Argentina Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Argentina appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 10 different states, among them Argentina, Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, Viceroyalty of Peru, Wallmapu (Mapuche).
ArgentinaExplore the history of Argentina in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Argentina as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Argentina, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| 1000 | Tiahuanaco Empire 2% |
| 1100 | Tiahuanaco Empire 2% |
| 1200 | Tiahuanaco Empire 2% |
| 1300 | Aymara kingdoms 2% |
| 1400 | Aymara kingdoms 2% |
| 1492 | Wallmapu (Mapuche) 42% · Aónikenk (Tehuelche) 21% · Inca Empire 2% |
| 1500 | Inca Empire 10% |
| 1600 | Viceroyalty of Peru 2% |
| 1650 | Viceroyalty of Peru 23% |
| 1700 | Viceroyalty of Peru 23% |
| 1783 | Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata 65% |
| 1800 | Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata 65% |
| 1815 | United Provinces of the Río de la Plata 65% |
| 1880 | Argentina 100% |
| 1900 | Argentina 100% |
| 1914 | Argentina 100% |
| 1920 | Argentina 100% |
| 1930 | Argentina 100% |
| 1938 | Argentina 100% |
| 1945 | Argentina 100% |
| 1960 | Argentina 100% |
| 1994 | Argentina 100% |
| 2010 | Argentina 100% |
Famous people of Argentina
| Lived | Person | |
|---|---|---|
| 1778 – 1850 | José de San Martín | Leader of South American independence |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Argentina?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Argentina belonged to Argentina, Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, Viceroyalty of Peru, Wallmapu (Mapuche), Aónikenk (Tehuelche), along with 4 other states.
What was Argentina part of in 1000?
On the border map for 1000, most of the territory of today's Argentina lay within Tiahuanaco Empire.
What was Argentina part of in 1500?
On the border map for 1500, most of the territory of today's Argentina lay within Inca Empire.
What was Argentina part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Argentina lay within Argentina.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.