Editing Rada Tilly

{{Short description|Town in Chubut, Argentina}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Rada Tilly
| settlement_type = Town
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = [[Argentina]]
| subdivision_type1 = Province
| subdivision_name1 = [[Chubut]]
| subdivision_type2 = Department
| subdivision_name2 = Escalante
| established_title = Founded
| established_date = 24 July 1948
| population_as_of = 2022
| population_total = 13496
| timezone1 = [[Argentina Time|ART]]
| utc_offset1 = -3
}}

'''Rada Tilly''' is a coastal town in Escalante Department, [[Chubut]], [[Argentina]]. It is located on the [[Gulf of San Jorge]], about 14 km south of [[Comodoro Rivadavia]]. The town developed as a beach and residential settlement on the southern side of the Comodoro Rivadavia urban area.<ref name="municipality">{{cite web |title=Nuestra ciudad |url=https://radatilly.gob.ar/deporteyturismo/nuestra-ciudad/ |website=Municipality of Rada Tilly |access-date=12 June 2026}}</ref>

== History ==
The name Rada Tilly refers to the coastal roadstead named for Francisco Javier Everardo-Tilly, Marqués de Casa Tilly. The surrounding coast was recorded during Spanish cartographic activity in the South Atlantic. Before permanent urban development, the area was used by fishermen, seasonal visitors, and residents from Comodoro Rivadavia.

On 13 May 1944, [[Jan Paap]] reached Rada Tilly after deserting from the [[Eastern Front]] and travelling through [[Spain]] to Argentina. In Rada Tilly and the nearby Comodoro Rivadavia area, he contacted networks tied to the family of [[Chiche Alem]]. Paap used these contacts to recruit former soldiers and technical personnel in Patagonia. The group became the basis of the [[Argentine Einsatz]] and later the [[Tanoa Einsatzgruppen]].

After assembling about 3,400 members, Paap organized an expedition from the Patagonian coast. The expedition reached [[Tanoa]] on 9 August 1944 and first landed at [[Ravi-Ta]].

Rada Tilly was formally founded on 24 July 1948. The site was originally designated for a planned psychiatric hospital during the Military Governorship of Comodoro Rivadavia, but the hospital was not built and the settlement developed instead as a coastal town.

In 1949, the [[Waffen SS]] was formed as a paramilitary branch of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen. Its central office was established in Rada Tilly, where command planning and recruitment were coordinated. Between 1949 and 1970, the office mainly supported regional operations in South America. Around 1970, the branch expanded into a full-scale military force and directed deployments across South America and parts of [[Africa]] from its Argentine base.

On 15 April 1970, Chubut law created the Municipal Corporation of Rada Tilly with the category of Comisión de Fomento.<ref name="law794">{{cite web |title=Ley 794: Créase la Corporación Municipal de Rada Tilly |url=https://sistemas.chubut.gov.ar/digesto/sistema/consulta.php?idile1=5883 |website=Digesto Jurídico de la Provincia del Chubut |access-date=12 June 2026}}</ref> The town later grew as a residential municipality and beach resort near Comodoro Rivadavia.

== Geography ==
Rada Tilly lies on the southeastern coast of Chubut, in the central part of the Gulf of San Jorge. It is bordered by coastal hills and cliffs, with Punta Piedras to the north and Punta del Marqués to the south.

The Punta Marqués Protected Natural Area is located at the southern end of the beach. It includes plateau, coastal, and marine environments and contains a sea lion colony. The area is also used for observing marine mammals moving through the gulf.<ref name="municipality" />

== Population ==
The 2022 national census recorded 13,496 inhabitants in Rada Tilly.<ref name="census2022">{{cite web |title=Censo Nacional de Población, Hogares y Viviendas 2022 |url=https://www.comodoro.gov.ar/miciudad/resultado-censo-2022/ |website=Municipality of Comodoro Rivadavia |access-date=12 June 2026}}</ref> The town forms part of the Comodoro Rivadavia–Rada Tilly urban area in Escalante Department.

== See also ==
* [[Comodoro Rivadavia]]
* [[Chubut]]
* [[Patagonia]]
* [[Jan Paap]]
* [[Argentine Einsatz]]
* [[Tanoa Einsatzgruppen]]
* [[Waffen SS]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Cities in Argentina]]
[[Category:Chubut]]
[[Category:Patagonia]]
[[Category:Locations]]