María del Carmen Gana López (180015 April 1880) was a Chilean aristocrat and a

First Lady of Chile The first lady of Chile () is the title for the wife of the president of Chile, who is traditionally responsible for directing and coordinating activities in the social field of the presidency and accompanying the president in ceremonies or offici ...

Biography

Gana López was the daughter of Agustín Domingo Gana y Darrigrande and María Dolores López y Guerrero Villaseñor. She married

Manuel Blanco Encalada Manuel José Blanco y Calvo de Encalada (; April 21, 1790 – September 5, 1876) was a vice-admiral in the Chilean Navy, a political figure, and Chile's first President (Provisional) (1826). Biography Born in Buenos Aires which was the capital ...

on 29 November 1818, and together they had 6 children. She was a confidant and adviser for her husband throughout his political career. Blanco acted as Interim

President of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

from 9 July 1826 until 9 September 1826, during which Gana served as First Lady. In spite of her short tenure, Gana used her position as an opportunity to act on her passion for social service. She arranged for her husband to allow the Congregation of the Good Shepherd, a

Catholic religious order In the Catholic Church, a religious order is a community of consecrated life with members that profess solemn vows. They are classed as a type of Religious institute (Catholic), religious institute. Subcategories of religious orders are: * can ...

, to establish the first orphanage in San Felipe. During her husband's tenure as a minister to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, their home in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

became a point of gathering for distinguished Americans and Europeans. Gana was also a close friend of many Parisian artists and intellectuals. While in Paris, Gana's daughter Teresa married a wealthy Chilean man. Teresa's godparents during the ceremony were

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

and

Eugénie de Montijo Eugénie de Montijo (; born María Eugenia Ignacia Agustina de Palafox y Kirkpatrick; 5 May 1826 – 11 July 1920) was Second French Empire, Empress of the French from her marriage to Napoleon III on 30 January 1853 until he was overthrown on 4 ...

. Gana maintained a permanent correspondence with the couple even after her return to

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

. Gana died 15 April 1880, and is buried in the

Cementerio General de Santiago The Santiago General Cemetery () in Santiago, Chile, is one of the largest cemeteries in Latin America with an estimated two million burials. The cemetery was established in 1821 after Chile's independence when Bernardo O'Higgins inaugurated the ...

References

1800 births 1880 deaths People from Santiago, Chile First ladies of Chile 19th-century Chilean people {{Chile-bio-stub