Pre-1545
Indigenous peoples
The region was inhabited by the Jirajara, Gayón, Nirva and Omocaro ethnic groups. Their fight against the conquerors nearly exterminated them.
Timeline of El Tocuyo
Almost five centuries of Tocuyan history: founding, provincial capital, cloth, convents, independence, earthquake and cultural heritage. A complete timeline with the dates that marked the Mother City.
January 1, 1545
Arrival in Coro
Juan de Carvajal and Catalina de Miranda arrive in Coro. Carvajal, a clerk of the Crown, takes on the duties of lieutenant.
December 7, 1545
Founding of El Tocuyo
Juan de Carvajal founds "Our Lady of the Pure and Immaculate Conception of El Tocuyo" in the territory of Cacique Xagua, after almost 4 months of journey from Coro.
May 1546
Execution of the Germans
Carvajal orders the beheading of Philipp von Hutten, Bartholomeus Welser VI, Diego Romero and Gregorio de Plasencia. It marks the end of the German government of Venezuela.
September 16, 1546
Sentence against Carvajal
Judge Juan Pérez de Tolosa hands down the death sentence against Juan de Carvajal for the arbitrary execution of the Germans.
September 17, 1546
Hanging of Carvajal
Carvajal is dragged by the tail of a horse and hanged from a ceiba tree in the main square of the city he had founded.
1546–1548
El Tocuyo, provincial capital
After Carvajal's death, El Tocuyo concentrates the political, religious and military power of the Province of Venezuela.
1547–1549
Villegas as lieutenant governor
Juan de Villegas, from Segovia, governs from El Tocuyo and organizes settlement expeditions.
1548
Founding of Carache (Trujillo)
From El Tocuyo, Juan de Villegas founds San Juan Bautista de Carache, the forerunner of Trujillo.
1549
Founding of Borburata
Villegas founds Borburata on the coast, the first colonial port of the central region.
May 1552
Founding of Barquisimeto
Juan de Villegas founds Nueva Segovia de Barquisimeto between May 17 and 20 — not on September 14, as tradition held for centuries. The "eldest daughter" of El Tocuyo.
1550–1700
Tocuyo Cloth, intercontinental export
Tocuyo cloth — a rustic cotton fabric — is exported to New Granada, Quito, Peru, Spain, France and England. The word "tocuyo" enters the Spanish-American dictionary as a generic name.
1557
Founding of definitive Trujillo
Diego García de Paredes refounds Trujillo from El Tocuyo.
1561
Founding of San Cristóbal
Residents of El Tocuyo participate in the founding of San Cristóbal by Juan Maldonado.
1563
Title of "Most Loyal City"
El Tocuyo receives the title of "Most Loyal City of El Tocuyo" and official looms are installed under Juan Pérez de Tolosa.
1567
Founding of Caracas
From El Tocuyo — then still the logistical capital — depart settlers and resources that support the founding of Santiago de León de Caracas by Diego de Losada.
1569 / 1572
Founding and refounding of Carora
Juan del Tejo founds Carora in 1569; Juan de Salamanca refounds it in 1572. Both expeditions depart from El Tocuyo.
1609
Brotherhood of Saint Anthony of Padua
The Brotherhood of Saint Anthony is founded in El Tocuyo, the organized origin of the Tamunangue.
June 6, 1620
Founding of the Humocaros
Francisco de la Hoz Berríos divides the doctrine of the Rosary and founds San Antonio de los Naranjos de Humocaro Alto and La Virgen del Rosario de Humocaro Bajo. The same year he founds Sanare.
1621
Spinning ordinances
Hoz Berríos issues ordinances forcing indigenous women to spin cotton for the encomenderos, consolidating the cloth industry.
17th century
Peak of Tocuyan baroque
The Painter of El Tocuyo (anonymous, possibly Francisco de la Cruz) produces more than 100 religious paintings in the style of Murillo and Zurbarán. Active between 1682 and 1702.
1760
Colonial census
El Tocuyo has 6,645 inhabitants in the city and 9,525 in its jurisdiction.
November 26, 1796
Birth of José Trinidad Morán
The future hero of the Vargas Battalion and of Corpahuaico is born in El Tocuyo.
July 22, 1813
Battle of Los Horcones
500 patriots with 4 artillery pieces under Colonel José Félix Ribas defeat 1,500 royalists under Colonel Francisco Oberto between Barquisimeto and Quíbor. Part of Bolívar's Admirable Campaign.
1813
Patriot executions
The father of José Trinidad Morán and other patriots are shot in El Tocuyo. The Morán family flees to Trujillo.
June 16, 1821
Invitation to Bolívar
The Municipality of El Tocuyo formally invites the Liberator to visit the city. From here departs the Southern Campaign led by Sucre.
December 3, 1824
Corpahuaico
The Tocuyan colonel José Trinidad Morán commands the Vargas Battalion at Corpahuaico, sacrificing half of his troops to save the patriot army before Ayacucho.
December 9, 1824
Ayacucho
Sucre triumphs at Ayacucho. Morán's action six days earlier made possible the victory that sealed American independence.
1832 / 1858
Birth of Egidio Montesinos and Lisandro Alvarado
Egidio Antonio Montesinos (1832) and Lisandro Alvarado (1858) are born in El Tocuyo. They will define the Tocuyan intellectual peak of the 19th century.
1863
Founding of Colegio La Concordia
Egidio Montesinos founds Colegio La Concordia in El Tocuyo, one of the most prestigious schools in 19th-century western Venezuela.
1881
Creation of Lara State
Lara State is created with its capital in Barquisimeto. El Tocuyo loses regional political primacy but retains its cultural importance.
March 4, 1898
Birth of Pío Tamayo
José Pío Tamayo is born in El Tocuyo, future precursor of Marxism in Venezuela and figure of the Generation of 1928.
1913
Death of Egidio Montesinos
The teacher dies at age 80. Colegio La Concordia closes shortly after: no one knew how to continue his work.
1921
Glossary of indigenous words
Lisandro Alvarado publishes his "Glossary of Indigenous Words of Venezuela", a foundational work of modern linguistic studies in the country.
July 24, 1925
Monument to Montesinos
The equestrian monument to Egidio Montesinos is inaugurated in the central area of El Tocuyo, paid for by popular subscription.
December 31, 1925
Morán District
The Constituent Assembly of Lara State changes the name of the Tocuyo District to Morán District in honor of José Trinidad Morán.
April 10, 1929
Death of Lisandro Alvarado
The doctor, ethnologist and philologist dies in Valencia. He was 70 years old.
October 5, 1935
Death of Pío Tamayo
The Tocuyan poet dies in Barquisimeto, at age 37, after almost 7 years in the Puerto Cabello castle under Gómez.
September 1, 1945
4th Centennial decreed national holiday
President Isaías Medina Angarita decrees the 4th Centennial of the founding of El Tocuyo as a national holiday.
December 7, 1945
4th Centennial
The 4th Centennial of the founding is celebrated with great solemnity. The Franciscan Convent is restored as the House of Culture.
August 3, 1950, 5:50 PM
Earthquake of El Tocuyo
Magnitude 6.6 Mw earthquake with epicenter 18 km from Carache. It destroys 93% of the buildings of El Tocuyo and affects 55 settlements.
1950–1959
Pérez Jiménez reconstruction
The government of Marcos Pérez Jiménez rebuilds the city under modern urban planning principles. Widening of streets, demolition of the colonial center, reinforced concrete buildings.
1959
Inauguration of the new church
The new Church of the Immaculate Conception is inaugurated in modernist style. Today it is one of the symbols of Tocuyan resilience.
1962
UCLA
The Universidad Centroccidental Lisandro Alvarado is founded in Barquisimeto, with later branches in El Tocuyo. It bears the name of the great Tocuyan.
1973
Dos Cerritos Reservoir
The Dos Cerritos / Félix de los Ríos dam on the Tocuyo River begins operating, ensuring water for irrigation and consumption in Lara.
2002
Tamunangue, state heritage
The Tamunangue is declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Lara State.
June 5, 2014
Tamunangue, national heritage
The Tamunangue is declared an Asset of Cultural Interest of the Nation by the Cultural Heritage Institute.
2016
La Burriquita, national heritage
La Burriquita is declared Cultural Heritage of the Nation, recognizing a tradition performed in at least 15 states, including the Sanareño-Tocuyan version.