The Inca Empire/Tahuantinsuyo

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The history of the New World's greatest empire

As you can see on this map, the Inca Empire (in Quechuan called Tahuantinsuyo) stretched from Colombia through Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, down into today's Chile and Argentina. It was an immense territory, one of the World's largest empires and the biggest in the "New World" or "Nuevo Mundo", how the conquistadores called it.

The map shows the maximum territory that the Incas have ever conquered and melted into their area of influence.

We take you through the history of the Incas and also give you a general image about the populations that have lived in the Andes before them.

Pre-Inca civilizations 

Before the Incas, there were a number of civilizations that inhabited the area.

Among the major civilizations were: the Chachapoyas, the Chimú, the Nazca, the Moche, the Caral (or Norte Chico), the Huari (Wari), the Tiahuanaco and the Chavín cultures.

Between the smaller groups that inhabited the places where the Tahuantinsuyo were the Malbecs, the Hu-Tyus, Punos, Mari-Tiu-Tie, Olbraqeus.  

Some of these names are not the original ones, because the populations have disappeared long time ago and we have no clues about how they called themselves. Therefore, archaeologists often give them the names of geographical regions.

Many of these Pre-Inca civilizations have left behind priceless archaeological artifacts, mysterious wonders, like the Chachapoyas, which have built large cities, like Kuelap and many others still waiting to be uncovered.     

The famous and impressive Nazca lines were left behind by the Nazca, a great civilization that lived between 200 BC and 600 AD, between the valleys of Cañete and Acari.

The Caral, also called Norte Chico culture is well known for its city of Caral. An impressive complex in the desert of Southwestern Peru, which includes several pyramids. Interestingly, the Norte Chico culture has also used quipus for communication and recording messages (similarly to the Incas).

The Chimú and the Moche were conquered by the Incas and have probably "blended in" with the dominators. It is known that the Chimú people have adopted the Inca religion, after the Incas proposed them safety in return for this act.

Tiahuanaco is a city in today's Bolivia, constructed by the culture with the same name. Interestingly, the word Tiahuanaco comes from the Incas and means "City of the Dead". The Tiahuanaco culture partly resembles the one of the Incas, links between them can be found as far away as Ollantaytambo, where common shapes, forms can be found on the walls.

The appearance of the Inca Empire

Is considered to have existed already around the 1200s. It rose in the Andes, around the Cuzco (Cusco) area, then it has gradually expanded to include the territories marked on the map on the left. What you will see on our map is actually the maximum size of the Inca Empire.

The original Inca name (preserved in today's Quechuan) was Tawantin Suyu, meaning the "Four Regions". "Tawa" means a group of 4 things and "suyu means" region or province. These were the following regions: Chinchasuyu, Antisuyu, Contisuyu and Collasuyu. These 4 divisions of the mighty empire met at the city of Cuzco (in its original name "Quesqu" or sometimes "Qusqu" or "Qosqu", today often written as "Cusco")., which was built in the shape of a Puma.

Except the Quechua, official language, several hundred local languages were used.

The Incas were deeply religious and their religion was the highest value that they gave importance to. Cruel acts, like human sacrifices were also made under the pretext of religion.

The Incas have worked on creating an empire-wide road network for transportation (directly with animals, they didn't use vehicles) and also for carrying messages (by the famous chasquis). This network of roads is called the Inca Trail and has a total length of about 23.000 km.

The growth and the fall of the Tahuantinsuyo

Between 1438 - 1463, under the rule of Pachacuti, the territory was much smaller, it included much of the Urubamba area, down to the Titicaca Lake. This remained the core of the empire, as it grew towards the north and west of today's Peru. Ruler Pachacuti is also believed to have been the one who ordered the citadel of Machu Picchu to be built.

The Inca Empire has stretched most between 1463 - 1493, under the rule of Túpa Inca. During this period, the Incas have conquered the territories that are in parts of today's Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, also the territories along the Pacific coastline of Peru, as well as parts of Ecuador. About 70 % of the territory ever ruled by the Incas was conquered during the rule of Túpa Inca.

The Tahuantinsuyo has reached its peak under the rule of Huayná Capac, between 1493 - 1525. Then, the Incas have extended to the northern Andes of today's Peru, occupying more of today's Ecuador and a small part of today's southeastern Colombia.

Between 1197-1533 Cuzco was the capital, but the Spanish attacks have left the so-called Sacred Valley of the Incas in ruins and Cuzco had to be abandoned and replaced with a new city, Vilcabamba, located in the valley with the same name, meaning "Sacred Valley" (but the 2 Sacred Valleys are not identical!). The Vilcabamba is northwest, even further than Machu Picchu and constituted sort of a refuge-city where the Incas regrouped and organized attacks against the Spaniards.

Vilcabamba was the last capital of the Incas between 1533-1572, when it fell under Spanish attack. The Spaniards captured the last Inca ruler, Túpac Amaru, the son of Manco Cápac II. and killed him.

The most intense activity of the Incas was in the Sacred Valley.

The Inca Empire's collapse is mostly due to the wars led by conquistador Francisco Pizarro and also due to the fighting between the Incas themselves. In 1532, a war of succession broke out between Huayná Capac's 2 sons, Atahualpa and Huascár. What was even worse then all these, an epidemic of smallpox swept through the land, weakening of the empire. Atahualpa became ruler, but Pizarro's men brutally murdered him in 1533 and took over the control if the Empire's most important cities (including Cuzco, to which they attributed high importance).