The Iglesia de la Divina Providencia (English: ''Church of the Divine Providence'') is a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

managed by the Sisters of Providence, in

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated Regions of Chile, region, t ...

. It gives its name to the district of Providencia and also to

Avenida Providencia Avenida Providencia is a major thoroughfare in Santiago, Chile. It runs along the commune of Providencia. Description Providencia begins at the northern terminus of Vicuña Mackenna Avenue as a continuation of Alameda Avenue. Immediately, the opp ...

. The church was originally declared as a

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

in 1975, but this designation was revoked and again designated as a national monument in 1989.

History

In 1854, the land where the church stands was acquired to build an

orphan asylum An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or a ...

for the purpose of replacing the old asylum located on the current

Huérfanos Street Huérfanos Street is an east-west street in downtown Santiago, Chile. The word huérfanos is Spanish for orphans and the street is so named because an orphanage that was built here in 1758. Description Huérfanos Street's eastern end originates we ...

. Its operation was given to the Sisters of Providence by the then minister Antonio Varas.Several years later,

Domingo Santa María Domingo Santa María González (; August 4, 1825 – July 18, 1889) was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile between 1881 and 1886. Early life He was born in Santiago de Chile, the son of Luis José Santa María G ...

approved the construction of a church for the orphanage. Designed by architect Eduardo Provasoli, the church was built between 1881 and 1890 in

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...

style. The orphanage was run by the Sisters of Providence until 1941. Its closure was in 1955 and the orphans were relocated to the Ciudad del Niño Presidente Juan Antonio Ríos. The orphanage facility was demolished with the exclusion of the church and other minor constructions. The top of its bell tower was destroyed by the

2010 Chile earthquake The 2010 Chile earthquake and tsunami ( es, Terremoto del 27F) occurred off the coast of central Chile on Saturday, 27 February at 03:34 local time (06:34 UTC), having a magnitude of 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale, with intense shaking la ...

References

{{coord, 33, 25, 39.08, S, 70, 36, 58.68, W, type:landmark, display=title Churches in Santiago, Chile Roman Catholic churches in Chile