Túpac Amaru (1545–September 24, 1572) was the last of the indigenous rulers of the Inca. He ruled during the time of the Spanish occupation and was executed by the Spanish after the final defeat of the Neo-Inca state.

Fast Facts: Túpac Amaru Known For : The last indigenous ruler of the Inca

: The last indigenous ruler of the Inca Also Known As : Túpac Amaru, Topa Amaru, Thupa Amaro, Tupaq Amaru, Thupaq Amaru

: Túpac Amaru, Topa Amaru, Thupa Amaro, Tupaq Amaru, Thupaq Amaru Born : 1545 (exact date unknown) in or near Cusco

: 1545 (exact date unknown) in or near Cusco Parents : Manco Capac (father); mother unknown

: Manco Capac (father); mother unknown Died : September 24, 1572 in Cusco

: September 24, 1572 in Cusco Spouse: Unknown

Unknown Children : One son

: One son Notable Quote: "Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yawarniy hichascancuta." ("Pacha Kamaq, witness how my enemies shed my blood."

Early Life

Tupac Amaru, a member of the Incan royal family, grew up in the Incan convent Vilcabamba, the "religious university" of the Incas. As a young adult, he was against the Spanish occupation and rejected Christianity. Indigenous Incan leaders supported him because of that.

Background

When the Spanish arrived in the Andes in the early 1530s, they found the wealthy Inca Empire in turmoil. Feuding brothers Atahualpa and Huáscar ruled over two halves of the mighty Empire. Huáscar was killed by Atahuallpa’s agents and Atahualpa himself was captured and executed by the Spanish, effectively ending the time of the Inca. A brother of Atahualpa and Huáscar, Manco Inca Yupanqui, managed to escape with some loyal followers and established himself head of a small kingdom, first at Ollantaytambo and later in Vilcabamba.

Manco Inca Yupanqui was assassinated by Spanish deserters in 1544. His 5-year-old son Sayri Túpac took over and ruled his small kingdom with the help of regents. The Spanish sent ambassadors and relations between the Spanish in Cusco and the Inca at Vilcabamba warmed. In 1560, Sayri Túpac was eventually persuaded to come to Cusco, renounce his throne, and accept baptism. In exchange, he was given vast lands and a profitable marriage. He died suddenly in 1561, and his half-brother Titu Cusi Yupanqui became the leader of Vilcabamba.

Titu Cusi was more cautious than his half-brother had been. He fortified Vilcabamba and refused to come to Cusco for any reason, although he did allow ambassadors to stay. In 1568, however, he finally relented, accepting baptism and, in theory, turning over his kingdom to the Spanish, although he consistently delayed any visit to Cusco. Spanish Viceroy Francisco de Toledo repeatedly attempted to buy off Titu Cusi with presents such as fine cloth and wine. In 1571, Titu Cusi became ill. Most of the Spanish diplomats were not in Vilcabamba at the time, leaving only Friar Diego Ortiz and translator Pedro Pando.

Túpac Amaru Ascends the Throne

The Inca lords in Vilcabamba asked Friar Ortiz to ask his God to save Titu Cusi. When Titu Cusi died, they held the friar accountable and killed him by tying a rope through his lower jaw and dragging him through town. Pedro Pando was also killed. Next in line was Túpac Amaru, Titu Cusi’s brother, who had been living in semi-seclusion in a temple. About the time Túpac Amaru was made leader, a Spanish diplomat returning to Vilcabamba from Cusco was killed. Although it is unlikely that Túpac Amaru had anything to do with it, he was blamed and the Spanish prepared for war.

War with the Spanish

Túpac Amaru had only been in charge for a few weeks when the Spanish arrived, led by 23-year-old Martín García Oñez de Loyola, a promising officer of noble blood who would later become governor of Chile. After a couple of skirmishes, the Spanish managed to capture Túpac Amaru and his top generals. They relocated all the men and women who had been living in Vilcabamba and brought Túpac Amaru and the generals back to Cusco. Dates of birth for Túpac Amaru are vague, but he was approximately in his late 20s at the time. They were all sentenced to die for insurrection: the generals by hanging and Túpac Amaru by beheading.

Death

The generals were thrown in prison and tortured, and Túpac Amaru was sequestered and given intense religious training for several days. He eventually converted and accepted baptism. Some of the generals had been tortured so badly that they died before making it to the gallows—although their bodies were hung anyway. Túpac Amaru was led through the city escorted by 400 Cañari warriors, traditional bitter enemies of the Inca. Several important priests, including the influential Bishop Agustín de la Coruña, pleaded for his life, but Viceroy Francisco de Toledo ordered the sentence to be carried out.

The heads of Túpac Amaru and his generals were put on pikes and left at the scaffold. Before long, the locals—many of whom still considered the Inca ruling family to be divine—started worshiping the head of Túpac Amaru, leaving offerings and small sacrifices. When notified of this, Viceroy Toledo ordered the head to be buried with the rest of the body. With the death of Túpac Amaru and the destruction of the last Inca kingdom in Vilcabamba, Spanish domination of the region was complete.

Historic Context

Túpac Amaru never really had a chance; he came into power at a time when events had already conspired against him. The deaths of the Spanish priest, interpreter, and ambassador were not of his doing, as they took place before he was made the leader of Vilcabamba. As a result of these tragedies, he was forced to fight a war he may not have even wanted. In addition, Viceroy Toledo had already decided to stamp out the last Inca holdout at Vilcabamba. The legality of the conquest of the Inca was being seriously questioned by reformers (primarily in the religious orders) in Spain and in the New World, and Toledo knew that without a ruling family to which the Empire could be returned, questioning the legality of the conquest was moot. Although Viceroy Toledo was reprimanded by the crown for the execution, he did the king a favor by removing the last legitimate legal threat to Spanish rule in the Andes.

Legacy

Today Túpac Amaru stands as a symbol for the indigenous people of Peru of the horrors of the conquest and Spanish colonial rule. He is considered the first indigenous leader to seriously rebel against the Spanish in an organized way and, as such, he has become the inspiration for many guerrilla groups over the centuries. In 1780, his great-grandson José Gabriel Condorcanqui adopted the name Túpac Amaru and launched a short-lived but serious rebellion against the Spanish in Peru. The Peruvian communist rebel group Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru (“Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement”) took their name from him, as did the Uruguayan Marxist rebel group the Tupamaros.

Tupac Amaru Shakur (1971–1996) was an American rapper who was named after Túpac Amaru II.

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