The caritative assistance the infancy abandoned and displayed in the city of São Paulo in century XIX

Abstract

In this academic article the social situation of the children abandoned in the city of São Paulo during century XIX will be analyzed, mainly the performance of the ecclesiastical institutions in the support of small the unfortunate ones, especially after the inauguration of the Wheel of the Displayed ones in 1825 in the Saint-House of the São Paulo capital. Until the end of century XVIII, the index of displayed children was low if comparative with urban centers because the unfortunate children were received by the São Paulo families, or for the initiative of the Church Catholic motivated by the Christian charity. However, in the following century, the city of São Paulo started to have a relative urban and population growth, what it caused diverse social problems. With this, it had a significant increase of the abandonments of children who the charity did not obtain to absorb. The installation of the wheel of displayed the lode to diminish the indices of abandonment and infanticide. But only the “Wheel” would not decide the question, all a assistencial structure was mounted by the Church, with the participation of the society, for the attendance of the displayed ones: breast-feeding for love-of-milk, adoption for the families, internment, education, insertion to the work and marriage for the young women. This assistencial system based on the religious charity invigorated all during century XIX.