The Federation of the Andes was an 1826 proposal for a confederation of Colombia, Peru and Bolivia by Libertador Simón Bolivar. During the Spanish American wars of independence, Bolívar and his lieutenant Antonio José de Sucre played a decisive role in the in achieving the independence of the three countries and held considerable influence in them, by way of their armies and by being elected leaders of Colombia and Bolivia respectively. Because of a series of disagreements the project never came to be, and was later abandoned in favor of the independence of the aforementioned countries. Strictly speaking, it was not a project of integration. Had Bolívar's project succeeded, the Republic of Peru would have been split into two entities, with Lima and Arequipa as the capitals of the North Peruvian and South Peruvian states respectively, while its southern coast (south of the Sama River, including the provinces of Arica and Tarapacá) would have been incorporated into Bolivia.
The project has been known under different names in the literature such as Confederation of the Andes (Confederación de los Andes), Federation of the Andes (Federación de los Andes), Bolivian Federation (Federación Boliviana) and Andean Federation (Federación Andina).
The plan required that the union be initiated in, and promoted by, Bolivia and Peru so as not to be seen in those countries as a Colombian imposition. For this reason, Antonio José de Sucre governed in the former while Bolívar tried to impose the plan in Lima. It was expected that Sucre would negotiate with the Peruvians to add them to the Federation. This would be done through plenipotentiaries. Once the Liberator's constitution was established in Bolivia, it was necessary to continue with Peru and finally with Colombia. To achieve this, he had to maintain Colombian troops in Peru and Bolivia, which increased the discontent that his lifelong constitutions already produced, because they were seen as the praetorian guards of his puppet governments.
Peru rejected the Bolivarian confederation, which would have split the country into two states (North and South, with Lima and Arequipa as capitals) and ceded its southern coast —including Arica and Tarapacá— to Bolivia. Bolívar left Peru on September 4, 1826, leaving a provisional Government Junta headed by Andrés de Santa Cruz to advance his project for a Federation of the Andes, but it failed shortly afterward. Under pressure from the Peruvian Congress and public opinion, negotiations began for the withdrawal of the Gran Colombian troops occupying Callao. The division mutinied, and on February 16, 1827, with command of the Real Felipe Fortress handed over to Peruvian authorities, Peru regained full sovereignty and began its republican life free of all foreign domination. See also Dissolution of Gran Colombia (1826–1831) Peruvian–Bolivian War of 1828 Peru–Bolivian Confederation (1836–1839) Colombia–Peru War (1828–1829) Spanish American wars of independence (1809–1829)
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