Francisco Pizarro’s force ambushed Atahualpa in the plaza of Cajamarca, seizing the Sapa Inca and killing many of his attendants. The capture became the pivotal opening move that enabled Spain to leverage ransom, internal divisions, and coercion against the Inca state.
After a large ransom was collected, Atahualpa was tried by the Spaniards and executed by garrote at Cajamarca. His death removed the central Inca sovereign authority and accelerated Spanish efforts to control succession through installed rulers.
Spanish forces entered and took possession of Cusco, the imperial capital, after defeating Inca forces in the region. The occupation enabled large-scale plunder and provided the administrative and symbolic center from which Spanish rule expanded.
Manco Inca was installed as a compliant Sapa Inca under Spanish supervision, a strategy meant to govern through existing legitimacy while real power remained with the conquerors. Abuse and restrictions placed on him helped set the stage for a major rebellion.
Pizarro founded Lima (initially called Ciudad de los Reyes) on the Rímac River valley. The new coastal capital improved Spanish communications and logistics with Panama and Spain, shifting the colonial center of gravity away from the highlands.
Manco Inca launched a large-scale uprising and began the siege of Cusco, nearly overrunning Spanish-held positions and threatening Spain’s foothold in Peru. Although the siege ultimately failed, it marked the transition to prolonged resistance centered in the Vilcabamba region.
Manco Inca’s forces defeated a Spanish expedition led by Hernando Pizarro near Ollantaytambo. The victory helped Manco Inca withdraw and consolidate a resistant polity that evolved into the Neo-Inca State based at Vilcabamba.
After months of fighting, the siege of Cusco ended with Spanish forces retaining control. The outcome solidified Spain’s grip on the former imperial capital even as Inca resistance persisted from remote strongholds.
Forces aligned with the Pizarro faction defeated Diego de Almagro’s faction at Las Salinas near Cusco. The internecine struggle among conquistadors reshaped colonial power dynamics, diverting resources and influencing governance in newly conquered Peru.
Pizarro was assassinated in Lima by Spanish rivals linked to Almagro’s supporters. His death underscored instability within the conquest elite and contributed to further Crown intervention in Peruvian governance.
Charles V promulgated the New Laws to curb abuses against Indigenous peoples and restrict the power of encomenderos. In Peru, enforcement provoked major backlash among colonists, illustrating the Crown’s effort to impose tighter imperial control after the conquest.
The Spanish negotiated an agreement with Neo-Inca ruler Titu Cusi Yupanqui at Acobamba, reflecting a phase of diplomacy and attempted accommodation between Vilcabamba and the colonial regime. The treaty sought to stabilize relations even as mutual suspicion persisted.
Titu Cusi died in Vilcabamba, triggering a succession change and intensifying tensions with the Spanish. In the ensuing crisis, Túpac Amaru became the final Neo-Inca ruler as Spanish authorities prepared to end Vilcabamba’s independence.
During the final campaign against Vilcabamba, Spanish forces pursued and captured Túpac Amaru, bringing the last independent Inca polity under Spanish control. His capture effectively ended organized Neo-Inca sovereignty.
Túpac Amaru was executed in Cusco on orders of Viceroy Francisco de Toledo. The execution symbolized the end of the Neo-Inca State of Vilcabamba and closed the final chapter (1532–1572) of sustained political-military resistance rooted in Inca imperial legitimacy.
Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire (1532–1572)
