Inca Civilization

The Inca civilization was the largest Pre-Columbian civilization in the Americas and Cusco was its capital. The best kept example of its architecture is Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu

The Sacred City is one of the most significant archeological sites left by the Incas

Culture

Fascinating culture and Inca heritage of this beautiful country

Lake Titicaca

Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world. It occupies an important place in Inca mythology.

Animals of Peru

Animals in Peru have specialized and adapted to the conditions of its geography. At higher altitude levels, few animals and plants can survive because of the lack of oxygen.

Home » History, Independence

Tupac Amaru-Inca Renaissance

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The eighteenth century brought the recovery of the local native population that saw its numbers plunge from disease during the conquest. Some curacas achieved important social and economic positions in society; this period is known as the Inca Renaissance. The economic crisis, the loss of power of the Spanish Crown in Europe due to the invasion of Napoleon and the New Laws imposed by the Bourbon Crown favored the indigenous uprising.  Many indigenous Peruvian uprisings took place in the second half of the eighteenth century but the most significant one, although unsuccessful, was Tupac Amaru’s rebellion in 1780.

Tupac Amaru II

Jose Gabriel Condorcanqui , known as Tupac Amaru II, was a Peruvian patriot who fought for indigenous rights and was an inspiration to the Peruvian struggle for independence. He adopted his name from his great grandfather, Inca Tupac Amaru. Tupac Amaru II was a noble Indian and a curaca of the Cusco region, he was inspired by the northern British colonies that were fighting a war for independence and in 1780 he led a group of 60,000 men in the first major Inca uprising against the Spanish colonizers. Although initially successful, the local administration responded by mobilizing troops from Lima and other cities to halt the uprising and to avoid Cusco to fall in the hands of the rebels. On April 1781 Tupac Amaru II and his family were captured and tortured, he and his family were executed on the main plaza in the city of Cusco.

Tupac Amaru’s rebellion inspired others to fight for independence and other regional uprisings followed.  In 1780 in the region of the Altiplano, Tupac Katari, with the help of Diego Condorcanqui, Tupac Amaru’s brother, held control of La Paz for six months before he was captured and executed. Other rebellions such as one in Huanuco in 1812 and Cusco in 1814 were suppressed and its rebels publicly executed. As a result, Inca descendants were pursued and executed, some of them were sent to prisons in Spain where they died.

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