I mean, after all, the one thing that almost all South Americans had in common? They were born in South America, not Spain. So then, partly through shows of toughness that included, like, crossing flooded plains and going without sleep, Bolivar convinced the llaneros to give up fighting for Spain and start fighting against them. He quickly captured the vice-regal capital at Bogota, and by 1822 his forces had taken Caracas and Quito. Hold on, hold on. Lest I be attacked by Argentines who are already upset about what I said about their really good soccer team, I want to make one thing clear. Argentina's general, José de San Martín, was also vital to the defeat of the Spanish.