| Vallegrande |
Articles about Vallegrande |
Information AboutVallegrande |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT VALLEGRANDE | |
| cities in bolivia | |
| che guevara | |
| settlements established in 1612 | |
| SHOPPER'S DELIGHT | |
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It was founded by the Spanish in 1612 under the name ''Ciudad de Jesús y Montes Claros de los Caballeros del Vallegrande (Town of Jesus and Montes Claros of the knights of Vallegrande''). During the 18. and 19 centuries Vallegrande steadily grew and became the urban and cultural center of the region with a population of 25,000 by 1900. In the 20. century though, along with the rise of the nearby Santa Cruz, Vallegrande´s importance gradually declined. Vallegrande can be accessed via a spur road branching off the (old, southern) Santa Cruz to Cochabamba highway and has an airstrip. It was on the airstrip in Vallegrande that the remains of Che Guevara were discovered in 1997. Guevara had been buried in this location after his execution in the neaby village of La Higuera in 1967. |