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With just a handful of men andthe insatiable thirst for gold for flag.
The Trujillan conqueror conquered the largest empirein America, thus becoming a hero for
some and a bloodthirsty villain for others. Great reports of very history presents the
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conquest of America lights and shadows,chapter Five Pizarro and the conquest of Peru,
The Sunset of the Incas, atext by Roberto Pierro. It wasn
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' t Francisco Pizarro, an exemplaryhydalgo, an illiterate bastard and, according
to the black legend, a pigbreeder, Trujillo was a man made of
himself, a survivor who knew howto squeeze like no one his counted virtues
to become one of the proper namesof the history of the Spanish conquest of
America. The illegitimate son of CaptainGonzalo Pizarro, was born in a thousand
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four hundred and seventy- eight.He survived a childhood of Penurias to later
forge a reputation as a warlike soldierin the wars of Italy, serving under
the orders of the great captain beforecrossing the Ocean in search of fame and
fortune in the direction of the newworld. There he managed to stay for
years in a discreet and background,in the expeditions of Alonso de Ojeda in
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Central America and Colombia and of VascoNúñez de Balboa, first European to reach
the Pacific, he was lieutenant councilorand mayor of Panama, in such a
way that shortly Pizarro became one ofthose men who owed in America a considerable
amount of contempt. But the Trujillanowas an ambitious man and, like so
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many other Spaniards settled in the newcontinent, he dreamed of emulating Hernán Cortés
' exploits, conquering an exotic empireand covering himself with gold, reaching where
others had never arrived. In themid- twenties of the 16th century,
Pizarro apparently had everything a man ofhis position could aspire to have in America.
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But at that time they were increasinglyinsistent in rumors about the enormous wealth
awaiting in the unexplored south in aformidable empire known as the virus. The
governor of Castilla del Oro Pedrarias Dávilahad already given the approval of some preliminary
explorations in search of clues about thissupposed gold. But before Pizarro set his
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attention to such a succulent goal,all the attempts, the most popular one
in Pascual de Andagoya, had beenin vain. It was a great company
and although Pizarro had in his favorthe excessive ambition, the adventurous spirit and
a long experience on the ground asa soldier and explorer of success, he
lacked the most important money to carryit out. So determined to follow the
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steps of politeness. In 1,500 twenty- five, the veteran from
Extremadura sought two partners in the peopleof Diego de Almagro, another American with
a thousand battles on his back andHernando de Luque, vicar of Panama and
key man in the Triangle, becauseit was he who had the necessary contacts
to find a pocket willing to financethe reckless expedition Luque had no great difficulty
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in convincing the lawyer and governor ofPanama to gasp of spinosa to invest the
generous sum of twenty- zero pesosto put the company definitively in motion.
I doubt it was certainly the righttime. Two All the attention of colonial
authorities and potential adventurers was centered atthat time in Central America. The south
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was out of maps and stone plans. Dávila approved the project without objecting too
much. Thus, Pizarro left forthe unknown on board two ships, Santiago
and San Cristóbal, and the commandof one hundred and twelve compatriots and some
Indians hoped to discover the virus beforeanyone could cast a shadow over it.
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In this first southern journey, Pizarrocould not continue his journey beyond the northern
coast of Colombia. It soon becameclear that the company would cost sweaty blood
and tears. By land, thejungle made the journey impracticable and by sea,
the currents led to an extremely slownavigation, always sheltered from the wire
coast. The climate and the avatarsof the crossing were in addition to the
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hostility of the indigenous people. Theconfluence between the lean and Pizarro did not
occur. Finally, both turned towardsPanama, calling the other one dead.
They survived to tell it, butthe viru expedition had been a resounding failure.
A third of the men never cameback. No remarkable or promising discoveries
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were made, and the economic losseswere enormous, but Pizar was not one
of those who gave his arm totwist easily. Espinosa' s money continued
to flow and the calamities of thefirst trip had not troubled two tough,
tanned types, such as the meekand him. Thus, in October of
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one thousand and five hundred and twenty- six the second journey departed and this
time there were finally promising new ones. The blackboard pilot, Bartolomé Ruiz,
who had been sent as an advanceof the main body of the expedition,
met some Indians who informed him thatthey came from Tumbes located on the northern
border of the virus and the Incaempire. At last, rumors and legends
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crystallized into a tangible reality. Thenews filled Pizarro with satisfaction, but the
joy would last little. The monthspassed and the Spaniards clashed again and again
against the jungle wall and the adversecurrents. Soon the tiredness and despair seized
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the men of Pizarro, who tookadvantage of the trip of the magician Panama
in search of provisions to hide amessage inside a cotton ball destined for the
wife of the new governor, Pedrode los Ríos. The complaints of the
famous men had effect and the Riosdecided to terminate the adventure and send two
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ships to pick up Pizarro and histo take them back Panama. The ships
under Captain Juan Tafur arrived on GalloIsland transmitting the new governor' s tax
orders, but Pizarro was not willingto give up on things like that.
He drew with the sword a linein the sand of the beach and addressed
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his men uttering the following words.On this side, Panama is going to
be poor, on this side,Peru to be rich. Choose the one
who is good Castilian what I havefor them. After many doubts, only
thirteen men crossed the line and joinedtheir destiny to that of Pizarro, the
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thirteen of fame or Gallo Island.While the bulk of the expedition was returning
to Panama with Tafur, Pizarro managedto obtain an extension of the permission of
the Governor of the Rivers to proceedwith the expedition. That' s only
with his axiguo contingent of thirteen soldiersand abandoned to his fate. They finally
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landed in Tumbés and for the firsttime came into contact with the formidable INCA
Empire. After spending the next fewmonths exploring the region, Pizarro returned in
March of 1, 500 twenty-eight to Castilla del Oro, after the
governor' s permission expired. Sevenmonths later, the Trujillano set out for
Spain, where he hoped to obtainthe green light to conquer the virú by
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the hand of Carlos V himself.And so it was. In July of
1, 500 twenty- nine capitulationswere signed in which they crystallized the ambitions
of Pizarro, who was recognized asgovernor of the territories he could conquer.
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Palmagro also obtained his share of thecake, but always from a position of
subordination to the other, which sowedthe seed of a rivalry between the two,
which would eventually lead to a genuinecivil war. With all the permits
in order. The Extremaduran conqueror returnedto Panama, where he completed preparations for
a new expedition in which, atthe head of a contingent of one hundred
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and eighty- five soldiers and thirty- seven horses, he sailed to Peru.
The thirtyth of December of 1,500 thirty. He barely landed in
the current Coaque region of Ecuador.Pizarro understood that, like Cortés, he
could count on the invaluable support ofmany indigenous populations desperate to shake off the
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heavy burden of being subjects of theIncas. In fact, the Spaniards were
initially very well received by many ofthe indigenous caudillos who came to pass and
finally installed their headquarters on the islandof Puna. It was there that news
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came not only of the enormous numberof tribes uncomfortable by their submission to Inca
hegemony, but also of the mosttranscendent, critical situation that was going through
after the death of Inca Winna Kpack. The Tahuantinsuyo immersed in a bloody civil
war between the two sons of thatatahualpa that was gradually being imposed and his
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brother Huascar. With this valuable information, Pizarro landed on the continent in Tumbes
with the firm intention of taking overthat fragile and decadent empire in crisis.
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At that point, Atahualpa was alreadyaware of the presence of the Spaniards in
his territory and Pizarro did not getin Tumbes the welcome he expected with everyone.
He had a hard time getting controlof the city. To you gradually,
combining the use of brute force anddiplomacy, it increased the territory under
its control and took advantage of thedisunity among indigenous peoples. On the 15th
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of August of 1, 500 thirty- two he founded in the Chera Valley
the first Spanish settlement in the territoryof the San Miguel de Tangarada virus.
At that point, Pizarro did notwant to delay the meeting with Atahualpa any
longer and so, in the companyof a contingent of some 180 men,
decided to go out to meet him, a meeting that, on the other
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hand, Atahualpa had no intention ofrunning away, absolutely confident that his overwhelming
numerical superiority would turn into the visitof those Spaniards in little more than an
exotic anecdote. A mere incident.After a painful journey through the Andes,
Pizarro resolved to promote the clash withthe Inca in a place where his numerical
inferiority was not such a large handicapand chose the city of Cajamarca. His
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brother, Hernando Pizarro and Hernando deSoto were in charge of bringing the invitation
to the Peruvian monarch. Hernando's pride, added to the news of
the Spanish running in Inca territory,filled the patience of Atahualpa, who,
after refusing at first, finally agreedto meet with blackboard in that city.
Trusted in the weakness of the Spaniards, he presented himself with an entourage of
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ten zero men, leaving the bulkof his army outside the city. After
a fruitless initial score, Pizarro launchedhis strategy, optimizing his meagre military resources.
A bloody battle broke out in Cajamarca, but in just half an hour
Atahualpa had been captured and four zeroIndians lay dead after a skirmish without casualties
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for the men of Pijarro, knowingthe fate of their great leader, the
Inca army frightened by the carnage lackingin the interior of the city was dissolved.
Pijarro' s blow. The greatestempire in Pre- Columbian America had
been lethal. The tahuantinsuyo that inQuechua meant the four regions or divisions,
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was already at his feet. Despitethe victory, effective domination over such a
vast empire with such meager human resourceswas little less than a chimera. On
the other hand, there was stillno trace of the desired gold, so
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Pizarro raised an ultimatum the captive toTahualpa. If he wanted to keep his
skin, he would have to paya ransom to the king of the Incas.
Catahualpa took the glove and promised tworooms full of silver and one of
gold. In exchange for his lifeand being able to continue to rule,
even if he was like a puppetover his subjects. The Inca kept his
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word, and Pizarro and his mencovered themselves with gold. Then less satisfied.
They left the Magro and his men, who received a much smaller share
of the spoils. The tension betweenthe other inseparable partners only grew, and
although the Magro found sufficient wealth totemporarily contain his own, the seed of
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discord was already planted and was tobloom very soon afterwards. Patahualpa had the
hours counted, but since his captivityhe still had the resources to order the
murder of his brother Huascar. Thecivil confrontation between the two heirs was a
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delicate matter for Pizarro, but dead, one of them no longer had reason
to keep the other alive like this, Pizarro gave way to the opening of
a trial against the Inca monarch.Naturally, it was all a pure assembly
and Atahualpa was condemned and executed onJuly 26th, 1, 500 thirty-
three. Four months later, Pizarromade his triumphal entry into Cuzco and thus
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culminated his spectacular and facing the projectionof his exploits in Spain, bloody conquest
in order not to irritate Emperor CharlesV the Extremaduran conqueror, decided to maintain
appearances, especially on his intentions andnew territories, and therefore chose to find
an heir of royal blood for Atahualpa. The one chosen was tupac Hualpa,
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a puppet in his hands. Thetreasures of Cuzco filled all the fantasies of
the conquerors, gold jewels and silverin quantities never seen before. But although
it was a great and wonderful city, it symbolized the fall of an old
order, which made it necessary foranother to symbolize the birth of the new
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one. Thus, in January of1, 500 thirty- five, Pizarro
moved to the capital of the inaccessibleCuzco to the newly created. Hero book
for some, butcher for others.He had conquered with a handful of men
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the greatest empire ever to fall underthe yoke of a Spanish monarch. Thank
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