Modern Era · South America · Politics

1973

Pinochet coup in Chile

September 11, 1973

Chilean air force jets bombed La Moneda presidential palace in Santiago while Salvador Allende, with a rifle given him by Fidel Castro, fought on from inside. He died that morning. General Augusto Pinochet took power and ruled for seventeen years. Three thousand Chileans were killed or disappeared in the years that followed.