Pamplona, the capital of the province with the same name, it is located in the department of Norte de Santander, near the Venezuela border, at the edge of the Oriental Range of the Andes. It was founded in 1549 as Nueva Pamplona del Valle del Espíritu Santo, name chosen as a tribute to the spanish city by its founders, Don Pedro de Ursúa and Don Ortún Velasco de Velázquez. During the colonial era it was a strategic hub for the region, and it became known as the city founder-city due to the numerous expeditions that parted from the city towards others regions such as Arauca, Santander and Táchira in Venezuela. Afterwards, it became an important trade center between the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada and the Captaincy of Venezuela.Pamplona received the name “Patriotic City” due to it being one of the first in Colombia to declare its independence from Spain. Likewise it was one of the top contributors both with money and manpower to the Independence campaign, even more than Bogotá. Nowadays it is a modern city, with an economy based in gastronomy, education and tourism.