As soon as the victory of Ayacucho was assured, General Sucre led his army to Cuzco, and this ancient city was once more the scene of celebrations in honor of a great conquest; though, while the former had meant the destruction and slavery of the original inhabitants, this one signified their emancipation and protection. It was fitting that the capital of the Inca empire which had been subjugated by Spain three hundred years before, should be the first city to receive the patriots who had won its independence, and that the children of the new Peru should link their destiny with the descendants of its oldest civilization on this historic ground, both of them proud to claim the title of Peruvians. After a short stay in Cuzco, General Sucre proceeded to Alto Peru, where he was chosen to preside over the first congress of the new republic, named Bolivia in honor of the Liberator, who was also invited to become its president for life. In acknowledgment of this distinction, General Bolivar went to Chuquisaca, afterward called Sucre to compliment the hero of Ayacucho, and took charge of the government, drawing up the famous constitution that received his name, and which he afterward tried, unsuccessfully, to impose on Peru. He abdicated the presidency in favor of General Sucre within a year and returned to Lima, where a council of government had ruled during his absence. The Liberator did not remain long in Peru, however, retiring from the country permanently on the 3d of September, 1827, to go to Colombia. General Andrés Santa Cruz became the president of the council of government after Bolivar’s abdication. He convoked Congress to meet for the election of the president of the republic and to frame the national constitution. The question of establishing a satisfactory government code occupied the attention of successive administrations for twenty-five years, during which eight constitutions, based on republican ideas of government, were promulgated, the last, decreed in 1860, being still in force.