Peru was heavily indebted, and political in-fighting was again on the rise. Peru embarked on a railroad-building program that helped but also bankrupted the country. In 1879, Peru entered the War of the Pacific which lasted until 1884. Bolivia invoked its alliance with Peru against Chile. The Peruvian Government tried to mediate the dispute by sending a diplomatic team to negotiate with the Chilean government, but the committee concluded that war was inevitable. Chile declared war on 5 April 1879. Almost five years of war ended with the loss of the department of Tarapacá and the provinces of Tacna and Arica,
History of Peru since most of the presidents that ruled the country were from the social elite. During Augusto B. Leguía's periods in government [1908–1912 and 1919–1930, the latter known as the "Oncenio" (the "Eleventh")], the entrance of American capital became general and the bourgeoisie was favored. This policy, along with increased dependence on foreign investment, focused opposition from the most progressive sectors of Peruvian society against the landowner oligarchy. There was a final peace treaty in 1929, signed between Peru and Chile and called the Treaty of Lima by which Tacna returned to Peru and Peru yielded permanently the formerly rich provinces