Editing History of Colombia (section)

== Gran Colombia: independence re-claimed ==
{{main|Colombian Declaration of Independence|Gran Colombia}}
[[Image:Puente Boyaca.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The [[Puente de Boyacá|Boyaca bridge]] was crucial in the [[Battle of Boyacá]].]]

From then on, the long independence struggle was led mainly by [[Simón Bolívar|Bolívar]] and [[Francisco de Paula Santander]] in neighboring Venezuela. Bolívar returned to New Granada only in 1819 after establishing himself as leader of the pro-independence forces in the Venezuelan ''[[llanos]]''. From there he led an army over the Andes and captured New Granada after a quick campaign that ended at the [[Battle of Boyacá]] on August 7, 1819. (''For more information. see [[Military career of Simón Bolívar]]''.)

That year, the [[Congress of Angostura]] established the Republic of Gran Colombia, which included all territories under the jurisdiction of the former Viceroyalty of New Granada. Bolívar was elected the first president of Gran Colombia<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.panorama.it/news/esteri/venezuela-storia-foto-spagnoli-maduro/|title=Il Venezuela: la storia in foto dagli Spagnoli a Maduro (1498-2017) - Panorama|last=Frittoli|first=Edoardo|date=2017-08-01|work=Panorama|access-date=2018-09-04|language=it-IT|archive-date=2018-09-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904193423/https://www.panorama.it/news/esteri/venezuela-storia-foto-spagnoli-maduro/|url-status=live}}</ref> and Santander, vice president.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Francisco-de-Paula-Santander|title=Francisco de Paula Santander {{!}} Colombian statesman and soldier|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=2018-12-31|archive-date=2019-01-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101003340/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Francisco-de-Paula-Santander|url-status=live}}</ref>

As the Federation of Gran Colombia was dissolved in 1830, the Department of Cundinamarca (as established in Angostura) became a new country, the [[Republic of New Granada]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Viceroyalty-of-New-Granada|title=Viceroyalty of New Granada {{!}} historical territory, South America|work=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=2018-06-11|language=en|archive-date=2022-01-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125084023/https://www.britannica.com/place/Viceroyalty-of-New-Granada|url-status=live}}</ref>

Colombia was the first nation in the [[Andes|Andean]] area to believe that racial inferiority was the cause of many of its initial problems. Creoles in the country believed that non-white citizens, mainly Indians and Africans, were lazy and holding the nation back. This led to an attempt to make a homogenous society that reflected the so-called good qualities of white people. These ideals led to a long-lasting racial and geographical segregation.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Larson |first=Brooke |title=Trials of nation making: liberalism, race, and ethnicity in the Andes, 1810-1910 |date=2004 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-56171-6 |location=Cambridge}}</ref>

However, Colombia demonstrated a notable commitment to civil rights during the nineteenth century. The Colombian Constitution of 1863 made liberal promises for a broad range of civil rights, reflecting principles similar to those found in the United States Constitution, such as freedom of association, press, speech, religion, and due process. Colombia also abolished the death penalty during this time. Lastly, Colombian society embraced inclusivity, emphasizing that rights should be granted "universally without notice of sex nor differences of color nor unjust preferences of fortune, nor distinctions of age".<ref name="Sanders">{{cite journal |last1=Sanders |first1=James |title=The Vanguard of the Atlantic World: Contesting Modernity in Nineteenth Century Latin America |journal=Latin America Research Review |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=104–126 |ref=Sanders}}</ref>