The Spanish Conquest of the Inca Empire: Pizarro and Atahualpa

The Conquest of Peru: Pizarro and Atahualpa

The Quest for the South Sea and the Capture of Atahualpa

After the conquest of Mexico, other Spaniards were challenged to match Hernán Cortés’s achievements. The challenge was taken up by Francisco Pizarro. He embarked on the quest to the South Sea that Balboa started, sailing with two partners: Diego de Almagro and Hernando de Luque.

Pizarro made two preliminary trips in 1524 and 1526, and then requested royal permission for the enterprise in Peru. He returned to Peru in 1531 to discover that the Inca Empire was undergoing a civil war. Atahualpa and his half-brother Huáscar were fighting for the Inca throne. Atahualpa won and soon received news of the white strangers landing on his shores.

They had a meeting at the town of Cajamarca. In the town, Pizarro put his men into a large building and made Hernando de Luque go forward to talk to Atahualpa. The conversation escalated, and Atahualpa threw down a Bible that Luque had handed to him. In this moment, Pizarro’s men attacked and took Atahualpa prisoner. After having used Atahualpa to secure a massive ransom of gold, they killed him and marched to the Inca Capital of Cuzco, capturing it in November 1533.

Hernando Pizarro’s arrival in Spain with his load of gold and silver caused feverish excitement, and a new wave of Spanish fortune hunters sailed for the New World. Meanwhile, Francisco Pizarro had begun construction of an entirely new Spanish capital: Lima.

Post-Conquest Troubles and Inca Resistance

After Atahualpa’s death, Pizarro placed Huáscar’s brother, Manco (later known as Manco Inca), on the throne. Manco was not happy to be a Spanish puppet, so he tried to retake Cuzco with his army. He failed, however, due to superior Spanish weapons and lack of food. He escaped to the Andean Mountains where he and his successors led a kind of independent Inca state until the Spanish finally captured the last stronghold in 1572.

Internal Spanish Conflicts and Rebellions

Following Manco’s siege, the Pizarro brothers and Diego de Almagro began fighting for control over Cuzco. Diego died, but left his son (known as Almagro the Younger) in charge. He and some other men planned the assassination of Francisco Pizarro but were met by Vaca de Castro’s army and defeated. Almagro the Younger was tried and beheaded for treason against the king.

But troubles did not end in Peru. In 1544, a new viceroy banned slavery and freed indigenous slaves, enraging Spanish landowners in Peru and eventually causing a revolt led by Gonzalo Pizarro, Francisco’s brother. Gonzalo won and became the uncrowned king of Peru. However, his rebellious actions brought consequences, and almost without struggle—due to conflicts between Gonzalo Pizarro and his lieutenant—the rebellion collapsed. Pizarro and his subordinates were executed.