Túpac Amaru or ''Thupa Amaru'' (14 April 154524 September 1572) (first name also spelled Túpac, Tupac, Topa, Tupaq, Thupaq, Thupa, last name also spelled Amaro instead of Amaru) was the last
Sapa Inca
The Sapa Inca (from ; ) was the monarch of the Inca Empire (''Tawantinsuyu'' "the region of the four rovinces), as well as ruler of the earlier Kingdom of Cusco and the later Neo-Inca State at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba. While the origins ...
of the
Neo-Inca State
The Neo-Inca State, also known as the Neo-Inca state of Vilcabamba, was the Inca state established in 1537 at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba by Manco Inca Yupanqui (the son of Inca emperor Huayna Capac). It is considered a rump state of the Inca ...
, the final remaining independent part of the
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...
. He was
executed
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...
by the Spanish following a months-long pursuit after the fall of the Neo-Inca State.
His name is derived from the
Quechua words ''thupaq'', meaning "royal" or "shining" and
''amaru'', which can either mean "snake" or refer to the snake-like being from Andean mythology.
Accession
Following the
Spanish conquest of Peru
The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, also known as the Conquest of Peru, was one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. After years of preliminary exploration and military skirmishes, 168 Spaniards, ...
in the 1530s, a few members of the royal family established the small independent
Neo-Inca State
The Neo-Inca State, also known as the Neo-Inca state of Vilcabamba, was the Inca state established in 1537 at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba by Manco Inca Yupanqui (the son of Inca emperor Huayna Capac). It is considered a rump state of the Inca ...
in
Vilcabamba, which was located in the relatively inaccessible
Upper Amazon to the northeast of
Cusco
Cusco or Cuzco (; or , ) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous Cusco Province, province and Cusco Region, department.
The city was the cap ...
. The founder of this state was
Manco Inca Yupanqui
Manco Inca Yupanqui (1544) was the founder and first Sapa Inca of the independent Neo-Inca State in Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba, although he was originally a Puppet government, puppet Inca Emperor installed by the Spaniards. He was also known ...
(also known as Manco Cápac II), who had initially allied himself with the Spanish, then led an unsuccessful war against them before establishing himself in Vilcabamba in 1540. After a Spanish attack in 1544 in which Manco Inca Yupanqui was killed, his son
Sayri Túpac assumed the title of ''
Sapa Inca
The Sapa Inca (from ; ) was the monarch of the Inca Empire (''Tawantinsuyu'' "the region of the four rovinces), as well as ruler of the earlier Kingdom of Cusco and the later Neo-Inca State at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba. While the origins ...
'' (emperor, literally "only Inca"), before accepting Spanish authority in 1558, moving to Cuzco and dying (perhaps by poison) in 1561. He was succeeded in
Vilcabamba by his brother
Titu Cusi
Titu Cusi ( Spanish: Diego de Castro Titu Kusi Yupanqui; ; Quechua: ''Titu Kusi Yupanki'' ) (15291571) was an Inca ruler of Vilcabamba and the penultimate leader of the Neo-Inca State. He was a son of Manco Inca Yupanqui. He was crowned in 156 ...
, who himself died in 1571. Túpac Amaru, another brother of the two preceding emperors, then succeeded to the title in Vilcabamba.
Final war with and capture by Spanish
At this time, the Spanish were still unaware of the death of the previous ''Sapa Inca'' (Titu Cusi) and had routinely sent two ambassadors to continue ongoing negotiations being held with Titu Cusi. They were both killed on the border by an Inca captain.
Using the justification that the Incas had "broken the inviolate law observed by all nations of the world regarding ambassadors", the new viceroy,
Francisco de Toledo, Count of Oropesa
Francisco Álvarez de Toledo ( Oropesa, 10 July 1515 – Escalona, 21 April 1582), also known as ''The Viceroyal Solon'', was an aristocrat and soldier of the Kingdom of Spain and the fifth Viceroy of Peru. Often regarded as the "best of P ...
, decided to attack and conquer Vilcabamba. He declared war on 14 April 1572. The first engagement of the war commenced in the Vilcabamba valley on 1 June. The Inca people attacked first with much spirit despite being only lightly armed. Again and again, they attempted to lift the siege held by the Spanish and their native allies but each time they were forced to retreat. On 24 June the Spanish entered Vilcabamba to find it deserted and the ''Sapa Inca'' gone. The city had been entirely destroyed and the last remnants of the
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...
, the
Neo-Inca State
The Neo-Inca State, also known as the Neo-Inca state of Vilcabamba, was the Inca state established in 1537 at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba by Manco Inca Yupanqui (the son of Inca emperor Huayna Capac). It is considered a rump state of the Inca ...
now officially ceased to exist.
Túpac Amaru had left the previous day with a party of about 100 and headed west into the lowland forests. The group, which included his generals and family members, had then split up into smaller parties in an attempt to avoid capture.
Three groups of Spanish soldiers pursued them. One group captured Titu Cusi's son and wife. A second returned with military prisoners along with gold, silver and other precious jewels. The third group returned with Túpac Amaru's two brothers, other relatives and several of his generals. The ''Sapa Inca'' and his commander remained at large.
Following this, a group of forty hand-picked soldiers under
Martín García Óñez de Loyola set out to pursue them. They followed the Masahuay river for 170 miles, where they found an Inca warehouse with quantities of gold and the Inca's tableware. The Spanish captured a group of Chunco and compelled them to tell them what they had seen and if they had seen the ''Sapa Inca''. They reported that he had gone down river, by boat, to a place called Momorí. The Spaniards then constructed five rafts and pursued them.
At Momorí, they discovered that Tupac Amaru had escaped by land. They followed with the help of the Manarí, who advised which path the Inca had followed and reported that Túpac was slowed by his wife, who was about to give birth. After a fifty-mile march, they saw a campfire around nine o'clock at night. They found the ''Sapa Inca'' Túpac Amaru and his wife warming themselves. They assured them that no harm would come to them and secured their surrender. Túpac Amaru was arrested.
The captives were brought back to the ruins of Vilcabamba and together they were all marched into Cuzco on 21 September. The invaders also brought the mummified remains of
Manco Cápac and
Titu Cusi
Titu Cusi ( Spanish: Diego de Castro Titu Kusi Yupanqui; ; Quechua: ''Titu Kusi Yupanki'' ) (15291571) was an Inca ruler of Vilcabamba and the penultimate leader of the Neo-Inca State. He was a son of Manco Inca Yupanqui. He was crowned in 156 ...
and a gold statue of Punchao, a representation of the Inca's lineage containing the mortal remains of the hearts of the deceased Inca kings. These sacred items were then destroyed.
Execution

The five captured Inca generals received a summary trial and were sentenced to death by hanging. Several had already died of torture or disease.
The trial of the ''Sapa Inca'' himself began a couple of days later. Túpac Amaru was convicted of the murder of the priests in Vilcabamba. Túpac Amaru was sentenced to be beheaded. It was reported in various sources in 1598 that numerous Catholic clerics, convinced of Túpac Amaru's innocence, pleaded to no avail, on their knees, that the Inca be sent to Spain for a trial instead of being executed.
Many have argued that
Viceroy Toledo, in executing a head of state recognized by the Spanish as an independent king, exceeded his authority and committed a crime within the political ideas of his own time. Other claims have been made to the contrary – that Túpac Amaru was in rebellion (his predecessors having allegedly accepted Spanish authority), that Toledo had tried peaceful means to settle differences, that three of his ambassadors to the Inca were murdered and that Túpac Amaru subsequently raised an army to resist the colonial army. The King of Spain,
Philip II, disapproved of the execution.
An eyewitness report from the day recalls him riding a
mule
The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...
with hands tied behind his back and a rope around his neck. Other witnesses reported there were great crowds and the ''Sapa Inca'' was surrounded by hundreds of guards with lances. In front of the
Cathedral of Santo Domingo in the central square of Cuzco a black-draped scaffold had been erected. Reportedly 10,000 to 15,000 witnesses were present.
Túpac Amaru mounted the scaffold accompanied by the Bishop of Cuzco. As he did, it was reported by the same witnesses that a "multitude of Indians, who completely filled the square, saw that lamentable spectacle
nd knewthat their lord and Inca was to die, they deafened the skies, making them reverberate with their cries and wailing."
As reported by eyewitnesses Baltasar de Ocampa and Friar Gabriel de Oviedo, Prior of the Dominicans at Cuzco, the ''Sapa Inca'' raised his hand to silence the crowds and his
last words
Last words are the final utterances before death. The meaning is sometimes expanded to somewhat earlier utterances.
Last words of famous or infamous people are sometimes recorded (although not always accurately), which then became a historical an ...
were: "Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yawarniy hichascancuta." ("
Pacha Kamaq
Pachacamac or Pacha Kamaq ( Quechua, "Creator of the World"; also ''Pacharurac'') was the deity worshipped in the city of Pachacamac (modern-day Peru) by the Ichma.
Pacha Kamaq was believed to have created the first man and woman, but forgot to ...
, witness how my enemies shed my blood.")
Descendants
Nearly forty years after the conquest of Peru began with the execution of
Atahualpa
Atahualpa (), also Atawallpa or Ataw Wallpa ( Quechua) ( 150226 July 1533), was the last effective Inca emperor, reigning from April 1532 until his capture and execution in July of the following year, as part of the Spanish conquest of the In ...
, the conquest ended with the execution of his nephew. The Spanish Viceroy rounded up the royal descendants. Several dozen, including Túpac Amaru's three-year-old son, were banished to Mexico, Chile, Panama and elsewhere. Some of them were allowed to return home.
Túpac Amaru's memory lived on and would become personified in an important late eighteenth century insurgency that was rooted in aspirations toward a revival of Inca status vis-a-vis the Spanish administration. In 1780,
José Gabriel Condorcanqui (Túpac Amaru II), who claimed to be a direct descendant of Túpac Amaru, led an indigenous uprising against continued Spanish presence in Peru alongside his wife
Micaela Bastidas. Condorcanqui's rebellion emerged in response to new Bourbon Reforms implemented by the Spanish crown, which included incremental increases in levels of taxation upon indigenous populations – such as the alcabala or sales tax. Túpac Amaru II's rebellion was sparked when he (Condorcanqui) captured and killed the Spanish corregidor Antonio Arriaga in November 1780.
Legacy
Historian El Inca Garcilaso De La Vega claimed that
King Philip II disapproved of the public execution of Túpac Amaru. Túpac Amaru's death in 1572 has generated great interest centuries after.
Relatively little is known about Túpac Amaru, but this has not prevented his death from becoming a symbol of power to those in the region. Public figures such as Andean rebel leader Jose Gabriel Condorcanqui resonated with Túpac Amaru ideology, so much so that he changed his name to Tupac Amaru II. Despite Túpac Amaru's short life and tragic death his legacy precedes him especially among the Peruvian community.
Primary school number 239 in
Warsaw
Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
(
Mirów), had been named in honor of Túpac Amaru, but it closed in 2001. Rapper
Tupac Amaru Shakur was named after
Túpac Amaru II
Tupac Amaru II (born José Gabriel Condorcanqui Noguera, – 18 May 1781) was an Indigenous ''cacique'' who led a Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II, large Andean rebellion against the Viceroyalty of Peru, Spanish in Peru as Self-proclaimed monarc ...
.
See also
*
Amaru (mythology)
*
Neo-Inca State
The Neo-Inca State, also known as the Neo-Inca state of Vilcabamba, was the Inca state established in 1537 at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba by Manco Inca Yupanqui (the son of Inca emperor Huayna Capac). It is considered a rump state of the Inca ...
*
Vilcabamba
*
Manco Inca Yupanqui
Manco Inca Yupanqui (1544) was the founder and first Sapa Inca of the independent Neo-Inca State in Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba, although he was originally a Puppet government, puppet Inca Emperor installed by the Spaniards. He was also known ...
*
Sayri Tupac
References
Bibliography
* Beverley, John; "Túpac Amaru Rebellion", in Prem Poddar, ''et al.'', Historical Companion to Postcolonial Literatures — Continental Europe and its Colonies,
Edinburgh University Press
Edinburgh University Press is a scholarly publisher of academic books and journals, based in Edinburgh, Scotland.
History
Edinburgh University Press was founded in the 1940s and became a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Edinburgh ...
, 2008.
*
Cobo, Bernabé, ''Historia del Nuevo Mundo'', bk 12.
* ''Colección de documentos inéditos relativos al descubrimiento, conquista y organización de las antiquas posesiónes españoles de Ultramar'', ed. Angel de Altolaguirre y Duvale and Adolfo Bonilla y San Martin, 25 vols., Madrid, 1885–1932, vol. 15, In Hemming.
* Flores-Ochoa, Jorge and Abraham Valencia E., ''Rebeliones indigenas, quechuas y aymaras - homenaje al bicentenario de la rebelion campesina de Thupa Amaro, 1780–1980'', Cuzco, Peru, Centro de Estudios Andinos Cuzco, 1980.
* García de Castro, Lope, Despatch, Lima, 6 March 1565, ''Gobernantes del Perú, cartas y papeles, Siglo XVI, Documentos del Archivo de Indias'', Coleción de Publicaciones Históricas de la Biblioteca del Congreso Argentino, ed. Roberto Levillier, 14 vols, Madrid, 1921–1926. In Hemming.
* Guillen Guillen, Edmundo, ''La Guerra de Reconquista Inca, Histórica épica de como Los Incas lucharon en Defensa de la Soberanía del Perú ó Tawantinsuyu entre 1536 y 1572'', 1st ed., Lima.
* Hemming, John; ''The Conquest of the Incas'', Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, New York, 1970.
*
Lee, Vincent R., "Forgotten Vilcabamba, Final Stronghold of the Incas", Sixpac Manco, Colorado, 2000 .
* MacQuarrie, Kim; ''The Last Days of the Incas'',
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
, 2007, .
* Markham, Sir Clements; ''The Incas of Peru'', 2nd ed., John Murray, London, 1912.
* Métraux, Alfred; ''The History of the Incas'', tr. George Ordish, Pantheon Books, New York, 1969.
*
Murúa, Martín de, ''Historia General del Perú, Orígen y descendencia de los Incas (1590–1611)'', ed. Manuel Ballesteros-Gaibrois, 2 vols, Madrid, 1962, 1964. In Hemming.
* Ocampa, Baltasar de; ''Descripción de la Provincia de Sant Francisco de la Victoria de Villcapampa'',
ilcabampa (1610), Tr. C. R. Markham,
Hakluyt Society
The Hakluyt Society is a text publication society, founded in 1846 and based in London, England, which publishes scholarly editions of primary records of historic voyages, travels and other geographical material. In addition to its publishin ...
, Second Series, vol. 22, 1907. In Hemming.
* Salazar, Antonio Bautista de; ''Relación sobre el periodo del gobierno de los Virreyes Don Francisco de Toledo y Don García Hurtado de Mendoza'' (1596), Coleción de documentos inéditos relativos al descubrimiento, conquista y colonization de las posesiones espanolas en América y Oceanía sacadas en su mayor parte de Real Archivo de Indias, 42 vols, Madrid, 1864–1884. In Hemming.
* Titu Cusi Yupanqui, Inca Diego del Castro; ''Relación de la conquista del Perú y hechos del Inca Manco II; Instrución el muy Ille. Señor Ldo. Lope García de Castro, Gobernador que fue destos rreynos del Pirú'' (1570), Coleción de libros y documentos referentes a la historia del Perú, ed. Carlos A. Romero and Horacio H. Urteaga, two series, 22 vols, Lima, 1916–1935. In Hemming.
* Valladolid, 29 April 1549, ''Colección de documentos para la historia de la formación social de Hispano-América'', ed. Richard Konetzke, 4 vols, Madrid, 1953, in Hemming.
* Vargas Ugarte, Ruben; ''Historia del Perú, Virreinato (1551–1600)'', Lima, 1949, p. 258.
Walker, Charles F. ''The Tupac Amaru Rebellion'', (Cambridge, MA:
Belknap Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou.
The pres ...
, 2014).
* Walker, Charles F. and Liz Clarke; 2020, ''Witness to the Age of Revolution - The Odyssey of Juan Bautista Túpac Amaru'',
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
.
External links
*
{{Authority control
Inca emperors
1545 births
1572 deaths
16th-century South American people
16th-century indigenous leaders of the Americas
Executed monarchs
16th-century executions by Spain
People executed by Spain by decapitation
16th-century Sapa Incas
Monarchs taken prisoner in wartime
Roman Catholic monarchs
Converts to Roman Catholicism from pagan religions