|
E-mail us:
home@
piperry.net
| |
Tawantinsuyu
|
|
The rise and fall of the Inca Empire is an extraordinary tale. Around 1438,
an Inca prince named Pachacutec fended off an attack by a rival tribe,
usurped the throne from his disgraced father, and embarked on a wave of
unparalleled territorial
expansion. Over the next three generations, the Incas amassed an empire —
known as as the Tawantinsuyu, or "four regions" — stretching over 3,000
miles along the Andean cordillera, and from the Pacific coast to the Amazon
rainforest. |
| The Incas ruled not just by military might,
but also by providing their subjects access to an extensive trading
network. Their strategy of relocating tribes to distant regions to
perform tribute labor also decreased the odds of insurrection. |
 |
Amazingly, the Incas administered their
far-flung territories — the largest empire ever seen in pre-Columbian
America — without a written language, knowledge of the wheel, or access to
beasts of burden capable of carrying heavy loads. |
| Alas, the collapse of the Inca
Empire was even more dramatic than its rise. Pachacutec's grandson, Huayna
Capac, died in 1527 of smallpox — a European disease which reached South
America ahead of the Spanish who would soon follow. When Francisco Pizarro and his
small band began their conquest of Peru in 1532, the Incas were engaged in a brutal civil war
between rival heirs to the throne. Taking advantage of the situation, the Spanish betrayed and murdered
the victorious pretender, Atahualpa, and crowned a puppet ruler as his successor.
Although organized resistance to the conquistadores continued for
several more generations, the Inca Empire had come to a tragic and sudden end after less
than a century in existence. |
|
|
|
According to a rather titillating legend, the first Inca ruler, Manco Capac,
emerged with his brothers and sisters from caves near Lake Titicaca in the 12th
century. One day, he set out find the "navel of the world" (qosqo) —
a spot where he could sink his golden staff into the ground — and erect a temple
to the sun god, Inti. |
 |
This was the mythical origin of Cuzco, the Inca capital nestled
high in the Andes at a literally breathtaking altitude — nearly 11,000 ft above
sea level, or more than twice the elevation of the "mile-high city", Denver. |
 |
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Around 1438, Cuzco came under attack by the Chankas, forcing the Inca king,
Viracocha, to flee. However, his younger son refused to surrender,
allegedly rallying the very stones of the city to rise up against the enemy. |
 |
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
The victorious Inca prince assumed his father's throne and adopted the name
Pachacutec ("world transformer") — a title he lived up to over the next few
decades. He vastly expanded Inca territory, which he reorganized into the
four regions of the Tawantinsuyu, centered on his capital, Cuzco — which
was itself divided into corresponding quarters. |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
| Pachacutec transformed Cuzco as
well, laying out the city in the form of a giant puma, with the citadel of
Saqsaywamán its head, Qorikancha
temple its loins, and the tail at the confluence of two rivers rerouted
around the city. |
|
At the heart of the city was the Huacapata, a large square
more or less corresponding to the modern-day Plaza de Armas. It was surrounded by the palaces
of Pachacutec and other Inca rulers, whose mummies continued to occupy
these
residences even after death, attended to by servants of their former
estate. |
| |
 |
In 1532, Spanish
conquistadores — numbering only 168 horsemen and foot soldiers —
captured the Inca emperor, Atahualpa, at Cajamarca, in northern Peru. |
 |
|
| |
|
 |
|
|
| Atahualpa promised a huge
ransom — two rooms full of silver and one of gold — for his freedom,
including treasures stripped from Qorikancha and other temples. |
Despite making good on his
promise, Atahualpa was executed the following year, and the Spanish
marched on to Cuzco in search of more riches. |
 |
Francisco Pizarro arrived in
Cuzco in 1533, and crowned Manco Inca, a half-brother of Atahualpa, as the
new puppet emperor the following year. Manco, however, had other plans, and
soon rebelled against Spanish rule. |
 |
| |
 |
|
|
In 1536, Manco laid siege to Cuzco with an army estimated at more than 100,000
warriors. Nevertheless, the small Spanish garrison held out for ten
months, and managed to raise the siege the following year. Manco and his
followers retreated into the hinterland and continued their rebellion until
1572, but never again threatened Cuzco. |
| Under Spanish rule, Cuzco became
a provincial backwater; apart from a devastating 1650 earthquake and the
1780 uprising of Túpac Amaru II, not much of note happened here in
subsequent centuries. However, Cuzco remained a center of indigenous
culture, expressed in the unique cusqueña style of art. |
 |
 |
 |
| The 1911 "discovery" of nearby
Machu Picchu —
a magnificently-preserved Inca city unknown to the Spanish — changed Cuzco's
fortunes. |
Cuzco is now the undisputed archaeological
capital of the Americas, and one of the most popular tourist destinations in
the world. |
Practical Information
We stayed in Cuzco for a total of four nights in October 2007.
-
Hotel: The Hostal
Rumi Punku, a two-star hotel conveniently located between the Plaza de Armas
and San Blas, offers free breakfast, airport pickup and baggage storage
-
Restaurants: The Bagdad Cafe and Andean Grill offer unremarkable regional
cuisine with views of the Plaza de Armas. Granja Heidi features an
eclectic health-food menu, while Chez Maggy and Dolce Vita serve pizza and ice
cream, respectively.
-
Transportation: Taxis in the city average about 3 soles (about $1)
-
Miscellaneous: Take time to acclimate to the elevation; do not exert
yourself for the first day or two, drink plenty of coca tea, and consider
prescription medications like Diamox to prevent the onset of altitude sickness
|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Pachacutec began construction of the
ceremonial center of Saqsaywamán — the "head" of
the Cuzco puma — in the 1440s. |
Perhaps 20,000 workers were enlisted,
bringing stones from up to 30 km away; one block weighs an incredible 300
tons. |
 |
During the 1536 siege of Cuzco, against incredible odds, fifty Spanish horsemen
managed to retake Saqsaywamán from the Incas, leaving
1,500 dead warriors in their wake. |
 |
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
| The "red fort" at Pukapukara was an
imperial hunting lodge built during the reign of Pachacutec. It
also served as a guard post on the road from Cuzco to Pisac, in the
Sacred Valley. |
|
|
| Across the highway from Pukapukara lies
Tambomachay, a set of monumental 15th-century fountains. |
 |
These ceremonial "Inca baths" flow
year-round, providing clean drinking water to tourists and locals alike. |
 |
 |
|
|
| The Incas referred to the region north of
Cusco along the Urubamba River — also called the Vilcanota — as the
Vilcamayo, or "Sacred Valley". Nowadays, this designation usually
refers to the valley between Pisac and Ollantaytambo. |
 |
We passed through the Sacred Valley on our way to
Machu Picchu, which lies farther down the Urubamba. On the way to
Ollantaytambo, we stopped in the village of Chinchero to pick up porters
for our four-day hike along the Inca Trail. |
 |
|
 |
| Ollantaytambo was established
in the 15th century as an Inca administrative center, a gateway to the
Antisuyu — the Amazon basin to the northeast. High above the
village, steep agricultural terraces lead to temples which remained
unfinished at the time of the Spanish conquest. |
| |
 |
|
| In 1536, Manco Inca retreated
to the safety of this fortress after abandoning Saqsaywaman. He was
pursued by Hernando Pizarro, brother of the Spanish governor, who led a
force of 70 cavalry, 30 foot soldiers, and supporting indigenous troops. |
Manco Inca used the terrain to
his advantage, defeating the Spanish in the only significant Inca victory
of the campaign. However, his triumph was short-lived: he soon
abandoned the fortress, and retreated farther into the wilderness to
Vilcabamba. |
 |
|
 |
| After wrapping up our adventure along the
Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, we returned to Cuzco to embark on another
journey — a bus tour to Puno, gateway to
Lake Titicaca. |
 |
|
 |
| The small village of Andahuaylillas boasts
a remarkable artistic treasure inside its colonial-era church. |
 |
Built by the Jesuits in the 17th century,
the church is adorned by masterpieces of cusqueña painting. |
| |
 |
San Pedro de Andahuaylillas is popularly
known as the "Sistine Chapel of the Americas". |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
The sleepy village of San Pedro de Cacha is home to the Raqchi archaeological
complex, famous for the ruins of an enormous temple dedicated to the Inca
creator god, Viracocha. |
 |
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Our next destination was Artesanias la Vicuñita in San
Pablo, where llamas and alpacas are on display in a petting zoo.
Afterwards, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Sicuani,
before continuing on to the Puno region. |
 |
| |
 |
|
 |
 |
This page was first published 11 November 2007, and last
updated 17 August 2008.
|
