Born 3 October 1821. At 11 a.m., Simon entered the meeting room of the Bolibar Church. He settled next to the president of Congress and swore as president of the Republic of Great Colombia. The Great Colombia united the current Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama, as well as several territories of other countries, but its objective was to bring together all of South America. Half a century earlier, most North American colonies managed to unite successfully, but Greater Colombia lasted only ten years, and legal union did not thrive in practice. Why not?

According to historian Benedict Anderson, communication was a key element. The administrative spaces in South America were very broad, there were hardly any connections between them, and they had very different levels of technology and economic development. This situation strengthened local identities and hindered common identity. On the contrary, thirteen English colonies from North America had at the same time a smaller area than Argentina. Major market centres (Boston, New York and Philadelphia) were nearby and printing and commerce brought them closer. However, there were also failures in the north, as Canada was not incorporated and Texas was independent for ten years (1835-1846).

John H. Historian Elliott emphasizes the importance of social tensions. In their milk, in South America, social conflicts were more serious, as the racial hierarchy established by the Spaniards was much more complex than the English colonial hierarchy. In North America, society was divided into black and white.

In addition, each British colony had its own representation board, which did not exist in Spanish America. That's why the South American elites didn't have the opportunity to accumulate any government experience. There were no administrative means between the central power and the place of the Empire. This benefited the local authorities and their demands, to the detriment of the more general ones. To the detriment of United South America.