Socorro Province was one of the provinces of Gran Colombia . It belonged to the Boyacá Department which was created in 1824.
52-402: 6°32′N 73°12′W / 6.533°N 73.200°W / 6.533; -73.200 This Boyacá Department location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Colombian history -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Boyac%C3%A1 Department Boyacá ( Spanish pronunciation: [boʝaˈka] ) is one of
104-719: A congress and declared the country's independence from Peru. And in Peru, after Bolívar's forces left the country in 1827, Peruvian leaders undid many of his political reforms. There are two types of units: expeditionary units ( in Spanish: expedicionarios ) created in Spain and militias (in Spanish: militias ), units which already existed or were created during the conflict in America. The militias, which were composed wholly of militiamen who were residents or natives of Spanish America, were bolstered by
156-401: A constitution, a new division appeared among royalists. Conservatives (often called " absolutists " in the historiography) did not want to see any innovations in government, while liberals supported them. These differences would become more acute after the restoration of Ferdinand VII, because the king opted to support the conservative position. Regional rivalry also played an important role in
208-752: A definitive break with two groups that could have been allies of Ferdinand VII: the autonomous governments, which had not yet declared formal independence, and Spanish liberals who had created a representative government that would fully include the overseas possessions and was seen as an alternative to independence by many in New Spain (today Mexico ), Central America , the Caribbean , Venezuela, Quito ( Ecuador ), Peru , Upper Peru ( Bolivia ) and Chile . The provinces of New Granada had maintained independence from Spain since 1810, unlike neighboring Venezuela, where royalists and pro-independence forces had exchanged control of
260-564: A rebellion among troops that had been gathered for a large expeditionary force to be sent to the Americas. By March 7, the royal palace in Madrid was surrounded by soldiers under the command of General Francisco Ballesteros , and three days later on March 10, the besieged Ferdinand VII, now a virtual prisoner, agreed to restore the Constitution. Riego's revolt had two significant effects on the war in
312-533: A vast empire. It is important to note that, at first, the juntas claimed to carry out their actions in the name of the deposed king and did not formally declare independence. Juntas were successfully established in Venezuela , Río de la Plata and New Granada , and there were unsuccessful movements to do so in other regions. A few juntas initially chose to recognize the Regency, nevertheless the creation of juntas challenged
364-434: Is shared with the department of Arauca. The flora and fauna sanctuary of Lake Iguaque is situated in the centre of the department. The most beautiful páramo in the world, Ocetá Páramo , is in northeast Boyacá. The central area of the highlands has two rainy seasons; the first between April and June, and a second between October and November with an average of 1,000 millimetres (39 in) of rainfall per year. The rest of
416-622: Is the city of Tunja . Boyacá is known as "The Land of Freedom" because this region was the scene of a series of battles which led to Colombia's independence from Spain . The first one took place on 25 July 1819 in the Pantano de Vargas and the final and decisive battle known as the Battle of Boyacá was fought on 7 August 1819 at Puente de Boyacá. Boyacá is home to three universities : the Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC),
468-657: The patria in Spanish. More often than not, juntas sought to maintain a province's independence from the capital of the former viceroyalty or captaincy general, as much as from the Peninsula itself. Armed conflicts broke out between the provinces over the question of whether some provinces were to be subordinate to others in the manner that they had been under the crown. This phenomenon was particularly evident in New Granada and Río de la Plata. This rivalry also leads some regions to adopt
520-734: The Cortes of Cádiz that ruled in the King's name during the Peninsular War . During the Trienio Liberal in 1820, after the restoration of Ferdinand VII in 1814, the royalists were split between Absolutists, those that supported his insistence to rule under traditional law, and liberals , who sought to reinstate the reforms enacted by the Cortes of Cádiz. The creation of juntas in Spanish America in 1810
572-509: The Spanish Constitution of 1812 and ordered the arrest of liberal leaders who had created it on May 10. Ferdinand justified his actions by stating that the Constitution and other changes had been made by a Cortes assembled in his absence and without his consent. He also declared all of the juntas and constitutions written in Spanish America invalid and restored the former law codes and political institutions. This, in effect, constituted
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#1732854714615624-622: The Thousand Days War that struggled over a centralist or federalist system and political instability that changed to many constitutions (such as the Constitution of 1886), Boyaca finally acquired its current definition as territory. Boyacá is located in the Andean Region in central Colombia, over the Cordillera Oriental mountain range and covers a total area of 23,189 km . It borders other Colombian departments as follows: to
676-553: The Treaty of Córdoba , the highest Spanish official in Mexico approved the Plan of Iguala, and although the Spanish government never ratified this treaty, it did not have the resources to enforce its rejection. Ultimately, it was the royal army in Mexico that ultimately brought about that nation's independence. Central America gained its independence along with New Spain. The regional elites supported
728-769: The Universidad de Boyacá (UNIBOYACA), and the Saint Thomas Aquinas University . The word Boyacá derived from the Chibcha word " Bojacá " which means "Near the cacique ", or "Region of the royal mantle". The territory of present-day Boyaca was during the Pre-Columbian time the domain of the Muisca indigenous peoples . The Muisca under the chiefdom of the zaque of Hunza lived mainly by agriculture and mining gold and emeralds . The first European to discover
780-459: The criollo elites at least - no new or old national identities to replace the traditional sense of being Spaniards. The original juntas of 1810 appealed first, to sense of being Spanish, which was juxtaposed against the French threat; second, to a general American identity, which was juxtaposed against the Peninsula which was lost to the French; and third, to a sense of belonging to the local province,
832-471: The Americas. First, in military matters, the large numbers of reinforcements, that were especially needed to retake New Granada and defend the Viceroyalty of Peru, would never arrive. Furthermore, as the royalist situation became more desperate in region after region, the army experienced wholesale defections of units to the patriot side. Second, in political matters, the reinstitution of a liberal regime changed
884-432: The Americas. The Regency and Cortes began issuing orders to, and appointing, royal officials throughout the empire. Those who supported the new government came to be called "royalists." Those that supported the idea of maintaining independent juntas called themselves "patriots," and a few among them were proponents of declaring full, formal independence from Spain. As the Cortes instituted liberal reforms and worked on drafting
936-486: The area was the Spaniard Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada who conquered the northern Muisca living in the area led by last zaque Aquiminzaque and distributed the land in encomiendas and forced the indigenous people to work for him. In 1539, Gonzalo Suárez Rendón , a Spanish conquistador , founded the city of Tunja and other sites where the indigenous people previously had their villages. Tunja became one of
988-557: The authority of all sitting royal officials and the right of the government in Spain to rule in the Americas. In the months following the establishment of the Regency, it became clear that Spain was not lost, and furthermore the government was effectively reconstituting itself. The Regency successfully convened the Cortes Generales , the traditional parliament of the Spanish Monarchy, which in this case included representatives from
1040-1318: The capital of the department; Tunja and 13 other minor registries spread across the territory. [REDACTED] Amazonas [REDACTED] Antioquia [REDACTED] Arauca [REDACTED] Atlántico [REDACTED] Bolívar [REDACTED] Boyacá [REDACTED] Caldas [REDACTED] Caquetá [REDACTED] Casanare [REDACTED] Cauca [REDACTED] Cesar [REDACTED] Chocó [REDACTED] Córdoba [REDACTED] Cundinamarca [REDACTED] Guainía [REDACTED] Guaviare [REDACTED] Huila [REDACTED] La Guajira [REDACTED] Magdalena [REDACTED] Meta [REDACTED] Nariño [REDACTED] N. Santander [REDACTED] Putumayo [REDACTED] Quindío [REDACTED] Risaralda [REDACTED] San Andrés [REDACTED] Santander [REDACTED] Sucre [REDACTED] Tolima [REDACTED] Valle del Cauca [REDACTED] Vaupés [REDACTED] Vichada Capital district: [REDACTED] Bogotá Royalist (Spanish American Revolution) The royalists were
1092-460: The control of the royalist armies on the path to full independence. The governments of these regions, which had their origins in the juntas of 1810—and even moderates there who had entertained a reconciliation with the crown—now saw the need to separate from Spain, if they were to protect the reforms they had enacted. Spanish liberals finally had success in forcing Ferdinand VII to restore the Constitution on January 1, 1820, when Rafael Riego headed
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#17328547146151144-538: The country. On February 1, 1810, French troops took Seville and gained control of most of Andalusia . The Supreme Junta retreated to Cádiz and dissolved itself in favor of a Regency Council of Spain and the Indies. As news of this arrived throughout Spanish America during the next three weeks to nine months—depending on time it took goods and people to travel from Spain—political fault lines appeared. Royal officials and Spanish Americans were split between those who supported
1196-705: The eastern Llanos plains. Among its most prominent geographical features are the Range of the Zorro , Serrania de las Quinchas and the Andean plateaus of Rusia , Guantivá , Pisba , Chontales and Rechiniga . The Altiplano Cundiboyacense , shared with the department of Cundinamarca , is densely populated with numerous valleys. The southern part is the Bogotá savanna . Boyacá is subdivided into 123 municipalities. Many rivers originate in Boyacá,
1248-486: The expeditionary units. For example, Pablo Morillo , commander in chief in Venezuela and New Granada, reported that he only had 2,000 European soldiers, in other words, only half of the soldiers of his expeditionary force were European. It is estimated that in the Battle of Maipú only a quarter of the royalist forces were European soldiers, in the Battle of Carabobo about a fifth, and in the Battle of Ayacucho less than 1%
1300-417: The idea of maintaining the status quo—that is leaving all the government institutions and officers in place—regardless of the developments in Spain, and those who thought that the time had come to establish local rule, initially through the creation of juntas, in order to preserve the independence of Spanish America from the French or from a rump government in Spain that could no longer legitimately claim to rule
1352-484: The insurgents with the promise that they could participate in the restored representative government. The Spanish Constitution, it turned out, served as the basis for independence in New Spain and Central America, since in the two regions it was a coalition of conservative and liberal royalist leaders who led the establishment of new states. The restoration of the Spanish Constitution and representative government
1404-414: The internecine wars that broke out in Spanish America as a result of the juntas. The disappearance of a central, imperial authority—and in some cases of even a local, viceregal authority (as in the cases of New Granada and Río de la Plata)—initiated a prolonged period of balkanization in many regions of Spanish America. It was not clear which political units should replace the empire, and there were - among
1456-528: The local society. Liberals on both sides of the Atlantic, nevertheless, continued to conspire to bring back a constitutional monarchy, ultimately succeeding in 1820. The most dramatic example of transAtlantic collaboration is perhaps Francisco Javier Mina 's expedition to Texas and northern Mexico in 1816 and 1817. Spanish Americans in royalist areas who were committed to independence had already joined guerrilla movements. Ferdinand's actions did set areas outside of
1508-513: The main political and economic centers for the Spanish during the Viceroyalty of New Granada . During the 19th century, Boyacá was battleground for numerous confrontations between the royalist and patriot armies led by Simón Bolívar during the Spanish colonies' war of independence from Spain. Two of the most decisive battles were the Battle of Boyacá and the Battle of Vargas Swamp (1819) won by
1560-538: The most important are the Chicamocha River and Arauca River and tributaries to other important rivers such as the Magdalena and Meta . Boyacá also has numerous lakes which include Lake Tota , Lake Sochagota and Lake Fúquene , shared with the department of Cundinamarca, the artificial Chivor Reservoir and others. El Cocuy and Pisba National Parks are located in the northeast of Boyacá. Pisba National Park
1612-748: The north Santander and Norte de Santander , to the east Arauca and Casanare , to the south Cundinamarca and a small part of Meta , and to the west Antioquia and Caldas . It has a territorial dispute with Norte de Santander and Cundinamarca. The department of Boyacá covers a small portion of the Middle Magdalena valley of the Magdalena River to the west, the Cordillera Oriental mountain range with altitudes of 5,380 m above sea level ( Sierra Nevada del Cocuy with 25 snow peaks), flat highland plateaux, and another small portion of territory by
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1664-518: The north with the Department of Santander , to the northeast with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Norte de Santander , to the east with the departments of Arauca and Casanare . To the south, Boyacá borders the department of Cundinamarca and to the west with the Department of Antioquia covering a total area of 23,189 square kilometres (8,953 sq mi). The capital of Boyacá
1716-501: The opposing political cause from their rivals. Peru seems to have remained strongly royalist in large part because of its rivalry with Río de la Plata, to which it had lost control of Upper Peru when the latter was elevated to a viceroyalty in 1776. The creation of juntas in Río de la Plata allowed Peru to regain formal control of Upper Peru for the duration of the wars. The restoration of Ferdinand VII signified an important change, since most of
1768-589: The past century as part of the Bourbon Reforms to reinforce Spanish America's defenses against the increasing encroachment of other European powers, such as during the Seven Years' War . Overall, Europeans formed only about a tenth of the royalist armies in Spanish America, and only about half of the expeditionary units. Since each European soldier casualty was substituted by a Spanish American soldier, over time, there were more and more Spanish American soldiers in
1820-658: The patriot forces against the royalists. In 1824 Gran Colombia created the Boyacá Department (Gran Colombia) . After the creation of the Granadine Confederation by 1858 the territory of now Boyaca became the Sovereign State of Boyacá . It was later rearranged in territory and administration and renamed as "Department of Boyaca" after a series of civil wars like the Colombian Civil War (1860–1862) and
1872-540: The patriot side and not the royalists. The collapse of the constitutional regime in Spain in 1823 had other implications for the war in South America. Royalist officers, split between liberals and conservatives, fought an internecine war among themselves. General Pedro Antonio Olañeta, commander in Upper Peru, rebelled against the liberal viceroy of Peru, José de la Serna , in 1823. This conflict provided an opportunity for
1924-462: The patriots in large numbers as the royal army's situation became dire. During the end of 1820 in Venezuela, after Bolívar and Pablo Morillo concluded a cease-fire, many units crossed lines knowing that Spanish control of the region would not last. The situation repeated itself in Peru from 1822 to 1825 as republican forces slowly advanced there. Unlike in Mexico, however, the top military and political leadership in these parts of South America came from
1976-576: The people of Hispanic America (mostly from native and indigenous peoples) and Europeans that fought to preserve the integrity of the Spanish monarchy during the Spanish American wars of independence . In the early years of the conflict, when King Ferdinand VII was captive in France, royalists supported the authority in the Americas of the Supreme Central Junta of Spain and the Indies and
2028-642: The political and legal changes done on both sides of the Atlantic—the myriad of juntas, the Cortes in Spain, and several of the congresses in the Americas that evolved out of the juntas, and the many constitutions and new legal codes—had been done in his name. Once in Spain Ferdinand VII realized that he had significant support from conservatives in the general population and the hierarchy of the Spanish Catholic Church , and so on May 4, he repudiated
2080-454: The presence of "veteran units" (or "disciplined militia") composed of Peninsular and Spanish American veterans of Spain's wars in Europe and around the globe. The veteran units were expected to form a core of experienced soldiers in the local defenses, whose expertise would be invaluable to the regular militiamen who often lacked sustained military experience, if any. The veteran units were created in
2132-547: The region several times. To pacify Venezuela and to retake New Granada, Spain organized in 1815 the largest armed force it ever sent to the New World, consisting of 10,500 troops and nearly sixty ships. (See, Spanish reconquest of New Granada ). Although this force was crucial in retaking a solidly pro-independence region like New Granada, its soldiers were eventually spread out throughout Venezuela, New Granada, Quito, and Peru and were lost to tropical diseases, diluting their impact on
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2184-412: The republican forces under the command of Bolívar and Antonio José de Sucre to advance, culminating in the Battle of Ayacucho on December 9, 1824. The royal army of Upper Peru surrendered after Olañeta was killed on April 2, 1825. Former royalists, however, played an important part in the creation of Peru and Bolivia. In Bolivia, royalists, like Casimiro Olañeta , nephew of General Olañeta, gathered in
2236-591: The terms of the Plan of Iguala and orchestrated the union of Central America with the Mexican Empire in 1821. Two years later following Iturbide's downfall, the region, except Chiapas, peacefully seceded from Mexico in July 1823, establishing the Federal Republic of Central America . The new state existed for seventeen years, centrifugal forces pulling the individual provinces apart by 1840. In South America independence
2288-450: The terms under which the Spanish government sought to engage the insurgents. The new government naively assumed that the insurgents were fighting for Spanish liberalism and that the Spanish Constitution could still be the basis of reconciliation between the two sides. The government implemented the Constitution and held elections in the overseas provinces, just as in Spain. It also ordered military commanders to begin armistice negotiations with
2340-529: The thirty-two departments of Colombia , and the remnant of Boyacá State , one of the original nine states of the " United States of Colombia ". Boyacá is centrally located within Colombia, almost entirely within the mountains of the Eastern Cordillera to the border with Venezuela , although the western end of the department extends to the Magdalena River at the town of Puerto Boyacá . Boyacá borders to
2392-446: The two sides to ally. This alliance coalesced towards the end of 1820 behind Agustín de Iturbide , a colonel in the royal army, who at the time was assigned to destroy the guerrilla forces led by Vicente Guerrero . Instead, Iturbide entered into negotiations, which resulted in the Plan of Iguala , which would establish New Spain as an independent kingdom , with Ferdinand VII as its king. With
2444-459: The war. More importantly, the majority of the royalist forces were composed, not of soldiers sent from the peninsula, but of Spanish Americans. Other Spanish Americans were moderates who decided to wait and see what would come out of the restoration of normalcy. In fact, in areas of New Spain, Central America, and Quito, governors found it expedient to leave the elected constitutional ayuntamientos in place for several years to prevent conflict with
2496-515: The year is considered to be the dry seasons with intermittent rainfall. There are 13 provinces and two special districts in the Boyacá Department, listed below with their 123 municipalities. The department also has 123 corregimientos , 185 police inspectorates and numerous towns and small villages spread throughout the territory. Municipalities are also grouped into 45 notary circuits with 53 notaries public. One circuit main registry based in
2548-473: Was European. The American militias reflected the racial makeup of the local population. For example, in 1820 the royalist army in Venezuela had 843 white ( español ), 5,378 Casta , and 980 Native soldiers. The last royalist armed group in what is today Argentina and Chile, the Pincheira brothers , was an outlaw gang made of European Spanish, American Spanish, Mestizos, and local indigenous peoples. This group
2600-405: Was a direct reaction to developments in Spain during the previous two years. In 1808 Ferdinand VII had been convinced to abdicate by Napoleon in his favor, who granted the throne to his brother, Joseph Bonaparte . The Supreme Central Junta had led a resistance to Joseph's government and the French occupation of Spain, but suffered a series of reverses resulting in the loss of the northern half of
2652-452: Was enthusiastically welcomed in New Spain and Central America. Elections were held, local governments formed and deputies sent to the Cortes. Among liberals, however, there was fear that the new regime would not last, and among conservatives and the Church, that the new liberal government would expand its reforms and anti-clerical legislation. This climate of instability created the conditions for
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#17328547146152704-632: Was spurred by the pro-independence fighters that had held out for the past half decade. José de San Martín and Simón Bolívar inadvertently led a continental-wide pincer movement from southern and northern South America that liberated most of the Spanish American nations on that continent and secured the independence of the Southern Cone had more or less experienced since 1810. In South America, royalist soldiers, officers (such as Andrés de Santa Cruz ), and whole units also began to desert or defect to
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