Machu Piccu
Inca Road System
Over 14,000 miles of road
Connected mountain
people with lowland
population
 Paved the roads with stone
and created walls so that
travelers would not fall of
cliffs
 Greatly increased trade,
communication, and
transport
 Rest stops were created
along the road systems


Inca Social Life
Inca diet consisted mostly of
potatoes, grains, berries, fish,
vegetable, maize, nuts
 Ate alpaca, guinea pig, and
other wild animal meat
 Road system aided the
success of the farming
community

Spanish Conquest

Weakened Empire
◦ Inca was divided by a war between Huascar
Capac and Atahualpa Capac over newly
dominated territory
◦ Smallpox spread from Central America

Pizarro came with few men
but thousands of native allies
Pizarro
Spanish Conquest
Atahualpa defeated his brother in the civil war and
asked to meet with Pizarro
 Spanish tried to convince them to accept King
Charles I and convert to Christianity
 Spanish became impatient and attacked the Inca and
took Atahualpa as a hostage

◦ Took royal gold and silver and put him to death

Appointed Manco Inca Capac as the emperor and
expected him to follow Spanish rule
Spanish Presence in Americas
Primarily in South (“Latin”) America and
Mexico (which extended quite far north)
 Encomienda system of land allocation
puts Spanish/European landowning system
in New World
 Mercantilist economy tied to Spain, made
Spain economic superpower in Europe in
the 16-17th century

Economic/Revolution
Economy derived from Sugar plantations
in Caribbean; new world crops (corn,
coffee, chocolate, potatoes)
 But more from mineral wealth: Gold,
Silver (Potosi), gemstones.
 Spanish gov’t implants admin system of
viceroys or intendants
 All goes along well until the French
Revolution and American Rev. late 1700’s

Reasons for anti-Spanish
Spain also decreases in power after 1700
as their royal dynasty dies out and the
Bourbon dynasty of France is installed.
 Significant disgruntlement among
indigenous population over forced
conversion; unhappiness of local spanish
population over ties to Spain and viceroy
and social system

Napoleon’s Coronation (painting by J.L. David)
•1808 in the midst of Napoleonic wars in Europe, Napoleon
invades Portugal
•Royal family of Portugal flees to Brazil and locals rebel
•Former independence movement in Brazil in Minas Gervais
in 1789 led by Tiradentes had failed
•Same thing in Spanish countries as Creoles are displaced
by Peninsulares (native Europeans); emigration increased
after Napoleon puts his brother on the throne.
•Spanish revolt against Josef Bonaparte and form Juntas,
claiming that they rule in the name of the legitimate king,
Ferdinand VII
•1810 Creoles in Latin America claim loyalty to Ferdinand
and charge their Vice-Roy with disloyalty:
•If the king can’t rule them, they will rule themselves!
•1810 Priest Miguel de Hidalgo leads
revolt against local Spanish rule in
Mexico
•Proclaimed Revolution on
September 16, 1810
•Originally started as part of a Creole
social club, but overthrown; turns to
the local population of Indians and
marched on Queretaro
•Hidalgo’s forced defeated January
1811
•He is captured, excommunicated,
and sentenced to death. When
given a chance to renounce his
treason, he does, and thus is seen
as a traitor instead of martyr
•1820 General Augustin de Iturbide
declares independence from Spain
•He is a compromise candidate as Fr.
Jose Maria Morales seen as too
radical, executed after capture by
Iturbide in 1815
•Iturbide in 1820 claims Mexican
independence with Spanish
Monarchy; in 1821 the Mexican
congress crowns him as Emperor
Augustin I; overthrown in 1823.
•Southern republics of Mexico break away and become Guatemala, El
Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica
•Ultimately will lead to war in 1846 with US, but Mexico is a republic with
a president, constitution and congress.
Contrast with Brazil
Brazilians developed earlier sense of
Nationalism in conflict between
Portuguese and Dutch over commercial
interests. Ca. 1654, Brazil expels Dutch in
favor of Portugal, but considers
themselves on an equal footing with
Spanish colonies.
 Different social situation than Mexico;
more about money than race.

Brazilian Independence
1729 Portugal realizes that Minas Gerais
has been mining diamonds as well as gold,
tries to limit # of people, but there’s a
huge rush to mine diamonds. Glut.
 While racism isn’t in effect as the Creoles
in mexico, slavery is a major factor in
Portugal; escaped slaves become
Quilombos, intermix with local population
 Coffee and sugar also major crops (labor
intensive)

Brazil
1808 everything falls apart because of Napoleon as well
• Royal family of Portugal flees to Brazil and locals rebel
• Former independence movement in Brazil in Minas
Gervais in 1789 led by Tiradentes had failed.
 In the midst of Napoleon’s wars, with King in Portugal,
new republic set up.

Venezuela
•Simon Bolivar b. 1793;
Creole
•Enlightenment
influenced, studied in
Europe
•Claimed loyalty to Ferd.
7th in 1810
•Goes to Britain for help
•1811 congress
declares Venezuela
independent
•1812 Earthquake
Bolivar, continued
1816 Bolivar returns with military aid
against King
 1819 Bolivar becomes President; new
constitution, hereditary senate
 Bolivar provides military aid against spain
and helps liberate Equador, Columbia
(including Panama) and Grand Columbia.
 Bolivia named after him
