Portal:Venezuela

Ciudad Bolívar (Spanish pronunciation: [sjuˈðað βoˈliβaɾ]; Spanish for "Bolivar City"), formerly known as Angostura and St. Thomas de Guyana, is the capital of Venezuela's southeastern Bolívar State. It lies at the spot where the Orinoco River narrows to about 1 mile (1.6 km) in width, is the site of the first bridge across the river, and is a major riverport for the eastern regions of Venezuela.

Historic Angostura gave its name to the Congress of Angostura, to the Angostura tree, to the House of Angostura, and to Angostura bitters. Modern Ciudad Bolívar has a well-preserved historic center; a cathedral and other original colonial buildings surround the Plaza Bolívar. (Full article...)

Maduro in 2023

Nicolás Maduro Moros (born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader who became the president of Venezuela in 2013. On 3 January 2026, US forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores; they were transported to the US and charged with drug trafficking to which they pleaded not guilty. Although he was de facto removed from power, according to the Venezuelan government and interim president Delcy Rodríguez, he is still the de jure president of Venezuela. Prior to his presidency, he served as the vice president of Venezuela under President Hugo Chávez from 2012 to 2013, and as minister of foreign affairs from 2006 to 2012.

Initially a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade union leader before being elected to the National Assembly in 2000. A member of the United Socialist Party (PSUV), he was appointed to a number of positions under Chávez, serving as President of the National Assembly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and vice president under Chávez. Maduro assumed the presidency after Chávez's death and won the 2013 special presidential election. He ruled Venezuela by decree after 2015 through powers granted to him by the ruling party legislature. (Full article...)

• February 1, 1562 – The city of Nueva Córdoba was founded. It was renamed as Cumaná in 1591.
• February 2, 1806 – Francisco de Miranda leaves New York City on board three ships with 200 men to the Venezuelan coasts, in a first attempt of independentist movement.
• February 3, 1795 – Independentist revolutionary leader Antonio José de Sucre is born in Cumaná.
• February 4, 1992 – Lt. Col. Hugo Chávez staged an unsuccessful coup d’etat against the government of Carlos Andrés Pérez.
• February 6, 1818 – Toma de las Flecheras: In order to capture a group of canoes (flecheras) for crossing the Apure River, José Antonio Páez and fifty lancers assault three Spanish ships.
• February 7, 1859 – Death of Agostino Codazzi, geographer of Venezuela and Colombia, and founder of the Colonia Tovar.
• February 8, 1814 – In the context of the War to Death (Guerra a Muerte), Bolívar orders the execution of 800 Spanish war prisoners, a decision he described as “painful”. All the Spanish prisioners were beheaded five days later.
• February 10, 1824 – Simón Bolívar is created as Dictator of Peru, to control the situation of anarchy and general chaos in that country.
• February 11, 1876 – President Antonio Guzmán Blanco orders the relocation of independentist leaders and other notable Venezuelan citizens to the Panteón Nacional.
• February 12, 1814 – Battle of La Victoria: José Félix Ribas, commanding an army mostly of teenagers above 12 years old, defeats Boves' army in La Victoria. Thus, every February 12 is celebrated as Youth Day.
• February 14, 1936 – A series of demonstrations against the government of Eleazar López Contreras take place. These are considered as the first civic demonstrations in the country.
• February 15, 1819 – The Congress of Angostura meets for the first time.
• February 17, 1819 – The Congress of Angostura designates Simón Bolívar as President of Venezuela.
• February 17, 1860 – Federal War: Juan Crisóstomo Falcón wins the Battle of Coplé, in Guárico.
• February 18, 1924 – Birth of Humberto Fernández-Morán, scientist, and inventor of the diamond scalpel.
• February 20, 1821 – The capital of the Republic of Gran Colombia is moved from Angostura to Cúcuta.
• February 20, 1859 – The Federationist movement breaks out in Coro, initiating the Federal War.
• February 20, 1938 – The Museo de Bellas Artes is opened to the public.
• February 22, 1908 – Birth of Rómulo Betancourt, 54th President of the Republic.
• February 23, 1825 – The Congress of Peru designates Simón Bolívar as Father and Saviour of Peru, and delivers him other honours.
• February 23, 1854 – Simón Rodríguez dies at the age of 83.
• February 27, 1989 – Rioting and street violence takes place in Caracas, later known as the Caracazo.
• February 28, 1788 – The city of San Fernando de Apure is founded.
• February 28, 1814 – Battle of San Mateo: Simón Bolívar defeats Boves' army in that city.
• February 28, 1829 – Birth of Antonio Guzmán Blanco, who ruled the country three times from 1870 to 1888.

• ... that Venezuelan-American socialite Reinaldo Herrera's extensive connections led to Vanity Fair employing him to work as a fixer?
• ... that the flag of La Guaira is based on the design of a banner from a 1797 conspiracy against Spanish rule in Venezuela?
• ... that Pedro Berroeta Morales, a diplomat and later the president of a Venezuelan television channel, has also written fiction and essays on topics from science to esotericism?
• ... that the current flag of Falcón, a state of Venezuela, was first hoisted at the Monument to the Venezuelan Federation in 2006 and is based on the design of the 1806 naval flag of Francisco de Miranda?
• ... that Carlos Santana Tovar, who represented Amazonas in the 1952 Venezuelan Constituent Assembly, was taken hostage during the 1921 revolution and escaped only years later?
• ... that Juan de Casas, the Spanish military governor of Venezuela, cried after the French demanded that he accept a Frenchman as king?

The Salón de la Fama y Museo del Béisbol Venezolano (in English, the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum) is a nonprofit institution operated by private interests, which was founded on April 18, 2002, thanks to the vision of Carlos Daniel Cárdenas Lares. The institution is located at Centro Sambil, in Valencia, the capital city of Carabobo State and the third largest city of Venezuela.

The museum offers visitors the origins and growth of baseball in the world and the history of what is known as the National sport of Venezuela. It also shows, through its exhibitions, the most prominent players who have made significant achievements, as well as efforts to honor people who have highlighted the activity of baseball in Venezuela, recognizing and appreciating their impact on national culture and exalt those who have made outstanding contributions to the sport. (Full article...)

9 February 2026 – United States embargo against Cuba

Air Canada suspends all flights to Cuba and deploys empty aircraft to repatriate stranded passengers after the country's fuel supply was exhausted due to the U.S. blockade and the end of fuel supplies from Venezuela. (Reuters)

9 February 2026 – 2026 political prisoner release in Venezuela

The Public Ministry of Venezuela says Juan Pablo Guanipa, who was released and later abducted on Sunday, broke his parole's terms and that a request has been made to place Guanipa under house arrest, while not specifying if the government has him in custody. (Reuters)

8 February 2026 – United States embargo against Cuba

Cuba suspends refueling for airliners at its airports, including José Martí International Airport, saying it has exhausted the country's fuel supply due to the U.S. blockade of the island and the end of fuel supplies from Venezuela. (First Post)

8 February 2026 – 2026 political prisoner release in Venezuela

Venezuelan opposition politician Juan Pablo Guanipa is released from prison after more than eight months of incarceration in Caracas. (AP) Several hours later he is kidnapped by heavily armed men in civilian clothing.

4 February 2026 – United States–Venezuela relations

Venezuelan businessmen Raúl Gorrín and Alex Saab, both allied with de jure president Nicolás Maduro, are arrested in Caracas during a joint operation with U.S. law enforcement agencies on bribery and money laundering charges, with Saab expected to be extradited to the U.S. (Reuters)

30 January 2026 –

Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Rodríguez announces a proposal for mass amnesty and plans to close the polemic El Helicoide prison. (The Guardian)