Description of the attraction
The Church of St. Francis is a former convent church of the Franciscan order, located in the historic center of Santiago de Chile. The church is located on the south side of Bernardo O'Higgins' Alameda del Libertador - the main street of the city, between the Universidad de Chile and Saint Lucia metro stations.
In 1541, the conquistador Pedro de Valdivia founded Santiago del Nuevo Extremo in the bends of the Mapocho River. And already in 1544, the Franciscan Order made a request to build a temple on this site. With the long-awaited permission, the Franciscans began building the temple using local labor. The first temple, built of limestone, was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1583. The church reopened its doors to parishioners in 1595.
The construction of a new church building in the form of a Latin cross with stone walls, a tower and a sacristy was completed in 1613. In subsequent years, the construction of the monastery was carried out, consisting of two buildings, built in 1628. A strong earthquake in 1647 severely damaged the buildings - the church lost its tower, and the monastery - the second floor. Soon the tower was rebuilt, the church and the monastery continued to expand. A new infirmary was built in the monastery, and several side chapels appeared in the temple.
In 1730, another earthquake struck the city and the newly damaged tower had to be demolished. Another tower of the church was built in 1758 together with the new main entrance to the church, made of cut stone. In 1828, the church floor was laid with bricks, and the interior of the temple was decorated with mahogany. In 1854, the tower of the church was again demolished and replaced with another one designed by the architect Fermin Vivachet. The clock tower was built in 1857.
In the late 19th century, the Church of San Francisco continued to expand. In 1865, the baroque façade of the temple was rebuilt. A marble pulpit was also installed, the cassette ceiling was repaired, and the stucco molding of the inner and outer walls of the temple was renewed. In 1895, a chapel was built on the northeast corner of the church. In 1929, a new façade was built overlooking London Street.
With the onset of the 20th century, the Franciscans transferred most of the monastery to the city. On the territory of the former monastery courtyard and garden, the Paris-London-de-Santiago residential complex was built in the 1920s, and in a small square in front of the church there was a gazebo made of flowers Pergola de las Flores, which was immortalized in her play by Isidore Aguirre and composer Francisco Flores del Campo in the musical comedy of the same name. The remainder of the convent houses the San Francisco Colonial Museum of Contemporary Art, opened in 1969.
In order to preserve the building of the church, in 1951 it was declared a national monument of Chile. In subsequent years, restoration work was also carried out in the church building after the devastating earthquakes in 1986 and 2010. In 1998, the Church of St. Francis was presented by the Chilean authorities to UNESCO as a candidate for inscription on the World Heritage List.
