The history of the 1st Division dates back to the reorganization of the Liberator army after Colombia's independence, when the army has two divisions: a vanguard and a rearguard. On June 23, 1883, the Colombian army reorganized its forces into two divisions, including the 1st Division, consisting of two brigades, with the First Brigade composing of the First Artillery Battalion, the Second Sapper Battalion, and the 3rd, 11th, and 13th Infantry Battalions, and the Second Brigade consisting of the 6th Sapper Battalion and the 10th Infantry Battalion, with the total force of approximately 4000 soldiers. The modern 1st Division of the Colombian National Army was activated on February 19, 1983 in the city of
Barranquilla, composing of the 2nd Brigade, based in the same city, and 4th Brigade, based in
Medellín. As Barranquilla did not have adequate command infrastructure for the division, the division command was situated temporarily in Bogota, the nation's capital, until the division was transferred to Santa Marta in June 1983. The General Staff of the First Division in 1984 is consisted of: the Division Commander: Major General Josué Leal Barrera, Chief of Staff: Colonel Hernán José Guzmán Rodríguez, Officer G-1 and G-4: Colonel Luis Guerrero Martínez, Officer G-3: Lieutenant Colonel Norberto Adrada Córdoba, Officer G-2: Lieutenant Colonel Tito Rico Busto, and Officer G-5 and Adjutant: Major Harold Hidalgo. Currently, the 1st Division has two units under its command: the 2nd Brigade and the 10th Armored Brigade, with a total strength 20,000 soldiers; it is responsible for the Colombian
departments of
Atlántico,
Magdalena,
Cesar,
La Guajira and southern
Bolívar. ==Structure==