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===Boyacá - 7 August===
[[File:Battle of boyaca.svg|left|thumb|406x406px|Map showing the route that both armies took to reach Boyaca Bridge.]]
After the Battle of Vargas Swamp, the losses suffered by Bolivar's army had left the army nonoperational, to remedy this he decreed [[martial law]] in the area on 28 July and conscripted all men from the ages 14 to 60 to rebuild his force.<ref>Santander, Francisco de Paula. ''El General Simón Bolívar en la Campaña de la Nueva Granada de 1819.'' 9</ref> The Patriot Army rested until August 3, when Bolivar ordered a return to Venezuela retreating across the Chicamocha River which was observed by Barreiro's forces. This was feint however, as during the night, he redirected his forces and crossed the river again and marched towards Tunja taking the alternate way through the Toca Road.<ref>Santander, Francisco de Paula. ''El General Simón Bolívar en la Campaña de la Nueva Granada de 1819.'' 10</ref> The Patriot Army took the city by mid-day of 5 August 1819, in the city the Patriots were able to capture 600 muskets as well as uniforms,
Barreiro was not aware of this until August 5, and marched his army down the Camino Real de Santa Fe in the direction of Tunja, where he was joined by Royalist reinforcements under the command of Juan Loño who had been sent by the Viceroy, who provided him with munitions as well as 3 cannon that he had so requested from the Viceroy. Barreiro continued his march towards Tunja and was informed of its capture by passerbys, with Tunja captured his defensive strategy had failed and he was now obliged to mobilize his troops to cut Bolivar's advance defend the capital, Santafé.<ref>Gutiérrez Ardila, Daniel. ''1819: campaña de la Nueva Granada'': 92</ref>
[[File:Batalla de Boyacá por José María Espinosa (1840).jpg|thumb|302x302px|the Battle of Boyacá by José María Espinosa (1840)]]
Barreiro now needed take the fastest route to Santa Fe, he hoped to fool the Patriots by conducting a night march in the rain around Tunja through the towns of [[Cómbita|Combita]] and [[Motavita]], the
On the early hours of August 7, the Royalist Army, now with some 2,670 troops, continued their march to Santa Fe. In order to rejoin the main Camino Real that led to Santa Fe the Royalist troops would have to march some 45km from Motavita through the Samaca Road that rejoined the main Camino Real at the Boyaca Bridge which crossed the overflowing Teatinos Rivers. Barreiro then split his army in two, sending a vanguard force to hold the bridge and wait until the rest of the army caught up.
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