Rise of the Incan Empire

On the edge of Western South America, wedged between Earth's driest desert, largest rainforest and second highest mountain range, lay a sprawling empire. The Inca, through ingenious engineering and strict central planning, forged one of the world's most unusual empires. It was the largest empire in the pre-Columbian Americas, without a written language, the wheel or money, and one of the only empires to stretch upwards rather than across. In this video, we will look at how the Inca rose to power from unknown origins and dominated their region. When Columbus arrived in the Americas in 1492, he was unaware that about 2,000 kilometers away lay a bustling empire of 2 million square kilometers. Tahuantinsuyu, the land of the Four Quarters, as the Inca called their realm, included parts of modern Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. It had a population of more than 10 million across innumerable ethnic groups and languages. The Inca developed in near-isolation, so their culture was missing many things that were vital in the old world. The wheel was absent, along with any draft animal capable of pulling weight. Steel and iron were unknown, while gold, silver, and bronze were masterfully worked. Most intriguing was that they lacked a written language, so their knowledge was passed on orally or through a unique system of knots called quipu. These knots were used to collect data, keep records, measure taxes, and record the census. However, as the Spanish established control over the Inca, the ability to read quipu faded away, and the records are now indecipherable to us. Therefore, most of the history we have about the Inca has come down to us through Spanish historians or oral traditions. With that in mind, let's take a look at the origins of the Inca Empire. Ancient Peru was one of the ancient cradles of civilization, and between 8000 and 3000 BC, the people there domesticated llamas and alpacas, along with an immense variety of crops such as potatoes, corn, beans, peanuts, squashes, and quinoa. From these early agricultural societies, a series of complex cultures emerged, such as Tiwanaku, Wari, and Chimu. By 900 AD, states like Tiwanaku were erecting huge stone structures, building highways and canals, and maintaining a capital of 50,000 people at a time when London had around 30,000, all at 3,000 meters above sea level. The Inca were the final great society to emerge here, and inherited much from those that came before. As the Chimu Empire was at its peak, to its south, the tiny kingdom of Cuzco slumbered. This small kingdom would rapidly transform into Tawentinsuyu, or what we call the Inca Empire. Where exactly did the Inca come from? Well, let's take a look at the Inca's own mythological origin story. It begins with the great creator god Viracocha, who came upon three caves. From the central cave, Viracocha brought forth four brothers and four sisters. These were to be the founders of the Inca civilization. Out of the side caves stepped others, who were to be the forebears of the other, less important Inca clans. One of the brothers, Ayamanco, armed with a golden staff capable of testing soil, led his people on an exodus-like journey, at the end of which he was the only remaining brother. Upon entering the valley of Cuzco, the golden staff sank into the ground, and so his people settled there. The city of Cuzco was founded, and Ayamanco adopted the name Mancocapec. This is one of the many origin myths of the Inca. The myth would be regularly changed and updated for political reasons. For example, if the Inca wanted to integrate a foreign state or power into their empire, then that entity would conveniently find itself wedged into the current mythology. But Mancocapec was probably a real person, that led a group of nomads into the valley and founded Cuzco in the early 13th century. The history of the first eight Inca kings is lost in the mists of time. Its ninth king was the first to step into certain history. An Inca Alexander the Great, called Cusillapanque, rose to power in the early 1400s. At the time of his birth, the kingdom of Cuzco was barely more than a chiefdom. He was not the first in line to the throne, but after Cuzco was besieged by 40,000 enemy Chanca soldiers, and his king father and prince brother fled the city, it was Cusillapanque who organized a defense and not only saved the city, but also won himself the crown. Before his reign, his kingdom held the small territory around Cuzco, but within a single lifetime, he and his son had stretched the new empire from present-day Bolivia to Ecuador. He adopted the name Pachacuti, which means Earthshaker, or he who turns the world upside down. Through the use of spies, Pachacuti would assess the military strength and wealth of the other states in the region. After collecting this information, he would send messages to the leaders of these states, attempting to persuade them to join his empire. He promised they would keep their position and would grow even more powerful. Luxury goods and riches would be poured upon them, only, however, if they submitted peacefully. If they accepted, the heirs of that ruler would be sent to the royal court in Cuzco, whereupon they would be educated in an Inca fashion and raised to be perfect Incas. Once transformed, they were then sent back to rule their realms in a thoroughly Inca style. If they did not accept, they were usually crushed by the huge multi-ethnic army Pachacuti built. Pachacuti reorganized the kingdom of Cuzco into Tahuantinsuyu using a federalist system. He split the empire into four parts, or suyus, each managed by provincial governors that reported directly to the central government in Cuzco. Cuzco was transformed into a suitable imperial city and center to Pachacuti's new empire. The city was paved with perfectly cut stone, and from its center spread vast highways linking all the suyus. Along with these highway projects, Pachacuti also initiated the construction of huge royal estates, the most famous of which is Machu Picchu, located 2430 meters above sea level. The rapid growth of the empire was incredible and even more impressive was the idea that the Inca actually tried to integrate the conquered peoples into their empire rather than just setting up mostly independent tributary states like the Aztecs had done. By the time Pachacuti's grandson Huayna Capac sat on the throne, there was hardly anything else left to possibly conquer. Militarily, the Inca were extremely organized and used a flexible decimal system to organize units. They could raise armies of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and move them across rough terrain with ease. Almost all able-bodied men between 25 and 50 had military training. Each province would send men to join a military campaign whenever needed. The state made sure that no province was sending more men than they could and on particularly long campaigns, men were regularly allowed to return home to make sure their lives did not fall out of order. Like the Aztecs, the Inca relied on cotton armor. They wore thick alpaca wool tunics and helmets to protect themselves. These tunics were so effective at stopping arrows that Spanish soldiers adopted them while fighting the Inca and there are reports of them leaving battles looking like porcupines with dozens of arrows wedged in their armor. A large shield made of hardwood imported from their jungle provinces was kept on their back. Another, much smaller shield made of lighter wood was kept on the arm. A small cape attached to it could be used to protect their legs from missiles. As the empire was so diverse, they relied on an equally diverse range of weapons and soldiers. Men recruited from the jungle provinces were excellent bowmen, while those from the other provinces preferred dart throwers and slings. For melee combat, the Inca had a varied arsenal. Spears, axes, clubs, star-headed maces, and halberds were the most common weapons and could be made from stone, bronze, or bone. The Inca were talented with bolas, which were multiple stones tied together that wrapped around an enemy's legs. These would be used effectively against the Spanish cavalry. The Inca used their military to expand their reach across the spine of South America, crushing resistance wherever it showed its head. In less than 100 years, they created the greatest empire in the Americas. But how did they keep it all functioning and how did they keep 10 million mouths fed in a land of extremes? We will cover that in the next episode. Thank you for watching this video in our series on the pre-Columbian civilizations. The next episode will depict how the Inca civilization worked. If you enjoy this series, please let us know in the comments below. We would like to express our gratitude to our Patreon supporters, who make the creation of our videos possible. Now, you can also support us directly via YouTube by pressing the sponsorship button directly below the video. This is the Kings and Generals channel, along with Cogito, and we will catch you on the next one.