The Geographical Natural and Civil History of Chili - Volume 2

Juan Ignacio Molina (17401829) was a Jesuit priest born in Chile but forced to flee to Europe after his religious order was expelled from the Spanish Empire in 1767. He settled in Bologna Italy and began to write a natural history of his homeland which was first published in Italian in 1782 (he is also known as Giovanni Ignazio Molina). He completed a second volume on the history of the people of Chile in 1786 and a version of the book was in the library of HMS Beagle. This two-volume English translation was published in 1809 and also includes notes from other explorers including a 1791 account of Chile by Pedro Gonzlez de Ageros (176893) and a 1774 description of Patagonia by Thomas Falkner (170784). Volume 2 covers the ''civil history'' of Chile discussing the indigenous people living there and the arrival of Spanish settlers.