Urica is a town in the north-east of Venezuela. It is the capital of Urica Parish, in

Pedro María Freites Municipality The Pedro María Freites Municipality is one of the 21 municipalities (municipios) that makes up the eastern Venezuelan state of Anzoátegui and, according to the 2011 census by the National Institute of Statistics of Venezuela, the municipality h ...

, in Anzoátegui State in Venezuela. Its population according to the Census of 2011 is 4,517.

Geography

Urica is 45 km southeast of the population center of Santa Inés. It is situated on a plain bathed by the waters of the Rivers Urica and Amana, surrounded by the livestock farming areas within

Anzoátegui ) , anthem = '' Himno del Estado Anzoátegui'' , image_map = Anzoategui in Venezuela.svg , map_alt = , map_caption = Location within Venezuela , pushpin_map = , pushpin_map_a ...

and known for large-scale fruit production. Of geological interest is the Urica fault.René Manceda
"The western end of the Serrania del Interior, Venezuela: A review"
in: ''6th International Symposium on Andean Geodynamics'' (ISAG 2005, Barcelona), Extended Abstracts. pp.468–71. IRD Editions. .

Transport

An airport, code AG4119, is near the settlement.

History

Urica was founded by Spaniards in the mid-18th century. Several notable battles have taken place in the vicinity, such as those of 1814 during the

Venezuelan War of Independence The Venezuelan War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de Venezuela, links=no, 1810–1823) was one of the Spanish American wars of independence of the early nineteenth century, when independence movements in Latin America fought agai ...

, in which forces led by

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 Caraca ...

and José Francisco Bermúdez fought against the royalist commander

José Tomás Boves José Tomás Boves (Oviedo, Asturias, September 18, 1782 – Urica, Venezuela, December 5, 1814), was a royalist caudillo of the Llanos during the Venezuelan War of Independence, particularly remembered for his use of brutality and atrociti ...

. The battle of Curareque took place on 12 September of that year, and on 5 December the

Battle of Urica The Battle of Urica took place during the War of Venezuelan Independence in the village of Urica (in modern-day Anzoátegui) on 5 December 1814, between the forces of Republican general in chief José Félix Ribas and Royalist caudillo José ...

, in which Boves was killed: his tomb is in the village. On 27 April 1870 the Battle of Altagracia was fought, and on 20 February 1902 the Battle of the Bridge. In 1879, the National Congress of the Republic created the State of Oriente, whose capital would be Urica. This new territorial division, covering the present-day states of Anzoátegui,

Sucre Sucre () is the Capital city, capital of Bolivia, the capital of the Chuquisaca Department and the List of cities in Bolivia, 6th most populated city in Bolivia. Located in the south-central part of the country, Sucre lies at an elevation of . T ...

and

Monagas ) , anthem = '' Himno del Estado Monagas'' , image_map = Monagas in Venezuela.svg , map_alt = , map_caption = Location within Venezuela , pushpin_map = , pushpin_m ...

, remained in force until 1881 when it was re-named Bermúdez state, and in 1898 became Sucre state.

References

{{reflist Populated places in Anzoátegui