The Royal and Pontifical Higher University of San Francisco Xavier of Chuquisaca ( es, Universidad Mayor, Real y Pontificia de San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca; USFX) is a

public university A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universi ...

Sucre Sucre () is the capital of Bolivia, the capital of the Chuquisaca Department and the 6th most populated city in Bolivia. Located in the south-central part of the country, Sucre lies at an elevation of . This relatively high altitude gives the ...

, Bolivia. It is one of the oldest universities of the new world, ranking as the second oldest university in the Americas behind Peru's

National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...

. On many historical texts it is also referred as the University of Charcas ( es, Universidad de Charcas). Founded in 1624 by order of the Spanish King Philip IV, and with the support of

Pope Innocent XII Pope Innocent XII ( la, Innocentius XII; it, Innocenzo XII; 13 March 1615 – 27 September 1700), born Antonio Pignatelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1691 to his death in September 1700. He ...

, the university was intended to provide an education in

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

and

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

to the families and descendants of the wealthy

gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...

of South America. At the turn of the 19th century, Chuquisaca and its university came to constitute a center of revolutionary zeal in Bolivia. The university intellectually sustained the well-cultivated Francophile elite whose ideals led to the Bolivian War of Independence and ultimately to the independence of all the Spanish colonies. Once a Republic was proclaimed by

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...

, the university became the main university of the new country. Until the first decades of the 20th century, its law faculty remained famous all across South America.

External links

* Fundacion de la Universidad San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisac

Universities in Bolivia Sucre Colonial Bolivia 1624 establishments in the Spanish Empire Educational institutions established in the 1620s 1620s in Peru 17th century in the Viceroyalty of Peru Andean Baroque architecture {{Bolivia-university-stub

See also

External links