The Admirable Campaign () was a military action led by

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24July 178317December 1830) was a Venezuelan statesman and military officer who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama, and Bol ...

in which the provinces of Mérida, Barinas, Trujillo and Caracas were conquered by the

Patriots A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot(s) or The Patriot(s) may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American R ...

.Arana, M., 2013, Bolivar, New York: Simon & Schuster, Its objective was to free

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

from Spanish control, which was accomplished in conjunction with

Santiago Mariño Santiago Mariño Carige Fitzgerald (25 July 1788 in Valle Espíritu Santo, Margarita – 4 September 1854 in La Victoria, Aragua), was a nineteenth-century Venezuelan revolutionary leader and hero in the Venezuelan War of Independence (1811– ...

's simultaneous campaign in the east.

Overview

After the loss of the

First Republic of Venezuela The First Republic of Venezuela () was the first independent government of Venezuela, lasting from 5 July 1811, to 25 July 1812. The period of the First Republic began with the overthrow of the Spanish colonial authorities and the establishment ...

, Bolívar had gone to New Granada where he joined the army of the United Provinces, which was in the process of fighting with cities that did not recognize its authority. On January 28, 1813, Bolívar captured Ocaña, a city which was on the main roads to Venezuela. The expedition was formed by two divisions, a vanguard led by Colonel

Atanasio Girardot Manuel Atanasio Girardot Díaz (2 May 1791 – 30 September 1813) was a Neogranadine military officer and one of the heroes of the Colombian War of Independence, Colombian and Venezuelan War of Independence, Venezuelan wars of Independence. H ...

and a rear under Colonel

José Félix Ribas José Félix Ribas (; Caracas, 19 September 1775 – Tucupido, 31 January 1815) was a Venezuelan independence leader and hero of the Venezuelan War of Independence. Early life Ribas was the last of eleven sons, born to a prominent Caracas ...

. At the same time Domingo de Monteverde was moving troops to western Venezuela in preparation for an invasion of New Granada, threatening the newly independent states there. From Ocaña Bolívar moved against royalist areas of New Granada, taking the border city of Cúcuta in the

Battle of Cúcuta The Battle of Cúcuta was a military conflict in the Spanish American wars of independence fought on 28 February 1813 between the pro-independence forces led by Simón Bolívar and Spanish royalist troops under General Ramón Correa at the town ...

on February 28. Here, Bolivar asked United Provinces for aid and permission to enter Venezuela through a document named the " Cartagena Manifesto" (). The United Provinces regarded his petition favourably taking into consideration the numerous actions that he executed for the Neogranadan government. As soon as government authorization was given, the campaign started its march into Venezuela on February 16. The expedition marched through San Cristóbal,

La Grita La Grita is a town in the north west of Táchira state, Venezuela. It has a population of 80,000. Located in an Andean valley, La Grita has a beautiful natural setting and fertile land. The town includes colonial style houses and open plazas. ...

, Mérida and Trujillo. It is from this city that Bolívar issued his "

Decree of War to the Death The Decree of War to the Death, in Spanish ''Decreto de Guerra a Muerte'', was a decree issued by the South American leader Simón Bolívar which permitted murder and any atrocities whatsoever to be committed against civilians born in Spain, othe ...

." In the Decree Bolivar announced that the patriot army will treat

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...

and

Criollos In Hispanic America, criollo () is a term used originally to describe people of full Spanish descent born in the viceroyalties. In different Latin American countries, the word has come to have different meanings, mostly referring to the local ...

differently: "Spaniards and

Canarians Canary Islanders, or Canarians (), are the people of the Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain near the coast of Northwest Africa. The distinctive variety of the Spanish language spoken in the region is known as ''habla canaria'' (Ca ...

, you can expect death, even if uninvolved, if you do not actively work in favor of the independence of America. Americans, count on life, even if guilty." The Decree would remain in force, technically, until the treaty signed with

Pablo Morillo Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, a.k.a. ''El Pacificador'' (The Peace Maker) (5 May 1775 – 27 July 1837) was a Spanish military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and in the Spanish American I ...

at Santa Ana de Trujillo on November 26, 1820, regularized the rules of engagement. The last major engagement of the campaign was the Battle of Los Horcones on July 22. After that the expedition occupied the cities of

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

and La Victoria in early August. Losing on two fronts, the royalist government surrendered on August 4. Bolívar's forces had a triumphal entrance into the city of

Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...

on August 6, bringing an end to the campaign and reestablishing the Venezuelan republic.

References

External links

Simón-Bolívar.org - Admirable Campaign (1813)

{{Gran Colombia independence, state=collapsed Colombian War of Independence Campaigns of the Venezuelan War of Independence Simón Bolívar Conflicts in 1813 1813 in Venezuela 1813 in the Viceroyalty of New Granada June 1813

Overview

See also

References

External links