Lima metropolitan area Lima metropolitan area The Lima metropolitan area (, also known as "Lima Metropolitana"), is an area formed by the conurbation of the Peruvian city-provinces of Lima (the nation's capital) and Callao. It is the largest of the metropolitan areas of Peru, the seventh largest in the Americas, the fourth largest in Latin America, and among the thirty largest in the world. The conurbation process started to be evident in the 1980s. The metropolitan area is composed of six subregions. These are Lima Norte, Lima Sur, Lima Este, Residential Lima, Central Lima, and Callao. Its estimated 2018 population is 12 million
Lima under General José de San Martín landed south of Lima in 1820 but did not attack the city. Faced with a naval blockade and the action of guerrillas on land, Viceroy José de la Serna e Hinojosa evacuated its capital in July 1821 to save the Royalist army. Fearing a popular uprising and lacking any means to impose order, the city council invited San Martín to enter Lima and signed a Declaration of Independence at his request. However, the war was not over; in the next two years the city changed hands several times. After independence, Lima became the capital