Peru Colonisation Essay

PERU

Colonisation Assessment - History (16th century)
Sept, 2011
WHY WAS THE COUNTRY COLONISED?

Peru was part of the Inca Empire, which the Inca’s called Tahuantinsuyo.   The area also included Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina.

The medieval Spaniards referred to the area as “Neuvo Mundo” or “New World”.   The Inca Empire was one of the world’s largest empires.

One of the most important campaigns in Spanish colonisation was the conquest of the Inca Empire.

The Spaniards were told of a territory rich in gold.   A country that could be referred to as “El Dorado”.   El Dorado is spanish for “the golden one” (later referred to as “Lost City of Gold”), is a legendary tale of a Muisca (Chibcha speaking tribe) tribal chief who covered himself with gold dust and dived into a highland lake as part of an initiation rite.

El Dorado is what enticed European explorers for two centuries, but no evidence of such a place has ever been found.

Who colonised the country i.e, which country ‘discovered’ and colonised the country?

Which Country?

The Spanish conquistadors started to enter into Peru in the 16th century and after executing the Emperor in 1532, imposed Spanish rule on the Incas.

With the destruction of cities and brutal torture and killings by the Spanish army, the colonisation period had started.

The Inca Empire was the world’s second largest empire, second to the Roman Empire.

What individuals were involved?

Francisco Pizarrro, a spanish conquistador (Spanish conqueror of Peru in the 16th century) was conqueror of the Incan Empire.   On November 16, 1532 in what became the Battle of Cajamarca, Pizarro with his 106 foot-soldiers and 37 horseman executed the 12-man honour guard of the Emperor along with thousands of his army.

The Emperor, Atahualpa, was taken captive by Pizarro.   Even though the Emperor had given Pizarro a room of gold and two rooms of silver he was still executed by garrote on 29 August, 1533.

What...