San Felipe () is the capital city of

Yaracuy Yaracuy (, ;) is one of the 23 States of Venezuela, states of Venezuela. Yaracuy is located in the Central-Western Region, Venezuela. It is bordered by Falcón State, Falcón in the north, in the west by Lara State, Lara, in the south by Portug ...

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 ...

. San Felipe is located in the

Central-Western Region, Venezuela The Central-Western Region is one of the 10 administrative regions in which Venezuela was divided for its development plans; it comprises the states of Falcón, Lara, Portuguesa, and Yaracuy. History The area was first explored in 1499 by J ...

. The city is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of

. San Felipe is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Felipe, Venezuela.

History

In 1693, Spanish settlement began in the area that is now San Felipe with the foundation of the town of Cerrito de Cocorote. Like all towns in the region at the time, Cerrito de Cocorote was under the jurisdiction of the city of Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto. In 1710, the town was destroyed on orders from the authorities of Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto. Despite this, the town was rebuilt within several years, causing the Captain General to again order its destruction. In 1721, the town's inhabitants returned to rebuild it after receiving the authority to do so. Despite this, the authorities of Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto set fire to the town, destroying it for the third time. Despite the destruction of their town, the former inhabitants of ''Cerrito de Cocorote'' still wished to be independent of Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto. They received the support of Fray Marcelino de San Vicente, who helped them obtain a Royal Certificate from King

Philip V of Spain Philip V (; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was List of Spanish monarchs, King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724 and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign (45 years and 16 days) is the longest in the ...

to establish a town independent from Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto. On November 6, 1729, the same day the villagers had received the Royal Certificate, they began the reconstruction of their town in the Valle Hondo region, naming it San Felipe El Fuerte in homage to

. The city expanded in subsequent years, until it was destroyed by the

1812 Caracas earthquake The 1812 Caracas earthquake took place in Venezuela on March 26 (on Maundy Thursday) at 4:37 p.m. It measured 7.7 on the Richter scale. It caused extensive damage in Caracas, La Guaira, Barquisimeto, San Felipe, and Mérida. An estimated ...

on March 26, 1812. After the earthquake, the town's remaining inhabitants again rebuilt it.

Geography

San Felipe is located in the foothills of Cerro Chimborazo, in Bolívar,

. The city is located on a hill, with its avenues being on steep slopes, with its streets being less inclined. In the upper part of the city is the José Antonio Anzoátegui Mechanized Infantry Battalion and the Central Hospital Dr. Plácido Daniel Rodríguez Rivero, while in the lower part of it are the neighborhoods of San Antonio, San José, and Higuerón. The city is cooled by the Yurubí River, which flows downwards from a narrow valley located north of the city. The river subsequently joins the Yaracuy River, which flows to the Caribbean Basin. The city is near the

Yurubí National Park The Yurubí National Park () is a protected area with the status of national park in the north of the South American country of Venezuela. It was founded on March 18, 1960 in Yaracuy State created to protect the Yurubí river basin, which is the s ...

, a forest of deciduous and semi-deciduous trees. A nearby lake is used as San Felipe's source of freshwater.

Climate

In San Felipe, a

hot semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''BSh'') is dominant. The city records of rain per year and its average temperature ranges .

Transport

The town is/was served by a station on the national railway network.

Sub Teniente Nestor Arias Airport Sub Teniente Nestor Arias Airport is an international airport located in Cocorote Municipality, Yaracuy, and serving the city of San Felipe, Yaracuy, Venezuela. The runway is south of the town. The San Felipe non-directional beacon (Ident: SP ...

is south of the town.

Notable people

Rafael Caldera Rafael Antonio Caldera Rodríguez ( ; 24 January 1916 – 24 December 2009) was a Venezuelan politician and academician who was the 46th and 51st president of Venezuela from 1969 to 1974 and again from 1994 to 1999, thus becoming the longest se ...

, former

president of Venezuela The president of Venezuela (), officially known as the president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (), is the executive head of state and head of government of Venezuela. The president leads the National Executive of the Venezuelan go ...

. * Cecilia Mujica,

heroine A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such thin ...

. *

Marco Scutaro Marcos Scutaro, better known as Marco Scutaro, (; born October 30, 1975) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball infielder. He bats and throws right-handed. Scutaro made his major league debut with the New York Mets in 2002, and subsequentl ...

, former professional baseball player. * Luis Arráez, professional baseball player for the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

. *

Milagros Sequera Milagros Sequera Huss (; born 30 September 1980) is a Venezuelan former professional tennis player. Career She joined the WTA Tour in 1999 and was ranked world No. 48 in July 2007. Her coach was Larry Willens. She was introduced to the g ...

, former professional female tennis player. *

Rafael Dudamel Rafael Édgar Dudamel Ochoa (born January 7, 1973), is a Venezuelan football manager and former player who played as a goalkeeper. He is the manager of Colombian club Deportivo Pereira. As a player, Dudamel made 56 appearances for the Venezue ...

, football manager. * Carlos Suárez Mendoza, footballer who plays as a midfielder for

Deportes Melipilla Deportes Melipilla is a Chilean football club, based on Melipilla, a comune in the Santiago Metropolitan Region. It was founded on January 24, 1992, as a successor of ''Club Deportivo Soinca Bata''. The club has its classic rival, San Antonio Un ...

. * Heber García, football player who plays as midfielder for

Curicó Unido Curicó Unido is a football club based in Curicó, Maule Region, Chile. They currently play in the Primera B de Chile, the second level of the Chilean football system. They are currently managed by Héctor Almandoz. History Curicó Unido was f ...

Chilean Primera División The Chilean Primera División () is a professional association football league in Chile and the highest level of the Chilean football league system. Founded in 1933, it is organized by the Asociación Nacional de Fútbol Profesional (ANFP). The l ...

. *

Felipe Vázquez Felipe Javier Vázquez ( Rivero, born July 5, 1991) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for Marineros de Carabobo of the Venezuelan Major League. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2015 to 2019 for the Washington Nationals a ...

, professional baseball pitcher. *

Goizeder Azúa Goizeder Victoria Azúa Barríos (born February 23, 1984) is a Venezuelan television host, anchorwoman, model, journalist and beauty queen who won Miss International 2003. Retrieved on 11 Apr 2008. Career Miss Venezuela 2002 She began her b ...

, television host, model, journalist, and beauty queen who won

Miss International 2003 Miss International 2003, the 43rd Miss International pageant, was held on October 8, 2003 at Radisson Miyako Hotel in Tokyo, Japan. Forty-five beauties from all over the world competed to win the coveted title held by Christina Sawaya of Lebanon. ...

. * Gabriela de la Cruz, model, communicator and beauty queen. * Migleth Cuevas, professional model *

Henri Falcón Henri Falcón Fuentes (born 19 June 1961) is a Venezuelan politician, lawyer, and retired Bolivarian Army non-commissioned officer. He served as mayor for two consecutive terms of Barquisimeto, Iribarren Municipality from 2000 to 2008 and as ...

, politician. *

Eduardo Lapi Eduardo Lapi (born May 17, 1963) is a Venezuelan politician. Career He was governor of Yaracuy for the National Convergence from 1995 to 2004. He lost to Carlos Eduardo Gimenez Colmenares ( For Social Democracy) in the 2004 Venezuelan region ...

, politician. * Yolanda Tortolero, politician.

References