The largest Pre-Columbian city in South America, Chan Chan is an archaeological site located in the Peruvian region of La Libertad, five km east of Trujillo. Covering an area of approximately 20 km², Chan Chan was constructed by the kingdom of the Chimú, a late intermediate period civilization which grew out of the remnants of the Moche civilization.
The vast mud city of Chan Chan was the imperial capital until Chimor was conquered by the Inca in the 15th century. It is estimated that 30,000 people lived in the city of Chan Chan.
The Inca people began as a tribe in the Cuzco area around the 12th century AD. Under the leadership of Manco Capac, they formed the small city-state of Cuzco (Quechua Qosqo).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Cusco http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_empire
"1491, New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus", Charles C. Mann, 2005, pub. Alfred A. Knopf
The Inca people began as a tribe in the Cusco area around the 12th century. Under the leadership of Manco Capac, they formed the small city-state of Cuzco (Quechua Qusqu), shown in red on the map. In 1438 they began a far-reaching expansion under the command of Sapa Inca (paramount leader) Pachacuti, whose name literally meant "earth-shaker". During his reign, he and his son brought much of the Andes mountains (roughly modern Peru and Ecuador) under Inca control.
Machu Picchu was constructed around 1450, at the height of the Inca Empire, and was abandoned less than 100 years later, as the empire collapsed under Spanish conquest.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machu_Picchu
Before Pachakuti died peacully in 1471, Thupa Inka continued his father's conquests as military leader of the Incas.
Pachacuti's son Thupa Inka, (also called Túpac Inca) began conquests to the north in 1463, and continued them as Inca after Pachucuti's death in 1471. His most important conquest was the Kingdom of Chimor, the Inca's only serious rival for the coast of Peru.
The Incan's southward expansion was halted by the tribes of the Mapuche people. Though the Incans could win in battle, they could not keep the people under control following their victories, nor negotiate adequately with the multitude of tribes; they eventually abandoned the effort.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_Empire
Spanish conquistadors led by Francisco Pizarro and his brothers explored south from Panama, reaching Inca territory by 1526. It was clear that they had reached a wealthy land with prospects of great treasure, and after one more expedition (1529), Pizarro traveled to Spain and received royal approval to conquer the region and be its viceroy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_empire
War of the two brothers, Inca Civil War or Inca war of succession, broke out in 1527 (fighting started in 1531) as a disagreement between the two brothers Huáscar and Atahualpa and was - in a way - a war of succession of the Inca throne. However, it was Huáscar who started the war since he saw himself as the rightful heir of all Incas, while Atahualpa was revealed to be tactically superior to the mighty armies of Cusco.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_war_of_succession http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_empire
"1491, New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus", pg78, Charles C. Mann, 2005, pub. Knopf
The Battle of Puná, a peripheral engagement of Francisco Pizarro's conquest of Peru, was fought in April 1531 on the island of Puná (in the Gulf of Guayaquil). Pizarro's conquistadors, boasting superior weaponry and tactical skill, decisively defeated the island's indigenous inhabitants. The battle marked the beginning of Pizarro's third and final expedition before the fall of the Inca Empire.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Pun%C3%A1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_empire
An audacious military attack by the Spaniards in Cajamarca, allowed them to capture the emperor, Atahualpa, and send the Inca elite into a huge and paralyzing political struggle. This event marked the beginning of the end for the Inca Empire.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_empire http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cajamarca
"1491, New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus", pg80, Charles C. Mann, 2005, pub. Knopf
During Atahualpa's imprisonment Huascar was assassinated elsewhere. The Spaniards maintained that this was at Atahualpa's orders; this was used as one of the charges against Atahualpa when the Spaniards finally decided to put him to death, in August 1533.
The Spanish installed Atahualpa's brother Manco Inca Yupanqui in power; for some time Manco cooperated with the Spanish, while the Spanish fought to put down resistance in the north.
Meanwhile an associate of Pizarro's, Diego de Almagro, attempted to claim Cuzco for himself. Manco tried to use this intra-Spanish feud to his advantage, recapturing Cuzco (1536), but the Spanish retook the city afterwards. Manco Inca then retreated to the mountains of Vilcabamba, Peru, where he and his successors ruled for another 36 years, sometimes raiding the Spanish or inciting revolts against them.
In 1572 the last Inca stronghold was conquered, and the last ruler, Túpac Amaru, Manco's son, was captured and executed. This ended resistance to the Spanish conquest under the political authority of the Inca state.
Forgotten for centuries by all except for a few locals, the site was brought to worldwide attention in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, an American historian. Since then, Machu Picchu has become an important tourist attraction, it was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. It is also one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
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