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KEY EVENTS THAT LED TO THE SPANISH CONQUEST OF THE INCAS OF PERUIn 1529, Pizarro obtained permission from the Spanish Monarch, King Charles I, to conquer Peru. Once Pizarro returned to Peru in 1532, he found it vastly different from when he had been there just four years before. Amid the ruins of the city of Tumbes, he tried to piece together the situation before him. From two young local boys whom he had taught how to speak Spanish in order to translate for him, Pizarro learned of the civil war between Atahuallpa and Huascar, and of the disease- smallpox - that was destroying the Inca Empire. This proved to be extremely advantageous for Pizarro.1. Francisco Pizarro meets with Atahuallpa, 1532After his victory, Atahuallpa, the new Inca emperor, was fasting in the Inca baths outside the city of Cajamarca. Pizarro and his men reached that city on 15 November 1532. When first spotted, Atahuallpa he sent his trusted general to the Spanish settlers to serve as an observer. After traveling with the Spanish, Atahuallpa’s general returned and decided the Spanish were men not “gods” and so were not a threat to the Inca emperor. To win the emperor over, Pizarro invited Atahuallpa to attend a feast in his honour, and the emperor accepted. Having just won one of the largest battles in Inca history, and with an army of 30,000 men at his disposal, Atahuallpa thought he had nothing to fear from the bearded white stranger. Pizarro, however, planned a trap, setting up his weapons at the square of Cajamarca. At this point, Pizarro only had 160 men under his command.On November 16 1532, Atahuallpa arrived at the meeting place with an escort of several thousand men, all unarmed. Pizarro sent out a priest to urge the emperor to accept the power of Christianity and the Spanish King Charles I but Atahuallpa refused, flinging a Bible handed to him to the ground in disgust.395160571120002. Battle of Cajamarca 1532 Pizarro immediately ordered an attack against Atahuallpa, starting the Battle of Cajamarca. The Spanish unleashed streams of gunfire at the unarmed mass of Incas and rushed forward in a united action. The effect was devastating; the shocked Incas offered such weak resistance that the battle has often been labelled a massacre, with the Inca losing 2,000 dead. Pizarro also used horse soldiers against the Incas, which stunned them in combination with gunfire.Collapsing under the terrifying Spanish cannons, guns, and horses (all of which were new to the Incas), thousands of Incas were slaughtered, and the emperor Atahuallpa was captured. Unfortunately for Atahuallpa, the majority of his troops were in the city of Cuzco. This was a major disadvantage for the Inca emperor.-65595565405003. The capture of Atahuallpa 1532 During Atahuallpa's imprisonment, Pizarro, although greatly outnumbered, forced him to order his generals in the city of Cuzco to back down and threatened to kill him if he did not. Pizarro held Atahuallpa for a ransom of gold and silver; Atahuallpa offered to fill a large room with gold and promised Pizarro twice that amount in silver if they let him go, and Pizarro accepted. The silver and gold began to be delivered from Cuzco on 20 December 1532 and flowed steadily from then on. By 3 May 1533 Pizarro received all the silver and gold he had requested and more; it was melted, refined, and made into bars.Although Atahuallpa had provided the richest ransom in the history of the world, Pizarro had no intention of releasing him; he needed Atahuallpa’s influence over his generals and the Inca people in order to maintain the peace..4. The murder of Atahuallpa 1533 The question eventually came up of what to do with Atahuallpa; Pizarro was against killing him, but the other Spaniards were loud in their demands for death. They were afraid that Atahuallpa would order secret attacks once released. As a result, Pizarro falsely put him on trial for plotting to overthrow the Spanish, for having his half-brother Huascar murdered, and for several other lesser charges such as polygamy and idol worship, all frowned upon in Catholic faith, but common in Inca culture and religion.On August 29, 1533, the Spanish court found Atahuallpa guilty and sentenced him to die. The Inca emperor was tied to a wooden stake and offered the choice of being burned alive or strangled if he was baptised as a Christian. Atahuallpa agreed to accept baptism and was baptised as Francisco in the hope of preserving his body for mummification. An iron collar was tightened around his neck and Atahuallpa, the last free reigning Inca emperor, died a Christian. Pizarro then marched on to the city of Cuzco.5. Revolt of the Incas After Atahuallpa's murder, Pizarro elected Manco, a brother of Atahuallpa and Huáscar, to be the next Inca: he was only 19 years old. Manco began his rule as an ally of the Spanish and was respected in the southern regions of the empire, but there was still much unrest amongst Atahuallpa's followers. Atahuallpa's death meant that there was no hostage left to prevent the armies from attacking the Spanish invaders and so Quizquiz, one of Atahuallpa’s leading generals began gathering troops. Quizquiz and his Inca troops launched an ambush against Pizarro’s brother, Juan Pizarro, and forty Spanish soldiers in Cuzco the Inca capital, causing great losses for the Spanish. Quizquiz had developed strategies that worked against the Spanish, but he still had to learn to deal with the cavalry. The Inca army was eventually defeated on 15 November 1533 and withdrew from the city as the Spanish were backed by thousands of natives who opposed them. Securing victory, the Spanish robbed the city of Cuzco, where they found much gold and silver. Two years later, Pizarro established himself as Spanish governor of Inca territory and in 1535 established the city of Lima on the coast as the new capital of Peru to enable communication with Panama and Spain.6. The siege of Cuzco 1536-37Manco, the Spanish appointed emperor, initially had good relations with Pizarro, however, in 1535 he was left in the city of Cuzco under the control of Pizarro's brothers, Juan and Gonzalo, who mistreated him so badly; they tortured him to make him reveal the location of more gold and silver and even stole his Inca wife. In April 1536 Manco escaped by convincing the Spanish that he had to attend a religious ceremony and that he would bring back a golden statue he knew of. In May, Manco led a rebellion army of 100,000 Inca warriors against the Spanish and recaptured the city of Cuzco and blockaded it in. Manco and his Inca army managed to successfully defeat in open battle four Spanish army columns. However, Manco did not have the full support of all natives within the empire and coupled with the superior Spanish weapons was ultimately unsuccessful in his goal of removing the Spanish from Cuzco city. Manco soon realised his hope of recapturing Cuzco was failing and eventually withdrew allowing the Spanish to regain control of the city.In 1537, Manco decided it was time to strike again. Last time, he had led a massive army and had been defeated: he decided to try new tactics this time. He sent out word to local native chieftains to attack and wipe out any isolated Spanish settlements or expeditions. The strategy worked, to an extent: some Spanish individuals and small groups were killed and travel through Peru became very unsafe. The Spanish responded by sending another expedition after Manco and traveling in larger groups. Manco did not succeed, however, in securing an important military victory or driving the hated Spanish out. The Spanish were furious with Manco: Pizarro even ordered the execution of Manco’s wife. By 1537 Manco was once again in hiding.Manco's first rebellion of 1536 represented the last, best chance the Incas had of getting rid of the Spanish. Had he captured Cuzco, he could have tried to keep the Spanish to the coastal regions.364490016510006. Pizarro gains control of Cuzco 1537The Spanish conquest was achieved through relentless force, and deception, aided by factors like smallpox and a great communication and cultural divide. Pizarro and the Spanish colonisers destroyed much of the Inca culture and introduced the Spanish culture to the native population in Cuzco as he had done in the city of Lima. This consolidation of power would filter throughout Peru. ................
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