Caracas: History, Former Names & Timeline

Capital of Venezuela and birthplace of Simón Bolívar; one of the starting points of South American independence.

Map showing Caracas in 1800 — Border map for 1800. See the world in 1800.

Embed this interactive map on your site

Free to use on blogs, school pages and course sites. Copy the code below; please keep the credit line.

<iframe src="https://chronicamaps.com/?embed=1#y1800-c-caracas-l-en" width="100%" height="520" style="border:0;max-width:100%" loading="lazy" title="Caracas: History, Former Names &amp; Timeline"></iframe>
<p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Interactive map: <a href="https://chronicamaps.com/en/city/caracas">Caracas: History, Former Names &amp; Timeline</a> · Chronica Maps</p>

Former names of Caracas

From	Name	Note
1567	Caracas

Timeline of Caracas

Year	Event
1567	Diego de Losada founds the city
1783	Simón Bolívar is born
1811	Venezuela declares independence on 5 July
1812	An earthquake destroys much of the city
1821	Caracas is freed after the Battle of Carabobo

Who ruled Caracas

Derived from the border maps; each row runs until the next recorded border change.

Period	State
500 BC–1491	Caribbean hunter-gatherers
1492–1499	Unclaimed / no data
1500–1599	Caribbean hunter-gatherers
1600–1782	Viceroyalty of New Spain
1783–1879	Viceroyalty of New Granada
1880–today	Venezuela

Famous people of Caracas

Lived	Person
1783 – 1830	Simón Bolívar	Liberator of South America

Questions about Caracas

Which states have ruled Caracas?

On the historical border maps from 500 BC to today, Caracas lies within 4 different states: Caribbean hunter-gatherers, Viceroyalty of New Spain, Viceroyalty of New Granada, Venezuela.

What are the key dates in the history of Caracas?

1567: Diego de Losada founds the city. 1783: Simón Bolívar is born. 1811: Venezuela declares independence on 5 July. 1812: An earthquake destroys much of the city. 1821: Caracas is freed after the Battle of Carabobo.

Which famous people are connected with Caracas?

Simón Bolívar (liberator of south america, 1783 – 1830).

Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.