Manco Inca Yupanqui

Manco Inca Yupanqui (1544) was the founder and first Sapa Inca of the independent Neo-Inca State in Vilcabamba, although he was originally a puppet Inca Emperor installed by the Spaniards. He was also known as Manco II and Manco Cápac II. He was one of the sons of Huayna Cápac and a younger brother of Huáscar.Prescott, W.H., 2011, The History of the Conquest of Peru, digireads.com,

Biography

Origin and enthronement

Manco Inca, one of the more than 50 sons of Huayna Capac, was born in Cuzco. When Atahualpa's troops took the city under the command of General Quizquiz, they killed the descendants of Huayna Cápac, the Huascar supporters, and anyone who could try to take the place of the Inca. Because of this, Manco Inca was forced to flee, avoiding any contact with the atahualpists.

On 14 November 1533, he met the conquistador Francisco Pizarro and his contingent, both Inca and Spanish. This and other events such as the massacre of Atahualpa led Manco Inca to believe that the Spaniards were "saviors" sent by the gods.

Túpac Huallpa was a puppet ruler crowned by Francisco Pizarro. After his death, Manco Inca joined Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro in Cajamarca. When Pizarro's forces arrived in Cusco, he had the ''caciques'' acknowledge Manco as their Inca. Manco Inca then joined Almagro and Hernando de Soto in pursuit of Quizquiz.Pizzaro, P.; 1571, Relation of the Discovery and Conquest of the Kingdoms of Peru, Vol. 1–2, New York, Cortes Society, RareBooksClub.com,

When Pizarro left Cuzco with Almagro and Manco Inca, for Jauja in pursuit of Quizquiz, Francisco left his younger brothers Gonzalo Pizarro and Juan Pizarro as regidores, and a ninety-man garrison in the city.

The Pizarro brothers so mistreated Manco Inca that he ultimately tried to escape in 1535. He failed, was captured and imprisoned. Hernando Pizarro released him to recover a golden statue of his father Huayna Cápac. Only accompanied by two Spaniards, he easily escaped a second time. Manco then gathered an army of 200,000 Inca warriors and laid siege to Cusco in early 1536, taking advantage of Diego de Almagro's absence.

After ten months (see the siege of Cuzco), Manco retreated to the nearby fortress of Ollantaytambo in 1537. Here Manco successfully defended attacks by the Spaniards in the January 1537 battle of Ollantaytambo.

Manco coordinated his siege of Cusco with one on Lima, led by one of his captains, Quiso Yupanqui. The Incas were able to defeat four relief expeditions sent by Francisco Pizarro from Lima. This resulted in the death of nearly 500 Spanish soldiers. Some Spaniards were captured and sent to Ollantaytambo.

Alonso de Alvarado was sent by Pizarro to Cusco, but upon his arrival at Abancay, he and his army were captured by Rodrigo Orgóñez in the Battle of Abancay. This was the beginning of the first civil war between the conquistadors.

Abandoning Ollantaytambo (and effectively giving up the highlands of the empire), Manco Inca retreated to Vitcos and finally to the remote jungles of Vilcabamba,Garcilaso De La Vega El Inca, 2006, Royal Commentaries of the Incas and General History of Peru, Indianapolis, Hackett Publishing Company, where he founded the Neo-Inca State which lasted until the death of Túpac Amaru in 1572. From there, he continued his attacks against the Wankas (one of the most important allies of the Spaniards), having some success after fierce battles, and to the highlands of present-day Bolivia, where after many battles his army was defeated.

The Spaniards crowned his younger half brother Paullu Inca as puppet Sapa Inca after his retreat for his valuable help in that last campaign.Titu Cusi Yupanqui, 2005, An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru, Boulder, University Press of Colorado, The Spanish succeeded in capturing Manco's sister-wife, Cura Ocllo; Gonzalo Pizarro raped her and kept her at his palace in Casana.Titu Cusi Yupanqui, 2005, An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru, Boulder, University Press of Colorado, The Spaniards had her murdered in 1539.

Death

After many guerrilla battles in the mountainous regions of Vilcabamba, Manco was murdered in 1544 in the Inca center of Vitcos by supporters of Diego de Almagro who had previously assassinated Francisco Pizarro and who were in hiding under Manco's protection. They in turn were all killed by Manco's soldiers.

Manco was succeeded by his son Sayri Tupaq. Manco Inca had several sons, including Sayri Tupaq, Titu Cusi, and Túpac Amaru.

See also

* History of Cusco
* Spanish conquest of Peru
* Túpac Amaru

References

{{Authority control

Inca emperors
1510s births
1544 deaths
16th-century murdered monarchs
Viceroyalty of Peru people
16th-century Sapa Incas
People murdered in 1544
Spanish Indian auxiliaries