Bolivar (Colombia)

Bolívar is one of the thirty-two departments that, together with Bogotá, Capital District, make up the Republic of Colombia. Its capital is Cartagena de Indias, seat of the departmental assembly, while Turbaco is the seat of the government. It is located in the Caribbean region, bordered to the north by the Caribbean Sea (Atlantic Ocean), to the northeast by Atlántico, to the east by Magdalena and Cesar, to the southeast by Santander, to the southwest by Antioquia, and to the west by Córdoba and Sucre. With about &&&&&&&&02180976.&&&&&02,180,976 inhabitants in 2018, it is the seventh most populous department. It was one of the nine original states of the United States of Colombia. The department is named in honor of Simón Bolívar. It is made up of 44 municipalities and 2 districts.

History

Discovery and conquest

The expedition members Rodrigo de Bastidas and Juan de la Cosa were the discoverers of the Bolívar coast when they disembarked in Cispatá Bay in the years 1500 to 1501. However, the true conqueror of the region was the adelantado Pedro de Heredia, who founded Cartagena on June 1, 1533 after a strong confrontation against the Turbaco indigenous people. Two years later (1535), by royal decree, the Magdalena River was established as the limits of the provinces of Santa Marta and Cartagena. The first was governed by Pedro Fernández de Lugo and depended on the Royal Court of Santo Domingo, while the second came under the jurisdiction of the Court of Panama, which was the first in South America and had been established in the year 1533.

Due to the constant attacks by pirates and buccaneers on the port of Cartagena, fortifications and walls were built, since the wealth that was sent to Spain was stored in the city. During the colony, the province of Cartagena depended on the Viceroyalty of Santafé, until 1811 when it declared itself independent, forming the Free State of Cartagena.

Early Republican Period

Territory of the province of Cartagena in 1810, which was proclaimed independent as the Free State of Cartagena in 1811.

By the middle of 1811, the people of Cartagena were already undermined by the internal division between patriots and royalists; Two parties had been formed that fought each other furiously, and the spirits, in general, were very irritated. After several important skirmishes, both in the military and political fields, which delayed the declaration of independence for several months, it was proclaimed on November 11, 1811, the same date as the Free State of Cartagena declares itself sovereign and independent from Spain or from another foreign government.

In 1812, near the Sabanas de Tolú, the Battle of Mancomoján took place, on the stream of the same name, a fight led by men from El Carmen under the command of General Manuel Cortes Campomanes who defeated the royalists of Santa Marta, making it which ratified the sovereignty and the independence struggle of the Free State of Cartagena. In the year 1813, in compensation for his services to the patriot cause during the wars of Independence, the Governor of Cartagena conferred on El Carmen de Bolívar, coat of arms and the title of & # 34; Villa Meritoria & # 3. 4;. In that battle, the fate of the so-called “rebellion of the cassocks” was also decided, led by the priests of some towns in the savannahs, against the republican authorities.

After the battle of Boyacá (1819) that put an end to Spanish domination in the territory of New Granada, the Congress meeting in the Venezuelan city of Angostura promulgated the Law of December 17, 1819 that created the Republic of Colombia, composed of the territory that forms the Viceroyalty already named and the Captaincy General of Venezuela, which were divided into three large departments called Cundinamarca, Venezuela and Quito. In accordance with this political division, the province of Cartagena was incorporated into Cundinamarca, despite being dominated by the royalists.

In 1821, the Republican armies led by General Mantilla liberated Cartagena from Spanish tutelage. The new political division had little life, since that same National Constitution was issued in the city of Cúcuta that changed the face of the Republic, dividing it into seven departments called: Boyacá, Cundinamarca, Cauca, Magdalena, Orinoco, Venezuela and Zulia. The new Department of Magdalena had Cartagena as its capital and included all the windward territory. After the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1830, the province of Cartagena became part of the Republic of New Granada, being later subdivided in 1853 in the provinces of Sabanilla, Mompós and Cartagena.

Designation with the name "Bolívar"

The Sovereign State of Bolivar.

In 1857 the old province of Cartagena definitely received the name of Bolívar, in homage to the father of the Nation, it is also when it received the name of Sovereign State by means of the Granada Law of June 15, 1857. There are It must be taken into account that Cartagena de Indias was the first city in present-day Colombia that Simón Bolívar visited and lived in, arriving for the first time in October 1812. From here he undertook important military undertakings such as the Admirable Campaign of 1813.

The political division of Colombia into states subsisted until 1885, when the National Council of Delegates ordered the change of the country's name to the Republic of Colombia and it was given to the states the name of departments, dependent on the central power and defined by the same geographical limits that they had previously.

Department breakdown process

Law 21 of 1910 decreed the formation of the Department of Atlántico, made up of the Provinces of Sabanalarga and Barranquilla. At this time, the department of Bolívar had an area of 65,303 km². Through Law 52 of 1912, the Municipality of San Andrés y Providencia was created, its territory being split from the department of Bolívar. On December 17, 1951, the department of Córdoba was created with the promulgation of Law 9 of that year, which entered into force on June 18, 1952. 23,981.93 km² were subtracted from the Bolivarian territory here. Finally, in 1966, another 10,783 km² were extracted from the department, when the Department of Sucre was created by means of Law 47. As of this date, the department has its current area, which is 25,978 km².

Contemporary Period

Since January 1, 2016, the Departmental Administrative Center began operating in the Municipality of Turbaco, 2km from Cartagena de Indias. Meanwhile, the Palace of the Proclamation (former departmental headquarters) became the Gabo Center.

Geography

Physical map of Bolivar.

Limits

The department of Bolívar limits to the north with the Caribbean Sea and the department of Atlántico, to the north-east with Magdalena, to the east with the departments of Cesar and Santander, to the south with Antioquia and to the west with Sucre and Córdoba. It is the longest department in the country, and less concentric, with its capital located at its northern end, where the headquarters of the Departmental Government and almost all the headquarters and sections of the national government entities and representation of the body are located. diplomatic, civil, military and religious.

It is also noteworthy that in the Caribbean Sea, the department of Bolívar has an insular territory belonging to the Tourist and Cultural District of Cartagena de Indias, made up of the islands of Tierra Bomba, Corales del Rosario, Barú, San Bernardo and Fuerte. While the first islands are located off the coast of the department, the islands of San Bernardo are located off the coast of the department of Sucre and Isla Fuerte off the coast of the department of Córdoba, specifically off the town of San Bernardo del Wind.

Physiography

Bolívar is located in the northern part of Colombia, on the Caribbean plain. Most of the Bolivarian surface corresponds to the lowlands of the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa mountain ranges, in the north. In the center of the department is the momposina depression, a flood zone corresponding to the lower Magdalena River, which borders the department from south to north; Among its tributaries, the Cauca and the San Jorge stand out. To the south of the department is the Serranía de San Lucas, which extends from Antioquia and forms the watershed between the Magdalena and Cauca rivers.

Hydrography

The fluvial axis of the department of Bolívar is the Magdalena River, which runs along its eastern side and serves as a limit with the departments of Santander, Cesar and Magdalena, up to the Canal del Dique. The main tributaries of the Magdalena are the San Jorge and Cauca rivers, whose mouths are in the center of Bolívar; Other currents that reach the Magdalena are the Boque, Cimitarra, Santo Domingo and Tigüí rivers.

The Mompos depression is located at the confluence of the Cauca and San Jorge rivers with the Magdalena, and is the most floodable area in the country due to the strong fluvial dynamics that exist in the trench present in the region; there an intricate network of arms, pipes and streams is formed, thanks to the little resistance of the alluvial soils that constitute the walls of the channels and the flows of the rivers. The most important branches are Loba, Morales, Mompós, Papayal, Quitasol and Simití. In addition, there are numerous streams and streams that carry their waters to the three main rivers, arms and swamps of the department. The most important swamps in the department are those of Canaletal, El Dique, El Limón, El Uvero, Garrapata, Grande, Guamalito, Iguana, Jobo, Juan Gómez, La Botija, La Victoria, María La Baja, Mojana, Morales, Morrocoyal, Nervití, Simití, Tesca or The Virgin and Tupe.

Climate

The climate, predominantly hot, is dry to the north and humid to the south, with rainfall that can reach up to 2000 mm per year. In the highest parts of the San Lucas mountain range you can enjoy a temperate climate.

Natural parks

The following Colombian natural parks are located in Bolívar:

• Natural National Park Coral Islands of the Rosary and San Bernardo
• Los Colorados wildlife sanctuary
• Sanctuary of fauna and flora El Corchal The Monkey Hernandez

Political-administrative division

Political map of Bolivar.

Bolivar subregions.

The department of Bolívar is made up of 44 municipalities and 2 districts, territorially organized since 2001 (according to the provisions of ordinance 012 of May 17, 2001) in six (6) zones of economic and social development or ZODES:

• Zodes Dique: made up of the municipalities Cartagena, Arjona, Calamar, Arroyohondo, Clemencia, Mahates, Soplaviento, San Cristóbal, San Estanislao, Santa Catalina, Santa Rosa de Lima, Turbaco, Turbana, and Villanueva.
• Zodes Montes de María: made up of the municipalities of Córdoba, El Guamo, El Carmen de Bolívar, María La Baja, San Jacinto, San Juan Nepomuceno and Zambrano.
• Zodes Mojana: made up of municipalities Magangué, Pinillos, Tiquisio, Achí, Montecristo and San Jacinto del Cauca.
• Zodes Depression mummposin: formed by the municipalities of Cicuco, Talaigua Nuevo, MompoxSan Fernando, Margarita and Hatillo de Loba.
• Zodes Loba: made up of the municipalities of Altos del Rosario, Barranco de LobaSan Martín de Loba, El Peñón, Regidor, Río Viejo and Norosí.
• Zodes Magdalena: made up of the municipalities of Arenal, Cantagallo, Morales, San Pablo, Santa Rosa del Sur and Simití.

Judicial branch

It is represented by the Bolívar Administrative Court with headquarters in the city of Cartagena de Indias, with judicial territorial understanding of the Bolívar Department and made up of six (6) Administrative Judicial Circuits as follows:

• The Administrative Judicial Circuit of Cartagena: It has as head office in Cartagena de Indias and comprises the municipalities of Cartagena, Clemencia, Santa Catalina, San Cristobal, San Estanislao, Santa Rosa de Lima, Soplaviento and Villanueva.

• El Carmen de Bolívar Administrative Judicial Circuit: It has as head of El Carmen de Bolívar and comprises the municipalities of Córdoba, El Carmen de Bolívar, El Guamo, San Jacinto, San Juan Nepomuceno and Zambrano.

• Administrative Judicial Circuit of Magangué: It has as its header in Magangué and comprises the municipalities of Achí, Magangué, Montecristo, Pinillos, San Jacinto del Cauca and Tiquisio.

• Mompox Administrative Judicial Circuit: It has as head of Santa Cruz de Mompós and comprises the municipalities of: Altos del Rosario, Barranco de Loba, Cicuco, El Peñón, Hatillo de Loba, Margarita, Mompós, San Fernando, San Martín de Loba and Talaigua Nuevo.

• Administrative Judicial Circuit of Simití: It has as head of Simití and comprises the municipalities of Arenal, Cantagallo, Morales, Norosí, Regidor, Rioviejo, Santa Rosa del Sur, San Pablo and Simití.

• The Administrative Judicial Circuit of Turkey: It has as its head in Turbaco and comprises the municipalities of Arjona, Arroyohondo, Calamar, Mahates, María la Baja and Turbaná.

Demographics

Evolution of the population of the department of Bolivar (1912-2016)

Population by census.Population by projection.Source: Statoids. DANE.

The most populated municipalities in the department according to projections for 2018 are:

Ethnography

• Mestizos " white (72.27%)
• Black or Afro-Colombian (27.57%)
• Indigenous (0.11%)
• Gypsies (0.05%)

Economy

Bolívar's economy is quite diversified, the first lines are occupied by the provision of services, mainly in tourism and commerce; industry, represented by the petrochemical industry, especially in oil refining and the production of chemicals and plastics. Agricultural activities are mostly traditional, with the exception of some large rice crops. Other sources of income are fishing and the exploitation of wood, as well as the production of salt. In the Southern Region of the department, part of the region known as Magdalena Medio, there are coca leaf crops, raw material for elaboration of hallucinogenic drugs such as cocaine, which has motivated the ambition of groups outside the law, confronting the public force for control of this illegal activity, who seek the eradication of these crops and the activities that derive from it. The Magdalena Medio area is also being affected by illegal mining activities.

Transportation

Transportation in Bolívar is done by land, sea, river and air; the main one is river transport.^{[citation required]}

Sea transport

Cartagena has the busiest port system in Colombia where there are important terminals for public use such as the Sociedad Portuaria de Cartagena (CONTECAR), Muelles El Bosque and the port of Mamonal.

Ground transportation

Land transportation in Bolívar extends from the corregimiento of Galerazamba in the north, to Magangué in the south. Since 2020, with the opening of the Santa Lucía and Roncador bridges over the Magdalena River, transportation has been extended to Mompox.

The land terminals with the highest passenger movement are:^{[citation required]}

Air transportation

Air transport in Bolívar hardly operates in Cartagena de Indias, and some regional airports.

The airports with the highest passenger movement are:

• Rafael Núñez International Airport, Cartagena de Indias.
• San Bernardo de Mompox Airport, Mompox.

Airports in the rehabilitation process and soon to be operational are:

• Montemariano Airport, El Carmen de Bolívar.
• Gabriel Antonio Caro Airport, Santa Rosa del Sur

Fluvial transport

Fluvial transport in Bolívar extends to almost the entire department.

The ports with the highest passenger movement are:

• Multimodal Terminal of Passengers of Magangué, Magangué.
• San Pablo River Port
• Former Magangué Fluvial Port, Magangué.
• Fluvial Port of Mompox, Santa Cruz de Mompox.
• Puerto Bodegas, Cicuco
• Puerto Fluvial de Cerro de Burgos, Simiti.
• Fluvial Port of Achí, Achí
• Tiquisio Fluvial Port, Tiquisio.