History
Written by Jennifer
![Picture](/uploads/5/2/1/5/52151581/7191224_orig.jpeg)
The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire was one of the most important movements in the Spanish Colonization of the Americans. The massive Inca Empire was in control of an area from Quito in Ecuador to Chile, which was at the time weakened from domestic conflict. Little did the Incans know that they would later be learning Spanish in Peru and adopting Spanish culture widespread, which would lead to the inevitable decline of their own culture. In the eyes of the conquistadors, they did not realize that they were attacking a pre-existing empire . Huayna Capac was in charge of this vast empire in the 16th century, ruling his empire with justice. Also he had many sons that were waiting in line to be the next emperor. The two brothers, Huáscar and Atahualpa, had the same goal; to become the next emperor to rule, but once their father died, the brothers brought the empire into a civil war. Although Huáscar was in line to rule, Atahualpa had all the gift and talent with his own army. With Huáscar and his empire, he had very little contributions; he renamed the capital to Cuzco, Peru, while Atahualpa went out to conquer more land in the north and south. With Huáscar’s goal of recognition and Atahualpa’s army, Atahualpa ran out of territories to conquer and sent armies to Cuzco. This battle against his brother went on for two days before Atahualpa won the empire to himself.
Francisco Pizarro was born in a poor family in Extremadura in the middle of nowhere. When he heard about the land with gold and riches in the region of Peru, he found a new meaning to his poor life. He went to Peru many times until he got permission from Charles V in Spain to carry out the conquest of Peru and make him governor. When he arrived in Peru, Francisco’s expedition was brought to a near end. As he arrived, there was a civil war going on throughout the Inca Empire and the diseases that Pizarro himself had brought from the Old World were affecting the population. Pizarro now wanted to meet Atahualpa in person by sending Hernando de Soto to give the message of meeting with him on horse. Hernando de Soto is a Spanish explorer and conquistador who had arrived in the West Indies as a young man and made a fortune in Central America through the slave trade. De Soto earned a fortune from the conquest of the Panama and Nicaragua and by 1531 he was the leading slave trader and one of the richest men in Nicaragua. In 1496 he was born in Jerez de los Caballeros and developed the dreams of making a fortune in the New World. De Soto supplied ships for Francisco Pizarro’s southward journey and even joined Pizarro in his conquest of Peru in 1522. He had joined the expedition in the pursuit of rumors of gold located in the region on the Pacific Coast. With De Soto’s speech to Atahualpa, he agreed to meet Pizarro the next day at Cajamarca. The meeting became a massacre because Pizarro had brought 168 men with him, hidden in each corner and tried to persuade Atahualpa to convert to Christianity by offering the Inca a Bible. Pizarro sent out a priest to encourage the emperor to accept the religion of Christianity throughout his empire. The priest was Hernando de Luque, as a young man he worked as a school teacher and later became the vicar or priest of Panama. Hernando de Luque teamed up with Francisco Pizarro and Dieogo de Almagro in 1522 to organize an expedition to Peru in search of gold and silver in that area. Hernando de Luque invested a total of 30,000 pesos to the expedition and Pizarro and Almagro prepared the boats and supplies in advance to conduct the journey.
When Atahualpa had received the Bible he had never used one before, so he put it up to his ear, waiting for the answers. When it didn’t, he threw the Bible on the ground and this was thought to be either a signal of violence or to start an attack. That day Pizarro used his modern weapons to take down 2,000 men and took Atahualpa captive. To make a deal with Pizarro, Atahualpa offered tons of gold and silver. Pizarro had accepted the offer, but did not release Atahualpa because Pizarro put him in trial for planning to overthrow the Spanish, having his brother murdered, and other smaller charges. Atahualpa then feared that Huáscar would fight back, so Atahualpa ordered to kill himself. After Atahualpa converted to Christianity and baptized, he was sent with a punishment by strangulation and died. The Spanish then went out to murder those left with the diseases of the population. The Inca Empire’s culture declined as cities were burned down to build new ones, which in return thousands of other citizens moved in. Spain became a much richer country, and Peru was looted of its riches and immortality.
With Spanish reinforcements that arrived at Cajamarca earlier that year, Pizarro then proceeded into Cuzco and the Inca Empire was in the hands of Pizarro fairly easily in the year of 1533. Huascar’s brother Manco Capac II had faked to be the emperor and the city of Quito had vanquished after a few quick years. Pizarro set Manco Capac II as the Spanish governor of the Inca territory and offered Diego Almagro the land of Chile to keep all the riches of the Inca region for himself. Pizarro had then started to unite his empire, by starting with a city in the coastal region known as Lima on January 6, 1535. On that same day it was the Epiphany, a Christian holiday, which gave the city the name “City of Kings”. There were many advantages in the area as it was close to the Pacific Coast where the Port of Callao was built as a big part of transportation. In the next year, Manco Capac II escaped from Spanish guards and led a revolt that was later crushed. Diego Almagro went back to Lima and wanted his share of the riches of the prosperous Inca Empire. A civil war was held over the disputes and Almargo took over Cuzco in 1538. Pizarro called his half-brother Hernando de Luque to take back the city and Almagro was defeated and died. In 1541, allies of Almagro’s son, Diego el Monzo invaded Pizarro’s palace in Lima and assassinated him while he was eating dinner. Monzo tried to make himself governor of Peru, but a Spanish crown agent refused to admit him as one. Later in the year of 1542, Diego had been captured and executed. Conflict started to arise throughout Peru until Spanish Viceroy Andres Hurtado De Mendoza settled order in the late 1550s.
In the next three centuries, Lima was a flourishing center of government, trade, and culture. The encomienda system was put into place for the Spanish to rule their subjects. Spaniards were trusted with native communities and in exchange for native labor and tribute; the Spanish lord gave protection and education to the people. The tribute was in the form of gold or silver, crops and food, animals, or anything else the land produced. When doing labor, the native worked for a certain time, staying in a sugar plantation or a mine. In return, the encomendero was supposed to repay with the well-being of the subjects and education about Christianity. In reality though, the system introduced slavery to the subjects and led to several horrors of the colonial era. In Peru, the encomiendas had lives full of luxury and riches from the Inca Empire while abuses started to get rough between the subjects. They were forced to do labor for a longer time period and with little supplies it made it hard for them to work in the mines and on the fields. Many of the decisions the subjects had to make forced them to starve to death and caused risks for their lives. Hundreds of thousands of Peruvian natives have died during the first years of the colonial era. In the year 1542, Charles V of Spain finally listened to the complaints of those forced to do labor and created the so called, New Laws. The laws were a list of rules to stop the abuses of the ecomienda system between the rulers and their subjects. It stated that the natives had the rights as citizens and would not be forced to work unless they wanted to. Also anyone who abused the natives or took part in the conquistador civil wars would lose their right as an encomienda. The colonial elite raged about these laws and started to participate in the civil wars. This caused the government to have continuous changes in rulers throughout Lima and the King of Spain almost lost his power over Peru during these years of civil wars. Charles V suspended the aspects of the New Laws and slowly the lands started to revert to the crown. After the earthquake that destroyed Lima, with everyone’s help in the small city, they rebuilt the city with elegant architecture. In the 1800s, the residents of Lima, Peru were beginning to dislike the Spain’s rules and regulations in trade. The goods that were given to Lima were sent from long distances and then to Spain through Panama. Many of the other distinct cities from Lima were beginning to find their independence.
In 1808, Napoleon Bonaparte’s forces took over Spain where the colonies had took advantage of the change and tried to gain their independence. A part of Lima remained loyal to Spain, while many other parts in the regions did not. An Argentinian General Jóse de San Martín had attacked Lima and made the city’s troops go back to the mountains in 1821. Simón Bolívar had then finished the job moving in north. In July 1821, Peru was then the last colony to establish their independence. After their independence was established, Lima was declared the capital of Peru. During the War of the Pacific, from 1879-1883, Chilean soldiers had conquered the city for two years. The Peruvian government had to move into the highlands and was only allowed to return if they sang a treaty to Chile.
Francisco Pizarro was born in a poor family in Extremadura in the middle of nowhere. When he heard about the land with gold and riches in the region of Peru, he found a new meaning to his poor life. He went to Peru many times until he got permission from Charles V in Spain to carry out the conquest of Peru and make him governor. When he arrived in Peru, Francisco’s expedition was brought to a near end. As he arrived, there was a civil war going on throughout the Inca Empire and the diseases that Pizarro himself had brought from the Old World were affecting the population. Pizarro now wanted to meet Atahualpa in person by sending Hernando de Soto to give the message of meeting with him on horse. Hernando de Soto is a Spanish explorer and conquistador who had arrived in the West Indies as a young man and made a fortune in Central America through the slave trade. De Soto earned a fortune from the conquest of the Panama and Nicaragua and by 1531 he was the leading slave trader and one of the richest men in Nicaragua. In 1496 he was born in Jerez de los Caballeros and developed the dreams of making a fortune in the New World. De Soto supplied ships for Francisco Pizarro’s southward journey and even joined Pizarro in his conquest of Peru in 1522. He had joined the expedition in the pursuit of rumors of gold located in the region on the Pacific Coast. With De Soto’s speech to Atahualpa, he agreed to meet Pizarro the next day at Cajamarca. The meeting became a massacre because Pizarro had brought 168 men with him, hidden in each corner and tried to persuade Atahualpa to convert to Christianity by offering the Inca a Bible. Pizarro sent out a priest to encourage the emperor to accept the religion of Christianity throughout his empire. The priest was Hernando de Luque, as a young man he worked as a school teacher and later became the vicar or priest of Panama. Hernando de Luque teamed up with Francisco Pizarro and Dieogo de Almagro in 1522 to organize an expedition to Peru in search of gold and silver in that area. Hernando de Luque invested a total of 30,000 pesos to the expedition and Pizarro and Almagro prepared the boats and supplies in advance to conduct the journey.
When Atahualpa had received the Bible he had never used one before, so he put it up to his ear, waiting for the answers. When it didn’t, he threw the Bible on the ground and this was thought to be either a signal of violence or to start an attack. That day Pizarro used his modern weapons to take down 2,000 men and took Atahualpa captive. To make a deal with Pizarro, Atahualpa offered tons of gold and silver. Pizarro had accepted the offer, but did not release Atahualpa because Pizarro put him in trial for planning to overthrow the Spanish, having his brother murdered, and other smaller charges. Atahualpa then feared that Huáscar would fight back, so Atahualpa ordered to kill himself. After Atahualpa converted to Christianity and baptized, he was sent with a punishment by strangulation and died. The Spanish then went out to murder those left with the diseases of the population. The Inca Empire’s culture declined as cities were burned down to build new ones, which in return thousands of other citizens moved in. Spain became a much richer country, and Peru was looted of its riches and immortality.
With Spanish reinforcements that arrived at Cajamarca earlier that year, Pizarro then proceeded into Cuzco and the Inca Empire was in the hands of Pizarro fairly easily in the year of 1533. Huascar’s brother Manco Capac II had faked to be the emperor and the city of Quito had vanquished after a few quick years. Pizarro set Manco Capac II as the Spanish governor of the Inca territory and offered Diego Almagro the land of Chile to keep all the riches of the Inca region for himself. Pizarro had then started to unite his empire, by starting with a city in the coastal region known as Lima on January 6, 1535. On that same day it was the Epiphany, a Christian holiday, which gave the city the name “City of Kings”. There were many advantages in the area as it was close to the Pacific Coast where the Port of Callao was built as a big part of transportation. In the next year, Manco Capac II escaped from Spanish guards and led a revolt that was later crushed. Diego Almagro went back to Lima and wanted his share of the riches of the prosperous Inca Empire. A civil war was held over the disputes and Almargo took over Cuzco in 1538. Pizarro called his half-brother Hernando de Luque to take back the city and Almagro was defeated and died. In 1541, allies of Almagro’s son, Diego el Monzo invaded Pizarro’s palace in Lima and assassinated him while he was eating dinner. Monzo tried to make himself governor of Peru, but a Spanish crown agent refused to admit him as one. Later in the year of 1542, Diego had been captured and executed. Conflict started to arise throughout Peru until Spanish Viceroy Andres Hurtado De Mendoza settled order in the late 1550s.
In the next three centuries, Lima was a flourishing center of government, trade, and culture. The encomienda system was put into place for the Spanish to rule their subjects. Spaniards were trusted with native communities and in exchange for native labor and tribute; the Spanish lord gave protection and education to the people. The tribute was in the form of gold or silver, crops and food, animals, or anything else the land produced. When doing labor, the native worked for a certain time, staying in a sugar plantation or a mine. In return, the encomendero was supposed to repay with the well-being of the subjects and education about Christianity. In reality though, the system introduced slavery to the subjects and led to several horrors of the colonial era. In Peru, the encomiendas had lives full of luxury and riches from the Inca Empire while abuses started to get rough between the subjects. They were forced to do labor for a longer time period and with little supplies it made it hard for them to work in the mines and on the fields. Many of the decisions the subjects had to make forced them to starve to death and caused risks for their lives. Hundreds of thousands of Peruvian natives have died during the first years of the colonial era. In the year 1542, Charles V of Spain finally listened to the complaints of those forced to do labor and created the so called, New Laws. The laws were a list of rules to stop the abuses of the ecomienda system between the rulers and their subjects. It stated that the natives had the rights as citizens and would not be forced to work unless they wanted to. Also anyone who abused the natives or took part in the conquistador civil wars would lose their right as an encomienda. The colonial elite raged about these laws and started to participate in the civil wars. This caused the government to have continuous changes in rulers throughout Lima and the King of Spain almost lost his power over Peru during these years of civil wars. Charles V suspended the aspects of the New Laws and slowly the lands started to revert to the crown. After the earthquake that destroyed Lima, with everyone’s help in the small city, they rebuilt the city with elegant architecture. In the 1800s, the residents of Lima, Peru were beginning to dislike the Spain’s rules and regulations in trade. The goods that were given to Lima were sent from long distances and then to Spain through Panama. Many of the other distinct cities from Lima were beginning to find their independence.
In 1808, Napoleon Bonaparte’s forces took over Spain where the colonies had took advantage of the change and tried to gain their independence. A part of Lima remained loyal to Spain, while many other parts in the regions did not. An Argentinian General Jóse de San Martín had attacked Lima and made the city’s troops go back to the mountains in 1821. Simón Bolívar had then finished the job moving in north. In July 1821, Peru was then the last colony to establish their independence. After their independence was established, Lima was declared the capital of Peru. During the War of the Pacific, from 1879-1883, Chilean soldiers had conquered the city for two years. The Peruvian government had to move into the highlands and was only allowed to return if they sang a treaty to Chile.