The chief towns of the eastern llanos are Maturín, in Monágas, Barcelona and Aragua de Barcelona, in Anzoátegui. The northern part of these two States includes some of the highlands south of the Cumaná range, pleasant pastoral country with a good climate. The central part of the llanos is very hot, and arid in the dry season. Calabozo, in Guárico, and San Fernando de Apure are the two hottest places in the country, the latter having a mean annual temperature of 91°. In the extreme west, as the Cordillera is approached, the heat diminishes, and the typical llano is often replaced by well-wooded country. The chief towns here are San Carlos, in Cojedes, Guanare, in Portuguesa, and Barinas, in Zamora, the last-named town not being much hotter than Maturín. The town of Nueva Barcelona was founded in 1637 by Juan Urpin, at a spot some two leagues distant from its present site. In 1671, in order to terminate the frequent quarrels between its inhabitants and those of a neighbouring settlement, Cumanagoto, the Governor, Angelo, united the two populations at the spot where Barcelona now stands. This shifting of towns and villages at the order of a Governor, or even a priest, was not uncommon in the colony in the early days. Towards the end of the eighteenth century Barcelona grew considerably in importance. There was a large and growing demand in the Antilles, especially in Cuba, for meat to feed the slaves on the plantations and for horses and mules. The journey from the River Plate in sailing-ships was a very long one, and the Cuba merchants preferred to get their goods from the north coast. Barcelona’s position at the point where the llanos extend right to the coast, and where consequently there are no mountains to cross, gave her a big advantage over Cumaná and other seaports, and her trade and population grew rapidly. From 1790 to 1800 her population grew from 10,000 to 16,000. But it was in adversity that Barcelona was to become famous, and in 1817 she gained a crown of martyrdom, becoming the scene of one of the most tragic events in the history of South American independence. Bolivar, after several encounters with the royalists in February, had left Barcelona to beat up recruits. The Captain-General, Juan de Aldama, having failed to intercept him, turned eastward to the doomed city, where he was joined by some troops from Cumaná and by some vessels of the fleet, which provided him with guns. A devoted band, consisting chiefly of Venezuelans, with some Colombians and a few foreigners, in all 600-700 fighting men, and some 300 civilians, women, and children, determined to resist to the last, and prepared to defend the convent of San Francisco, better known to history as the Casa Fuerte, which stands in an open space in the town.