AMBATO

city, central Ecuador. It lies along the Ambato River in an intermontane basin near the northeastern foot of Mount Chimborazo, at an elevation of about 8,500 feet (2,600 m) above sea level. It was the scene of a decisive victory in 1821 by Antonio Jos de Sucre, lieutenant of the liberator Simn Bolvar, against the Spanish during the wars for Latin-American independence. Ambato has frequently been damaged by volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, and much of the city was destroyed by an earthquake in 1949. Its remaining landmarks include a modern cathedral and the mausoleum of Juan Montalvo, a noted Ecuadoran writer and freedom fighter, who was born in Ambato in 1832. The city is an agricultural-trade centre; the Ambato River basin is noted for fresh fruits. There are also sugarcane plantations and grain farms in the locality. Industrial activity includes tanneries, leatherworks, food processing, and textile milling. An important communications centre, Ambato is located on the GuayaquilQuito railway line and on the Pan-American Highway. A road from the city leads over the eastern cordillera of the Andes via Baos to El Oriente region, the sparsely settled lowland jungle area of eastern Ecuador. Ambato's lush suburb of Miraflores is a favourite resort for the upper classes of Guayaquil. Pop. (1983 est.) 111,505.