of the conquest must have been reached and passed many ages
earlier. In proof of this we have the fact that the Peruvians
alone had succeeded in domesticating animals. Only the dog had
been adapted to man’s service in other parts of America. Here
the domestic llama, for instance, was derived from the wild
huanacu and the alpaca from the vicuna. Many centuries would be
required in order to bring about these results. Several
varieties of maize were also produced under cultivation, and the
Peruvian species of cotton plant is known to exist only as it
appears under cultivation. Wild tubers were found in Peru from
which the potato was educed. Now, it has been proven by
experiment that wild potatoes require a very long time to put on
a civilized complexion. It was in Peru that the potato, as _we_
know it, was first discovered. It was not cultivated north of
Darien. Raleigh brought the first specimens to Ireland in 1568,
but it was not until the end of the eighteenth century that they
came into general use in Europe. The Peruvians practiced
irrigation and manured their crops with guano.”
And he continues:
“The materials for this nation were provided by the four
tribes—Incas, Quichuas, Canas, and Cauchis—scattered over the
northwest of South America. They were all mountaineers, short
but strong and active, with soft, brown skins, black hair, and
arched noses. At first the tribes were composed of clans, but
the Incas settled in the lofty valley of Cuzco and from that
coign of vantage gradually subdued the other tribes. Unlike the
Aztecs, they confirmed their conquests, not by exacting tribute,
but by military occupation of the subject territory. The town of
Cuzco was built about the end of the twelfth century and the
work of internal organization was begun. It is at this point
that solid historical information first comes to hand. A
succession of head chiefs or kings had already been instituted.
These monarchs were called Incas _par excellence_—_the_ Inca of
all minor Incas. To this general name, nicknames were added, by
way of distinguishing them. Finally, the eighth of the line was
called Viracocha, which means Sun-God, and indicated that by
that epoch the Incas had acquired something of the divinity that
doth hedge a king.
“Viracocha annexed the land of the Aymaras” (in Bolivia), “who
are suspected of descent from the builders of Tiahuanucu” (where
are some of the most interesting of the ruins). “In the next
reign the strong tribe of the Chancas, living close to the
equator, resisted the march of conquest, but were finally
defeated under the walls of Cuzco and their country afterward
annexed. The Chimus, who gave its name to Chimborazo, were the
next victims of the Incas, who now ruled the region from Lake
Titicaca to the equator and from the Andes to the sea. It was
under the Inca Yupanqui that this conquest took place, and he is
regarded as the great hero of Peruvian history. To him was
applied the name Pachacutec, Changer of the World. The successor
of this champion extended the dominion of his people so much
farther that it became necessary to found the city of Quito to
keep watch over the northern portion of the empire. He brought
in the valley of Pachacamac, where there was an ancient and
desirable temple, and also penetrated far into Chile....
“The Inca language was spoken throughout the empire. Garrisons
were distributed at strategic points and were connected by the
famous roads which have been the wonder and admiration of the
world.... There was a central highway from Quito to Cuzco, and
thence southward, which is thus described by the historian
Cieza” (de Leon): “‘I believe that since the history of man has
been recorded there has been no account of such grandeur as is
to be seen on this road, which passes over deep valleys and
lofty mountains, by snowy heights, over falls of water, through
the living rocks and along the edges of furious torrents. In all
these places it is level and paved, along mountain slopes well
excavated, through the living rock cut, along the river banks
supported by walls, in the snowy heights with steps and resting
places, in all parts clean-swept, clear of stones, with posts
and storehouses and temples of the sun at intervals. Oh, what
greater thing could be said of Alexander, or of any of the
powerful kings that have ruled in the world, than that they had
made such a road as this and conceived the works that were
required for it! The roads constructed by the Romans in Spain
are not to be compared with it.’ The post houses were some four
or five miles apart and in each were two Indians who carried
messages to and from the next house in line, whereby the
government was kept constantly informed of what was going on in
all parts of its dominions. In this way messages could travel at
the rate of nearly a hundred and fifty miles a day.”
The Inca deities were the Sun and Moon. The Sun they regarded as God the
Father and the Moon (believed to be the Sun-God’s sister and wife) as
the Goddess-Mother. The people called themselves Children of the Sun.
The reigning Inca was at once the Chief Priest and absolute temporal
ruler. Following their conception of the divine relationship, he could
marry only his sister of the full blood and only their eldest son could
inherit the throne. If no son was born of this first incestuous
marriage, or if he died and no other was born, the Inca married the next
sister, and so on until there was one capable of inheriting. But there
were morganatic marriages, as a result of which each of the reigning
Incas left numerous sons and daughters, whose descendants constituted a
privileged class, and in the course of ages the throne came to be
surrounded by thousands of men of the royal blood who were devoted from
their birth to warfare, learning, and state-craft. A subject, however,
could have more than one wife only by favor of the Inca. The government,
though exercised in a _kindly_ spirit, as we are told by the ancient
chroniclers, was in form a military despotism.
There was no money or other medium of exchange; gold and silver were
used only for purposes of adornment; such trade as there was, was by
barter. Every man was obliged to work for the common good at some form
of industry or occupation suitable to his strength and age and, if able,
to take his turn at the maintenance and extension of the irrigation
systems, which in that way were brought to such a state of perfection
that modern Peru still lives on the half-ruined fragments of their
canals and conduits and reservoirs. Hardly a spot of arable soil was
left uncultivated. Whole mountains were terraced for thousands of feet
up their sides.
Private ownership in land did not exist; it belonged to the communes.
The custom was to divide it into tracts, each large enough to support a
family, and parcel it out; for every child born there was an additional
allotment, and, at intervals, a general revision and redistribution. The
produce was divided into three parts: one for the Inca and his
establishment, one for the priesthood, and one for the commune. When one
section of the country was impoverished by war or some other casualty,
its needs were supplied by assessments levied on the others. The
occupations of the women, both in town and country, were essentially
domestic. Some were brought up from childhood and specially educated to
serve in the religious rites and in the household of the reigning Inca.
These were known as Virgins of the Sun.
The capital, Cuzco, was located in a valley about two hundred miles
northwest of Lake Titicaca and at a lower elevation, yet still more than
two miles up above the level of the sea. A colossal, massive-walled
citadel loomed over it from the heights of Sacsahuaman above the town.
Strong walls and towers inclosed it on every side. In its midst was a
great square, from which started the remarkable roads leading to the
four corners of the empire, referred to by Hawthorne. One whole side was
occupied by the temple, and near by were the dwellings of the priests
and the palaces of the Inca and the Virgins of the Sun. This sacred
space was a citadel in itself, protected by five heavy walls.
Describing the temple, the historian of the conquest, Garcilaso de la
Vega (and there was no one better qualified to write on the subject, for
he was himself, on the maternal side, a grandson of one of the last of
the Inca kings), says that “All the four walls were covered from roof to
floor with plates and slabs of gold. In the side, where we should place
the altar, they placed a figure of the Sun, made of a plate of gold of a
thickness double that of the other plates which covered the walls. The
figure was made with a circular face and rays of fire issuing from it,
all of one piece, just as the sun is represented by painters. It was so
large as to occupy one side of the temple from one wall to the other.”
Even the doorposts were of gold. One door, encased in silver, led to a
hall dedicated to the Moon-Goddess, where the images and furnishings
were all of silver, as were also the decorations of the mummies of the
Incas’ wives.
“The walls of their palaces,” Markham says, “were built of stone, of a
dark slate color, with recesses and doors at certain intervals, the
sides of the doors approaching each other” (narrowing toward the top)
“and supporting huge stone lintels. The side walls were pierced with
small square windows, as in the ruins of Manco Capac’s palace, and the
roofs were thatched with the _ycha_, or long grass of the Andes. The
interior consisted of several spacious halls, with smaller rooms opening
into them, and the interior walls were adorned with golden animals and
flowers, executed with much skill and taste. Mirrors of a hard stone,
highly polished, hung on stone pegs, while in the numerous recesses were
utensils and _conopas_ (household gods) of gold and silver,
fantastically designed. The couches were of vicuna cloth of the softest
and finest texture.”
Of the palaces of the Incas, Francisco Lopez de Gomara tells us that
“all the service of their house, table and kitchen, was of gold and
silver, or at least of silver and copper. The Inca had in his chamber
hollow statues of gold, which appeared like giants, and others naturally
imitated from animals, birds, and trees, from plants produced by the
land and from such fish as are yielded by the waters of the kingdom. He
also had ropes, baskets and hampers of gold and silver and piles of
golden sticks to imitate fuel prepared for burning. In short, there was
nothing that his territory produced that he had not got imitated in
gold.”
Cieza de Leon says of the magnificence of the harvest festivals
celebrated in the great plaza of the temple: “We hold it to be very
certain that neither in Jerusalem, nor in Rome, nor in Persia, nor in
any other part of the world, was such wealth of gold and silver and
precious stones collected together.” In his later years, while living in
Spain, Garcilaso de la Vega, who had been just as enthusiastic in his
description, and seemed to fear that he might be suspected of romancing,
took occasion to write that “this is not hard for those to believe who
have since seen so much gold and silver arrive here from that land. In
the year 1595 alone, within the space of eight months, thirty-five
millions of gold and silver crossed the bar of San Lucar in three
cargoes.”
“Many generations of culture and Inca rule had produced men of a very
different physical type,” Markham tells us, “from the Peruvian Indian of
to-day. We see the Incas in the pictures at the church of Santa Ana at
Cuzco,” he continues.
“The color of the skin was many shades lighter than that of the
downtrodden descendants of their subjects. The forehead was
high, the nose slightly aquiline, the chin and mouth firm, the
whole face majestic, refined, and intellectual. The hair was
gracefully arranged, and around the head was the _llantu_, the
sign of sovereignty. The _llantu_ appears to have been a short
piece of red fringe on the forehead, fastened around the head by
two bands. It was habitually worn, but, when praying, the Inca
took it off and put it on the ground beside him. The ceremonial
headdress was the _mascapaycha_, a golden semicircular miter on
the forehead, to which the _llantu_ was fastened. Bright colored
feathers were fixed on the sides and the plume” (of black and
white falcon feathers, he says in another place) “rose over the
summit. Long golden eardrops came down to the shoulders. The
tunic and mantel varied in color and were made of the finest
vicuna wool. On the breast the Incas wore a golden semicircular
breastplate, representing the sun, with a border of signs for
the months.
“The later Incas wore a very rich kind of brocade, in bands sewn
together, forming a wide belt. The bands were in squares, each
with an ornament. The material was called _tocapu_. Some of the
Incas had the whole tunic of _tocapu_. The breeches were black
and in loose plaits at the knees. The _usutas_, or sandals, were
of white wool. The Inca clad for war had a large square shield
of wood or leather. There was a loop of leather at the back to
pass the arm through. In one hand was a wooden staff, about two
feet long, with a bronze star, of six or eight points, fastened
at one end—a most formidable warclub. In the other hand was a
long staff with a battle axe fixed at one end. The Ccoya, or
Queen, wore the _lliclla_ or mantle fastened across the chest by
a very large golden _topu_ or pin, with head elaborately carved
with ornaments and figures. The _lliclla_ or mantle and _acsu_
or skirt varied as regards color. The head was adorned with
golden circlets and flowers.... The nobles wore headdresses of
egret feathers and gold breastplates over their tunics. The
princesses wore long mantles of various colors, and the Virgins
of the Sun long white mantles, secured across the bosom by large
gold pins.”
[Illustration: INCA BURIAL TOWER NEAR LAKE TITICACA.]
[Illustration: CLOISTERS OF DOMINICAN MONASTERY, CUZCO.]
Mozans, writing of the spot they held most sacred of all, says:
“It would be difficult to find any place in the world richer in
legends and traditions than is Lake Titicaca. Every cove and
inlet, every rock and island has its myth, and many of these
places were held in special veneration by the Incas for long
generations. This was especially true of two islands—Titicaca,
sacred to the Sun, and Coati, sacred to the Moon, the Sun’s
sister. What a fascination there was about these two islands!
Beholding the cradle and sanctuary of Inca civilization, it was
easy to fancy oneself a spectator of one of those long
processions of reed _balsas_” (boats) “conveying the children of
the Sun from the mainland to the sacred islands of their race,
where were the rich temples dedicated to their Sun-Father and
Moon-Mother. Adorned with gorgeous trappings of gold and
silver—royal colors—the Inca’s barge, manned by stalwart young
oarsmen, specially selected for this service, led the way.
Immediately following the Sphinxlike Inca came the members of
his court arrayed in gaudy vesture. Next to them were the
ministers of the temple and the officers of the army, gleaming
in barbaric attire. The rear of the procession was made up of
the humble tillers of the soil, who had gathered from all parts
to greet their idolized ruler and to swell the number of
worshipers congregated about the effigies of the Sun and Moon,
or in front of the sacred rock decked with richest tissues and
plates of burnished silver and gold....
“In these temples and palaces, according to the old chroniclers,
were immense treasures, rivaling those in the temples of Cuzco.
The riches in the temple of the Sun were especially great, for
‘here,’ writes Garcilaso, ‘all the vassals of the Inca offered
up much gold and silver and precious stones every year, as a
token of gratitude to the Sun for the two acts of grace that had
taken place on that spot. This temple had the same service as
that of Cuzco. There was said to be such quantity of gold and
silver heaped up in the island, besides what was worked for the
use of the temple, that the stories of the Indians concerning it
are more wonderful than credible. Father Blas Valera, one of the
earliest Spanish chroniclers, says that the Indian colonists,
called _Mitimaes_, who lived in Copocabana, declared that the
quantity of gold and silver heaped up as offerings was so great
that another temple might have been made of it, from the
foundations to the roof, without using any other materials. But
as soon as the Indians heard of the invasion of the country by
the Spaniards, and that they were seizing all the treasure they
could find, they threw the whole of it into the great lake.’”
VII
Fortunately for Pizarro, at the time he made his appearance on the
scene, it happened that these people were either still engaged in or had
only just terminated a civil war that had been brought on by an attempt
of Huascar, the then reigning Inca, to impose his will on his
half-brother, Atahualpa, a rebellious vassal. It appears that Huascar’s
father, the Inca Huayna Capac, having completed the subjugation of the
Caras and their brave allies in Ecuador, had found it necessary to
remain in Quito nearly all the rest of his life, to keep the inhabitants
in subjection and suppress revolts that frequently occurred. As a
political move, perhaps, he had married the daughter and heiress of the
defeated Shiri and by her had had a son. This was Atahualpa. As he, too,
had continued to live in Quito, he had come to be regarded rather as a
scion of the ancient Shiri dynasty than as a prince of an alien
conquering house.
And so when in 1525 Huayna Capac died, he left this northern kingdom to
Atahualpa and only the southern to Huascar, his eldest son of the full
Inca blood, born of his sister-wife; but, to preserve some sort of unity
in the empire, he commanded that Huascar, as the only legitimate heir,
should be paramount. Huascar, nevertheless, had declined to acquiesce in
any such virtual division of dominions that he regarded as his by right
of succession, and at the first opportunity had quarreled with Atahualpa
and invaded the territory apportioned to him. In the battles that
followed Atahualpa’s forces had been uniformly victorious, for, always
superior in prowess to the now more effete soldiery that had defeated
them in their former less organized state, years of Inca rule had taught
these northerners how to make better avail of their energy and courage.
Suffering enormous losses in every engagement, the forces of Huascar had
been driven farther and farther south, until at last, in spite of
reinforcements which, it is said, brought his army up to fully seventy
thousand, he was beaten before the walls of his capital and made
prisoner.
As soon as his capture had become known, what was left of his army had
dispersed, the city had surrendered, and Atahualpa, if we are to believe
the chroniclers, had taken a terrible revenge, first causing all
Huascar’s subjects that were of royal blood, and who could be found, to
be put to death, and afterward the captured officers who had fought for
him. His cruelty, Garcilaso de la Vega tells us, “was greater than that
of the Turks. Not content with the blood of his own two hundred
brothers, the sons of the great Huayna Capac, he passed on to drink that
of his uncles, nephews, and other relations, so that none of the blood
royal might escape, whether legitimate or not. They were all murdered in
different ways.... He ordered all the women and children” (of royal
blood) “to be assembled, of whatever age and condition, reserving only
those who were dedicated to the Sun in the convent of Cuzco. He ordered
that they should be killed outside the city, by little and little, and
by various cruel tortures, so that they might be long in dying.”
When Pizarro and his party reached Tumbez, Atahualpa, accompanied by a
small army, was at the baths near Cajamarca, a town on the Peruvian
plateau not far from the Ecuadorian boundary. It was to him there that
the report came that strangers had landed—strangers of a different
color, who had long hair on their chins and wore strange clothing and
armor, who had weapons different from any that had been seen in the land
and bestrode terrible monsters that carried them over the ground with
incredible speed. The effect of such startling news may be imagined.
Pizarro, however, after having fully informed himself respecting the
political status of affairs, thought he saw an opportunity to further
his ends by diplomacy and protested that his mission was a friendly one.
It would seem that Atahualpa must have realized that the strangers were
far more formidable than was indicated by their mere number, for he sent
his brother Titu to welcome them and make inquiries as to their desires
and the purpose of their visit. By him Pizarro, having first expressed
his thanks, sent a message to the effect that he would go at once to
Cajamarca and call on Atahualpa in person. What then occurred is thus
related by Dawson:
“On receiving Pizarro’s answer to his friendly message,
Atahualpa resolved to await the promised visit, apparently
suspecting no evil. The audacious Spaniard had, however,
conceived the design of capturing the victorious claimant of the
throne of the Incas, well knowing that in its actual distracted
condition the country would be left without a center about which
it could rally. Open war, no matter how overwhelming his first
victory might be, could hardly be ultimately successful.
Atahualpa, once safe at Cuzco or Quito, and surrounded by the
disciplined soldiers who had overthrown Huascar, a defensive
campaign might be undertaken in which Pizarro would find every
step toward either capital bitterly disputed. Hundreds of
thousands of Peruvians pouring up from the numberless provinces
of the empire would be thrown in a never ceasing succession of
armies against the little band of Spaniards and the latter would
infallibly be driven back to the coast by starvation and
fatigue, if not by defeat in the field.
“Apparently foolhardy, in fact Pizarro’s plan offered the only
chance of success. Never dreaming that such a step was in
contemplation, Atahualpa took no precautions. Leaving fifty-five
men at the little port of San Miguel in the Paita valley to
secure his retreat, Pizarro marched south with one hundred and
two foot soldiers, sixty-two horses, and two small cannon, two
hundred miles along the coast plain to a point opposite
Cajamarca, and ascended along an Inca military road, meeting a
friendly reception from the wondering natives, and supplied with
provisions by Atahualpa’s orders. On the 15th of September,
1532, he entered Cajamarca. He found an open square in the
middle of the town, surrounded by walls and solid stone
buildings, which he received permission to occupy as quarters.
From his camp outside Atahualpa sent word that on the following
day he would enter the town in state and receive the Spaniards.
“Marvelous good fortune favored Pizarro’s designs. The Indians
had furnished a trap all ready made, and now Atahualpa
deliberately walked into it. On the morning of the 16th the
Indian army broke camp and marched to Cajamarca, followed by the
Emperor, who was borne in a litter and surrounded by his
personal attendants, the great chiefs and the nobles belonging
to his own lineage.” (Those belonging to Huascar’s he had caused
to be killed.) “At sunset he entered the square, accompanied
only by these unarmed attendants and found Pizarro and a few
Spaniards awaiting him. The rest were hidden in the houses
around the square with their horses saddled, their breastplates
on, and musketry and cannon ready charged. From among the group
that surrounded Pizarro, stepped forward Friar Valverde and
approached the Inca monarch, who, reclining in a litter raised
high above the crowd on the shoulders of his attendants, waited
with dignity to hear what these strangers had to say.