History
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Founded in 1538 by the Spaniard Pedro de Anzures as the city of La Plata, Sucre became capital of the Real Audiencia of Charcas (crown colony) in 1559. Its name was later changed to Chuquisaca. The present name was adopted in 1825 in honour of the second president of the new republic. As if three names weren't enough, the city has also been known as Charcas. In fact, one of its unofficial titles is 'the city of four names'. But that should probably be 'the city of five names', because another of its nicknames is 'La Ciudad Blanca' (the White City).
After independence in 1825, Sucre became capital of the new republic and held this position until 1899 when, following a civil war, La Paz took over as seat of government. The executive and legislative branches of government where transferred to La Paz, while the judiciary and electoral branches remained in Sucre.
Simmering discontent among
sucrenses
gained new force in 2007, when the city demanded that the issue of
capitalidad
, the return of power to the true capital, be included in the agenda of the constituent assembly, which was convened at the time. Sucre's demands where largely ignored, leading to four days of violence, three deaths and 20 injured. The constituent assembly was forced to flee the city to a nearby military school, where in 48 hours it approved the new constitution. Sucre was named 'constitutional capital' instead of 'historical capital' and was offered a new airport and a road to the Pacific. The issue of
capitalidad
remains a major bone of contention with most
chuquisaqueños
.
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