Latest / The Rise of Colonialism: How Europe Divided the World — Fexingo History / Pizarro and Atahualpa: The Inca Empire's Collapse
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about the Spanish in the Caribbean and Mexico. But the conquest of the Inca Empire — it's a whole different story. In 1532, Francisco Pizarro landed on the coast of Peru with just 168 men, 62 horses, and a handful of arquebuses. And within a year, he had toppled the largest empire in the Americas. Luna: How did so few defeat so many? Lucas: It's a combination of factors. First, the Inca Empire was already in crisis. The emperor Huayna Capac and his heir had died of smallpox — introduced by Europeans spreading from the north. That triggered a brutal civil war between his two sons: Atahualpa and Huáscar. Atahualpa had just won when Pizarro arrived. Lucas: So the empire was divided, exhausted, and many local tribes resented Inca rule. Pizarro marched inland to meet Atahualpa, who was camped at Cajamarca with tens of thousands of soldiers. The Inca probably saw the Spanish as curiosities — not a threat. Luna: They had no idea what was coming. Lucas: Exactly. Pizarro set an ambush. He sent an envoy — Hernando de Soto — to invite Atahualpa to a peaceful meeting in the town square. Atahualpa came with thousands of unarmed attendants, thinking negotiations. Instead, Pizarro sprung the trap. Lucas: A single cannon shot was the signal. Spanish cavalry charged into the crowded square, arquebuses fired, and within hours, thousands of Incas lay dead. Atahualpa was captured. And that single event — the Battle of Cajamarca — broke the back of Inca resistance. Luna: And then the famous ransom. Lucas: Right. Atahualpa offered to fill a room with gold and two rooms with silver in exchange for his freedom. Pizarro agreed. Over the next months, Incas brought treasures from across the empire — gold vessels, silver ornaments, temple artifacts. They filled the room to a line as high as Atahualpa could reach. Lucas: But Pizarro never intended to release him. After the ransom was collected — melted down into ingots — they put Atahualpa on trial for supposedly conspiring against the Spanish. He was executed by garrote in July 1533. The Incas were left leaderless. Luna: What happened to the body? Lucas: Atahualpa was given a Christian burial, though his followers secretly took his body and mummified it in the Inca tradition — they believed he would return. After his death, Pizarro installed puppet rulers and marched on Cusco, the Inca capital, which fell in November 1533. Lucas: But the conquest wasn't clean. The Spanish quickly turned on each other — Pizarro and his partner Diego de Almagro fought a civil war over control of Cusco. Almagro was executed, then Pizarro was assassinated by Almagro's men in 1541. Meanwhile, Inca resistance continued in Vilcabamba for decades. Luna: So it wasn't just one victory. Lucas: No. The fall of the Inca was a process. Disease, internal division, and the Spanish ability to exploit local grievances all played a part. The Spanish also imposed the encomienda system, forcing indigenous people into labor. But the Incas' own record-keeping — their quipus, those knotted cords — and their messenger runners, the chasquis, were astonishing. The empire was incredibly sophisticated. Lucas: And there's one detail that sticks with me. When Hernando de Soto first met Atahualpa, the emperor offered him a drink from a golden cup. De Soto's horse reared, startling the Inca. Atahualpa had never seen a horse before. That moment — the fear, the incomprehension — captures the whole collision of worlds. Luna: It's like they were from different planets. Lucas: Exactly. And Pizarro — he was an illiterate pig farmer before becoming a conquistador. He was ruthless, patient, and utterly determined. But the Incas weren't naive. They just couldn't imagine what these men were capable of. And once they did, it was too late.