Gran Colombia–Peru War was the kernel of Bolívar's grander scheme to unite the former Spanish colonies in Central and South America. Prior to becoming the titular head of Gran Colombia, Bolívar had been, briefly, the president of the newly independent state of Bolivia, his namesake. Bolivia had formerly been a part of the Viceroyalty of the "Rio de La Plata", known as Upper Peru, and, once Bolívar relinquished the presidency of Bolivia to his revolutionary compatriot, Antonio José de Sucre Alcalá, in 1826, the Peruvians saw an opportunity. Early in 1828, Peru launched a campaign against Bolivia to reclaim its former territory and
Peru, Nebraska down the hill from Mount Vernon directly on the Missouri River. In 1861 a Methodist school called Mount Vernon Academy opened. In 1867 the school (which became Peru State College) became the state's first normal school. Floods in the 1860s changed the course of the river pushing it nearly a mile from Peru. An 1867 flood caused the Nebraska community of McKissick Island northeast of Peru to be surrounded by Missouri land and cause a border dispute that would not be resolved until 1999. Peru is located at (40.480055, -95.731286). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has