The Department of Municipalities and the Restructuring of the Municipal Level in Chile (1930-1948)

Abstract

This paper analyzes the role and composition of the Department of Municipalities of the Ministry of the Interior, a key institution in the restructuring of relations between the central level and the communal administrations, in a context of recentralization. Its role would consist of an administrative tutelage that would limit the degrees of municipal autonomy. The sources used are the nation's budgets, archival documentation, parliamentary discussions, municipal journals and the press. The main findings are related to the loss of relevance of this institution from the 1940's onwards and the neglect of municipal affairs by the central level.