What is the capital of Peru?

The capital of Peru is Lima. Located on Peru’s central Pacific coast, Lima is the country’s political, financial, cultural, and commercial center, as well as its largest city.

Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro founded the city on January 18, 1535. It was initially named Ciudad de los Reyes, or “City of the Kings,” and became the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru. Its position near the Pacific and the valleys of the Rímac, Chillón, and Lurín rivers helped make it a strategic administrative and trading hub. Lima continued as the capital after Peru declared independence in the nineteenth century.

The city sits in an exceptionally dry coastal desert, despite its location beside the Pacific Ocean. Callao, Peru’s principal seaport, forms part of the continuous metropolitan area but is administratively separate. Cusco was the historic capital of the Inca Empire, while Arequipa and Trujillo are important regional cities; none is Peru’s present national capital.