The Beginning of the Incas

Many thousands of years ago, people settled in what would become modern day Peru. Life was rugged. The coast was a desert, one of the driest places in the world. It was freezing in the mountains, except when volcanoes heated things up. There were earthquakes and tidal waves and drought. On top of all that, the soil was poor. Yet people survived and flourished. They survived by being clever.

Around 1200 CE, a tribe that would soon call themselves the Incas began to build the city of Cuzco. About 200 years later, the Chancay attacked the Incas. The Incas won. In 1438, the new Inca ruler Pachacuti set about conquering all the other tribes on the western side of South America.

Expansion

As soon a new tribe was conquered, or voluntarily joined the Inca Empire, three things happened quickly:

1. Engineers and workers began to build roads to connect the new area to the rest of the Empire.

2. Government officials were sent to count the new wealth - how many people, how much gold and silver, how many vases - the count was very detailed.

3. A governor was appointed to run the new territory.

Some of the conquered people were sent to join existing areas in other parts of the Empire. If the government needed workers somewhere, some of the conquered people were sent to help out. People who were moved about often did not speak the language of the group they were joining. This pretty much wiped out all chance of rebellion.

All the new people had to follow the Inca ways. They had to speak the Inca language. They had to worship Inca gods. But, they could also follow their own religious customs.

The new territory became part of the Inca Empire. The Empire continued to have a common language, a common government, and huge storages of food and goods available for use in times of need. The Inca were successful in building their Empire.

Civil War

In the mid-1500's CE, an Inca ruler died without first choosing an heir. This created an enormous problem. Two of his sons both wanted to be the next Sapa Inca. They were both qualified. One brother crowned himself Inca. But the other brother did not accept his rule. 

Civil war broke out in the Inca Empire. For five years, the brothers and their armies fought each other for the right to become the next Sapa Inca. Atahualpa finally won the war.

Spanish Arrival - Francisco Pizarro

It was not long after this that the Spanish first arrived. The Spanish had heard about the Incan cities of gold from the conquered people who lived along the Coastal Desert. 

The Incas had little contact with other tribes at any time, but their own civil war had kept them busier than usual. They knew nothing about the Spanish conquest of other tribes in Mexico. To them, the Spanish were simply invaders. 

At any other time, the Inca probably would have ordered the immediate death of Francisco Pizarro and his band of 167 men.

Unfortunately for the Incas, their new Sapa Inca, Atahualpa, flush with triumph, decided to allow the Spanish intruders safe passage. His plan was to kill some of the intruders and to keep others as slaves. Basically, he was amusing himself.

When Pizarro left the coastal desert area and entered the Inca Empire in the Andes Mountains, he knew right away that he was in trouble. The Incas were organized, militant, and numerous. 

Pizarro and his band of 167 men spent a nervous night, waiting for the arrival of the Sapa Inca, who was coming the next morning to officially greet them. While they waited, they worked up a plan. Their plan was to kidnap the Sapa Inca, Atahualpa. The Spanish probably had little hope of success.

When Atahualpa visited them the next morning, he brought with him a small group of about 2,000 priests and other officials. None were armed. He wore an emerald necklace. He was carried on his golden litter - the whole song and dance. It never occurred to him that the intruders might be a problem.

When Pizarro's men leaped from their hiding places, they grabbed the Sapa Inca. The priests and officials did not know what to do. The Spanish killed most of them.

Once Atahualpa understood that the Spanish intruders wanted gold and silver, Atahualpa offered them a huge ransom for his safe release. He offered a room 22 feet long filled with gold and silver. The intruders could take the gold and silver and leave freely. Atahualpa kept his word. The Spanish did not. Once the gold was delivered, they killed the Sapa Inca and fled with as much gold as they could carry.

When they returned, they brought an army with them. It took the Spanish a few years to completely defeat all regions in the Empire. The Spanish took over as the harsh rulers of the Incan people.

(MrDonn.org, 2012)