Bolivia–Spain relations and Antonio José de Sucre entered Peru and defeated the Spanish forces in the country. Soon afterwards, troops led by Antonio José de Sucre entered Upper Peru and fought against royalist forces. By 1825, Upper Peru was free from Spanish authority. Originally, Bolívar wanted Upper Peru to join either Peru or Argentina, however, the people of Upper Peru convinced Bolívar and Sucre to give autonomy to the territory and on 6 August 1825, an Upper Peruvian congress declared the country independent and renamed the territory "Bolivia" in honor of Simón Bolívar and named its capital "Sucre" in honor of Antonio
Spanish immigration to Peru Spanish immigration to Peru A Spanish Peruvian is a Peruvian citizen of Spanish descent. Among European Peruvians, the Spanish are the largest group of immigrants to settle in the country. In 1532, the Spanish conquistadores arrived in Peru. As they began to conquer the country, their culture and influence spread throughout the nation. Not only did their ideology spread, their population did as well. Over the period of the Peruvian colonial era, hundreds of thousands of Spanish immigrants flooded into Peruvian ports. These Spanish-born immigrants, called "Peninsulares", caused much friction between themselves and the locally born Spanish criollos or creoles.