This article analyses the interaction between the State and the civil society during the process of construction of the Chilean educational system. To do so, it focuses on the adoption of the Lancasterian system of education. Based on critical analysis of reports, letters, decrees, and testimonies from both State and non-State actors, I argue that in the first stage (1810-1860) provision of education was mainly delivered by the latter. The precarious economic situation derived from the wars of Independence and the continuation of the colonial policy of provision in education were factors that conditioned this process. The Lancasterian system influenced this process by promoting associative and philanthropic practices. This system finally provided a new conceptual framework for long-established practices that lasted until at least 1860.