Última Esperanza (, meaning "Province of the Last Hope") is one of four

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

in the southern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of Magallanes and Antártica Chilena. The capital is Puerto Natales and it is named after Última Esperanza Sound. A section of its border with Argentina in the Southern Patagonian Ice Field is under dispute.

Administration

As a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

, Última Esperanza is a second-level

administrative division of Chile The administrative division or territorial organization of Chile exemplifies characteristics of a unitary state. State administration is functionally and geographically decentralized, as appropriate for each authority in accordance with the law ...

, which is further divided into two communes (''comunas''): Puerto Natales and Torres del Paine. The province is administered by a presidentially appointed governor. Ana Ester Mayorga Bahamonde was appointed governor by

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Sebastián Piñera Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique (; 1 December 1949 – 6 February 2024) was a Chilean businessman and politician who served as President of Chile from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2022. The son of a Christian Democratic Party (C ...

Noted features

Within this province, the noted Torres del Paine National Park, Cerro Torre and Cerro Chaltén is located, comprising some of the most spectacular mountain peaks of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. Also part of the biggest non-polar

glacier A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

, the Southern Patagonian Ice Field is within Última Esperanza.

Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument Cueva del Milodón Natural Monument is a Natural Monument located in the Chilean Patagonia, northwest of Puerto Natales and north of Punta Arenas. The monument is situated along the flanks of Cerro Benitez. It comprises several cave ...

, where prehistoric human occupation has been documented,C. Michael Hogan, ''Cueva del Milodon'', Megalithic Portal, 13 April 200

/ref> is also within this province.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ultima Esperanza Province Última Esperanza Province, Provinces of Chile Provinces of Magallanes Region