Inca country in South America. Incas: The Great Empire of the Four Ends of the World. Government of the Inca Empire

"Inca State"

1. Formation of the Inca state

The Incas dominated the territory now called Peru for a long time. During the period when the empire's territory reached its greatest size, it included part of South America and extended over almost a million square kilometers. In addition to present-day Peru, the empire included most of present-day Colombia and Ecuador, almost all of Bolivia, the northern regions of the Republic of Chile and the northwestern part of Argentina.

Term the Incas, or rather Inca, has a variety of meanings. Firstly, this is the name of the entire ruling class in the state of Peru. Secondly, this is the title of a ruler. Thirdly, the name of the people as a whole. Original name Inca worn by one of the tribes that lived in the Cuzco Valley before the formation of the state. Many facts indicate that this tribe belonged to the Quechua language group, since the Incas during the heyday of the state spoke this language. The close relationship of the Incas with the Quechua tribes is evidenced by the fact that representatives of these tribes received a privileged position compared to other tribes and were called “Incas by privilege.” “Inca by privilege” did not pay tribute, and they were not enslaved.

There are 12 known rulers who headed the state. The first royal couple, who were at the same time brother and sister, were the first Inca, Mango Capac and his wife Mama Oklo. Historical legends tell of wars between the Inca and neighboring tribes. The first decade of the 13th century was the beginning of the strengthening of the Inca tribe and, possibly, the time of the formation of a union of tribes led by the Inca. The reliable history of the Incas begins with the activities of the ninth ruler, Pachacuti (1438–1463). From this time on, the rise of the Incas began. The state is rapidly growing stronger. In subsequent years, the Incas conquered and subjugated the tribes of the entire Andean region from Southern Colombia to Central Chile. The population of the state is 6 million people.

2. Inca economy

The Incas achieved great success in many economic sectors, especially in metallurgy. The mining of copper and tin was of greatest practical importance. Silver deposits were developed. The Quechua language has a word for iron, but most likely it was not an alloy, and the meaning of the word was given by meteoric iron, or hematite. There is no evidence of iron mining or iron ore smelting.

Tools and jewelry were created from the mined metals. Axes, sickles, knives, crowbars, tips for military clubs and many other items needed in the household were cast from bronze. Jewelry and religious objects were made of gold and silver.

Weaving was highly developed. The Indians of Peru already knew looms, and there were three types of looms. The Indians sometimes dyed the fabrics woven on them, using for this purpose the seeds of the avocado tree (blue color) or various metals, in particular copper and tin. Fabrics made in the distant centuries of the Inca civilization have survived to this day and are distinguished by their richness and fineness of finish. The raw materials were cotton and wool. Fleecy fabrics for clothing and carpets were also produced. For the Inca, as well as members of the royal clan, special fabrics were made - from colored bird feathers.

Agriculture received significant development in the Inca state, although the area where the Inca tribes were located was not particularly conducive to development Agriculture. This is due to the fact that streams of water flow down the steep slopes of the Andes during the rainy season, washing away the soil layer, and in dry times there is no moisture left on them. Under such conditions, the Incas had to irrigate the land to retain moisture in the fields. For this purpose, special structures were created and regularly updated. The fields were located in stepped terraces, the lower edge of which was reinforced with stonework that retained the soil. A dam was built at the edge of the terrace to divert water from mountain rivers to the fields. The channels were lined with stone slabs. The state appointed special officials whose duties included monitoring the serviceability of structures.

On the fertile, or rather, became fertile, land in all regions of the empire, a wide variety of plants were grown, the queen among which was corn, in the Quechua language - sara. The Indians knew up to 20 different varieties of corn. Apparently, corn in ancient Peru was introduced from the Mesoamerican region. The most valuable gift of Peruvian agriculture is the potato, native to the Andes. The Incas knew up to 250 varieties of it. They grew it in a variety of colors: almost white, yellow, pink, brown and even black. Peasants also grew sweet potatoes. The legumes grown primarily were beans. The pre-Columbian Indians also knew pineapples, cocoa trees, various varieties of pumpkins, nuts, cucumbers, and peanuts. They used four types of spices, including red pepper. A special place was occupied by the cultivation of the coca bush.

The main tools of labor in agriculture were the spade and hoe. The lands were cultivated by hand; the Incas did not use draft animals.

The Inca Empire was a country that created many wonders. One of the most remarkable are the ancient Peruvian “highways of the Sun” - a whole village of highways. The longest of the roads exceeded 5 thousand kilometers. There were two main roads across the country. Canals were built along the roads, on the banks of which fruit trees grew. Where the road ran through the sandy desert, it was paved. Where the road intersected with rivers and gorges, bridges were built. The bridges were constructed as follows: they were supported by stone pillars, around which five thick ropes woven from flexible branches or vines were fastened; the three lower ropes, which formed the bridge itself, were intertwined with branches and lined with wooden crossbars. Those ropes that served as railings intertwined with the lower ones and protected the bridge from the sides. These suspension bridges represent one of the greatest achievements of Inca technology.

As you know, the peoples of ancient America did not invent the wheel. Cargo was transported in packs on llamas, and ferries were also used for transportation. The ferries were improved rafts made of beams or beams of very light wood. The rafts were rowed and could lift up to 50 people and a large load.

Most of the production tools, textiles, and pottery were made in the community, but there was also a separation of crafts from agriculture and cattle breeding. The Incas selected the best craftsmen and moved them to Cuzco, where they lived in a special quarter and worked for the Supreme Inca, receiving food from the court. These masters, cut off from the community, actually found themselves enslaved. In a similar way, girls were selected who had to study spinning, weaving and other handicrafts for 4 years. The work of craftsmen and spinners was an embryonic form of craft.

Gold was not a means of payment. The Incas had no money. The Peruvian Indians simply exchanged their goods. There was no system of measures, except for the most primitive - a handful. There were scales with a yoke, from the ends of which bags with the load to be weighed were suspended. Exchange and trade were little developed. There were no bazaars inside the villages. The exchange was accidental. After the harvest, the inhabitants of the highlands and coastal areas met in certain places. Wool, meat, furs, leather, silver, and gold were brought from the highlands. Grain, vegetables and fruits, and cotton were brought from the coast. The role of universal equivalent was played by salt, pepper, furs, wool, ore and metal products.

3. Social order Incas

The Inca tribe consisted of 10 divisions - khatun-aylyu, which in turn were divided each into 10 aylya. Initially, the ailyu was a patriarchal clan, a tribal community: it had its own village and owned the adjacent fields. Names in the clan community were passed down through the paternal line. The Aylews were exogamous. It was forbidden to marry within the clan. Its members believed that they were under the protection of ancestral shrines - Huaca. Aylyu were also designated as pachaka, i.e. a hundred. Khatun-aylyu (large clan) represented a phratry and was identified with a thousand. Illu becomes a rural community in the Inca state. This is reflected in the consideration of land use regulations.

All the land in the state belonged to the Supreme Inca, but in fact it was at the disposal of the Aylew. The territory belonging to the community was called brand; the land owned by the community was called pacha brand, those. community land.

Cultivable land ( chakra) was divided into three parts: the “land of the Sun” - the priests, the fields of the Incas and the fields of the community. Each family had its share of the land, although all of it was cultivated jointly by the entire village, and community members worked together under the direction of elders. Having cultivated one section of the field, they moved on to the fields of the Incas, then to the fields of the villagers, and then to the fields from which the harvest went to general village fund.

Each village had fallow lands as well as “wild lands” - pastures. Field plots were periodically distributed among fellow villagers. The field plot, which bore the name stupid, given to a man. For each male child, the father received another tupa, and for each daughter, half. It was a temporary possession and was subject to redistribution.

In addition to the tupu, on the territory of each community there were lands that were called “gardens, their own land” (muya). This plot consisted of a yard, a house, a barn, a shed, and a vegetable garden. This plot was inherited from father to son. From these plots, community members could receive surplus vegetables or fruits. They could dry meat, spin and weave, make pottery vessels - everything that they had as private property.

In the communities that developed among the tribes conquered by the Incas, the clan nobility also stood out - kuraka. Representatives of the kurak were obliged to monitor the work of the community members and control the payment of taxes. Community members of the conquered tribes cultivated the lands of the Incas. In addition, they processed areas of kurak. In the kurak household, concubines spun and wove wool or cotton. In the community herd, the Kuraka had up to several hundred heads of cattle. But still the Kuraka were in a subordinate position, and the Incas stood above them as the highest caste.

The Incas themselves did not work. They constituted the military service nobility, were endowed land plots and workers from conquered tribes. The lands received from the supreme Inca were considered the private property of the serving nobility. The noble Incas were called orejons (from the Spanish word "oreh" - ear) for their huge gold earrings that stretched their earlobes.

Priests occupied a privileged position in society. A portion of the harvest was collected for the benefit of the priests. They were not subordinate to local rulers, but formed a separate corporation. These corporations were controlled by the high priesthood located in Cuzco.

The Incas had a number of workers - Yanakuns - whom the Spanish chroniclers called slaves. This category was completely owned by the Incas and performed all the menial work. The position of these Yanakuns was hereditary.

Community workers performed most of the productive labor. But the appearance large group hereditary enslaved workers indicates that the society in Peru was an early slave-owning society with the preservation of significant remnants of the tribal system.

The Inca state had a unique structure. It was called Tawantinsuyu - “four regions connected together.” Each region was ruled by a governor, who was usually a direct relative of the ruling Inca. They were called "apo". Together with several other dignitaries, they formed the state council of the country, which could express their proposals and ideas to the Inca. In the regions, power was in the hands of local officials.

At the head of the state was the ruler - “Sapa Inca” - the sole ruling Inca. Sapa Inca commanded the army and headed the civil administration. He and the senior officials watched over the governors. To control regions and districts, there was a constant postal service. Messages were transmitted by relay race by messengers-runners. On the roads, not far from each other, there were post stations where messengers were always on duty.

The Incas introduced a language compulsory for all - Quechua. They split up the tribes and settled them piecemeal in different regions. This policy was carried out in order to consolidate the subordination of the conquered tribes and prevent discontent and uprisings. Laws were created to protect the dominance of the Incas.

4. Religion and culture of the Incas

In accordance with the religious views of the Incas, the Sun occupied a dominant position among the gods and ruled the entire unearthly world.

The official religious system of the Incas was the “heliocentric” system. It is based on subordination to the Sun – Inti. Inti was usually depicted as a golden disk from which rays emanated in all directions. The disk itself depicts the face of a man. The disk was made of pure gold, that is, a metal that belonged to the Sun.

The wife of Inti and at the same time the mother of the Incas - in accordance with the beliefs of the Indians - was the moon goddess Quilla.

The third “inhabitant of the firmament,” also revered in the Inca Empire, was the god Ilyapa - both thunder and lightning.

The temples owned enormous wealth, a large number of ministers and craftsmen, architects, jewelers and sculptors. The main content of the Inca cult was sacrificial ritual. Sacrifices were carried out mainly by animals and only in extreme cases by people. An emergency could be festivities at the moment of accession to the throne of a new supreme Inca, during an earthquake, drought, or war. Prisoners of war or children who were taken as tribute from conquered tribes were sacrificed.

Along with the official religion of sun worship, there were also more ancient religious views. Their essence was reduced to the deification not of great, powerful gods, but of sacred places and objects, the so-called uak.

In the Inca religion, totemistic views occupied a large place. The communities were named after animals: Pumamarca (puma community), Condormarca (condor community), Huamanmarca (hawk community), etc. Close to totemism was the worship of plants, primarily potatoes, since this plant had a primary role in the life of the Peruvians. Images of this plant have been preserved in sculpture - vessels in the form of tubers. There was also a cult of the forces of nature. The cult of Mother Earth, called Pacha Mama, was especially developed.

The cult of ancestors was of great importance. Ancestors were revered as patron spirits and guardians of the land of a given community and the area in general. There was a custom of mummifying the dead. Mummies in elegant clothes with jewelry and household utensils were preserved in tombs. The cult of the mummies of rulers reached particular development. They were credited with supernatural power. Mummies of rulers were taken on campaigns and carried to the battlefield.

To measure space, the Incas had measures based on the size of parts of the human body. The smallest of these measures was considered to be the length of the finger, then the measure equal to the distance from the bent thumb to the index finger. To measure land, a measure of 162 cm was most often used. For counting, a counting board was used, which was divided into strips, compartments in which counting units and round pebbles were moved. Time was measured by the time it took for the potatoes to cook, which meant approximately one hour. The time of day was determined by the sun.

The Incas had an idea of ​​the sun and lunar year. To observe the sun, as well as to accurately determine the time of the equinox and solstice, astronomers of the Inca Empire built special “observatories” in many places in Peru. The largest solar observation point was in Cusco. The position of the sun was observed from specially built four towers in the east and west of Cusco. This was necessary to determine the timing of the agricultural cycle.

Astronomy was one of the two most important scientific concepts in the Inca Empire. Science was supposed to serve the interests of the state. The activities of astronomer scientists, who, thanks to their observations, could establish the most appropriate dates for the start or simply execution of certain agricultural work, brought considerable benefit to both the state and all its citizens.

The Incan calendar was primarily oriented towards the sun. The year was considered to consist of 365 days, divided into twelve 30-day months, after which the calendar still included five (and in a leap year, six) final days, which were called “days without work.”

There were schools for boys. Boys from among the noble Incas, as well as the nobility of conquered tribes, were accepted there. Thus, the task of educational institutions was to prepare the next generation of the empire's elite. They studied at school for four years. Each year gave certain knowledge: in the first year they studied the Quechua language, in the second - the religious complex and the calendar, and the third and fourth years were spent studying the so-called quipus, signs that served as “knot writing”.

The kippah consisted of a rope, to which cords were tied at right angles in rows, hanging down in the form of a fringe. Sometimes there were up to a hundred such cords. Knots were tied on them at different distances from the main rope. The shape of the nodes and their number indicated numbers. This record was based on the Inca decimal system. The position of the knot on the lace corresponded to the value of the digital indicators. It could be one, ten, a hundred, a thousand or even ten thousand. In this case, a simple knot denoted the number “1”, a double knot – “2”, and a triple knot – “3”. The color of the cords designated certain objects, for example, potatoes were symbolized by brown, silver by white, gold by yellow.

This form of writing was used mainly to convey messages about taxes. But sometimes the quipu was used to record calendar and historical dates and facts. Thus, quipus were a conventional system for transmitting information, but still it was not writing.

The question of whether the Incas had writing remains unresolved until recently. The fact is that the Incas did not leave written monuments, but still many vessels depict beans with special signs. Some scientists consider these signs to be ideograms, i.e. the signs on the beans have a symbolic, conditional meaning.

There is also an opinion that the Incas had writing in the form of picture writing and pictography, but due to the fact that the boards on which these signs were written were framed in gold frames, looted and dismantled by Europeans, the written monuments have not survived to this day .

Literary creativity in the Quechua language was very rich. However, since these works were not recorded in writing and were preserved in the memory of reciters, only fragments preserved for posterity by the first Spanish chroniclers have reached us.

From the poetic work of the Incas, hymns (the hymn of Viracocha), mythical tales, and historical poems have been preserved in fragments. The most famous poem is “Ollantay,” which glorifies the exploits of the leader of one of the tribes who rebelled against the supreme Inca.

One of the most developed areas of science in the Inca Empire was medicine. The state of health of the inhabitants was not a private matter of citizens; on the contrary, the empire was interested in ensuring that the inhabitants of the country served the state as best as possible.

The Incas used some scientific techniques to treat diseases. Many medicinal plants have been used; Surgical interventions, such as craniotomy, were also known. Along with scientific techniques, the practice of magical healing was widespread.

5. The end of the Inca state. Portuguese conquests

Pizarro's troops captured Cuzco in 1532. The Inca chief Atahualpa died. But the Inca state did not immediately cease to exist. The inhabitants of the ancient state continued to fight for their independence. In 1535, an uprising breaks out. It was suppressed in 1537, but its participants continued the struggle for independence for more than 35 years.

The rebellion against the Spaniards was led by the Inca prince Manco, who used cunning methods in the fight against the conquerors. He first went over to the side of the Spaniards and approached Pizarro, but only with the goal of studying the enemy. Having begun to gather forces at the end of 1535, Manco in April 1536 with a large army approached Cuzco and besieged it. He forced captive Spaniards to serve him as gunsmiths, artillerymen and gunpowder makers. Spanish firearms and captured horses were used. Manco himself was dressed and armed in Spanish style, rode on horseback and fought with Spanish weapons. The rebels often achieved great success by combining the techniques of original Indian warfare with European ones. But bribery and betrayal forced Manco to leave this city after 10 months of the siege of Cuzco. The rebels continued to fight in the mountainous region of Ville Capampe, where they fortified themselves. After Manco's death, Tupac Amaru becomes the rebel leader.

Resistance to the ever-increasing forces of the conquerors proved futile, and the rebels were eventually defeated. In memory of this last war against the conquerors, the title Inca and the name Tupac Amaru were subsequently adopted by the Indian leaders as a symbol of the restoration of their independent state.

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The Incas, or more precisely, the Inca, are an Indian tribe belonging to the Quechua language family. The tribe appeared in the 11th century, gaining a foothold in the territory of modern Peru. In the 15th century The Incas created the state of Tawantinsuyu and began to occupy a dominant position in it. This is how one of the ancient civilizations of South America arose. The Inca civilization was one of the most highly developed; Their household items and decorations amaze with their unsurpassed beauty, and the people themselves – with their hard work, talent, courage and energy.

The Inca's possessions covered more than 4000 km 2. The empire stretched across the Andean mountains, and its central part was located on the second highest (after the Himalayas) mountain peak of the Andes. The territories of modern Ecuador and Peru, Northwestern Argentina and part of Bolivia at that distant time were part of one of the great empires of the world - the Inca Empire. The number of peoples inhabiting Tawantinsuyu reached 10 million people - that's almost 100 ethnic groups.

From archaeological research it is known that on the Pacific coast of modern Peru, and in the mountainous areas (from Ecuador to Lake Titicaca in South America), various cultures appeared, developed and died out. The Incas themselves were originally a pastoral tribe that wandered, moving from Lake Titicaca to the north. On their way (not far from the northern borders of Bolivia) they found monumental structures and a small group of impoverished people.

Some archaeological finds indicate that before the 6th century. n. e. A new culture appeared in Tiahuanaco, which reached its peak in the 7th century. Apparently, the coastal cultures of Peru also contributed to its development. For about 3 centuries, the culture of Tiawanaku was the most highly developed of all that existed at that time on the American continent. But then its decline occurred, the reasons for which are still not clear. Various hypotheses have been put forward regarding this: a strong earthquake, an epidemic, the expansion of other tribes, etc.

The Incas took over a significant part cultural heritage Tiahuanaco, in particular, has magnificent architecture. So, about 20 km north of Lake Titicaca there is a high cliff, and under it is a monumental semblance of a pyramid. In addition, ancient sculptors recreated almost the entire animal world Andes and Amazon Valley. Archaeologists have found a sculptural figure of a shaman holding in his hand the severed head of a wild beast; statues of jaguars and fantastic beasts, such as a lizard with the head of a puma.

Birth of an Empire

Stopping in the Cusco Valley, the Incas founded a settlement here, which later became the capital of their empire. The settlement was founded by the Inca leader Manco Capac. He also became the first ruler. His title was called "Sapa Inca", and all the inhabitants of this territory began to call themselves Incas.

According to the beliefs of the Incas, the sun god Inti destined for them, his children, the great mission of turning representatives of semi-wild tribes into cultural (for their time) people. The ruler of Pachacuti especially succeeded in this. He was a fairly ambitious man, and luck was with him. Pachacuti, in addition to annexing many tribes to the empire, also spread the Inca religion and culture among them.

An ancient Indian legend tells that on two islands - Copti and Titicaca - the son of the sun, Inca Manca Capac, and the daughter of the moon, his sister Mama Oklo, were born. Their christening took place, and at it the sun god gave the brother and sister each a golden staff and sent them to the north. Having reached the first valley, the Inca tried the ground with his staff, but came across a stone. He went further and continued to stick the staff into the soil until it sunk into it. greater depth. This happened in the Cusco Valley. Then the Inca called to him shepherds from the northern environs, and his sister went south and brought the rest. Together they built main city empire, and in its very center a temple of the Sun was erected.

The next ruler, Tona Inca Yupanca, continued the work begun by Pachacuti, and as a result, one of the great civilizations appeared - the Inca Empire. Each new ruler adhered to a well-thought-out and effective system of government. When new lands were annexed to the empire, rulers left the conquered peoples with their leaders, local languages, and the ability to worship their gods. There was only one single requirement: it was necessary to know official language Quechua, spoken only in Cusco. The Inca Empire was, perhaps, the only one in which relations between the peoples who inhabited it were built not on fear and violence, but on trust and cooperation.

At the peak of power

When the Inca Empire reached its height and power, the population of its main city of Cusco numbered about 20,000 people. The sacred place of Cusco was the main square, or rather its center. The Incas brought soil from all over the empire, symbolically mixed it and placed it in the center of the square. This act confirmed the equality and unity of all inhabitants of the vast empire. The highest achievement of both Incan architecture and visual arts the temple of the sun appeared. Built of stone, it had gilded walls and a roof covered with gold slabs, and a spacious courtyard into which five main chapels opened. The first was the chapel of the sun god. Its front side was decorated with a huge golden disk, personifying the supreme deity and his governors on earth - the rulers of the Incas. The ceiling and walls were lined with pure gold. The nearby chapel was dedicated to the moon; accordingly, all its decoration was made of silver. The chapel intended for worshiping the stars was also made of silver, only the metal here was supplemented with precious stones. And finally, the fourth and fifth chapels were dedicated to the rainbow and lightning and were decorated with corresponding symbols.

The Incas were very skilled builders. Until now, the technology of their masons remains a sealed secret. In the same temple of the Sun, for example, slabs, not fastened with lime and laid one on top of the other, form high sloping walls. In the courtyard of the temple, a stone was found with very smooth walls and cylindrical holes drilled in it with a diameter of about 6 cm. This is all the more surprising considering that the Incas were not familiar with either steel or iron, i.e. those metals without which life is impossible. the profession of a modern mason.

There are practically no gaps between the stones from which the temples are built. Neither a needle nor the thinnest piece of paper can pass between them. The ability of the Incas to give stones complex geometric shapes is also amazing. Thus, individual stones (their front part) formed polygons with twelve sides.

Other buildings in Cusco were just as perfect as the Temple of the Sun. However, there is a version, supported by archaeological research, that the Incas borrowed construction skills from their predecessors. For example, ritual and public buildings in the city of Tiahuanaco, erected (as chemical analysis showed) in the 1st century. n. e., are distinguished by monolithic masonry. Even though the individual blocks weighed about 100 tons, they were cut and fitted with amazing precision.

One of the legends tells that Tiahuanaco was built either by gods or giants. The most impressive is the Gate of the Sun, made from a single stone block. The lintel of the gate is decorated with the figure of an unknown deity (which, however, can be found in other areas of the Andes) with large round and bulging eyes and a halo of snakes and cat heads. The deity holds staffs in his hands, on the top of one of them is the head of a condor.

In addition to the stonemasons of Tiahuanaco, the builders who lived in the territory of Huari were unsurpassed masters of their craft. Perhaps they were the closest predecessors of the Incas in terms of urban planning. Having in their arsenal only cobblestones and a bronze crowbar, they erected buildings that have survived to this day, having withstood earthquakes more than once.

At Wari, stones were made of the same size, but their upper and lower surfaces were different. So, the upper surface was slightly concave, and the lower, on the contrary, convex. And when the stones were stacked on top of each other, they held very firmly due to the fact that the upper stone entered the cavity of the lower one with its convex back surface. Thus, by order of Pachacuti, palaces and temples were built in Cuzco. They were erected on the site of the demolished huts of the previous settlement.

Social structure

The social structure of the Inca Empire was based on the principle of hierarchy. Each new ruler declared that he reigned by divine right, since he was a descendant of the sun god. The power of the Incas was hereditary. The Inca ruler, or emperor, had a harem of about a hundred concubines, but the empress - the coya - was chosen from among the ruler's sisters. In turn, the emperor chose his heir from the children and grandchildren of the Koyas.

In a number of cases, problems arose with inheritance. So, Pachacuti’s grandson, Huayna Capac, died of smallpox, without even officially becoming an heir. His own heir, Ninan Kuyuchi, also could not survive the epidemic. The survivors of Huascar and Atahualpa plunged the country into the abyss of civil war, which marked the beginning of the decline of the empire. As for the transfer of inheritance in everyday life, a man inherited from his father, and a woman inherited from her mother. Interestingly, succession to the throne did not automatically include inheritance of wealth. In this regard, the new emperor almost immediately set out on a campaign to conquer new lands and gain wealth.

For greater efficiency in government, all families in the Inca Empire were divided into groups consisting of ten families. Each of them chose a head, who reported to the heads of the groups, which already consisted of fifty families. Thus, groups appeared that included one hundred, five hundred or more families (their number could reach ten thousand). This system made it possible to effectively collect taxes, and in kind. These included food, various tools, weapons, clothing and shoes, and much more. All this was sent to warehouses (kamkas), and every day widows, orphans, sick and disabled citizens received everything they needed. Such an exchange (not only of knowledge and culture, but also of resources) allowed residents to feel protected and not be afraid of natural disasters.

A service of special inspectors was created to oversee the actions of local officials. No one knew where and when they would appear (these were people from among the noble Incas) to check the work of the local authorities. They were called tokoy-rikok, which translated means “those who see everything.”

Inca writing

The Incas did not have a written language; instead they used a quipu (literally “knot”) - a system of multi-colored laces with knots. All the necessary information was recorded in the bundles: the number of inhabitants of the empire (able-bodied and elderly), the amount of food (down to each grain barn) and much more. Woolen laces of different colors expressed different concepts. For example, red meant war or a warrior, white meant peace or silver, green meant corn, and yellow meant gold. One knot represented the number ten, two knots next to it represented twenty. The profession of the creators of the quipu (these people were called quipucamayocs) was very important in the Inca Empire, because the reliability of the entire state machine depended on the correctness of the recording. Kipukamajoki combined the qualities of an artist, a logistician and an accountant. How important the preservation and interpretation of statistical data was for the Incas is evidenced by the fact that the creators of the quipu enjoyed privileges, in particular they did not pay taxes, but at the same time they had a huge responsibility, since a mistake they made would lead to failure in work and provided for the death penalty as punishment.

Researchers have proven that gradually the colored nodules developed into a complex three-dimensional writing system that resembled Braille for the blind. It turned out that the pile contains more than one and a half thousand individual characters. This is twice as much as the Egyptians and Mayans, and slightly more than the Sumerian-Babylonian writing. Mathematical research has shown that the quipu uses a binary system, reminiscent of the basis of a computer language.

Inca engineering art

The Incas created a whole network of roads with a total length of more than 240,000 km, which connected the most remote or inaccessible areas of the country. Particularly impressive Mountain road through the Andes from Cusco to the current capital of Ecuador - Quito. On wide highways, stations (tambo) were located at certain distances so that courier runners (chaski) could rest and refresh themselves. Hardy people were chosen for this in their youth. They had to be able to run quickly in the thin air of the highlands. The constant attributes of the couriers were headdresses with flowing feathers and a twisted sea shell. Chaska, approaching the place where the next courier was waiting for him, blew into the conch and ran for a while next to his replacement, who memorized the contents of the message. This is how this kind of relay race took place.

Agricultural production of the Incas

The Incas showed themselves to be unsurpassed masters in creating a system of irrigation canals. It had no equal in terms of length and efficiency. The Incan irrigation structures survived centuries. It should be noted that the Incas adopted the principles of field irrigation from the Chimuor people they conquered.

The city of Chan Chan, the capital of the kingdom of Chimuor, was one of the most beautiful in South America. It was home to more than 36,000 inhabitants. Chimuora artisans made gold items that can be recognized as genuine works of art. When the Incas annexed Chimuor to their empire, they adopted to a large extent the skill and talent of this people and, to a certain extent, became disciples of their subjects.

The Inca fields were terrace-like systems, which were fortified on the mountain slopes with stone bastions. The earth belonged to the Sun, the people and the emperor. A family Inca could claim a personal plot (tupa). A plot that belonged to the sun god could be allocated to a resident of the empire if he had an addition to his family. The land could not be sold; it was bequeathed only to children. The inhabitants of the empire cultivated the fields together. First of all, the lands of the sun god were subject to cultivation, then the lands of the poor, disabled, widows and orphans, then their own, and last but not least, the princely and royal allotments. In the same sequence, the harvest was collected and poured into public barns, which were divided into common ones and those belonging to the sun god. From the latter, bread was distributed to the army, officials and people performing public works. The part of the harvest that belonged to the sun god was associated with the costs of priestesses and priests. If the year was poor, the reserves of the sun god were used.

The common people did not have livestock; this was the privilege of the king and God. The Incas used llamas and alpacas as pack animals. The state itself took care of the animals. Thus, the Inca royal dynasty, like that of the ancient Egyptians and Chinese, was closely associated with agriculture.

Medicine

The Incas were good doctors. They achieved especially great success in surgery, in particular in such a field as neurosurgery. During archaeological excavations in Peru, surgical instruments were found that were intended for trephination, that is, for opening the skull.

Life of the Incas

In order for the inhabitants of the empire to feel protected from natural disasters, famine and other extreme situations, the rulers ordered them to lead a regulated lifestyle. This primarily meant that no one spent time in idleness, everyone worked for the good of the empire. Only elderly people over 50 years of age were exempt from taxation and labor service. However, they also participated in community service to the best of your ability. For example, they looked after children, cooked food, prepared firewood, or did some other simple work.

The Incas were extremely clean people. This trait was manifested in everything, from the cleanliness of the cities themselves to the housing of every inhabitant of the empire.

The Incas had a special inspection that checked whether the owner of the house complied with the established standard of cleanliness. On a certain day an inspection was scheduled, and at that time the reed mat over the front door had to be raised. The inspector watched the woman prepare food, clean the house, do laundry and do any other work. The mistress of the house, who failed (in the opinion of the inspector) with her duties, was punished. In front of everyone watching, she had to eat all the dirt swept out of the house, and the owner had to drink the dirty water left after bathing all family members.

The Incas did not have divorces; all marriages they entered into were considered lifelong. This applied to both the nobility and the common people. The Incas did not have prisons, since any crime (violence, theft, robbery and other serious deviation from social norms) was immediately punishable by death.

The aristocratic part of society wore tunics: for women they were to the toes, for men they were to the knees. The tunic was tied at the waist with a belt with a heraldic sign. Sometimes the belt was replaced by a robe attached with pins. One of the main decorations of the Incas were large silver or gold discs that were worn in the earlobes. Their considerable weight pulled down the ears significantly.

Education

The Incas had a school in which not only the sons of the nobility studied, but also the young children of the rulers of the conquered kingdoms. She was in Cusco. Students learned oratory, military affairs, religion, and some sciences (for example, history, geometry). The training ended with exams, in which sixteen-year-old young people were subjected to quite difficult tests, demonstrating their knowledge, strength, dexterity and courage.

The exams lasted about thirty days. They took place in open areas, and everyone could watch their progress. The tests included a six-day fast (those fasting were allowed to consume only water and herbs), followed by a 7.2 km race. The next test consisted of the ability to stand motionless while the fencer inflicted thrusts and cuts on the subjects. In addition, there was a more severe test of strength, when strong blows were inflicted on their arms and legs with whips made of vines. These actions tested the graduates' ability to withstand any pain. Anyone who could not stand it, showing signs of suffering through facial expressions or gestures, was immediately expelled. There were often cases of serious injury and even death during the exams.

The culmination of the tests was the knighting of former students. The Inca ruler personally pierced the earlobes of the young men who knelt before him with a golden needle. Having received gold discs as signs of caste, young people (both the sons of the Incas and the sons of vassals - curacs) became representatives ruling class.

Girls were trained separately, this happened in monasteries. Special people ensured that the number of such girls in the empire reached a certain figure - no less than 15,000. Agents traveled to all regions of the country and, paying attention to the girl’s origin, her abilities and beauty, selected those suitable for training. Elderly mentors (mamakona) taught the pupils. Particular attention in the learning process was paid to the ability to dye fabrics and weave, since it was the girls who made thin fabrics (cumbi) from alpaca wool. These fabrics were used to make clothes for the emperor and his khoya.

Education at the monastery lasted 3 years, after which the emperor himself chose wives for himself and his nobles from among the pupils. Those of the girls who were not chosen became priestesses. They lived like noble ladies in houses in the main square near the Coraxanga temple in Cuzco and were respected by everyone.

Holidays

The Incas attached great importance to holidays. First of all, during these days the connection between the people and the emperor was strengthened. In addition, during such events, people got rid of accumulated emotions, and finally the holiday was presented to the people as a gift for their hard work and loyalty to the emperor.

The ruler himself presided over the holiday. Firstly, his responsibilities included providing all participants with food and drinks; secondly, the program included musical performances, dances, exhibition fights, religious events - all this took place under his patronage.

One of the indispensable components of the holiday was the reading of poems in different genres. These were religious poetry, love ballads (usually about unrequited love), and heroic tales (about exploits). All this was passed on from mouth to mouth, supplemented by vivid descriptions of the valleys, mountain peaks and gorges. No less interesting was the musical performance, which consisted of dances (usually of a ritual nature), which were accompanied by mournful monotonous chants.

According to some sources, the Incas had about forty different dances. One of the most spectacular was the so-called jumping dance. It was performed by masked men, holding animal skins in their hands.

Inca music stood out primarily for its rhythmic diversity and richness. Hence they have a considerable number of different percussion instruments. These are large and small drums, as well as many flutes, representing a group of wind instruments. Flutes were made from animal bones or reeds, some were made from clay or condor feathers.

Particularly popular was the ken flute, carved from reeds and having eight finger holes. The musician alternately opened and closed them during the performance. In addition, the Incas often played flutes tied together.

In addition to flutes, trumpets were the favorite instrument of the Incas. There were even more of them than flutes, and they were made from wood, hollowed out gourds and sea shells.

The Incas held three festivals every month. The most important of them took place in December, the first month of the rainy season. It was called kopak raymi, i.e. “big holiday”. During it (it was celebrated in Cusco), a rite of passage took place to initiate young men into men. The holiday was so seriously and strictly revered that only the Incas remained in Cuzco, and everyone else (not the Incas) left the capital at this time. At the end of the ceremony, they returned to the city again and confirmed their loyalty to the throne through the rite of communion.

To appease the gods, the Incas made human sacrifices. As a rule, these were children. The victim was then mummified; researchers managed to find more than four hundred similar ritual burials.

In 1995, archaeologists discovered a well-preserved ritual sacrifice, its historical age was about 500 years. It was a girl of 12–14 years old. Anthropologists conducted a lot of research on her, as a result of which they were able to find out the state of health, the diet of the Incas and a number of other details. These findings were obtained for the first time because the victim was frozen, with internal organs preserved, and not a dried-out mummy, as previous findings were. Interestingly, ritual figurines and several bright feathers were located on the top of the Nevada-Sabancay volcano near Cabanaconde (Peruvian village), and the body itself was in the crater of the volcano. Another intriguing fact was that before setting off on a difficult expedition, the American scientist Johan Reinhard and his guide Miguel Zarata offered corn beer to the spirits of the mountains. The ancient ritual worked and brought good luck to the anthropologist.

The Incas mummified the deceased rulers and their khoya. The composition that they used for embalming has not yet been clarified. After mummification (wrapping in fabrics made from the highest quality cotton, impregnated with the appropriate composition), the mummies were dressed in elegant clothes.

There were special servants who looked after the mummies, fed and watered them. The mummies even “went” to visit each other (servants carried them on stretchers) and to the emperor, attended holidays and were the first to “make” toasts. Caring for mummies was carried out at the expense of the state and was quite ruinous. Gradually this custom ceased to exist.

Decline of the Empire

Scientific research has proven that there was no gold in the Andes, therefore, the Incas must have received it from other areas of the empire. And one of these provinces was the Amazon. Even before the arrival of the Incas, local tribesmen paved trails in the Amazonian lowland. The Incas connected them by building a network of roads that connected isolated and inaccessible areas.

A special feature of the Inca transport network was the presence of suspension bridges. They were made from ropes and woven mats and hung across rivers, gorges and chasms, some of which were up to 30 m wide. Some roads built by the Incas are still in use today. They are being restored and completed.

In addition to the various goods (tropical fruits, honey, colorful parrot feathers, etc.) that caravans consisting of numerous llamas brought to the Inca capital, the main product was gold. It was this that was the main reason why the main person in the Spanish campaigns of conquest, Francisco Pizarro, decided to personally undertake an expedition to South America to verify its existence.

Francisco Pizarro was a semi-literate military man. He participated in suppressing the rebellion of the Taino Indian tribe on the island of Hispaniola (now it is Dominican Republic) and Haiti. His first two attempts to enter the Incan lands ended in failure. But in 1527 he reached the city of Tulebes. Seeing temples decorated with precious metals, luxurious gardens with fresh flowers and their copies made of gold, Pizarro realized that the “golden land” was not fiction, but reality. He returned to Spain and told Charles V about the richest land, the simplicity and friendliness of its inhabitants. The king gave him the title of governor and captain-general of all the lands he would conquer in the future.

Pizarro recruited about 160 conquistadors. Charles V supplied them with muskets, crossbows, spears and cannons. In 1532, Pizarro and his team again arrived in the land of the Incas. Just at this time, a civil war broke out between Huascar and Atahualpa over the position of sapa inca (translated as “the only, unique Inca”). The Spaniards, even with such a small number, managed to defeat the Incas, weakened by civil strife and a smallpox epidemic.

Back in 1493, Columbus wrote about the cordiality and friendliness of the inhabitants of the New World: “They refuse nothing that you ask of them; on the contrary, they willingly share with everyone and treat everyone so kindly that they would be ready to give their hearts.” What a contrast to these lines about the character of the Incas are the intentions of the Spaniards, set out in the Requisition of 1509: “We will wage war against you with all the ways and means that we have; we will subject you to the church and its officials and force you to obedience; we will take you, your wives and children captive and enslave you!”

When Pizarro and a handful of adventurers first saw the thirty thousand Inca army, the Spaniards realized that they could not defeat them in open battle. Therefore, the conquistadors resorted to cunning. An agreement was reached that Atahualpa would greet the Spaniards as friends. But when the Great Inca, dressed in luxurious clothes sparkling with gold, accompanied by his military leaders, advisers and priests, came out to meet Pizarro, then, at a signal from the monk Valverde, the conquistadors jumped out of ambush, killed Atahualpa’s entire entourage, and captured the Inca himself.

In this terrible massacre, which Pizarro organized, 3,000 Incas were killed, and the rest fled in panic, because they saw that the one who was both king and god for them was taken prisoner. The Spaniards took advantage of the fact that Atahualpa’s retinue had no weapons, because a ceremonial meeting was being prepared.

Pizarro's team, meanwhile, did not lose a single soldier. The captive Atahualpa was kept in royal conditions, he a short time learned to speak Spanish. The smart Inca realized that gold was perhaps his only way to stay alive. He offered an unimaginable ransom for his life and freedom - a room measuring 7 by 6 m, which would be filled with gold just above the head of an adult.

The Incas were indifferent to gold in the sense that, unlike fabrics, it never had any material exchange value for them. They called gold “the sweat of the sun,” from which they made beautiful things, real works of art.

The Spaniards were amazed at such untold wealth. But with this proposal, Atahualpa signed his own death sentence: the Spaniards again broke their word, and as soon as the ransom was received, Pizarro sentenced the Inca to death - he was to be burned. Subsequently, the Spaniard replaced burning with death by hanging.

The Spaniards melted down the ransom for Atahualpa, eventually receiving over 6,000 kg of gold and almost 12,000 kg of silver. In the same way, by order of Charles V, all products made of precious metals made by Incan craftsmen were melted down. The Spaniards destroyed temples and palaces, and forced the inhabitants to work in mines and mines, lifting heavy objects high into the mountains. As a result, the country's population fell from 7 million to 500,000.

The surviving Incas, under the leadership of one of the last kings - Manco - went into the jungle and built the city of Vilcabamba there.

It consisted of three hundred relatively small residential buildings and sixty majestic structures made of stone; roads and canals were built in the city. Periodically, the Incas attacked their enslavers, striking their outposts. This continued until 1572. When the conquerors decided to deal with the surviving Incas and came to Vilcabamba, they saw only ashes instead of the city. Manco's three sons, who took turns ruling the city after their father's death, burned it down before leaving. The last Inca leader, Tupac Amaru, was captured by the Spaniards as they carried out their punitive expeditions, going deeper and deeper into the jungle. Tupac Amaru was beheaded in the main square in Cusco. So the Inca Empire ceased to exist.

On the ruins of former greatness

The descendants of the once great Inca Empire currently live in Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. Their number is about 18 million people. Most of the inhabitants of these countries speak Quechua. Peruvians, Bolivians and Ecuadorians believe in the restoration of the former glory and power of the Incas. Schoolchildren in Peru know by heart all the rulers of the Inca Empire. Peruvians also believe that one of the sons of the sun, beheaded by the Spaniards Inkarr, according to legend, will return to them and restore their former civilization. Even foods that were once part of the Incan diet are now becoming more and more popular. These are amaranth, araksa, nynyas, oka, cherimoya, etc.

Tawantinsuya (“the land of four quarters,” as the Incas themselves called their domain) demonstrated the will and intelligence of its people, who created a highly developed civilization in less than a century. And this despite the fact that the Incas did not know wheeled vehicles or writing. The birth, development, flourishing and fall of the Inca Empire were like an explosion, the echo of which has survived to this day.

• Karanke. The capital of the province with the inns of the local ruler, as well as the courts of the Inca, where permanent military garrisons with military leaders were located.

• Otavalo. Of secondary importance.

• Koceski. Of secondary importance.

• Muliambato. Of secondary importance are courtyards and warehouses. They obeyed the steward in Latacunga.
• Ambato.

• Urine. Large and numerous buildings.

• Riobamba, in the province of Puruaes.

• Kayambi.
• Teocahas. Small sizes inns.

• Tikisambi. Main inns.

• Chan-Chan, in the Chimu Valley.

• Chumbo, province. Main inns. They served the Incas and their rulers.

• Tumbes, inns and large warehouses, with a steward, a military leader, soldiers and mitimayas.

• Guayaquil had a warehouse for the caciques and villages.

• Tambo Blanco. Inns.

• Solana, valley. Warehouses.

• Poechos, or Maykavilka, a valley with royal palaces, large and numerous inns and warehouses.

• Chimu, a valley with large inns and pleasure houses of the Incas.

• Motupe, a valley with inns and numerous warehouses.

• Hayanka, a valley with large inns and warehouses of the Incas, in which their rulers stayed.

• Guanyape Valley. Warehouses and inns.

• Santa Valley. Large inns and many warehouses.

• Guambacho Valley. Inns.

• Chilka, valley. There were Incan inns and warehouses in it to support inspection visits to the provinces of the kingdom.

• Chincha, province. The Inca ruler was installed in the valley and there were luxurious inns for kings, many warehouses where food and military equipment were stored.

• Ica, a valley with palaces and warehouses.

• Nazca, a valley with large buildings and many warehouses.

• Chachapoyas, province. Large inns and warehouses of the Incas.

• Guancabamba, capital of the province.

• Bombon (Pumpu), capital of the province.

• Conchucos province. To obtain enough provisions for the Inca's soldiers and servants, every 4 leagues there were inns and warehouses filled with everything necessary from what was available in these parts.

• Guaras, a province with inns, a large fortress or remains ancient building, similar to a city block.

• Tarama. Large inns and warehouses of the Incas.

• Akos, a village in the province of Guamanga. Inns and warehouses.

• Pikoy, inn.
• Parks, inns.

• Pucara, a settlement with Inca palaces and the Temple of the Sun; and many provinces came here with the usual tribute to hand it over to the steward authorized to monitor the warehouses and collect this tribute.

• Asangaro, inn.

• Guamanga city. Large inns.

• Wilkas. Geographical center of the Empire. The capital of the province with the main inns and warehouses. Inca Yupanqui ordered the construction of these inns, and his successors improved the buildings: Inca Tupac Yupanqui built for himself palaces and many warehouses, of which there were more than 700 for storing weapons, elegant clothes and maize. These inns served more than 40 thousand Indians.

• Soras and Lucanas, provinces. Inca residences, inns and ordinary warehouses.

• Uramarca. Inns with mitimayas.

• Andavailas, province. There were inns here before the arrival of the Incas.

• Apurimac, a suspension bridge over the river. There were inns nearby.

• Curaguasi, inn.

• Limatambo, inn.

• Jaquihaguana, the valley had luxurious and magnificent bedchambers for the entertainment of the Inca rulers.

• Cusco. Capital of the empire. In many places in this city and around it there were the main inns with warehouses of the Inca kings, in which the one who inherited the property celebrated his holidays.

• Pucamarca, an inn where the mamakons and royal concubines lived, spinning and weaving exquisite clothes.
• Atun Kancha, similar to the previous one.
• Kasana, similar to the previous one.

• Yukai, a valley with a royal residence and inns.

• Quispicanche, inns on the Collasuyu road.

• Urcos, inns.

• Kanches, inns.

• Chaca, or Atuncana, provincial capital with large inns in the province of Canas, built by order of Tupac Inca Yupanqui.

• Ayyavire, the capital of the province with palaces and many warehouses where taxes were collected. Built and inhabited by the Mitimayas on the orders of Inca Yupanqui.

• Khatunkolya. The capital of the province of Collao with the main inns and warehouses. Before the Incas, it was the capital of the ruler of Sapana.

• Chucuito, provincial capital with large pre-Inca inns. Came under the rule of the latter, presumably under Viracocha Inca.

• Guacs, inns.

• Tiahuanaco, a small settlement with main inns. Manco Capac II, son of Vain Capac, was born here.

• Chuquiapo Valley. The provincial capital of the same name with the main inns.

• Pariah. The capital of the province with the main inns and warehouses.

• Chile, province. There were also many large settlements with inns and warehouses.

The peoples conquered by the Incas for the most part belong to the same civilization, the geographical contours of which can be defined quite clearly. The region that archaeologists call the "central Andes" includes the coast, mountains and Amazonian foothills of modern Peru, the highlands of Bolivia and Far North Chile. From the west it is limited Pacific Ocean, from the east - the Amazon forest. Its northern boundary coincides with the Tumbes River (near the modern border between Peru and Ecuador), a line of changes in the rain regime (equatorial in the north, tropical in the south) and a depression in the mountain range. This ecological boundary is duplicated by a geographic barrier: 400 kilometers of forested tropical mountains and rugged terrain separate Cajamarca, in northern Peru, from Ecuadorian Loja. On the coast, 200 kilometers of desert separate the Lambayeque Valley from the Piura Valley (northern Peru). At the southern borders of the central Andes, the upper plateaus, which continue the Lake Titicaca basin to the south, smoothly transform into huge saline expanses, almost uninhabited, which on the Pacific coast end up with the vast Atacama Desert. The Bolivian Cochabamba Valley, already separated from the upper plateau by three hundred kilometers of mountains, is also isolated from the regions located just to the east by the extremely inhospitable Bolivian mountain range.

These borders did not become an obstacle to cultural, economic and even political relations. Trade between the Andes and, for example, the Amazon has always been intense, and in some places the Incas extended their dominance to the upper Amazon. These boundaries rather define territories with quite different geographical conditions, where different ways of organizing life can be developed. The Spaniards very quickly grasped these geographical and cultural coincidences. They gave the area we identified just above the name “Peru” - after the name of the southern Colombian or Ecuadorian section of the coast, which one of the expeditions first became acquainted with in the 1520s - clearly contrasting it with the “provinces of Quito”, corresponding to modern Ecuador ( which is part of the northern Andes), and "Chile", the territory of the Mapuche Indians (which is part of the southern Andes). It is in this sense that the word “Peru” will be used here; only two Amazonian thirds of the modern Republic of Peru are excluded from it and, conversely, the highlands are added to it modern republic Bolivia and northern Chile. With the exception of the upper southern plateaus, the central Andes are a fragmented, heterogeneous area. Coastal valleys alternate with deserts several tens of kilometers long. Andean valleys are often very narrow, even tiny, and, again, isolated from one another by steep slopes or almost insurmountable mountain chains.

Regions of production

In the central Andes, a traveler moving from the ocean to the Amazon forest can discover a huge variety of ecosystems living in a space of 200 km. Such diversity and proximity of different dwellings and settlements is not found anywhere else in the world and is determined by extremely original forms of economic and social organization. The Peruvians distinguished (and continue to distinguish) three main types of spheres and regions of production, which are distributed along the vertical axis. In the Quechua language, the term yunkan refers to the hot, humid lands that stretch from one part of the Andes to the other between 1500 and 2800 m (depending on the location) above sea level. Temperate mountain valleys, which in some regions rise to 3500 m - the upper limit of maize cultivation - received the name Quechua. High mountain treeless savannas located at an altitude of 3000 or 3500 m to 4800 or 5200 m are called navel. Frosts here make all irrigation useless. At an altitude of about 5000 m, the puna gives way to rocky formations, above which rise snow-capped peaks and glaciers, and all vegetation of which is limited to lichens and moss. The height of several dozen mountain peaks exceeds 6000 m.

Between the sands of Atacama and Piura, the coast of South America is a desert strip where, with the exception of light winter drizzle, it never rains. Rivers descending from the Andes form oasis valleys there, separated by distances of 20-60 km. Very narrow in the south, wider but shorter in the center, these valleys are wide and deep in the north, where they harbored some of the most complex and brilliant societies of ancient Peru. Over many millennia, the inhabitants of the coast developed a gigantic network of irrigation canals, which allowed them to grow maize, cotton, gourd and bottle gourd. Above 300 m, where it is hottest, coca (which is an aphrodisiac and dulls the feeling of hunger), capsicums and fruit trees: annona, avocado, guava and paca were grown. Extremely rich in plankton, the cold waters washing the coast amaze with the diversity of marine fauna, thanks to which these places are home to huge flocks of fishing birds, whose droppings (guano) have been used as fertilizer since ancient times. The eastern foothills of the Andes were not as densely populated as the coast and highlands, but were of great economic interest to the highlanders, who established settlements there, growing coca, cotton, pumpkins, peppers, peanuts and avocados. From these plants they extracted resin and incense, and also used them as medicines.

The greatest concentration of mountain populations was observed in the temperate zone, Quechua, between 2500 and 3500 m, where the natives cultivated maize, beans, quinoa, as well as root vegetables and tarui (the legume family). Thanks to irrigation, these farmers long ago learned to lengthen the agricultural season and smooth out the inconvenience caused by weather variability. Under the Incas, thousands of kilometers of canals were built, adding to those built by previous states. They have increased the number of irrigated terraces everywhere, since the temperate zone is located mainly on slopes and cannot be properly exploited without significant landscaping work.

The navels are steppes covered with all kinds of grasses and cacti that occupy most of the territory of the central Andes. It is home to representatives of the deer family (luychu and taruca), rodents, the chinchilla family (viscacha), wild camels (vicuna) and predators (for example, foxes or pumas). A wide variety of birds can be found on numerous lakes. For people, the navel is a priority area for extensive breeding of llamas and alpacas. In the lower part of the puna, in depressions protected from night frosts, between 3500 and 4000 m, root crops are grown: potatoes (470 varieties are known), oku, olyuko, mashua, anyu, maca, as well as grains - canyiva and quinoa. From Cajamarca to Cusco the puna is one big undulating steppe. In the south, it forms wide plateaus around the lake basins, which extend all the way to the Bolivian province of Lipes. These upper plateaus define a specific space in the depths of the central Andes, the center of which they are - the Spaniards called it “Charcas”, then “Upper Peru”. In the heart of this space is Lake Titicaca (the highest navigable body of water in the world), along the shores of which are the most fertile lands of the upper plateau - the temperate climate of these places is favorable for agriculture. The "pre-Hispanic" inhabitants of the upper plateaus expanded agricultural areas thanks to the technology of "flood fields", which creates thermal protection around the furrows. This technology, which contributed to the development of Tiahuanaco, sank into oblivion shortly after the Spanish conquest. In that part of Peru that is located northwest of the watershed line between the Lake Titicaca basin and the Cusco region, Puna is more of a peripheral space, much less significant in terms of demography and politics. But the relatively weak population of this undulating puna in no way diminishes its economic importance for the population living in its lower regions: these steppes are home to many animals, which in the Andes are one of the main sources of wealth.

The weather in the central Andes is almost constant, and the seasons are determined not by “warm” and “cold” months, but by precipitation. There is a rainy season, from October to April, and a dry season, from May to September. On the eastern slope, rain is not uncommon, while on the western slope it occurs infrequently.

The northern Andes (“provinces of Quito”) are geographically quite different from the central Andes. The coast there is covered with mangroves and tropical forests, which the Incas found inhospitable and, in fact, did not even try to integrate into their empire. The wet prairies, which extend above 3,500 m, although favorable for the breeding of llamas and alpacas, were only exploited when the Incas brought their herds there. Mountain valleys(the landscape of which is in many ways similar to the landscape of the Peruvian Quechua) has been densely populated by farmers since ancient times, which, apparently, explains the great interest that the Incas showed in them. No other region, however, offered such fierce resistance, probably because the northern Andean communities, which developed in a somewhat different environment from their Peruvian neighbors, were very different from the latter from a socio-economic and cultural point of view, to easily agree to join the political and ideological structures that the Incas wanted to impose on them.

Empire of the Four Directions of the World

At the time of the Spanish conquest, the Inca Empire numbered between 10 and 12 million inhabitants and represented the most populous mountain range in the world. The Incas called their state Tauapshipsuyu, which in Quechua literally means “four united stripes” and which is sometimes translated as “four cardinal directions.” Tauantpinsuyu was indeed divided into four parts, each of which extended from one to another of the four main roads that departed from the capital. Due to the lack of two-dimensional maps, the Incas imagined the territories they controlled as the space between the roads, along which were the administrative centers and inns they built. Each of the quarters of the empire thus seemed to the Incas to be a “stripe” defined by one of these roads. There were textile “maps” in the shape of a quipu, where each road was marked with a string on which provinces, cities or inns were marked with knots. The name Tauantpinsuyu also indicates that, through their dominance, the Incas intended to ensure the commonality of the territory, which they saw as an ethnic and linguistic mosaic placed in a certain geographically fragmented space. Incas rituals and legends indicate that that in Cuzco they saw precisely the sacred center of this reunited world.

Each of the four parts that made up the Empire was known by the name of one of the ethnic groups that lived in it and which metonymically designated other groups. To the northwest of Cuzco stretched Chinchasuyu, or “Chincha Strip,” after the name of the rich coastal state with which the Incas had centuries-old ties. To the southwest ran the Kuntisuyu, or “band of the Kopti,” an important group who settled in this part of the coastal mountainside. To the south went the Collasuyu, or “strip of the stakes,” the people who occupied the northern part of the Lake Titicaca basin and for a long time were the main rival of the Incas. To the east lay Aptisuyu, where, among others, lived the Antis, whom the Spaniards also called “Andes.” They occupied a place covered with tropical vegetation. mountain range, located to northeast from Cusco and called by the Spaniards the “Andean mountain system”. The term “Andes” itself began to be used in relation to this mountain system much later.

Cusco

Situated at an altitude of 3,450 meters, in the valley of the Huatanay River, Cusco did not look like a clearly structured city. The capital was a relatively small center located at the foot of a hill, a settlement in which elite buildings were concentrated and the surrounding area stretched along the spurs of the valley.

Indeed, in order to maximize the area of ​​cultivable land, the Incas built only terraces, roads and canals in the depths of the valley. The buildings of Cusco were “sandwiched” between two canal rivers, Huatanayi Tulumayu.

It is generally accepted that between 15,000 and 20,000 people lived in Cusco, mostly members of the elite and their servants. The palaces of the deceased Incas were also located here. They contained mummies of rulers and their descendants, as well as, as in temples, many gold and silver objects in the form of dishes, statues and plates that decorated the walls and roofs. For the Incas, these metals had no monetary value, and their use was reserved only for the nobility. The extreme degree of their accumulation in the capital was probably meant to emphasize the sacred nature of this place. Cusco, therefore, was primarily a religious city and a kind of museum in memory of the Inca rulers. The gods and the dead almost constantly and in huge quantities received offerings there, consuming quite a significant part of the rent of the ruling Inca. Juan Polo de Ondegardo, a Spanish official who carefully studied the Incas in the 1550s, described the capital this way: “Cuzco was the home and abode of the gods, and in the city it was impossible to find a single fountain, passage or wall, about which they wouldn’t say that they have their own secret.” As soon as the travelers discovered this city by crossing the pass, they no longer spared prayers and offerings for it.

"Kancha" in Ollantaytambo

The basic element of Incan town planning was a set of rectangular, one-room and one-level buildings located around a courtyard. Such a building was called kancha (“fenced place”), since it was usually surrounded by a high wall with one or two entrance doors, which guaranteed the isolation of the life that passed behind this “fence.”

Presumable perspective of the squares of Aucaypata (1) and Cusipata (2) in Cusco.

A - The current location of the Church of St. Francis; B - Modern location of Garcilaso de la Vega's house

This structure was typical both for ordinary dwellings and for palaces and temples in which the gods “lived.” The streets of Cusco were narrow passages between high walls that contained these residential or religious complexes. On one side of the city there was a huge square, 190x165 m. It was known as Aukaipata (“rest area”), as it served for large ritual feasts. Bounded on one side by the Huatanay River, it stretched along this river, smoothly passing into another, almost as vast square, which was called Kusipasha (“pleasure square”), where military parades took place.

Cusco looked relatively monotonous: most of the houses, temples and palaces were one-story, and all, without exception, had thatched roofs; no structure, like the Mexican pyramids, stood out among these homogeneous structures. The urban design was largely dictated by topography: the buildings of the center were located on a high spur that separated the Tulumaiu and Huatanay rivers, while other buildings were piled on top of each other on the hillside.

Above all this cluster of buildings rose the huge fortress and temple of Sacsayhuaman, built on a hill in the northern part of the city. Today, only the largest stones remain from it, those that the Spaniards were unable to move during the construction of the colonial city.

The city of Cusco as described by Pedro Sancho (1534)

This city is the greatest and most beautiful that has ever been seen in this country or anywhere in the West Indies. It is so beautiful and its buildings so beautiful that it would be magnificent even in Spain.

It consists entirely of dwellings belonging to lords, since ordinary people do not live in it. [...] Most of the buildings are built of stone, while the rest have half of the façade made of stone. There are also many adobe brick houses, very skillfully built. They are located along straight streets in a cruciform plan. All streets are paved, and in the middle of each street there is a stone-lined canal for water. The only drawback of these streets is that they are narrow: only one person can ride on each side of the canal. [...] The area, square in shape, is located in the most flat part and is completely covered with fine gravel. Around there are four manor houses, made of cut stone and painted. The most beautiful of the four is the home of Guaynacaba [=Huayna Capac], the old cacique. It has an entrance made of red, white and multi-colored marble, and is decorated with other dihedral structures, magnificent in appearance [...] On the top of a round and very steep hill overlooking the city, stands an incredibly beautiful fortress made of stone and adobe. Its large windows overlook the city, which makes it even more beautiful. Behind the fortress wall there are numerous buildings, and in the middle of them is the main tower of a cylindrical shape, four or five floors. [...] The stones [of the tower] are so smooth that they could pass for polished boards. [...] There are so many rooms and towers in the fortress that it is impossible for one person to explore them in a day. Many Spaniards who have been to Lombardy and other foreign kingdoms claim, having visited it, that they have never seen either a similar building or an equally well-fortified castle. [...] The most beautiful thing you can see in this city is its fortress wall. It is made of stones so huge that you will never believe that they were put in place. ordinary people. They are so large that they seem like pieces of rocky mountains.

Walls of Sacsayhuaman (according to George Squier, 1877)

The valley of the Huatanay River was distinguished by very dense buildings. Nearby, in the foothills, the Incas built terraces, irrigation canals, complexes of grain barns and new villages, where they housed peasants arriving from various provinces of the empire. There were also country houses of representatives of the local aristocracy, as well as temples. The total number of residents of the capital and its suburbs could reach 100,000 people.

"Cuzco" (Kusku) is an Aymara term meaning "owl". According to the Incan myth about the founding of this city, Manco Capac, having arrived in the vicinity of the future Cuzco, ordered one of his brothers, Ayar Aukeu, to fly up to a stone pillar located not far from the place where the Golden Temple (Qoricancha) would one day arise and gain a foothold. there in order to indicate their ownership of this territory. Ayar Auka did just that, turning into stone at the indicated place. This monolith has since been known as Cuscu Huanca, “Owl Rock,” probably because Ayar Auca turned into this particular bird in order to reach this boundary stone. It was he who gave his name to this settlement, which gradually grew around him and began to be called simply Cusco.

Metropolitan area

Above the valley of the Huatanay River, within a radius of about 70 km, stretched the actual territory of the Incas, the one on which they founded the proto-state several centuries before the formation of Tauaptipsuyu. Protected by the Apurimac River canyon, crossed only by suspension bridges, and bordered by the Amazon forest, this territory was almost impregnable, with the exception of the Vilcanota River valley - the possessions of the Capa and Canchi tribes, allies of the Incas.

All rulers, starting with Viracocha and ending with Huascar, built their country residences in this region and lived with their Court during the dry and cold season. The favorite area for the construction of these country palaces was the valley of the Vilcanota River, between Pisac and Machu Picchu, which was located not far from the capital, but had a much milder climate. All residences were equipped with advanced hydraulic structures: carved fountains poured out water in cascades through canals, as well as artificial lakes in which the buildings were reflected to the sound of gurgling water. Forests, parks and hunting reserves stretched all around. There were at least 18 such properties in the Cusco region. One of the most sophisticated was the Quispiguanca Palace, built by Huay Na Capac near the modern town of Urubamba, at an altitude of 2800 meters. From point of view geographical location One of the most impressive is the palace of Caquia Shakshaguana (modern Uchuy Cuscu), which belonged to Inca Viracocha - located on a ledge at an altitude of 3650 meters, it rises 600 m above the Vilcanota valley. But the most famous residence of the rulers is, of course, Machu Picchu, located three to four days’ journey from Cusco. Built by Pachacuti, the Machu Picchu Palace, with its 200 buildings, could serve as a comfortable shelter for 750 people at a time. Food and drinks were delivered to it from the capital, since Machu Picchu has almost no agricultural terraces and there is not a single peasant yard in the neighborhood, as well as storage facilities. No agricultural tools were found in it either. Warriors and administrators were probably camped around the settlement. The Inca residence has baths and a garden, as do other places such as Cajamarca. But the main activity of the Court takes place inside, in an area that occupies approximately a third of the entire area of ​​the settlement (not counting the terrace). Machu Picchu was probably primarily intended to strengthen social bonds among the Incas through feasts and religious ceremonies during the dry season. Pachakushi knew that rivalries and conflicts were not uncommon among the elite, and apparently wanted to create a pleasant and harmonious environment in which to worship the gods and enjoy life in the company of representatives of the most powerful families of Cuzco.

Provincial centers

The Incas created about 80 administrative and ceremonial centers in new places, designed to serve as provincial centers. Most are located within four or five days' travel of each other.

In these centers there is always a very large area, rectangular or trapezoidal, where the population of the province periodically feasted at the expense of the Incas, in gratitude for their work for the benefit of the ruler. In such cases, religious ceremonies made it possible to renew the agreement concluded between the Inca and his subjects. Rituals of offerings to the gods were carried out on an elevated platform (usnu), so that all the people gathered in the square could participate in them.

Thus, the Inca settlements were not just real cities, or even administrative centers, but “centers of wealth.” There was no market in them, and for most of the year only a few of their buildings were inhabited. Moreover, after the Spanish conquest, these “artificial” cities were hastily abandoned. Thus, the permanent population of Atun-Shaushi, one of the most major centers, was only about 7,000 people.

But when the city was filled with people to perform rites that exalted imperial unanimity, its numbers increased manifold. Conquistador Miguel de Estete, who saw this settlement in similar circumstances in 1532, even decided that he was in one of largest cities throughout the continent. Hernando Pizarro, who visited there in 1533, claims, probably somewhat exaggerating, that he saw 100,000 “serving Indians” feasting and dancing there. In these cities there was, as a rule, the residence of the ruler, where the Inca stopped while passing through, as well as the temple of the Sun and the “house of chosen women” (aklyahuasi), in which women who devoted themselves to the cult of the Sun and the preparation of maize beer and ceremonial clothes.

Of all these provincial centers, the city of Huanuco is probably the best preserved. In the center of this settlement, located at an altitude of 3700 m, on the road that connects Cusco and Quito, there was a huge area (520 x 360 m), capable of accommodating a very large number of people. In the middle of it stood a platform that served as a stage for offering rituals, so grandiose that everyone could see it. In case of rain, revelers took refuge in the large oblong-shaped buildings surrounding the square and continued to feast there.

Several streets emanated from the square, dividing the city into segments that extended over 2 square kilometers and included approximately 4,000 buildings in a typically Incan architectural style.

On the nearest hill there were about 700 grain barns, which served to supply armies and temporary residents.

Such centers are most often found in the highlands and in the middle part of Tawantinsuyu. The Incas built only two settlements on the coast: Incahuasi, in the Cañete Valley, and Tambo Colorado, in the Pisco Valley. Not a single Inca city existed on the territory of the ancient Chimu Empire, with the exception of Tumbes, of which nothing remains. In Collasuyu the Incas built much fewer administrative centers than in the highlands of Chinchasuyu, preferring to occupy ancient settlements such as Atun Colla or Chucuito. In the extreme south of the Empire, in the regions that belong to today Argentina and Chile, where population density was somewhat lower and the only minerals were minerals - in particular, Chilean obsidian - the Incas ordered the construction of only inns.

Roads, inns, postal services

The most impressive material achievement of the Incas is probably their road network. In 1532, Miguel de Estete, who participated in Pizarro's expedition, remarked regarding its main section, the one that connected Cuzco with Tomebamba: “This is one of the greatest structures that the world has seen.” In less than a hundred years, the Incas built 40,000 km of roads, most of them paved with crushed stone. This is the most significant road network that existed before the industrial era. Due to the absence of draft animals, and therefore carts, only pedestrians and caravans of llamas moved along these paths, and only roads paved with crushed stone equipped with a drainage system could ensure smooth and constant movement along steep slopes. mountain slopes, destroyed annually by heavy rains. Moreover, in Central Andes populated areas are separated from each other by practically uninhabited zones that present significant obstacles to movement: deserts, mountain ranges, steep slopes, forested areas.

The squire was one of the last to see this Incan bridge (45 m long), maintained until that time in order by the surrounding communities

In general, the state could not function without an infrastructure that would make possible the relatively easy and rapid movement of armies, government officials, labor and goods. In this regard, the Inca roads not only serve public purposes, but also help the state keep its territories under control, freely transferring troops and its representatives to any place. This road network, called the capac pian, "Great Road", was the most tangible and widespread expression of Inca power. Its main section was the main artery of the empire and in some places reached more than sixteen meters in width. Basically, the width of the Inca roadways ranged from one to four meters, despite the fact that, depending on the terrain, they could be transformed into a string of steps. Two other sections were also of particular importance: the one that connected Cusco with southern provinces, and the one that walked along the coast. Transverse roads connected these longitudinal axes or already went to the eastern foothills. In the coastal desert, where every possible path was covered with sand, roads were marked with sticks driven into the ground at regular intervals.

Crossing rivers and canyons was carried out via bridges various types. The empire consisted of more than a hundred bridges made of interwoven fibers, the production technology of which was very complex. Made from vines and planks, mounted on stone ledges, they provided relatively easy passage for livestock and armies.

Where traffic was less intense, people crossed the river in a lift suspended from a rope. In the gorges, crossings were carried out on stone or wooden bridges.

Along the Inca roads, every 15-25 km (which was equal to a day's travel for a caravan of lamas) there were tampus, a kind of inns. Travelers found shelter and food there, as well as pens and fodder for livestock. Throughout the empire, there were, according to various estimates, from 1000 to 2000 such tampus. Their size, plan and architecture varied greatly depending on their importance and the additional functions they could perform. Some served as administrative centers in regions where there were no provincial centers, as often happened along the southern borders of the empire, for example, in Catarpa, in the oasis of San Pedro de Atacama (in the north of modern Chile).

Along most roads, every 1-8 km - depending on the terrain - a special messenger lived with the family, a chaski, “transmitting from hand to hand.” His task was to deliver messages or small items to their destination (usually at a run), which were brought to him by the cha-ski, located at the previous postal station. Thus, one or another message reached from Lima to Cusco in just three days, although these cities are separated by 750 km. The addressee and destination were indicated verbally, but the message itself was contained in a pile.

The Inca Empire was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America and perhaps the largest empire in the world, dating back to the early 16th century.

Its political structure was the most complex of any indigenous people in the Americas.

The administrative, political and military center of the empire was in Cuzco (modern Peru).

The Inca civilization arose in the highlands of Peru in the early 13th century. The last fortress was conquered by the Spaniards in 1572.

From 1438 to 1533, the Incas inhabited much of western South America, centered on the Andes Mountains. At its peak, the Inca Empire included Ecuador, western and central Bolivia, northwestern Argentina, northern and central Chile, and parts of southwestern Colombia.

The official language was Quechua. There were many forms of god worship throughout the empire, but the rulers encouraged the worship of Inti, the supreme god of the Incas.

The Incas considered their king, Sapa Inca, the “son of the sun.”

The Inca Empire was unique in that it had none of the things that the civilizations of the Old World were famous for.

For example, residents did not have wheeled Vehicle, cattle, they also lacked knowledge about the extraction and processing of iron and steel, and the Incas did not have a structured writing system.

Characteristic of the Inca Empire were monumental architecture, a road system covering all corners of the empire and a special style of weaving.

Scholars believe that the Incan economy was feudal, slave, and socialist at the same time. It is believed that the Incas did not have money or markets. Instead, residents exchanged goods and services using barter.

A person’s labor for the benefit of the empire (for example, growing crops) was considered a kind of tax. The Inca rulers, in turn, supported the work of the people and organized large-scale feasts for their subjects on holidays.

The name "Inca" translates as "ruler", "lord". In Quechua, the term is used to refer to the ruling class or ruling family.

The Incas made up a small percentage of the empire's total inhabitants (from 15,000 to 40,000 people out of a total population of 10 million). The Spaniards began to use the term “Inca” to refer to all inhabitants of the empire.

Story

The Inca Empire was the leading civilization in the Andes, with a history stretching back thousands of years. The Andean civilization is one of five civilizations in the world that scientists call “primordial,” that is, indigenous and not derived from other civilizations.

The Inca Empire was preceded by two large empires in the Andes: Tiwanaku (ca. 300-1100 AD), located around Lake Titicaca, and Huari (ca. 600-1100 AD), centered near modern city Ayacucho.

Huari was located in Cuzco for about 400 years.

According to the legends of the Incas, their ancestors emerged from three caves: brothers and sisters who came to new lands over time built a temple of stone and began to populate the lands around them. Soon they reached Cuzco and began to build their homes throughout the territory.

The empire expanded. Aiyara Manco is considered its founder.

The rulers of the empire changed quite often. Many people wanted to reign over large territories. However, by the time the conquistadors arrived on the lands of the Incas, all tribes united in a single desire to maintain their independence.

The Spanish conquistadors, led by Francisco Pizarro and his brothers, reached the treasured lands of the Incas by 1525. In 1529, the king of Spain gave permission to conquer rich lands in North and South America.

European military forces invaded the Inca lands in 1532, when the population was demoralized by another war for control of the empire.

At the same time in Central America Smallpox was rampant, causing the death of a large number of the local population.

European soldiers under the leadership of Pizarro invaded the lands of the Incas and, having technological superiority over the “semi-wild” Incas, quickly gained power over the territories (the Spaniards also found allies who were negatively disposed towards the policies of the Inca emperors).

The conquistadors introduced the Christian faith in the region, plundered the houses of the inhabitants and installed their governor at the head of the empire. And in 1536, the last Inca fortress was destroyed, the emperor was overthrown, and the Spaniards gained power over the entire territory of the huge empire.

Population and language

The number of people inhabiting the empire during its heyday is not known for certain. Historians give figures from 4 to 37 million.

The main form of communication in the empire was the Incan language, as well as various dialects of Quechua.

Phonetically, the languages ​​differed greatly: Andeans may not understand the population living next to Colombia.

Some languages ​​survive to this day (for example, the Aymara language, which is spoken by some Bolivians to this day). The influence of the Incas outlasted their empire, as the conquering Spaniards continued to use the Quechua language for communication.

Culture and life

Archaeologists still find unique objects related to the life and way of life of the Incas.

Architecture was the most sought after art in the empire. The most important structures were created from stone (using special masonry).

Historians also find evidence that the Incas were interested in weaving, as well as sciences: mathematics, chronology in principle, medicine, etc.

The Incas' discoveries in some areas became the foundation for the development of scientific thought throughout the world (especially in Europe).

 

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