SUCCESSES OF THE PATRIOTS. 343 



Bolivar, whose army had considerably 

 increased, now divided it into two corps, 

 placing one of them under the orders of 

 Colonel Rivas, his second in command. 

 With the corps under his own immediate 

 orders, he marched towards the province 

 of Caraccas, through the department of 

 Truxillo, and the province of Barinas; Co- 

 lonel Rivas also taking the same direction. 

 The royalists were successively defeated at 

 Niquitao, Belijoque, Carache, Barquisime- 

 to, and Barinas, and finally at Lostagua- 

 nes, where Monteverde had assembled his 

 best troops ; here the battle was decided 

 against him, in consequence of his cavalry 

 passing over to the Independents. Mon- 

 teverde, unable any longer to make head 

 in the field, shut himself up with the 

 remnant of his troops in Puerto Cabello. 



Bolivar now advanced rapidly upon Ca- 

 raccas, where the inhabitants were impa- 



