Simón Bolívar and his generals now turned to southern South America. He prepared his armies to liberate Peru. He set up a meeting in Guayaquil, Ecuador, to discuss strategy with José de San Martín who was known as the Liberator of Chile and Protector of Peru, as well as the Knight of the Andes and Santo de la Espada for his victories in Argentina and Chile.
Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín met privately. No one knows the words they exchanged, but the result of their discussion left Simón Bolívar as general in chief. He turned his energies to Peru, and with Sucre, defeated the Spanish army in the Battle of Junín on August 6, 1824. Following that with the victory of the Battle of Ayacucho on December 9, Bolivar had accomplished his goal: South America was free.
Simón Bolívar was the most powerful man in South America.
He turned his efforts to establishing governments in the mold he'd visualized for years. By August of 1825, he was ready. On August 6, 1825, Sucre convened the Congress of Upper Peru which created the Republic of Bolivia in honor of Bolívar. Simón Bolívar wrote the Bolivian Constitution of 1826, but it was never enacted.
In 1826, Bolívar called the Congress of Panama, the first hemispheric conference. Simón Bolívar envisioned a united South America.
That was not to be.
His dictatorial policies chafed some of the leaders. Separatists movements sprang up. A civil war resulted in the dissolution of Gran Colombia into separate countries. Panama was part of Colombia until it seceeded in 1903.
Simón Bolívar, following an assassination attempt which he believed involved Vice-President Santander, resigned his office in 1828. Defeated and bitter, suffering from tuberculosis, he withdrew from public life. At his death on December 17, 1830, Simón Bolívar was hated and reviled. His last proclamation reveals his bitterness when he speaks of devoting his life and fortune to the cause of liberty, his treatment by his enemies and the theft of his reputation. Yet, he forgives them, and exhorts his fellow citizens to follow his precepts and hopes that his death will ease the troubles and unite the country.
What happened to the countries Simón Bolívar liberated?
José Antonio Páez led a separatist movement which in 1830 made Venezuela an independent state. During much of its history since then, the nation has been dominated by caudillos (military dictators) from the landholding class.
General Sucre served as the first president of Bolivia from 1825 to 1828, the year he foiled an invasion from Peru. He was succeeded by Andrés Santa Cruz who had served as Bolívar's revolutionary chief of staff. In 1835, Santa Cruz attempted a union between Bolivia and Peru by invading Peru and becoming its protector. However, he lost the battle of Yungay in 1839, and fled to exile in Europe. Coups and revolutions occurring almost annually have since characterized Bolivia's political history.
Ecuador, when it was first designated a country, was about four times the size it is now. It lost territory in continuing border struggles with Colombia and Peru, some of which are still under dispute. Political squabbles between the conservatives who wanted to preserve the status quo of oligarchy and church, and the liberals who wanted social reform, continued throughout the next century.
Peru battled boundary disputes with neighboring countries. Peruvian society was dominated by the wealthy oligarchy who kept many of the Spanish colonial customs, alienating them from the poor, mostly of indigenous descent. Revolts and dictatorships became the norm of political life.
In Colombia, political and economic rivarly between the different social groups plunged the country into civil wars and dictatorships. This continued into the twentieth century. In an attempt to overcome the regional conflict and dissension, the country was given a new Constitution and, in 1863, turned in a Federation of nine states called the United States of Colombia.
Long after his death, the reputation of Simón Bolívar was restored and today he is revered as South America's greatest hero, The Liberator. In Venezuela and Bolivia his birthday is celebrated as a national holiday. Schools, buildings, children, towns in South America and abroad are named for him.
His legacy continues.
