The Incredible Incas: Children of the Sun

Who Were the Incas? The Incas were a small tribe of South American Indians who lived in the city of Cuzco, high in the Andes Mountains of Peru. Around 1400 CE, a neighboring tribe attacked the Incas, but the Incas won. This was the beginning of the Inca Empire. In only 100 years, the Inca Empire grew so big that it expanded into what are now the modern countries of Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Argentina.

Civilizations of South America _wh_survey/resources/html/animations/ wh13_americanciv.html

Pachacuti The ancient Incas blamed earthquakes on the god Pachacamac, “Lord of the earth.” Whenever Pachacamac lost his temper the earth shook. He was the highest Incan god. The greatest Incan ruler took the name Pachacuti, which means “earth shaker.” He was considered the son of the sun god.

Incan Empire In A.D. 1438, Pachacuti and his son built the largest ancient empire in the Americas. He set up a strong central government but let local rulers stay in power. To ensure loyalty, he took their sons to the capital city of Cuzco for training.

Pachacuti ruled 1438–1471

Incan Ruler

Inca Government One thing that helped the Incas grow so rapidly was their system of a strong central government. Everybody worked for the state, and in turn the state looked after everybody. Sapa Inca: The head of government was the Inca, sometimes called the “Sapa Inca” (“the Only Inca”). The Sapa Inca was all-powerful. Everything belonged to the Sapa Inca. He ruled his people by putting his relatives in positions of power. Since punishment was harsh and swift, almost no one broke the law.

Common People Had No Freedom The Incas were very class conscious and were divided into nobles and common people. The nobles pretty much did what they wanted, while the common people were tightly controlled by the government. Commoners could not own or run businesses. They could only do their assigned jobs. The law did not allow them to be idle. Even the amount of time they had to sleep and bathe was controlled by a government official.

Service Tax Local officials kept an detailed census. A census is an official count of all the people in an area and how they each make a living. Each common person was listed in the census. Each person listed had to pay a tax. The Incas loved gold and silver, but they had no use for money. The people paid their tax each year in physical labor—serving in the army, working in the mines, or building roads, temples, and palaces.

Harsh Government Controls Laws dictated who should work where, and when. Local officials had the power to make all decisions about the lives of the people they ruled. Inspectors visited frequently to check on things. Breaking the law usually meant the death penalty. Few people broke the law. Tight government controls kept the common people fed, clothed, and enslaved.

A United Empire Pachacuti united the empire by requiring the people to learn Quechua, the language spoken by the Inca. He also designed a system of roads, which covered about 25,000 miles when finished. All Incan roads led to Cuzco, the capital city. It included many bridges over high mountains and harsh deserts.

Inca Roads High in the Andes Mountains, the Incas connected their empire with 14,000 miles of well-built roads. Some sections of road were over 24 feet wide. Some were even paved. Some roads were so steep that the Incas built stone walls along the edge to prevent people from falling off the cliff. The roads belonged to the government. No one could travel the roads without special permission.

Government Questions 1.What was the service tax? 2.Who decided how much service tax was due? 3.Who was the head of Inca government? 4.What freedoms did the common people enjoy?

Geography Another thing that helped the Inca Empire grow so rapidly was its geography. The empire had three main geographical regions: Each was a natural barrier. The Incas made their home between the jungle and the desert, high in the Andes Mountains of South America. 1. The Andes Mountains 2. The Amazon jungle 3. The coastal desert

Andes Mountains The snow-capped Andes Mountains run north to south. They have sharp ragged peaks and deep gorges. The Incas built bridges across the gorges so they could reach all parts of their empire quickly and easily. If an enemy approached, the Incas could burn the bridges. They made suspension bridges from rope, pontoon bridges from reed boats, and pulley baskets from vines.

Agriculture The Incas farmed the slopes of the mountain regions by building terraces or step-like ledges cut into the mountains. They grew corn, cotton, potatoes, squash, and beans.

Domesticated Animals Pack animals such as the llama and vicuna were used for transportation, wool, and food.

An Organized Society The Inca believed the sun god Inti protected Cuzco, the Incan capital. The rulers who lived there called themselves “sons of the sun.” They were at the top of society. The head priest and commander of the armies were next. Below them were the temple priests and skill workers. The bottom level consisted of farmers, herders, and ordinary soldiers.

Incan Religion The Inca rarely honored their gods with human sacrifices. This was done only in times of trouble, such as earthquakes. Priest most often sacrificed children, because they were considered more pure. To please their gods, the Incas built large works of stone without wheels or iron tools.

Religion The Incas worshiped many gods and goddesses. The sun god was called Inti and gold was used for his symbol. Each month a festival was held to honor the gods.

Temple of Fertility

Temple of the Sun

Incan Math The Inca used a quipa, a rope with knotted cords of different lengths and colors. Each knot represented a number or item, which was also a way of keeping records.

Skilled Engineers Incan workers could build stone structures with stones fitted so tightly that a knife could not slip between them. Because they used no mortar, the stone blocks could slide up and down without collapsing whenever an earthquake rocked the earth.

Cuzco

Stone walls of Cuzco

Incan Solar Calendar The Inca developed a calendar system that was used primarily for religious purposes.

Skilled Weavers The Inca were skilled weavers. The “Chosen Women” were highly skilled weavers who wove cloth for the emperor. His garments were worn only once and then burned.

Inca Decline In the 1530’s a Spanish conqueror, Francisco Pizarro, captured the Incan emperor and his unarmed men. They were quickly defeated with the superior Spanish weapons and the dreaded smallpox disease. Weakened by smallpox, civil war, they were defeated by the Spanish

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Machu Picchu

Descendents of the Inca

Life in the Americas How did the Inca build their structures to withstand earthquakes? The Inca did not use mortar between the stone blocks. Even though the space between the blocks was very small, the blocks could slide up and down without collapsing when an earthquake struck.