The Inca Empire: Rise and Fall

Introduction

• The Inca Empire was located in western South America.
• Bordered by Earth's driest desert, largest rainforest, and second-highest mountain range.
• Built without a written language, the wheel, or money.

Inca Origins and Expansion

• Originated in the city of Cusco around the early 13th century.
• Expanded from a small kingdom to a massive empire under Pachacuti ("Earthshaker").
• Empire known as Tahuantinsuyu, "The Land of the Four Quarters," included parts of modern Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.

Inca Society and Culture

• Lacked the wheel, draft animals, steel, and iron.
• Relied on oral traditions and khipu for record-keeping.
• Society managed through a federalist system with a strong central government.
• Taxes collected in the form of labor (mit'a).
• No marketplaces; goods were distributed from state-owned warehouses.

Agriculture and Infrastructure

• High-altitude agriculture with diverse ecological zones.
• Developed terraces and irrigation systems to maximize agricultural productivity.
• Built an extensive network of highways, totaling over 40,000 kilometers.
• Constructed cisterns and terraces to manage water and prevent crop freezing.

Military Organization

• Highly organized and flexible military system.
• Used a decimal system to organize units.
• Relied on diverse weapons and armor adapted to different regions.

Spiritual Beliefs and Mummification

• Mummification for influential figures; treated as living beings to influence the living world.
• Wealth and land managed by panaqas, the royal family groups.

Spanish Conquest

• Smallpox decimated the Inca population before substantial contact with Europeans.
• The Spanish used internal divisions and rivalries to their advantage.
• Francisco Pizarro captured Atahualpa and demanded a ransom in gold.
• Manco Inca later led a rebellion against Spanish rule, resorting to guerrilla tactics.

Collapse and Legacy

• The Inca Empire fell about 100 years after its rapid expansion under Pachacuti.
• The Spanish conquest was aided by internal strife and European diseases.
• Last Inca stronghold fell in 1572 with the execution of Tupac Amaru.

These notes summarize the key points about the rise and fall of the Inca Empire, focusing on their innovative societal structures, agricultural advancements, and eventual conquest by Spanish forces.