SUCRE

state, northeastern Venezuela, bounded north and west by the Caribbean Sea and east by the Gulf of Paria. The territory of 4,556 sq mi (11,800 sq km) is traversed by the northeastern highlands. Despite rugged terrain and excessive dryness in the west, Sucre is one of Venezuela's important agricultural states. Among leading crops are cacao, sweet potatoes, bananas, coconuts, and coffee. Fishing is important in the Caribbean, and an important seafood industry has been developed, particularly in Cuman (q.v.), the state capital and a commercial port and regional industrial centre. Sucre's mineral resources include asphalt from Lake Guanoco, salt from the Pennsula de Araya, and gypsum from near Macuro. Pop. (1983) 621,829. legal capital of Bolivia and capital of Chuquisaca department. Sucre lies in a fertile valley crossed by the Ro Cachimayo, at 9,153 ft (2,790 m) above sea level. It was founded in 1539 by the conquistador Pedro de Anzrez on the site of a Charcas Indian village and has been variously called La Plata (the Spanish colonial name), Charcas, and Chuquisaca (the former indigenous name for the site probably meaning headquarters of the Charcas). Many colonial churches survive, including the 17th-century Baslica Metropolitana. In 1561 the city became the capital of Charcas audiencia (judicial and military territory of Upper Peru) and in 1609 the seat of an archdiocese. Universidad Boliviana Mayor, Real y Pontificia de San Francisco Xavier (St. Francis Xavier University of Bolivia), one of the oldest in South America, was founded there in 1624. An early (1809) revolutionary centre, the city became the capital of Bolivia in 1839. The following year it was renamed in honour of Antonio Jos de Sucre. In 1898 an effort to move the capital to La Paz resulted in a civil war. The outcome was a compromise: Sucre remained the capital in name and law and seat of the supreme court, but the executive and legislature moved to La Paz. The museum in the Casa de la Independencia (main plaza) has Bolivia's Declaration of Independence. A railroad to Potos, a road to Cochabamba, a pipeline to the petroleum fields of Camiri, and secondary roads to nearby valleys have made Sucre a commercial and agricultural centre of growing importance. Industrial establishments include an oil refinery and a cement plant. Pop. (1984 est.) 84,505. department, northern Colombia, in the Caribbean coastal plain, crossed by the Cauca and San Jorge rivers. Created in 1966, it occupies an area of 4,215 sq mi (10,917 sq km). Except for low hills in the north, the entire department is composed of lowlands. Cattle raising is widespread. Principal crops include rice, corn (maize), bananas, and tobacco. Shrimp trawlers operate in the Golfo (gulf) de Morrosquillo. There are some cement factories. The CartagenaMedelln highway traverses Sucre from north to south, passing through Sincelejo (q.v.), the departmental capital. Pop. (1981 est.) 522,889.