Prehistory Archaeological evidence suggests that the first human groups arrived in the Santiago basin around the 10th millennium BC. These groups were primarily nomadic hunter-gatherers, traveling from the coast to the interior to hunt
guanacos during the Andean snowmelt. By around 800 AD, the first permanent settlers established agricultural communities along the
Mapocho River, where they cultivated crops such as
maize,
potatoes, and
beans, and domesticated camelids.
Pedro de Valdivia, a conquistador from
Extremadura sent by
Francisco Pizarro from
Peru, arrived in the Mapocho valley on 13 December 1540, after a long journey from
Cusco. Valdivia and his party camped by the river on the slopes of the
Tupahue hill and gradually began interacting with the
Picunche people who lived in the area. Valdivia later called a meeting with the local chiefs, during which he explained his plan to establish a city on behalf of
Charles I of Spain. The city would serve as the capital of his governorship of
Nueva Extremadura. On 12 February 1541, Valdivia officially founded the city of ('Santiago of New Extremadura') in honor of the
Apostle James, the patron saint of Spain. The city was established near Huelén, which Valdivia renamed Santa Lucía. He assigned the city's layout to master builder
Pedro de Gamboa, who designed a
grid plan. At its center, Gamboa placed a
Plaza Mayor, which became the town's central hub. Surrounding the plaza, plots were designated for the
cathedral, the jail, and the
governor's house. The city was divided into eight blocks from north to south and ten blocks from east to west, between the Mapocho River and the with each quarter-block, or , granted to settlers. Valdivia left for the south with his troops months later, initiating the
Arauco War. Santiago was left vulnerable, and a coalition of Mapuche and Picunche tribes led by chief
Michimalonco destroyed the city on 11 September 1541, despite the efforts of a Spanish garrison of 55 soldiers defending the fort. The defense was led by Spanish
Conquistadora
Inés de Suárez. When she realized they were being overpowered, she ordered the execution of all indigenous prisoners, displaying their heads on pikes and throwing some towards the attackers. In response to this brutal act, the indigenous forces dispersed in fear. The city was gradually rebuilt, with the newly established city of
Concepción gaining political prominence as the
Royal Audiencia of Chile was established there in 1565. However, the ongoing threat of the Arauco War and frequent earthquakes delayed the establishment of the Royal Court in Santiago until 1607, which solidified the city's status as the capital. During the early years of the city, the Spanish suffered from severe shortages of food and other supplies. The
Picunches had adopted a strategy of halting cultivation and retreating to more remote locations,
Colonial Santiago and
Bellin. , built between 1747 and 1796. Although Santiago was facing the threat of permanent destruction early on, due to attacks from indigenous peoples, earthquakes, and floods, the city began to grow rapidly. Out of the 126 blocks designed by Pedro de Gamboa in 1558, 40 were occupied. In 1580, the first major buildings in the city started to be erected, marked by the placement of the foundation stone of the first Cathedral in 1561 and the building of the
church of San Francisco in 1572. Both of these structures were primarily made of adobe and stone. In addition to the construction of significant buildings, the city began to thrive as the surrounding areas welcomed tens of thousands of livestock. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the growth of the city was hindered by a series of disasters including an
earthquake, a
smallpox epidemic in 1575, the Mapocho River floods in 1590, 1608, and 1618, and a devastating
earthquake on 13 May 1647 which resulted in the death of over 600 people and affected over 5,000 others. Despite these setbacks, the capital of the
Captaincy General of Chile continued to grow, with all the power of the country being centered on the
Plaza de Armas in Santiago. In 1767, the corregidor Luis Manuel de Zañartu launched one of the most significant architectural projects of the colonial period, the Calicanto Bridge, connecting the city to La Chimba on the north side of the Mapocho River. He also began constructing
embankments to prevent river overflows. Although the bridge was completed, its piers were frequently damaged by the river. In 1780, Governor
Agustín de Jáuregui hired the Italian architect
Joaquín Toesca, who designed several important buildings, including the cathedral's façade, the
Palacio de La Moneda, the
San Carlos Canal, and the completion of the embankments during the government of
Ambrosio O'Higgins. These works were officially opened in 1798. The O'Higgins government also opened the road to
Valparaíso in 1791, connecting the capital with the country's main port. File:Schmidtmeyer, Peter & Scharf, G - The Cañada, Santiago -JCB Library f1 (cropped).jpg|The colonial La Cañada neighborhood in Santiago de Chile, in 1821, by
Scharf and Schmidtmeyer.
John Carter Brown Library. File:Schmidtmeyer, Peter & Scharf, G - Scenes at a Fair -JCB Library f1.2.jpg|Scenes at a fair in Santiago de Chile, in 1821, by
Scharf and Schmidtmeyer.
John Carter Brown Library.|alt=Scenes at a fair in Santiago de Chile, in 1821, by Scharf and Schmidtmeyer. John Carter Brown Library.: 320, 348 File:Schmidtmeyer- Paroissien, James & Scharf, G - The Mint of Santiago -JCB Library f1.3.jpg|The colonial
Real Casa de la Moneda (now called Palacio de la Moneda) in 1824 (by Paroissien,
Scharf and
Rowney & Forster).
John Carter Brown Library. File:Plaza o great Square of Santiago with diffent national costumes (cropped2).jpg|[Colonial]
Plaza o great Square of Santiago with different local costumes, in 1826, by
John Miers.
British Library. File:Plaza de Armas de Santiago de Chile en 1850.jpg|[Colonial] Square in Downtown Santiago, in 1850, by the French-born Ernest Charton. File:Plaza de la Independencia de Santiago in 1854 by Claude Gray.jpg|Colonial Plaza de Armas de Santiago in 1854 by
Claude Gay. In the foreground you can see the still intact
Palace of the Real Audiencia of Chile, and in the background the unfinished
Cathedral, both built by the Italian
Joaquin Toesca. File:Santiago plaza independencia selleny expedic novara 1859.jpg|Colonial Plaza de Armas de Santiago in 1859 by Joseph Selleny aboard the
Novara expedition, to the left, the (beginning to be modified) Palace of the Real Audiencia of Chile, and to the right, the colonial Portal de Sierra Bella. File:Portal of Sierra Bella in the Plaza de Armas de Santiago de Chile in 1860 by Eugéne Maunoury.jpg|Portal de Sierra Bella and gardens of the Plaza de Armas in 1860. The
colonial imprint was maintained until well into the 19th century, this commercial portal faithfully reflects the appearance of colonial Santiago. Photograph by Eugéne Maunoury, belonging to the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
Capital of the Republic , 1818 On September 18, 1810, the
First Government Junta was proclaimed in Santiago, marking the beginning of
Chile’s path to independence. The city, which became the capital of the newly formed nation, faced various challenges, particularly from
military actions in the vicinity. Although institutions like the
Instituto Nacional and the
National Library were established during the
Patria Vieja, they were shut down after the patriots’ defeat at the
Battle of Rancagua in 1814. During the "Liberal Republic" and the administration of Mayor
Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna, a new phase in the urban development of the capital was initiated. One of the main projects during this period was the remodeling of
Cerro Santa Lucía, which had fallen into disrepair despite its central location. .|320x320px Santiago emerged as the central hub of the national railway system. On 14 September 1857, the first railway arrived in the city and terminated at the
Santiago Estación Central railway station, which was under construction at the time and officially opened in 1884. During this period, rail lines connected Santiago to Valparaíso and regions in northern and southern Chile. The streets of Santiago were also paved, and by 1875, there were 1,107 railway cars in the city, while 45,000 people used trams daily.
The centennial Santiago ''. As the new century began, Santiago underwent various changes due to the rapid growth of industry. Valparaíso, which had previously been the economic center of the country, gradually lost its prominence to the capital. By 1895, 75% of the national manufacturing industry was located in Santiago, while only 28% was in Valparaíso. By 1910, major banks and shops had established themselves in the central streets of Santiago, further diminishing the role of Valparaíso. The enactment of the Autonomous Municipalities Act empowered municipalities to establish various administrative divisions within the Santiago department, with the goal of enhancing local governance. In 1891, the municipalities of
Maipú,
Ñuñoa,
Renca,
Lampa, and
Colina were created, followed by
Providencia and
Barrancas in 1897, and
Las Condes in 1901. The La Victoria
departmento was also divided, leading to the creation of Lo Cañas in 1891, which was then further split into
La Granja and
Puente Alto in 1892, followed by
La Florida in 1899, and
La Cisterna in 1925. The
San Cristobal Hill underwent a prolonged process of development during this period. In 1903, an
astronomical observatory was established on the hill, and the following year, construction began on a statue of the
Virgin Mary. Today, the statue is visible from various points in the city. However, the shrine was not completed until several decades later. The 1910 Chile Centennial celebrations marked the beginning of several urban development projects. The railway network was expanded, connecting the city and its growing suburbs with a new ring and route to
Cajón del Maipo. A new railway station was also built in the north of the city: the
Mapocho Station. The
Parque Forestal was established on the southern side of the Mapocho river, and new buildings such as the
Museum of Fine Arts, the
Barros Arana public boarding school, and the
National Library were opened. In addition, a sewer system was installed, serving approximately 85% of the city's population.
Population explosion , in the city center, in the late 1920s. The 1920 census estimated the population of Santiago to be 507,296 inhabitants, equivalent to 13.6% of the total population of Chile. This represented a growth of 52.5% from the 1907 census, an annual increase of 3.3%, which was almost three times the national average. This growth was mainly due to an influx of farmers from the southern regions who came to work in the factories and railroads that were being built. However, this growth was concentrated in the suburbs and not downtown. File:Schmidtmeyer, Peter & Scharf, G - Tertulia & Mate Party -JCB Library f1.2 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|[Colonial]
Tertulia and
Mate party in Santiago de Chile, in 1821, by
Scharf and Schmidtmeyer.
John Carter Brown Library. in a house of a very hospitable family of Santiago de Chile''", in 1821, by
Scharf and Schmidtmeyer.
John Carter Brown Library. During this time, the downtown district consolidated as a commercial, financial, and administrative center, with the establishment of various shops and businesses around
Ahumada Street and a Civic District in the vicinity of the Palace of La Moneda. The latter project involved the construction of modernist buildings for the offices of the
ministries and other public services, as well as the start of the construction of medium-rise buildings. Meanwhile, the traditional residents of the center began to migrate to more rural areas like Providencia and Ñuñoa, which attracted the oligarchy and
European immigrant professionals, and
San Miguel for middle-class families. Additionally, in the periphery, villas were built by various organizations of the time. Modernity also spread in the city, with the introduction of the first theaters, the expansion of the telephone network, and the opening of Los Cerrillos Airport in 1928, among other advancements. The perception that the early 20th century was a time of economic prosperity due to technological advancements was in stark contrast to the living conditions of lower social classes. The previous decades of growth resulted in an unprecedented population boom starting in 1929, but was met with tragedy as the
Great Depression hit. The collapse of the nitrate industry in the north left 60,000 people unemployed, compounded by a decline in agricultural exports, resulting in an estimated 300,000 unemployed people nationwide. Desperate for survival, many migrants flocked to Santiago and its thriving industry. However, they often found themselves struggling to find housing, with many being forced to live on the streets. The harsh living conditions resulted in widespread diseases like tuberculosis, and took a toll on the homeless population. At the same time, unemployment rates and living costs skyrocketed, while the salaries of the people in Santiago fell. in 1930. The situation would change several years later with a new industrial boom fostered by
CORFO and the expansion of the state apparatus from the late 1930s. At this time, the aristocracy lost much of its power, and the middle class, composed of merchants, bureaucrats, and professionals, acquired the role of setting national policy. In this context, Santiago began to develop a substantial middle- and lower-class population, while the upper classes sought refuge in the districts of the capital. Thus, the old moneyed class, who previously frequented Cousiño and Alameda Park, lost their hegemony over popular entertainment venues, and the
National Stadium emerged in 1938.
Greater Santiago In the following decades, Santiago continued to grow at an unprecedented rate. In 1940, the city had a population of 952,075 residents, which increased to 1,350,409 by 1952, and reached 1,907,378 in the 1960 census. This growth was reflected in the urbanization of rural areas on the outskirts of the city, where middle and lower-class families with stable housing were established. In 1930, the urban area covered 6,500 hectares, which increased to 20,900 in 1960 and to 38,296 in 1980. Although growth was mainly concentrated in communities such as Barrancas to the west,
Conchalí to the north, and La Cisterna and La Granja to the south, the center of the city lost population, leaving more space for commercial, banking, and government development. The upper class, on the other hand, began to settle in the foothills of Las Condes and the
La Reina sector. The regulation of growth in Santiago only began in the 1960s with the creation of various development plans for Greater Santiago, a concept that reflected the city's new reality as a much larger urban center. In 1958, the Intercommunal Plan of Santiago was released, which proposed a limit of 38,600 urban and semi-urban hectares for a maximum population of 3,260,000 residents. The plan also included plans for the construction of new avenues, such as the
Américo Vespucio Avenue and
Panamericana Route 5, as well as the expansion of 'industrial belts'. The
1962 World Cup provided a new impetus for city improvement efforts, and in 1966, the
Santiago Metropolitan Park was established on Cerro San Cristóbal. The
Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MINVU) also began to eradicate
shantytowns and build new homes. Finally, the
Edificio Diego Portales was constructed in 1972. In 1967, the new
Pudahuel International Airport was opened, and after years of discussion, construction of the
Santiago Metro began in 1969. The first phase of the Metro, which ran beneath the western section of Alameda, was opened in 1975 and soon became one of the most prestigious buildings in the city. Over the following years, the Metro continued to expand, with two perpendicular lines in place by the end of 1978. Building telecommunications infrastructure was also an important development of this period, as reflected in the construction of the
Torre Entel, which, since its construction in 1975, has become one of the symbols of the capital and remained the tallest structure in the country for two decades. After the military
coup of 1973 and the establishment of the
military regime, significant changes in urban planning did not occur until the 1980s when the government embraced a
neoliberal economic model. In 1979, the master plan was revised, expanding the urban area to over 62,000 hectares for real estate development. This led to
urban sprawl, particularly in
La Florida, causing the city to reach 40,619 hectares in size in the early 1990s. According to the 1992 census, Santiago became the country's most populous municipality, with 328,881 residents. On 21 March 1981, a
fire in the Torre Santa María killed 11 people. A powerful
earthquake struck the city on 3 March 1985, causing minimal casualties but leaving many homeless and destroying numerous historic buildings.
The metropolis in the early twenty-first century is the tallest building in
South America and second tallest in
Ibero-America. It is part of the
Costanera Center complex, from
Sky Costanera in 2018With the onset of the
transition to democracy in 1990, the city of Santiago surpassed four million inhabitants, with the majority residing in the south, particularly in La Florida, which was the most populous area, followed by Puente Alto and Maipú. The real estate development in these municipalities, as well as in others such as Quilicura and Peñalolén, was largely driven by the construction of housing projects for middle-class families. Meanwhile, high-income families relocated to the foothills, now commonly referred to as
Barrio Alto, boosting the population of Las Condes and giving rise to young communes, including
Lo Barnechea and
Vitacura, both established in 1981 and 1991, respectively. The area around
Providencia Avenue became an important commercial hub in the eastern sector. This development extended to the
Barrio Alto, which became an attractive location for the construction of high-rise buildings. Major companies and financial corporations established themselves in the area, giving rise to a thriving modern business center commonly known as
Sanhattan. The departure of these companies to
Barrio Alto and the construction of
shopping centers all around the city created a crisis in the city center. To reinvigorate the area, the government transformed the main shopping streets into pedestrian walkways, as it did in the 1970s, and offered tax benefits for the construction of residential buildings, which attracted young adults. The city faced a series of problems due to disorganized growth. During the winter months,
air pollution reached critical levels and a layer of
smog blanketed the city. In response, the authorities implemented legislative measures to reduce industrial pollution and placed
restrictions on vehicle use. To address the problem of transportation, the metro system underwent significant expansion, with lines being extended and three new lines added between 1997 and 2006 in the southeastern sector. In 2011, a new extension was inaugurated in Maipú, bringing the total length of the metropolitan railway to . In the early 1990s, the bus system also underwent a major reform. In 2007, the master plan known as
Transantiago was established, although it has faced various challenges since its implementation. Entering the 21st century, rapid development continued in Santiago. The Civic District was revitalized with the creation of the
Plaza de la Ciudadanía and the construction of the Ciudad Parque Bicentenario, which marked the
bicentenary of the Republic. The trend of constructing tall buildings continued in the eastern sector, which was highlighted by the opening of the
Titanium La Portada and
Gran Torre Santiago skyscrapers in the
Costanera Center complex. On 27 February 2010, a
powerful earthquake hit the capital city of Santiago, causing damage to some older buildings and rendering some modern structures uninhabitable. This sparked a heated discussion about the actual implementation of mandatory earthquake standards in the city's modern architecture. Despite urban integration efforts, socioeconomic inequality and geosocial fragmentation remain two of the most important problems, both in the city and in the country. These problems have been considered one of the factors that led to the
"Estallido Social", a series of massive protests and severe riots carried out between 2019 and 2020. The protests led to a serious civil confrontation, which led to thousands of arrests and accusations of human rights violations. Meanwhile, the demonstrations registered serious episodes of violence against public and private infrastructure, mainly in the surroundings of
Plaza Baquedano, with the
Santiago Metro being one of the most affected by these episodes: more than half of its stations registered damage (several being partially set on fire) and only eleven months later the network returned to full normal service. ==Geography==