1. The Inca

2. Location:
South America; Peru, Ecuador & parts of Bolivia

3. Potatoes!
Potatoes were the staple food of the Inca, originally domesticated in Peru

5. The Inca Trail: 14,000 mile road system including stairs and bridges
Traversed mountains, jungles & deserts
Guesthouses
Tied empire together
Message system
Troop movement

7. 1200’s
Inca tribe established itself in Cuzco Valley

8. 1483
Pachacuti became Inca leader. He was brilliant and ambitious; conquered neighboring lands

9. 1500
By 1500, The Inca ruled a vast empire that stretched 2,500 miles along the West coast of South America

10. 1525
Inca leader died, Atahualpa became new emperor, civil war tore apart the Inca empire

11. 1532
Inca emperor Atahualpa surrendered to Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro

12. Quechua (language spoken throughout the empire)
Capital:
Cuzco, Peru
Language:
Quechua (language spoken throughout the empire)
Government:
Empire/theocracy. Welfare state; government cared for people, people worked for government

13. Pachacuti "He who remakes the world."
He began an era of conquest that expanded the Inca empire
Sometimes referred to as "The Napoleon of the Andes“
Centralized, well-organized government

14. Quipu The Incan system of accounting
Cords of various colors were attached to a main cord with knots. The number and position of knots as well as the color of each cord represented information about commercial goods, resources, and census
Archeologists are now suggesting that authors used the quipu to compose and preserve their epic poems and legends.

15. Terrace Farming The Inca geography was mountainous
Incans adapted to their terrain by creating flat terraces for farming

16. Inca Economy
Almost all aspects of the Inca economy were owned or controlled by the government.
No private enterprise
People didn’t own stores or farms, the government did

17. Many resources spent on religious activities
Traits of Inca Civilization
Strength
Weakness
Religious beliefs & theocracy
-united culture
-Loyal to the emperor
Many resources spent on religious activities
Major road system
Connected empire, helped control empire
Enemy could also use road to move troops
Welfare state & large bureaucracy
All people in empire cared for in good & bad times
People unable to care for themselves without government