"Let the valiant swords of those who surround me pierce my breast a thousand times if at any time I oppress the countries I now lead to freedom! Let the authority of the people be the only existing power on earth! Let the name of tyranny be obliterated from the language of the world and even forgotten!"
Bolívar then left the army in the command of Sucre and departed for the seaboard to continue his work of organization.
The royalists had left Lima as soon as they learned of the defeat of Junín. Rodil was in the fortress at Callao. The viceroy in Cuzco gathered all the soldiers he could, forming an army of 11,000 men, and started out to avenge the defeat of Junín.
On December 9, 1824, the two armies met on the plain of Ayacucho, and at noon began the final battle of the Wars of Independence on the American continent. At first the Spaniards had some success. Then General Córdova of the army of Sucre, jumped from his horse, killed it with his sabre, and exclaimed to his soldiers: "I do not want any means of escape. I am merely keeping my sword to conquer. Forward, march of conquerors!" The royalists could not resist Córdova. They put all their reserves into action, but the soldiers of the independent army were determined to triumph, and Córdova, himself, had the glory of taking the viceroy prisoner. It is said that in the afternoon of that day the insurgents were fewer in number than their prisoners. A capitulation was proposed and was accepted, Canterac signing on account of the capture of the viceroy. The generals and officers promised not to fight any more in the War of Independence nor to go to any place occupied by royalists. Callao was included in the capitulation, but Rodil did not accept.
Bolívar possessed the virtue of creating heroes by his side: Anzoátegui in
Boyacá; Páez in Carabobo; Torres in Bomboná; Sucre, commander-in-chief in
Pichincha and Ayacucho; and Córdova, under Sucre's command, in the last
fight for independence.
The War of Independence of Latin America began in Caracas on April 19, 1810, and ended in Ayacucho on December 9, 1824. Writing about this battle, Bolívar said:
"The battle of Ayacucho is the greatest American glory and is work of General Sucre. Its arrangement was perfect; its execution superhuman. Swift and clever maneuvers destroyed in one hour the victors of fourteen years, and an enemy perfectly organized and ably commanded."
He conferred the highest honors on Sucre, and bestowed the titles of Grand Marshal and General, Liberator of Perú, on him. In a letter to Sucre, he wrote:
"The ninth of December, 1824, when you triumphed over the foe of independence, will be remembered by countless generations, who will always bless the patriot and warrior who made that day famous in the annals of America. So long as Ayacucho is remembered, the name of Sucre will be remembered. It will last forever."
The battle of Ayacucho practically put an end to the War of Independence of
America, which began with the battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775.