Simón Bolívar is named President of Peru.

He was called El Liberator by the natives of Peru, Venzeula and Colombia, who followed his military leadership to independence. Sympathetic Americans drew parallels with their own struggle for independence, and called Simon Bolivar the “George Washington of South America.” Indeed, Simon Bolivar was the most important political and military figure in South American history, liberating Bolivia, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela from Spain, and organizing them into self-sustaining nations — mostly under his leadership.

On this day, September 10, in 1823, after liberating Colombia and adding to its territory, Simon Bolivar returned to Peru to take charge of the military and government.

After the Upper Peru region became a separate nation, with Bolivar’s blessing, their government asked Bolivar to become their president. Bolivar declined, but did appoint one of his top aides, General Antonio José de Sucre, to the post. The country decided to name themselves after Bolivar: like Rome named after Romulus, from Bolivar would come Bolivia.