Incas

The Incas were one of the most important civilizations in the world, just like the Aztecs and Mayans.

Originally the Incas were a clan of the Quechua tribe, located in the Cusco region of Peru. From the twelfth century, however, began the formation of a vast empire whose capital was Cusco.

Today, these lands comprise Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, western Bolivia, northern Chile and northwestern Argentina.

The term "Inca", which today designates a people and an empire, originally meant "chief", a title given to emperors and nobles.

Inca Empire

In three centuries, the Incas built a mighty empire through their armies and their negotiation skills. With well-organized and disciplined troops, a large number of indigenous nations became his vassals.

To control their immense territory, they opened two great roads:one on the coast, and another in the mountains, which cut the territory from north to south and interconnected by transversals from east to west. The main one joined the cities of Cusco and Quito (Ecuador) and measured about 2,400 kilometers.

Along these paths were sentries with messengers, called “Chasquis”, specially trained to run as fast as possible. In this way, the Incas had an efficient communication system that allowed them to know what was happening in their domains.

Inca Society

Inca society was hierarchical into various social classes.

The Inca, son of the sun god, a mixture of god and emperor, gathered hundreds of tribes under his authority. The emperor was the guardian of the state's assets, especially the land, and subjected society to the rigor of his decisions.

The Emperor was considered a god, therefore, everything he said was heeded. Usually, he would marry a sister who was seen as the incarnation of Mama Quilla, the main female goddess.

Below the emperor were his relatives, the nobles, and those chosen to occupy the positions of command, such as governors of provinces, military chiefs, judges, and priests.

The next layer consisted of civil servants and specialized workers, such as goldsmiths, cabinetmakers, bricklayers, etc. At the bottom of the hierarchy were the farmers.

There were also slaves that were obtained through war and in the form of punishment if any people did not submit to Incan orders. They were destined to work in the most difficult to reach regions.

Inca economy

The Inca economy was based on collective work and adapted to the age of each one. The mainstay of the economy was agriculture, developed especially in the mountainous area of the Andes.

They raised the llama, which was used for transport, the alpaca and the vicuña, from which they obtained their wool and meat. On the coast, populations lived mainly from fishing.

To account for taxes collected and control production, the quipu was used , which means "knot" in Quechua. The quipu consisted of a cord, to which a series of small colored cords were attached, hanging in the form of a fringe and with several knots.

It is believed that each of these nodes corresponded to the amount of taxes that each community had to pay.

Inca agriculture

The distribution of land was made according to the size of the family and the more children, the more land. That way, no one had a problem feeding their offspring.

To increase the arable areas, the Incas created an ingenious system of terraces - a kind of steps built along the mountains and supported by stone walls - that extended along the steep slopes.

State lands were cultivated by all and the production was stored to support the nobility, priests and the military. The surpluses were stored in warehouses installed throughout the empire and distributed to the population in times of need or times of calamity.

Two resources were used to improve the productivity of the land:fertilization, made with llama and bird manure; and irrigation, through ponds and canals. The terrace system also facilitated irrigation and the use of water, a scarce resource in some parts of the Andes mountain range.

Inca policy

It is estimated that the Inca Empire had around 2,000,000 km², an estimated population of about 8 to 12 million people spread over 200 different peoples and whose capital was Cusco. To give cohesion to this enormous empire, a language was imposed – Quechua – and the cult of the Sun god, Inti was established. .

Equally, everyone had to work to support the family and this ensured that they had food and clothing. Of course, the Emperor and his nobles had privileges, but in Inca society no one went hungry and everyone had an occupation.

Inca religion

Religion marked Inca life and culture. They worshiped various gods, who were generally associated with elements of nature, such as the sun, moon, river, rain, etc.

The deities received offerings, including human sacrifice, and expected from the gods a return in the form of rain, protection, a good harvest, etc. In honor of Inti, the sun god, a large temple was built in Cusco, Peru.

Inca Gods

Viracocha (or Wiracocha):creator and foundational god. The one who emerged in human form from the waters of Lake Titicaca to ordain lawless men. He organized the world into three levels, gave each people a function, created plants and animals. Once his mission was over, he set out walking across the sea.

Inti (or Apu Inti):identified as the Sun god who would be the “servant of Viracocha”. The faithful came to Inti to ask for good harvests and an end to diseases. His energy fed the earth and its beings that inhabited it. His mate and sister was Mama Quilla, identified with the moon, who were fathers of the Inca emperors.

Mama Quilla :goddess related to the moon and main female deity. She was served by a priestly class of women and her importance was enormous in all female matters such as births, marriages, fertility, crop cycles, etc. Sister and wife of Inti and from whose union the Inca emperors were born.

Pachamama :not exactly a creator goddess. Her name means pacha – land and breast , mother. It is a myth understood throughout America, because it is about the land itself, the crops and pastures. Pachamama was revered with a part of the crops or the animals that grazed. Thus, a relationship of reciprocity was established between the faithful.

Inca culture and art

The grandeur of the architecture and engineering of the Incas is presented through palaces, houses, temples, fortresses, bridges, tunnels, roads, canals and aqueducts.

The Incas did not have writing, but they transmitted their ideas and knowledge through orality and drawings.

Funerary art with its masks and offerings has also reached us and allows us to learn more about the artistic skills of this people.

Inca architecture

The architecture had to adapt the buildings to the frequent tremors. Therefore, we see horizontal houses that accompanied the earthquakes and thus remained standing. Likewise, the stones were cut and fitted together without the need for cement.

In Peru, especially in Cusco, it is possible to visit places that keep traces of the Inca culture, such as:

Machu Picchu :located at an altitude of 2400 meters, Machu Picchu was not found by the colonists; was only revealed in 1911, by an American researcher, Hiram Bingham.

Machu Picchu, which means “old mountain” has two large areas:the agricultural one, with its cultivation terraces, and the religious one. Here we can contemplate the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Condor and the sacred rock.

It was probably a llaqta and religious sanctuary. A llaqta is a temporary settlement where groups of people must fulfill the “mita” ie:the work that was a tribute to the State.

Sacred Valley :brings together a series of cities such as Sacsayhuamán, Ollantaytambo and Písac with houses built with stones carved especially for this purpose. There, ancestral customs are preserved, such as carrying out commercial transactions through the barter system.

See also :Machu Picchu

End of the Inca Empire

The Inca Empire began to break up at the end of the 15th century, facing several internal rebellions.

At this precise moment, the Spaniards arrived, allied themselves with the enemies of the Incas and ended up conquering them in 1533. Emperor Atahualpa was executed and after his death, the Incas took refuge in the mountains, where they resisted until 1571, when he was captured and dead the last leader – Tupac Amaru.

His grandson, Tupac Amaru II, led the last Inca insurrection, but was also assassinated.

Incas, Mayans and Aztecs

Incas, Mayans and Aztecs are the three most important civilizations in the world.

They developed in Latin America and reached a level of development compared to the Greeks or Egyptians. They had a sophisticated calendar, armies, a system of tributes and charges that allowed them to dominate neighboring peoples. They built cities and pyramids whose ruins survive to this day and are a concrete testimony to the splendor of this civilization.

Nor were they perfect:they owned slaves, performed human sacrifices, and women were used as a bargaining chip in case of war and peace negotiations.

We have more texts on the subject for you :

Inca culture
First Peoples of America
Mayans
Aztecs
Pre-Columbian Peoples