| Battle of Cajamarca | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Spanish conquest of Peru | |||||||
Contemporary engraving of the Battle of Cajamarca, showing Emperor Atahualpa surrounded on his palanquin. |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Spanish Empire | Inca Empire | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Francisco Pizarro Hernando Pizarro Gonzalo Pizarro Juan Pizarro II Hernando de Soto |
Atahualpa (POW) | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 106 infantry 62 cavalry 4 cannons 12 harquebus[1] |
7,000 of Atahualpa's personal attendants[2] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 1 wounded [3] | 6000-7000 of Atahualpa's personal attendants | ||||||
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The Battle of Cajamarca was a surprise attack on the Inca royal entourage orchestrated by Francisco Pizarro. Sprung on the evening of November 16, 1532, in the great plaza of Cajamarca, the ambush achieved the goal of capturing the Inca, Atahualpa, and claimed the lives of thousands of his followers.
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The confrontation at Cajamarca was the culmination of a months-long struggle involving espionage, subterfuge, and diplomacy between Pizarro and the Inca via their respective envoys. Atahualpa had received the invaders from a position of immense strength. Encamped along the heights of Cajamarca with legions of battle-tested troops fresh from their victories in the civil war against his half-brother Huascar, the Inca felt they had little to fear from Pizarro's tiny army, however exotic its dress and weaponry. In a calculated show of goodwill, Atahualpa had lured the adventurers deep into the heart of his mountain empire where any potential threat could be met with a show of force. Pizarro and his men arrived on November 15.
Atahualpa, unlike Moctezuma II in Mexico, knew right away that these men were not gods nor were they representatives of the gods. The reports from his own spies confirmed that. According to Spanish sources, he planned to recruit a few of the conquistadores into his own service and to appropriate Spanish firearms and horses for his armies. He would then execute the others at his leisure.
The book History Of The Conquest Of Peru, written by 19th century author William H. Prescott, recounts the dilemma the Spanish force found itself in. Any assault on the Inca armies overlooking the valley would have been suicidal. Retreat was equally out of the question, because any show of weakness might have undermined their air of invincibility, and would invite pursuit and closure of the mountain passes. Once the great stone fortresses dotting their route of escape were garrisoned, argued Pizarro, they would prove impregnable. But to do nothing, he added, was no better since prolonged contact with the natives would erode the fears of Spanish supernaturality that kept them at bay. Unlike his kinsman Hernán Cortés, whom Pizarro emulated and who could call on Spanish reinforcements 200 miles away in Veracruz, Pizarro's nearest Spanish reinforcements were 2,000 miles away in Panama.
Pizarro gathered his officers on the evening of November 15 and outlined a scheme that recalled memories of Cortés' exploits in Mexico in its audacity: he would capture the emperor from within the midst of his own armies. Since this could not realistically be accomplished in an open field, Pizarro invited the Inca to Cajamarca. According to the chroniclers, no one slept that night and some even "wet themselves in their terror".
themselves," although they did carry tumis (ceremonial knives to kill Llamas) and some carried ayllus (possibly bolas). The Spanish approached and told Atahualpa that Virococha had ordered them to tell the Inca who they were. Atahualpa listened then gave one (de Valverde?) a gold cup of chicha which was not drunk and given no attention at all. Furious, Atahualpa stood and yelled "Since you pay no importance to me I wish nothing to do with you" at which the Spanish attacked. Titu Cusi did not mention the bible being offered on the day of the battle, an omission that has been explained as either due to its insignificance to the Inca or to Titu Cusi confusing the events of the two days. His account of the battle itself is heavily influenced by Inca mythology and ritualised.[4]
At the signal to attack, the Spaniards unleashed gunfire at the vulnerable mass of Incans and surged forward in a concerted action. The effect was devastating: the shocked and unarmed Incans offered so little resistance that the battle has often been labeled a massacre. Contemporary accounts by members of Pizarro's force explain how the Spanish forces used a cavalry charge against the Incan forces, who had never seen horses, in combination with gunfire from cover (the Incan forces also had never encountered firearms before) combined with the ringing of bells to frighten the Inca. Other factors in the Spaniards' favor were their steel swords, helmets, and armor as the Incan forces had only leather armor and were unarmed. The Spanish also had 4 small cannons commanded by a Greek artillery captain which were used to great effect in the crowded town square. The first target of the Spanish attack was Atahualpa and his top commanders. Pizarro rushed at Atahualpa on horseback but he remained motionless. Some of the Inca however "flinched" and Atahualpa immediately had them put to death despite being under attack. The Spanish later severed the hands or arms of the attendants carrying Atahualpa's litter to force them to drop it so they could reach him. The Spanish were astounded that the attendants ignored their wounds and used their stumps or remaining hands to hold it up until several were killed and the litter slumped. However, the Spanish noticed that Atahualpa was drunk so left him sitting on the litter while they fought a large group of Inca at which time a large number of Inca rushed to place themselves between the litter and the Spanish, deliberately allowing themselves to be killed. While his men were killing these Inca, Pizarro rode through them and pulled Atahualpa from the litter. While doing so several soldiers also reached the litter and one attempted to kill Atahualpa, Pizarro defended him and received a sword wound to his hand.[5][6]
Atahualpa's wife, 10 year old Cuxirimay Ocllo, was with the army and stayed with him while he was imprisoned. Following his execution she was taken to Cuzco and took the name Dona Angelina. By 1538 it was known she was Pizarro's mistress, bearing him two sons, Juan and Francisco. Following his assassination in 1541 she married the interpreter Juan de Betanzos who later wrote Narratives of the Incas, part one covering Inca history up to the arrival of the Spanish and part two covering the conquest to 1557, mainly from the Inca viewpoint which included mentions of interviews with Inca guards who were near Atahualpa's litter when he was captured. Never published, only the first 18 chapters of part one were known until the complete manuscript was found and published in 1987.[7]
An important aspect in the Conquest of the Incas was Disease. Read more on Conquistador.