arm and was otherwise severely wounded. This forced him to retire to the mountains. He was followed thither by the lieutenant-governor of Chile, who attempted an ambush, only to be discovered, defeated, and killed, with 50 of his men, 14 November 1586. On the same day Cadeguala was elected toqui by acclamation.

Lientur was the Mapuche toqui from 1618 to 1625. He was the successor to Loncothegua. Lientur with his vice toqui Levipillan was famed for his rapid malóns or raids. Because of his ability to slip back and forth over the Spanish border between its fortresses and patrols and raid deep into Spanish territory north of the Bio-Bio River without losses he was called the Wizard by the Spanish.

In 1625 his successor Butapichón was elected when he resigned his office when he felt himself to be too old and tired to continue as before. However a cacique named Lientur continued to lead troops in the field. He was present leading troops at the Battle of Las Cangrejeras. A cacique of that name also participated in the Parliament of Quillín in 1641.